Originally Posted by
gyozadude
I sort of disagree on the labour being intangible. After all, it has tangible cost. And a pricelist in most shops for services done defines the tangible money one must pay for the service.
Once a major mistake gets made like both pedals coming loose, something that can be fatal if it was the cause of a crash, then I'd demand a full refund. Any true mechanic worth his salt and running a shop will not let a bike out of the shop without a thorough check of these simple things. And as another person has pointed out, such a mistake warrants the entire service being done again -AT A DIFFERENT SHOP- since this can cause irrevocable loss of trust in that LBS.
Sure, you can try to provide free offers for something else, but to say that the rider benefits from the labour performed on the other parts of the bike ignores the simple fact that without another full inspection, the rider suffers mental distress over the loss of peace of mind of his bike. Who's paying for that? And if you think that's has no monetary value, well, there's precedent in lots of court cases and settlements for that.
LBSs are in a tough spot. They have to charge a lot for labour. But doing so, means they have to be serious about quality and they must be committed to service. If it were me managing the store, I'd give the guy a FULL REFUND -AND- offer to check his bike over by the most senior mechanic for any other potential issues for free on the spot if he'd let us touch his bike. The cost of this mistake is either taken up front, or the LBS will suffer the much higher future losses when the guy comes onto some bike forum and posts about how bad his experience was.
I didn't say that labor was intangible, just that it couldn't be undone. Mistakes happen, and the customer is entitled to some consideration, but not both a full refund and the benefit of the service. He might feel a loss of confidence, and I'd offer to have the work rechecked, but that brings up a cntral question.
If a customer feels
entitled to a full refund based on the circumstances described, there's no reason for him to have confidence in the shop, so any offer to recheck the work is pointless. OTOH, if he does trust my senior mechanic (not the one who did the work) then a recheck, but not a full refund is indicated.
In the real world things happen, people make mistakes, and responsible take responsibility for their own mistakes. But in the same world people recognize that things happen, and do dot expect compensation beyond their actual loss.
As a practical matter, if a customer couldn't meet me at some reasonable middle ground, I might offer a full refund, but on the condition that he never darken my doors again. That may seem archaic, but experienced retailers will tell you, that some people will never be happy no matter what you do, so the best way to handle them is to wish them on your competitors.
TO the OP, in my opinion, based on having been on both sides of similar situations, your entitled to an apology, some consideration for the inconvenience, and if you believe the rest of the job is suspect, a recheck, but you're not
entitled a full refund.