Originally Posted by ThermionicScott

THIS! Being condescending to the customer doesn't help anyone when there are perfectly logical reasons not to work on one of these bikes.

My friend works at an LBS, and for department-store bikes, they'll ask for a deposit before doing a checkup and repair work. They've been burned in the past by customers who balked at paying for needed repairs to their bikes, and have just abandoned the bikes there.

- Scott