ComplaintsforNorthern Ohio Equipment Services

• Initial Complaint

  10/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  The best general description of my ongoing encounter with Northern Ohio Equipment is a complete lack of communication by this company with me, a potential customer, and, likely, internally among themselves. I brought my machine to them November 10, 2022 to receive an es***ate for repair, and through their lack of action, negligence and unresponsiveness I have lost a complete season’s use of my equipment. In the nearly 11 months they have now had my machine, I have dealt with 4 of their staff members, none of which seemed to know what I had requested or what the other employees had done or not done. The initial contacts I had with them were verbal, via phone and in-person, so there are no records of those discussions. However, I think you will see through my email correspondences with Mr. ********, (attached) that the entire process was unclear to me and contains some seeming contradictions as to what happened. When I brought the unit in, I described to the person who accepted it what the issues were, as well as a couple of quirks it had. (see attachments). I also furnished a written note describing the issues. He promised they would attend to it promptly. He also told me my lift would be stored inside. I heard nothing from them, but assumed it was in the queue. By March I had still heard nothing and called, told them I needed the es***ate ASAP. They said they would look into it. Nothing. I called again twice in May & June asking for the es***ate. On June 21st I finally received an es***ate and started email correspondence with Mr. ********. He sent me a work order dated November 10, 2022 stating they had done work on the unit, not described in the es***ate, with accrued charges. I was unaware of & never authorized any of those items, I simply wanted an es***ate. I am unclear what happened and when during the 11 months they had my lift. I asked Mr. ******** for a chronology of events, but he did not respond. Please see attached emails for detailed description

  Customer response

  10/04/2023

  Hello, my initial complaint with Northern Ohio Equipment is quite complex, and I did not have space within your character limitations to elaborate details essential to the complaint.In my initial complaint I attached the entire email correspondence I had with Mr. **** ******** in an attempt to resolve the issues.
  Here is the complete explanation, much of which is extracted from those emails:
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  I am writing to you today to explain my completely unsatisfactory experience with Northern Ohio Equipment.
  After months of failed attempts my lift remains unrepaired and likely damaged from improper care during the nearly 11 months it has been in their possession. I would like to pick up the lift, be refunded the $300 I have already paid, and take it to another service center to get a proper evaluation and determine if damage(s) were caused by negligent behavior on the part of Northern Ohio Equipment.
  
  
  The best general description of my ongoing encounter with Northern Ohio Equipment is a complete lack of communication by this company with me, a potential customer, and, likely, internally among themselves.
  
  I brought my machine to them last November to receive an es***ate for repair, and through their lack of action, negligence and unresponsiveness I have lost a complete season’s use of my equipment.
  In the nearly 11 months they have now had my machine, I have dealt with 4 of their staff members, none of which seemed to know what I had requested or what the other employees had done or not done. The initial contacts I had with them were verbal, via phone and in-person, so there are no records of those discussions. However, I think you will see through my email correspondences with Mr. ********, (attached) that the entire process was unclear to me and contains some seeming contradictions as to what happened.
  
  The machine is a Genie TZ-34/20, which is a tow-able compact battery powered boom lift. I purchased it used, in excellent condition, in the early spring of 2018. It was an older unit, but in excellent condition with new premium OEM spec Duracell batteries. Being in my late 60’s I find it to be very useful for tree trimming, gutter & roof repair and other tasks that otherwise require navigating a ladder.
  
  Last November, I was going to use it for a tree project and put it through the test regimen outlined in the Genie owner/service manual, which is a bullet list of checks of all functions. The batteries were fully charged, as I always kept them, and all functions were working, except ,when I raised up the boom, it would not come back down.
  I am mechanically inclined and perform all but the most specialized or intense maintenance and repair on the myriad equipment I own.
  I tried various troubleshooting techniques outlined in the Genie owner/service manual and that did not remedy the situation.
  
  I felt it was ***e to have a Genie authorized repair facility look at it.
  
