Absolutely unacceptable service. This was by far the worst experience I've had at a Big O Tires.
I called this location at 7:00 AM when they opened and spoke directly with the manager, Aureliano Garcia. I asked if they could install my backup tires and perform an alignment on my truck. He told me they could and asked me to bring it in.
I arrived around 7:25 AM and was one of the first customers there. My truck was brought into the bay right away. Before leaving it with them, I specifically asked Aureliano how long the job would take. He told me approximately two hours, mentioning that my tires were larger and might take a little extra time.
Two hours passed. Not finished.
Two and a half hours passed. Still not finished.
Three hours passed, and my truck was sitting in essentially the same condition. The wheels I could see on the ground hadn't even moved from where they had been sitting. At one point, I saw a technician who had been working on my truck outside on a cigarette break. Meanwhile, customers who arrived after me were getting their vehicles finished and leaving before me.
I repeatedly had to approach the manager myself to find out what was happening. Not once during this entire ordeal did the manager proactively come over and give me an update. Every time I asked, I was simply told they were "behind schedule."
Eventually I saw my truck come off the lift and thought, finally, it's finished. I asked Aureliano if it was ready and was then told, "No, we still have to do the alignment."
At that point it had been approximately FOUR HOURS for a job I was originally told would take about two.
I own and manage a business myself. Delays happen--I completely understand that. What I don't understand is leaving a customer sitting there for hours without communicating with them. If you're running two hours behind, tell your customer. Give them the option to leave, get a ride, reschedule, or make other arrangements instead of wasting their entire morning.
I ultimately paid $389 for the service. Despite the excessive delay and lack of communication, I wasn't offered any type of courtesy or adjustment for the inconvenience.
But somehow it got even worse.
After finally leaving and driving 20 minutes home, I discovered that they had not returned my wheel-lock key after using it on my truck. I immediately called Aureliano, and apparently the technician had forgotten to put it back.
So after already losing essentially my entire morning, I now had to make another 40-minute round trip because of their mistake just to retrieve something that belongs in my truck and that I need in order to remove my wheels.
Between the original wait and having to drive back, roughly five hours of my day were wasted.
I gave them every opportunity to handle the situation professionally. I was patient when two hours became three. I was patient when three became four. But poor communication followed by forgetting my wheel-lock key was the last straw.
I will be escalating my experience to Big O Tires corporate.
Based on my experience, I cannot recommend this location. The lack of communication, excessive wait, and failure to return an important piece of my vehicle equipment were completely unacceptable.
Worst Big O Tires experience I've ever had. I will not be returning. read more