Froid
Contributor
Wow where this dive shop?
Do you hate your LDS?
- Thread starter SailNaked
- Start date
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Wow where this dive shop?
wrybosome
Contributor
They haven't wronged me but I'm ticked off at them. I went to get an Al 40 today ($134 at LP, $159 at another LDS who includes lifetime free VIP and hydro). My LDS wanted $225 and wouldn't come down at all. They actually showed me invoice ($124.99) and said the profit margin was too low to come down. They know me in there, I'm not doing one caribbean vacation and never diving again. If they were smart they'd work with me...
They do good sales at the summer picnic and near Christmas, and that's the next time I'll shop there.
/rant.
They do good sales at the summer picnic and near Christmas, and that's the next time I'll shop there.
/rant.
driftwood
Contributor
I love the shop I currently frequent. The owner and staff are polite and appreciative of my business. They never try to sell me something I don't need or isn't what I am really looking for.
Big change from my previous LDS. Hope they are doing well, but I didn't like the pushy sales tactics and steering toward brands that I avoid. The final straw was when I got a reg serviced there. Got a GREAT deal on Ebay (15% of retail) and he decided that a bit more could be charged for the rebuilt since it didn't come from his shop. Now I pay less than half what he charged me to get the reg rebuilt.
Big change from my previous LDS. Hope they are doing well, but I didn't like the pushy sales tactics and steering toward brands that I avoid. The final straw was when I got a reg serviced there. Got a GREAT deal on Ebay (15% of retail) and he decided that a bit more could be charged for the rebuilt since it didn't come from his shop. Now I pay less than half what he charged me to get the reg rebuilt.
Yes......
Took me months to get our C-cards. Although he would not admit to a problem with us, I think the owner got upset with some of my posts regarding our training etc., even though I NEVER mentioned the shops name! It took constant hounding by phone, and several trips to the shop, and even getting the agency involved, to get our cards.
When we finally got them, my wife's was wrong (sport instead of OW), and neither had our pics, even though we made a special trip to the shop to get pics taken. Took a few more months to get her card corrected, but still no pics.
Just checked the agency website, and there is still no record of my Nitrox cert - owner put a sticker on my ow card, said I didn't need the card.
Guy was always polite, just kept lying to me...."It's on it way", "Called agency this morning, cards will be here Friday", and on and on and on! Knew he was lying because I was in contact with the agency via phone and website.
Classic, passive aggressive personality type - probably other issues too.
Haven't been back for a year, and don't have the energy to hound them for my Nitrox card.
Ben
Took me months to get our C-cards. Although he would not admit to a problem with us, I think the owner got upset with some of my posts regarding our training etc., even though I NEVER mentioned the shops name! It took constant hounding by phone, and several trips to the shop, and even getting the agency involved, to get our cards.
When we finally got them, my wife's was wrong (sport instead of OW), and neither had our pics, even though we made a special trip to the shop to get pics taken. Took a few more months to get her card corrected, but still no pics.
Just checked the agency website, and there is still no record of my Nitrox cert - owner put a sticker on my ow card, said I didn't need the card.
Guy was always polite, just kept lying to me...."It's on it way", "Called agency this morning, cards will be here Friday", and on and on and on! Knew he was lying because I was in contact with the agency via phone and website.
Classic, passive aggressive personality type - probably other issues too.Haven't been back for a year, and don't have the energy to hound them for my Nitrox card.
Ben
A dive shop should be like a wonderful casual mistress you can use anytime you want, once you've been properly trained, instead of like a desperate psycho chick who threatens suicide if you ever dump her two minutes after you give her your phone number.
Don't let dive shops put your information into their systems, Trust me. It's all over once they have your zip code.
Don't let dive shops put your information into their systems, Trust me. It's all over once they have your zip code.