  I went online and found that Northern Ohio Equipment was an authorized Genie service center.
  I called them and explained the issue. They dispatched me to their customer service representative *****.
  I explained in detail what was happening and wanted to bring it in for them to look at, but I could not tow it because the boom was in the air.
  ***** suggested several things for me to try and finally I very carefully backed out a check valve on the boom and it returned to the stowed position.
  Then I told ***** I could bring it in for them to look at so they could give me an es***ate for repair. He said fine.
  I made the trip from Mogadore to Medina later that afternoon.
  I was informed ***** was busy and not available, so they assigned another employee, “***” to check me in.
  I brought with me the key, the owner/service manual specific to my machine, the power cord for the onboard battery charger, and a written note detailing the boom issue, battery issue (see below), as well as some other ancillary items to check.
  I informed *** of my discussion with ***** that the main problem was most likely the boom holding valve and I wanted to confirm that and receive an estimate for repair.
  I also told him the batteries were fully charged, but the machine had a quirk- a parasitic load, that even when the key was off and removed it would slowly drain the batteries and, therefore, I disconnected them and either they should be disconnected or the the battery charger plugged in if it sits for any length of time.
  He said OK.
  I mentioned the battery issue in my note to them also.
  Next, I told him this machine had been stored indoors it’s entire life and asked were they going to keep it inside.
  He assured me they would.
  With that information, I then told him that winter was coming and I would not be in need of the lift until spring, so there was no rush and they could take their time and work it into their schedule.
  He said no, that they would attend to it promptly and get back to me with an estimate.
  I can almost quote him verba*** on this: “We don’t leave them sitting around and like to move them out.”
  
  Two weeks later I received a phone call from their office.
  The woman told me she was calling to get a payment of $300 from me for a part.
  I asked her what part, she said that she was just instructed to collect the payment and didn’t know anything about it.
  I gave her my credit card info and made payment for the part.
  
  After that, I heard nothing.
  It was winter and it wasn’t on my radar, and since I did tell them the unit was not needed until spring,
  I was comfortable believing it was in the queue and they would handle it in a timely fashion. Therefore, I was not concerned about their lack of response. Maybe the part was backordered. Maybe they scale back their operation in winter. I had no reason to believe they would not follow through.
  
  By early March, when I still had heard nothing, I called *****.
  After refreshing his memory who I was, he said he would look into it and get me the repair estimate.
  I told him I had upcoming projects and needed the machine this spring. He said OK.
  
  
  I heard nothing by May and called him again.
  He said that he had sent a request to the the office to email me an estimate and didn’t know why it didn’t happen and would get back to me.
  
  I heard nothing again and called ***** again in June.
  This time I told him I thought, because of their lack of attention, I felt I would be justified in filing a complaint.
  
  Several days later, June 21, 2023, more than 7 months after I brought them the lift, I finally received an estimate from the fourth person I have dealt with, the company owner, Mr. **** ********.
  We began an email discussion of issues with this transaction.
  
  I will not go into all details and try to provide a synopsis.
  Due to their persistent lack of communication I cannot say for certain the chain of events while the machine was in their possession, but I can attempt a chronology based on the information Mr. Zarelenga has stated in the email correspondence I initiated on June 21.
  I have attached the entire email string I exchanged with Mr. ******** that furnishes all the details.
  In all the statements Mr. ******** made in his responses to me, I am not clear on what did or did not happen to my machine during those months, or when they happened.
  In the latest email I sent him on August 26, I requested details of what was done, when it was done, and itemization of pre-estimate charges I was unaware of until I received a copy of a shop order on August 25th, which was dated November10th, ,2022, (with a notation under “machine description” of 02/16/2023?) with charges he claims have accrued.
  He did not respond to my request.
  
  As I said, I had received no communication from them until June 21.
  When I contacted him July 31 about lack of response he replied on August 01, stating they had employees on vacation. He also told me the note I had included in the items I had left with them was missing:
  “I went to the folder which has been in the office up front, there is not a note in it ( there may have been but its not there now for me to review”.
  In an August 09 reply he said, and again, I quote:
  “The machine was evaluated last year….” , and “the girl that called for the payment had the write up and was the one that would have contacted you with pricing. Unfortunately, she is no longer with the company so I can’t ask her if she did contact you or not, but this was<sic?> her primary role and we wouldn’t have questioned that she didn’t contact you.” (Emphasis mine.)
  Mr. ********’s other reason for their lack of action was that I said I didn’t need the lift until spring. Well, June 21st, when I received the first response, is not spring!
  
