Much room for improvement
J. Fay
Submitted this review about
TNT Transport Services
Review made Live: 9/3/2005 6:13:00 PM
When I researched auto transport companies, Tn'T didn't have many reviews, but those it had looked good. Well, I'm sorry to say that Tn'T didn't quite live up to my expectations, and they need to do some pretty basic changes before I could recommend them to anyone.
The good news is that my car did make it from San Francisco to Durham without any damage. I gave two stars for that.
In securing the contract, they were very friendly and communicative. In fact, they called me after I submitted the on-line quote to see whether I was interested in using them. Good communication is important, so I decided to stick with them.
They were a little more expensive than many others, and quite a bit more expensive if you factor in that I dropped off the car and picked it up myself, but I fearing bad consequences if I lowballed myself, I felt ok shelling out a bit extra.
A few days after dropping off my car, I checked my on-line credit card statement. I saw the expected $1150 charge, but then noticed an extra $100 charge. Hmm.... I sent my Tn'T agent an email asking what that was about, and she replied that the car was larger than expected and cost a $100 more to ship. Not wanting to make any stink while my car was in transit, I replied that I'd get back to that matter once my car arrived in Durham.
What bothered me here was not so much the $100 extra, but (1) the failure to accurately estimate the cost the first time, and (2) their charging my card without notifying me. When competing against so many other auto transport companies, you'd think a simple phone call or email would be worth trying to maintain good customer relations.
Tn'T sends out occasional emails telling you the status of your car. A good idea, but the messages are very vague: "Your car is currently awaiting transfer in our Joliet facility. It is still expected to arrive as arranged." I got that message twice - several days apart. Then, two days prior to last date in the windows I was to expect my car, I decided I'd call them since it'd been several days since my last email update. Yep. My car was going to be late. Within hours of my phone call, I get two email stating that indeed, my car was going to be late.
Again, simple communication goes a long way in maintaining a good customer relation. Tn'T is missing the easy pitches.
When my car finally arrive, I resume my conversation about the $100 overcharge. The receptionist at Tn'T states that my agent is will return my call in 10 minutes. 45 minutes later, I call back; she's on another line but tells me herself she'll call me back in a few minutes. I ask what a "few minutes" means, and she can't answer. We'll you get the picture. Finally I mention that if I don't hear back in 20 minutes, I'll just go straight to my credit card company which will be a hassle for the both of us. A half hour later, she calls to say she spoke with the TnT accountant and yes, $100 will be refunded to my credit card account. Phew!
But, that was over a week ago, and no $100 credit has been applied to my account. I've now lodged a complaint with my credit card company, and the saga continues.
Tn'T, if you're reading this, I suggest that you spend just a tad more resources in simple communications and you'd be much, much more competitive in this very competetive industry. For now, however, I'd recommend others to look elsewhere for an auto transport company.
