Complaint Review: Wal-Mart store # 659

I am having many problems with Wal-Mart over my truck. On May 9, I took it to the Charlotte Avenue Wal-Mart to have a high mileage oil service done. I've used them for several years now with no trouble. The one difference with this trip was that they told me my tires needed to be replaced. They had me sign a document saying that they told me. I looked at the tires when I went out and they were fine.
Over the next ten days, I drove my truck to work and back (28 miles round trip for several days) only. The truck wasnt driven over the week-end at all.

However, on the 19^th of May, I suddenly had serious trouble with my truck. It started making a noise and cut off suddenly. My "check engine" light came on for the first time

I was on a part of Hwy 70 that doesn't have a place to pull over, so I tried restarting the truck and it came on. I proceeded to a point where I hoped to pull over. The truck stopped again; I tried neutral to roll down the hill, but I was a bit scared of having no control so I started it one more time. Then it stopped again as I was pulling into a station in Pegram.  When it cut off, I lost total control no power steering, no braking, no control! I barely made it off the road and into a stopping point!
Immediately, I knew the engine was blown and that meant that my oil service was not done correctly, so I called Wal-Mart on my cell phone. I was very upset and told them what had happened. The first lady I spoke to gave me off to a young man. He listened and said he would come out and check the truck for me. I waited for about 25 minutes for him to arrive. When he got there, he didnt introduce himself, but I saw his name on his shirt was John.

When he got there, he checked the oil level first. I looked at him and his face acknowledged the reservoir was empty. My daughter said, Its empty, huh?? He nodded his head. Then he got under the truck. I believe he was checking the drain cap for the oil. Then he moved around under there and took out with the oil filter (which they changed for me during the servicing) by hand.

When he came out, John had a rag in his hand and was wiping the oil filter. Then, he put both arms on the front part of the truck over the engine with his head down and shaking slightly.  At this point, he went back under the truck and ratcheted the oil filter into place.

John said he would have to call his manager and since he didnt have a phone, he would have to go into the store and use theirs. I told him I have a cell phone he could use. He said he would be right back because he didnt want to use my minutes. Then, he came back and said he was going to use the payphone by the gas station. As he got there, he realized that there was no phone, so he came back and said he would have to borrow my phone after all. I gave it to him and he quickly walked away from me where I couldnt hear what he was saying. 

When John he finished, he went to his vehicle and brought over a large container of oil and a smaller one. He put the five quarts of oil in the truck, checked the level again and told me to try starting the truck. It wouldnt do anything. I told him that it had destroyed my engine,

He said that he needed to use my phone again. He quickly walked away from us. When he finished, he said that I would have to go to the store and fill out some paperwork so they could get the truck towed to their garage. He didnt ask if I had transportation or anything. Fortunately, my daughter got there about the same time John did, so I did have someone who could take me there.

When we got to the store, John beat us there and was in the automotive department when I walked in. He said that Kelly knew I was there and would be with me in a few minutes. My daughter and three grandchildren sat and waited. We waited over 30 minutes before Kelly came in.

She just walked in and looked at my daughter and me inquisitively wondering which of us it was. I spoke up and she sat next to me and went over a paper that she wanted me to complete. As Kelly sat down, John came in and gave her a copy of the work that I had done on the 9^th. She looked at it and asked John if he had worked on my truck. He reared back and said, Noooo. She asked who it was and he said it was Rob and Jess (I believe I heard the names correctly). He further acknowledged that he had answered a question for them when they were doing my truck, but didnt specify what question.

Then, she said that she had to go to her office to get something else. As she left, I completed my statement on the form. She was gone a good bit, but finally came back. She took my statement and read it. Kelly then told me that she would have to fax this to their claims office, but no one would be there at that time of day. She gave me the name and phone number of the company that handled these cases.

She told me someone would be calling me the next day. Also, Kelly did tell me that she wouldnt be there the next few days, but if I needed to ask questions, any manager could help me. There was no mention of gee, Im sorry this happened to you, any kindness or even a smile. As an after thought, she went out the door saying good-by.

The next day, I called the number and was told that Lisa would be handling my case. The operator or receptionist at the company gave me my case number and Lisas extension. She tried to connect me to Lisa, but no answer. I had to leave a message. I had explained to Kelly and in my message to Lisa that I was teacher and to call me between 3:30 and 4:00. However, when I left work at 3:30, I had a message from Lisa. I tried calling her right back, but got her machine again.

In the mean-time, my sister tried to call them and actually got hold of Lisa. Sharon called me when I left work and told me that Lisa indicated that they were not taking responsibility. She said I would have to prove it was them. I asked how I do that! My sister felt that Lisa was taking a stand against my claim.  I was furious by this time.

The next day, I made a point of reaching Lisa during school hours. I explained to her my concerns and that I was very upset. She said she needed to ask me some questions so they could start working on my claim. I verified my name and address. Then Lisa asked me my birth-date.  I asked why she needed that and she just hem-hawed around and said it was on the form. Next she asked me my social security number. Again, I asked why she needed that. I told her this was an issue about my truck, not my age and social security number. So then, she moved on and I told her what had happened: that John had checked the oil cap and the oil filter under the truck; that he had indicated through body language that the oil filter was the problem. She asked why I thought that and I told her he had taken it out by hand. Lisa jumped in and said they were supposed to be hand-tightened. So, I asked her why John had ratcheted it back in when he went back under the truck. Lisa said that she didnt know why he did that because she wasnt a mechanic. She was frustrated with me and I with her attitude.