  Then, there is the issue of the batteries. I discovered the quirk this machine had with battery drain, when they are left connected, shortly after I bought it. My solution was to disconnect the batteries when not in use, and to top them off every month or so. I made a point of telling employee *** about this and said to either disconnect them or plug in the on board battery charger, which I furnished the cord for. I also mentioned this in the note I included. He said OK.
  In his email of August 09, Mr. ******** stated that “….the batteries in your machine are dead.”
  They were fully charged when I brought the unit to them. I told them verbally and in writing about the problem.
  
  Again, I am not sure what the chronology of events was while the unit was entrusted to them, but Mr. ******** stated on August 09 that the unit was evaluated “last year”. Therefore, they would have needed to connect the batteries to do so. Since this is an electric battery-operated unit, I asked Mr. ******** if a battery problem wouldn’t have been apparent right away? And, wouldn’t charging and testing the batteries be the first step in an evaluation? He did not respond.
  
  Then, from other statements from Mr. ********, I discovered that my machine had actually been stored outside, exposed to the elements all winter, contrary to what *** told me would happen.
  In a subsequent email Mr. ******** stated the batteries were dead, so I can only assume they were not disconnected and therefore subject to discharge during the winter months, while my lift was outside exposed to the elements.
  Mr. ******** and I had a detailed discussion about batteries, of which I am quite knowledgeable about their use, care and maintenance. He mostly discounted what I had to say and told me that batteries “…..will go dead over ***e by themselves, they are designed to.”
  That is not true. A fully charged, good condition battery disconnected from any source of discharge, will lose a maximum of 5% of it’s charge per month.
  And, this is an all-electric, battery powered unit. Without good batteries, it would be non functional.
  If I had brought it to them with bad batteries, how could they have done an evaluation?
  And, wouldn’t charging and evaluating the batteries be the first step in any analysis?
  And, shouldn’t they have contacted me to say there is a problem with them? No mention was made to me of a problem until I received the estimate on June 21, indicating the batteries “tested weak” (no date indicated for this supposed test) and they could sell me a set of new ones.
  But, then, on August 08, Mr. ******** stated “The batteries are dead, we have not tried to charge them yet.” In my last email to him, confused by his seemingly conflicting statements, I asked him to clarify exactly what and when they did anything with the batteries. He did not respond to my last email..
  
  Other than the $300 payment requested for the part in November, there was no mention of money until I received the estimate on June 21. Later, on a shop order sent to me August 25, 2023, which was dated November 10, 2022, listed items not on the original estimate that had been done without my knowledge or approval and charges for those items. There was even a charge for the pre-estimate “phone support”. This charge was never discussed or disclosed to me. None of the charges were itemized or dated.
  
  Mr.******** and I also had a discussion about my machine being stored outside all winter. He denied that *** told me it would be stored inside. He stated that “construction equipment” is meant to be stored outside.
  Yes, construction equipment is large and the sensitive components are inside the cab and protected. My lift is very compact, all electric and the control panels are out in the open. It fits in a standard residential garage with no problem, which is where I stored it. I looked through the manuals for the unit and could not find storage recommendations, so I contacted Genie directly and asked them about it.
  Their response was it had no IP rating for weather resistance and they did not recommend outdoor storage of this unit for extended periods.
  I also asked them about the battery drain issue and they told me that they were aware of the problem for this particular unit, and that they specify updating the controller unit to solve the problem. There is nothing on the es***ate I received about updating the controller, so I guess Mr. ******** is unaware of Genie’s recommendation.
  Even though I did talk to Genie directly, and was assigned a case number, Mr. ******** also discounted the veracity of my discussion with them and told me “Genie does only work with distributors……..”
  I have attached email response and documentation received from Genie.
  
