Murray Whitman

A Bouquet Instead of a Brick

Letters that come to your attention are usually of complaints from unsatisfied customers regarding motor homes, trailers and such. We would like to pass on to your readers and fellow campers a story with a happy ending.

My wife and I were heading to Florida for a winter vacation in our motor home from North Bay, Ontario. The trip was going well until we reached Detroit, Michigan, where a warning light came on the dash, indicating a low water reading in our radiator. At the first available stop, we pulled off to investigate. The fluid in the rad was low, and thanks to a very kind trucker, who gave us antifreeze, we filled it up, and were able to continue on our way.

We checked the rad every hundred miles, and could see no visible leak, and were able to make it to our destination in Hudson, Florida. Once we settled in, we called a repair shop and had a mechanic come to the R.V. Park to examine the rad. It was determined that we needed a new rad (with only 9,000 miles on our new coach!!).

The Freightliner warranty was just over but we had luckily purchased extended warranty from DFS Advantage. DFS said we were covered, so the coach went in for repairs while we went to a motel.

The next day we got a call from the repair shop saying that DFS Advantage would not cover the radiator as it was thought to be corrosion due to improper maintenance. Wow! What a shock! Talk about a bummed-out vacation. So..$2,300.00 U.S. later, plus $500.00 U.S. for our motels for 7 days, we had our new rad.

We called Freightliner and spoke with Mr. Darren Canupp, who was both sympathetic and professional. Although they were under no legal obligation to do so, they sent us a cheque for $500.00 U.S. for good will.

We kept the old rad and when we returned home, we stopped at The Hitch House in Barrie where we had purchased the coach. We dropped off the rad and spoke with Tom Stoate, who had sold us the coach.

Tom contacted the extended warranty company and dug into the whole situation for us, including phone calls to Florida. He found out that the “corrosion” had been the word used by the Rad Shop that had examined the rad in Florida, but that had been a conclusion drawn because there had been nothing obvious wrong on the outside, and the Rad Shop had been reluctant to touch the rad because damage done may have been attributed to them, and as a consequence, we would loose our warranty.

Tom kept up the fight until it was agreed to bring in an independent appraiser to evaluate the radiator. This took a few weeks, and Tom kept us posted by phone of the progress. When inspected by the independent party, it was determined there was no corrosion, and as a result, we received compensation for the rad.

We have heard so many horror stories in our travels, of RV owners not getting help from the dealers or RV manufacturers, after the sale, that our intent here is to let our fellow RVers out there know that there are quality people out there – namely Tom Stoate – and quality specialists who sell them – like The Hitch House. They really care about their customers and deserve accolades for restoring faith in the operation of a company.

Hats off to Tom, The Hitch House and Darren at Freightliner for coming through. Thank you

Yours truly,

Murray Whitman
North Bay, Ontario
May/05