Sas
Contributor
Well... hate is a strong word, but I immensely dislike the shop closest to me, where I did my OW. The owner constantly lies about everything, including stuff he really doesn't need to lie about, and is one of the most arrogant people I have met. I received terrible customer service and treatment from the store including multiple, blatent attempts to rip me off and ended up writing a letter of complaint. Was politely written and I got a polite response back. I subsequently found out the owner bad mouthed me to pretty much anyone who would listen (including buddies of mine), he called other shops to complain about me, acted as a sockpuppet on a local forum to argue with me (and a few others) and withheld my dive buddy's AOW card for over six months (he started being rude and difficult to my buddy once he realised we continued to dive together). There was one other staff member who was nearly as bad too, one of my OW instructors. The other staff were lovely as were the club members in the shop club, so it was unfortunate, really.
Basically, I've never encountered such appalling behaviour from a business, just ridiculous.
Lucky there is another shop close by who have been great, as have nearly every other store I have dealt with. Other than the LDS I certified with, I haven't had a bad experience per say, just shops that are indifferent with substandard service (but not deceptive).
Basically, I've never encountered such appalling behaviour from a business, just ridiculous.
Lucky there is another shop close by who have been great, as have nearly every other store I have dealt with. Other than the LDS I certified with, I haven't had a bad experience per say, just shops that are indifferent with substandard service (but not deceptive).
Tanks
Registered
Been there.sydney-diver
Contributor
I wouldn't go as far as saying hate, but what bugs me with one shop which I've stopped using is every time I walk in they do try and sell a PADI course (that in itself I can live with, it is their business) but when I did book and pay for a course they then start rescheduling, due to not enough students to cover the cost of the instructors or the boat or whatever. I feel like I've been scammed by the old bait and switch so I no longer use them. I was particularly annoyed when they changed my Nitrox practise dives from shore to boat, asked me to pay extra for the boat, then told me I wasn't certified for boat diving so should do the PADI boat cert first, then cancelled the dive because there wasn't enough students to justify booking the charter... 
Guess I've just been lucky up till now. I frequent 2 local dive shops. Both are excellent. Very positive helpfull staff. I enjoy every visit. They have let me return items that had issues, fixed things that were minor without charge, let me have free air most of the time (sometimes I insist on paying), and generally treat me like the owners dad. Unless I can get something near free I buy from them. I want them to stay in business. I think the only thing I've purchased on line was a map of Cozumel.
Well Ill start by saying my LDS's in town are ran by people who are only human. Ive had my good and my bad experiences but really nothing to bad mouth over. I go in and have a normal conversation and learn alot from them. Ive had equipment serviced by them that failed in pool test and it soured my mouth but what I had to remember is they are only human.
Now I went to some dive shops away from home that really angered me more then helped me. Like one nameless dive shop on vacation where the staff consisted of several 16 year old (or appeared to be) and one lady in her 40s that was the manager. I asked if I could get nitrox and the only answer I got was to the effect of "We dont allow nitrox on our tours because 1 it extends your bottom time to an unfair advantage over air divers and 2 the liability of the increased oxygen content."
Now I am later informed some destinations like Hawaii and some caribbean islands do offer nitrox but you have to request it in advance. Im ok with that when its a legitamit answer. Another tactic I really hate is the car salesman approach. You do all your research and all your questioning and decide I want brand X. So you goto the dive shop and they inform you "We dont sale that here but brand A is alot better then brand X and we have it in stock."
Kind of like going to a ford dealership and telling the guy you havent decided on ford or chevy of course chevys are aweful when asking a ford dealer.
Now I went to some dive shops away from home that really angered me more then helped me. Like one nameless dive shop on vacation where the staff consisted of several 16 year old (or appeared to be) and one lady in her 40s that was the manager. I asked if I could get nitrox and the only answer I got was to the effect of "We dont allow nitrox on our tours because 1 it extends your bottom time to an unfair advantage over air divers and 2 the liability of the increased oxygen content."
Now I am later informed some destinations like Hawaii and some caribbean islands do offer nitrox but you have to request it in advance. Im ok with that when its a legitamit answer. Another tactic I really hate is the car salesman approach. You do all your research and all your questioning and decide I want brand X. So you goto the dive shop and they inform you "We dont sale that here but brand A is alot better then brand X and we have it in stock."
Kind of like going to a ford dealership and telling the guy you havent decided on ford or chevy of course chevys are aweful when asking a ford dealer.
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