  
  During my discussions with Mr. ********, I made it very clear to him that I was unhappy with their poor customer service and treatment of my machine while in their custody and total lack of communication.
  While I do not doubt the general competency and ability of the company to perform quality service work on myriad types of construction equipment, I feel that, perhaps, this particular machine is a bit outside their realm of familiarity and I don’t feel comfortable having them perform the repairs and wish to take it elsewhere for a second opinion..
  
  As I told Mr. ********, I have found another dealer and gave them a general outline of my situation. I spoke by phone and email with a representative who said to bring it to them and they would be more than happy to have their technician inspect, assess, and personally discuss any issues and options with me. I have attached an email from them.
  
  I am particularly concerned with the batteries. As I stated, I still am not clear what or when anything was done, and can only guess. They claim to have charged and “tested” them, but did not detail how they were tested.
  The batteries may be good, fair, or dead, I don’t know.
  And also why.
  I am certain they were fine as I tested them for capacity before I brought the unit in to them. If it sat all winter with the batteries connected, they would most certainly be completely discharged and then, after sitting out all winter, subject to freezing, which would be detrimental.
  In the interests of accuracy, I would like to take them to my battery supplier for analysis. They will do a complete diagnostic to determine capacity. If capacity is found to be unsatisfactory, they will dismantle the batteries to determine the cause. If the battery cell(s) have indeed been frozen, it will be apparent. In the unlikely event they have an unrelated problem, they would be able to determine that as well.
  
  As I was uninformed and unaware of any accruing charges listed on the pre-estimate work order I received, I do not feel I should pay for the work done without my consent. I did OK purchase of the part and offered to pay for that, since, presumably, it is a needed part. The unit also had a tire with a slow leak, which they say they went ahead and repaired, also without my knowledge or consent. I offered to pay for that as well. Considering the time, effort and possible damage(s) to my machine while entrusted to them, I believed that to be more than fair.
  Mr. ******** declined my offer.
  Now that the season of use of the lift is nearly over, even if it would not get repaired this year in time to use it, I would at least be able to bring it home where it would be sheltered and not subjected to another winter exposed to the elements.

   

  _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  Thank you for your attention to this matter. ****
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Business response

  10/06/2023

  Good afternoon,

  In response to Mr. ******s complaint i am offering a few items that i didnt see in the paragraph with his concerns.

  Mr. ****** called in and spoke with ***** which spent hours between calls helping him to get the machine lowered. **** adjusted a holding valve that allowed the boom to come down. When he arrived with the machine it had a tire that almost flat. The machine was checked in and taken into the yard, at no point was **** told we would store it indoors, we dont have space to store customer units indoors. At this point he also indicated he would ne need it until next year. The valve that he adjusted was purchased and installed  ( Authorized by ****, he gave us the CC ) and the machine was checked over. My involvement has come into play after i was told he was not satisfied with who he was talking to, one of the employees is no longer with us. The letter attached is authorizing repairs to the machine not requesting an estimate. I dont have any info on who or when he states he called in, i spoke with anyone that may have had a conversation and they have indicated no calls. **** has sent numerous large emails with info about the machine and most of it is not accurate and have responded to them. His last request is a detailed invoice, it has not been invoiced, we were waiting on approval or denial on the repairs. At this point there is an open amount that needs paid before the unit will be released for pick up                

  Customer response

  10/14/2023

   I am rejecting this response because: I am totally dissatisfied with Mr. ********'s varied and conflicting responses to the many issues that have plagued this transaction, outlined below and in all my other previuos correspondences with him. He has blamed me for the lack of movement on this and claims I had never asked for an estimate, which I did multiple times and, most notably, his denial that I had contacted anyone previously to resolve these issues. I have attached here phone records of my three attempts this year to contact *****, who, until Mr. ******** had informed me my case had been transferred to an office worker who knew nothing about it and is no longer with the company. She was supposedly tasked with contacting me, which she didn't, and Mr. ******** directly told me that was not a concern for him! In my three contacts with ***** on my estimate status he said he would check into it and get back with me, which never happened. He should have just told me my case was transferred to someone else and given me the info on the person who was handling it.
  