She asked me where the truck was and I told her it was still at the spot I left it when I pulled off the road. She told me that I had better get it moved because Wal-Mart wouldnt take responsibility for any vandalism. Then, I told her that John had told me that I needed to go to the store and fill out paperwork so they could tow the truck to their garage. Lisa said they just didnt know what they were talking about.

That angered me because I would have had it moved sooner except for what John had told me. Lisa proceeded to tell me that they were not liable for a rental vehicle or anything else until I proved it was their fault. I asked her how to do that. She said I needed to take it to a mechanic and then let her know who it was so she could talk to him.

I had a tow truck take my Toyota Tacoma to Jeffs garage in Bellevue. I called and told Jeff what had happened and that someone from Wal-Mart would be calling him. I authorized him to talk to them. After a day or two, I asked Jeff if anyone had called him. He is frustrated because no one had and he needed to know what to do with my truck.

Finally, I got hold of Lisa and told her that Jeff hadnt received a call. She put me on hold   and said she would try calling him while I was on hold and then get back on line with me.

When she got back with me, she said that someone had picked up the phone and hung up again. She called right back and no answer. Lisa asked me if they might be at lunch. I told her I didnt know. She assured me she would try again in a little bit and then get back to me. I called Jeff and told him to expect a call. He asked if it was an 800 number and I told him it might be. So he said it looked as if she were calling right then. So, I hung up.

She didnt call me back at all that day. I tried reaching her again the next day. Every time I tried to reach her I got a machine. So, I started using the operator (receptionist) to get through. I still couldnt reach her. I was told the next day that Lisa was out for the long week-end (this was the Friday before Memorial Day). I asked to speak to her supervisor and again, I was told he was holiday as well. So, I asked for the next supervisor and was sent to Cassie. I left a message on her machine. This was the 28^th of May.

I waited over the week-end and holiday for them to contact me. On Tuesday, June 1^st, I called and left another message at 0840. I called back 1042 and talked to the operator who transferred me to someones machine. I also left another message for Lisa.

Again, on the 2^nd of June, I called at 0945 and got the operator (receptionist) and after I explained my frustration, was transferred to Brians machine. It wouldnt let me leave a message. I tried three times to leave one, but kept getting disconnected. I called back and was transferred to Chip where I had to leave a message. I called right back again and got an operator named Carol. She sent me to Linda who is an admin assistance.

She got Chip on the phone with me. Chip said he would take care of this. He spoke to me and said he was going to call Jeffs garage and call me right back. A few minutes later, he did call me back. He said he had spoken to Jeff and that a third-party would have to go look at the truck. After that happened, Chip said that he would call me back and let me know the next step. He said it would take about 72 hours before he expected a report from this third-party.

On the 8^th of June, I called Jeff because I had not heard anything. He said that a guy had come out the week before and looked at the truck. He took pictures and spoke to Jeff. Jeff indicated to me that the mechanic from Wal-Mart had said there was no problem with the oil service that caused the problem!!!

I called Claims Management at 1050 and had to leave another message!! I called back and was disconnected. At 1054, I left a message for Chip. A few minutes later, Chip called and told me that the company they work with (the thirdparty) was having system problems and he couldnt find out anything until it was up. He said they told him it should be up around noon. He further told me he would call me when he got the report. He apologized for this taking so long.

I told him how frustrated I am at not having my truck and how upset Jeff is that my truck is sitting there and not knowing what to do with it!! I have had to borrow cars for work, doctors appointments and shopping needs. He said he understood and work get with me as soon as possible.

Now, its June 11^th and I have not heard anything from anyone since the 8^th!! I am very frustrated and need some help with fighting this corporation!!

I finished this around noon on the 11^th and was graced with a phone call from Lisa at 1617 hours. She read the report of the third party who said that there was no blow back or any indication how the oil was not in the engine. Therefore, she said Wal-Mart was denying my claim.

If there is no indication of how the oil got out, then they must not have put any in on the 9^th!!! There is some explanation for the oil not being there after I took it to Wal-Mart to have the service!! John, from Wal-Mart, clearly seemed to know that the oil filter wasnt in right. His body language spoke volumes!!

If they put it in on the 9^th, it came out somehow. John had a rag in his hands when he was under the truck and when he had the oil-filter in his hands. Did he wipe away the blow back?  I dont know, but there has to be an explanation for the oil disappearing and the truck blowing the motor.

Also, did the third party person know that the reason there was oil in the truck at the garage was that John put it in when he came to meet me in Pegram???  Did he know the whole story or exactly what was he told?

To add insult to injury, a few minutes after Lisa called, Kevin, from the Charlotte Wal-Mart called me. I told him I suspected he was told to call me since I complained to the District. He admitted as much. He did tell me that he knew my claim was denied. I vented on him and he was kind enough to listen. He said it wasnt up to him, but was sorry about what happened.

So now, I have to hire a lawyer to sue them. There is no other explanation for my engine blowing except it not having oil. I never touched the oil in the truck after they did the service. No one else did. They were the only ones doing any type of service on my truck!!!

I am a disabled American Veteran (Army) and a special education teacher. For the past couple of months, my health has been failing and Im not certain I will be able to go back to work in August. This incident is giving me a great deal of anxiety, which I am supposed to keep to a minimum.  I am totally upset with Wal-Mart for this.