  

  Dear Mr. ********
  I received your reply, and I find the inconsistencies in your statements to me the past 3+ months simply mind-boggling and aggravating.
  I am pretty clear on what happened in this process from my end, but your delayed communications, starting 7 months after I brought the unit to you, has forced me to make assumptions, based on your contradictory statements throughout these 3+ months we have been corresponding.
  That is why I asked you to furnish me a chronology of everything that has happened on your end since I left the unit with you last fall. I believe this to be a reasonable request.
  You refused.
  
  
  I see you found the note I included in the folder I left with you when I dropped off the lift last fall, which, on August 23, you told me was “missing”. When was it “found”?
  You only sent the first page, so in the interests of accuracy, I have attached the entire note.
  This is simply an informal note I left with you, just highlighting the machine issues and what I wished to happen all of which was discussed verbally when I dropped off the lift. I made it very clear when I talked to ***, and he agreed, that you would look at the unit and give me an estimate for repair.
  And, how can you claim that my note was authorization for repairs, which you indicated earlier had been made last fall, when you did not find the note until just recently?
  
  The note is verifies some of the issues we discussed earlier and you dismissed.
  
  *** told me the unit would be stored inside, which you deny. In the note I made a point of telling you the lift had been in dry storage for 2 years. Why would I have mentioned that unless it was a concern of mine? It was important to me and I discussed it with *** and he assured me it would be stored inside.
  
  The battery issue we have been going back and forth about is detailed in the note as well. That was also a big concern of mine which I discussed with ***. Your chronology of what happened with the batteries and their present condition is utterly confusing.
  
  Next, let’s go to *****.
  When I called your company, I was transferred to *****. I explained the issue and ***** volunteered to help me get the lift to come down so I could bring it in. He did not indicate there would be a charge for this, so I assumed it was complimentary. Any charges should have been disclosed up front.
  When I recently had a roof replacement, I contacted 3 companies. Each came out, spent considerable time assessing the project and furnished me an estimate. No charge. When I go in for car repair, if there is a charge for an estimate, it is always clearly stated up front.
  
  I made arrangements with ***** to drop off the lift, and I thought it unfortunate he was not available when I got there, but assumed ***, who checked me in, would handle it just fine. I unhooked the trailer from my car in the parking lot, where it remained until after I left.
  It was not immediately transported to the yard in my presence, as you just stated.
  
  Two weeks later, I received a call from your office requesting payment for a part. I asked her what part, she said she did not know anything about it.
  Much later, in your correspondence with me, you told me an office girl was assigned to handle my account. I assume it was the same person who collected my payment? If so, this office girl who knew nothing about my project,was supposed to contact me and didn’t and you directly told me that was not a problem for you? Really?
  
  Fast forward to late winter, after 3 months of silence from you.
  On March 06th I called *****, who I assumed was still my rep because I had not heard otherwise, for a status update on my estimate. I told him I needed the unit this spring. He said he didn’t know but would check and get back to me. Nothing.
  On May 11th I called again, telling him I did not receive the estimate. He said he did not know why and would check into it. Nothing.
  On June 21st I called him again, and told him in no uncertain terms I thought his lack of action merited a complaint.
  This generated a same day response from you and the long overdue estimate.
  In your current response, you deny my above contacts with *****. Please see phone records attached.
  And, if I did not have contact with *****, did you just coincidentally happen to send your email and estimate that same day, even though, according to you, I never asked for one?
  
  
  
  

  

  Business response

  10/22/2023

  ****,

  Please send an expanded view of the phone log showing the time of day you called and who you spoke with.

  Thank you, 

  

  Business response

  10/23/2023

   I am rejecting this response because: I am totally dissatisfied with Mr. ********'s varied and conflicting responses to the many issues that have plagued this transaction, outlined below and in all my other previuos correspondences with him. He has blamed me for the lack of movement on this and claims I had never asked for an estimate, which I did multiple times and, most notably, his denial that I had contacted anyone previously to resolve these issues. I have attached here phone records of my three attempts this year to contact *****, who, until Mr. ******** had informed me my case had been transferred to an office worker who knew nothing about it and is no longer with the company. She was supposedly tasked with contacting me, which she didn't, and Mr. ******** directly told me that was not a concern for him! In my three contacts with ***** on my estimate status he said he would check into it and get back with me, which never happened. He should have just told me my case was transferred to someone else and given me the info on the person who was handling it.

  **** ******, 

  The information above is inaccurate along with many of the items you have included in the emails. I have not blamed you for not moving on the repair, your case hasnt been transferred to someone else, we dont have cases.  I never said you didnt ask for an es***ate or contacted anyone previously. You were never told the machine would be stored inside and I NEVER Said it is not a concern of mine. I got involved after i was told that wasnt taken care and have been getting you info so we could get the machine repaired and back to you. 

  You have indicated you want to take it to another location, It does need repaired before use. currently its not operating correctly. There is an open invoice that needs taken care of before it will be released.

   

  Thank you, 

  Customer response

  10/30/2023

  I am sorry, but I do not believe Mr. ******* has dealt in good faith.
  

   I believe, this entire ordeal with his company, Northern Ohio Equipment, to be an epic failure of customer service.
  Mr. ******** denies there is a problem and summarily dismisses the veracity of my claims, even when I present documentation to substantiate it.
  
  Therefore, I respectfully request mediation.
  
  For whatever reason(s), Northern Ohio Equipment Services has dropped the ball on my job and it seems they are now just looking for ways to shift the blame and cover their tracks. I have repeatedly asked Mr. ******** for a chronology of events that have or have not occurred and when they happened, during the time my lift has been entrusted to them.
  He has steadfastly refused to do this and explain to me the how and when of the events that occurred during the nearly 12 months they have had my lift, so everything that has happened on their side is very unclear to me.
  After repeated attempts and, ultimately, being forced to threaten them with filing a complaint, I finally received my oft requested estimate on June 21, which listed only ancillary, unrelated items, and did NOT include or even mention the initial problem of the valve replacement and other items, or any services that actually had been performed up to that time.
  Then, on August 25, eight months later, I received a work order for the initial valve replacement and other sundry items that were supposedly done last fall, with a lump hourly charge so I had, and still have, no idea of the individual item charges. Again, Mr. ******** refuses to itemize.
  
  
  Mr. ********’s first line of defense of their inaction was that I stated to *** and ***** that I did not need the lift until spring.
  That is correct, I did say that.
  But, that also means that I DID need it in the spring, which I said to *** when I dropped the lift off, and again to *****, when I spoke with him, just before spring, on March 6, asking for my estimate ASAP so we could please get going on this because I need it this spring (no response), again on May 11, (again, no response). Then, on June 21, I called AGAIN and told him in no uncertain terms that I felt justified in filing a complaint. I received the es***ate later that day.
  However, June 21 is summer, not spring, and my lift was yet to be repaired.
  Mr. ******** has just recently changed his narrative to now claiming I said I didn’t need the lift until next year.
  
  I have lost an entire season’s use of my machine because of their inaction, which they would like to claim is because of me and not them.
  
  Mr. ******** denied that I had attempted to contact them multiple times and recently asked me who I spoke with, even though I have told him several times ***** was the person I have contacted.
  Mr. ******** replied on October 06 : “I dont have any info on who or when he states he called in, i spoke with anyone that may have had a conversation and they have indicated no calls.” Presumably ***** was one of those he spoke with?
  I have furnished phone records to him of my calls to *****, made to his personal cell phone, so, of course the calls went to him.
  When we did the initial troubleshooting by phone ***** told me to use his personal number so I could text him photos. I entered his number as a primary into my contacts under “Northern Ohio Equipment”. Therefore, it is listed as “home” on the call records.
  According to the NOES website profile, ***** is a company principal. I am therefore guessing they communicate regularly, and, I doubt, because I was so unhappy in my phone call June 21, that they did not have a discussion, or that both of them would have simply “forgotten”, *****’s conversation with me that day. It also seems very unlikely that I would have just coincidentally received an es***ate on that same day if I had not contacted ***** and they had not conversed.
  After I furnished to him my call records with *****, on October 23 Mr. ******** responded: “ I never said you didnt ask for an es***ate or contacted anyone previously.”
  I think the inconsistencies in Mr. ********’s statements, at least to me, are obvious.
  
  He has denied most of the things I talked about with *** who checked me in when I dropped the lift off, as well as to ***** previously.
  When I dropped the unit off I included a folder containing the service manual for the lift, the power cord for the charger, and a note, outlining the issues I talked about with ***.
  
  This note is important because it described the issues with the batteries, which Mr. ******** and I have had lengthy discussions about. This particular lift DOES have a battery drain issue and I DID correspond with Genie tech support both by phone and by email and they verified the battery drain issue, telling me they have a recommended update for the controller contact to solve the problem. When I told Mr. ******** about my correspondence with Genie, and that I have a case number to prove it, his only response to me was “Genie does only work with distributors.”
  I have attached the documentssent to me by Genie.
  If Mr. ******** does not believe this, he could have simply called Genie to verify what I say.
  
  At no time, other than the request for payment for a part, was payment of any kind discussed.
  Yet according to Mr. ********, and unbeknownst to me, 8 months later, charges had been accruing, including the initial phone call from ***** to troubleshoot the unit enough that I could bring it in.
  ***** did not say anything to the effect of “I can help you with this, but there will be a charge of $xxx.”
  Instead, he merely said, “Let’s see if we can get your boom down so you can bring it in.”
  Also, Mr. ******** claims my note, described above,of which he sent you the first page of on October 23, 2023, was a carte blanche go-ahead to repair the unit without regard to my approval, cost, or any communication of what was happening.
  It was not. It was there to highlight the verbal conversation I would have with ***** (or, as it happened,with ***, since ***** was not available) about issues with the unit when I dropped it off.
  
  Previous to that, On August 01, 2023 Mr. ******** told me the note was “missing” : “I went to the folder which has been in the office up front, there is not a note in it ( there may have been but its not there now for me to review”.
  These service charges supposedly had been accruing since last fall, which Mr. ******** claims were approved by me in a note that was “lost” ,and that he was not aware existed, until at least August of the following year?
  
  
  On August 09, 8 months after I brought it in, I was finally informed that my lift had actually been evaluated last year! (no date given.)
  That was news to me. I was not informed of this when it happened or within any reasonable ***e afterward.
  
  Mr. ******** has stated several different variations of what happened with my batteries as follows:
  
  
  -Listed on their work order, dated 11/10/2022 (which I didn’t receive until August 25th , 2023) as completed work on 02/16/2023? : "charge batteries" and "charge batteries individually"
  
  then- on 06/21/23: “The batteries in the machine are testing weak and may not last.
  Replacement batteries are 759.68 for the four.”
  
  
  then- on 06-27-23: “As for the batteries, they will go dead over***e by themselves, they are designed to. I have the shop checking them and I will let you know the condition”. The first sentence is not true and the second never happened.
  
  then- on 8/1/23 he said: “The batteries are dead,  we have not tried to charge them yet.”
  
  None of these conflicting statements indicate the batteries were ever charged or analyzed “last year”, or any ***e before this August 1st statement, so I assume they were not.
  And, if the batteries were bad, as they claim, how could they perform an evaluation?
  This is a battery powered unit, shouldn’t an evaluation of the batteries be the first thing done?
  At the very least they, should have plugged the on-board charger in with the power cord I furnished.
  Instead, I assume they connected the batteries last fall some***e, which were fully charged, did an evaluation and then left the batteries connected, because my note outlining this battery drain issue, and my solution to disconnect them when not in use, was “lost”. So, the batteries were discharging all winter, and would most certainly be dead by spring.
  
  
  
  
  Most of my statements above I believe to be true. However, due to the limited information I have received on some of the events on their end, I have been forced to make extrapolated, but yet reasonable, assumptions, which I define as such.
  I welcome clarification from Mr. ******** on items he believes to be in error.
  The items in bold in quotations are exact quotes extracted from my correspondences with Mr. ********.
  Thank you, ****

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