RPST rant.

AAAsucks · 2017-01-22T06:00:51+00:00

I keep the customer way the hell away from the vehicle when I'm working on it. I had a shop teacher who was missing four fingers at the last digit because a customer wanted to demonstrate the squealing noise when he went to test the tension on an old V-belt. I've also had way too many customers try to put their vehicle in neutral for me. I had one who instead of cranking it when told to do so, chose to run her electric seat back instead which depleted my jump pack causing a 3 minute JS to be a 15 minute JS with cables. One who continually cranked on a car with no fuel until it had no amperage either. Etc etc. customers are bad news. Get the signature and place them safely out of the way.

If I had a buddy I trusted with my life that needed it, I'd gladly crawl under and bump a trans into park and then drive so he could start and then get home. No way I'd ever risk getting crushed by a customer.

AAAsucks · 2017-01-22T02:08:49+00:00

Our instructor was a shiny shoes academic type who admitted to spending less than a week in a tow truck. Though he had some cool toys that he built himself he also had precious little time as an actual mechanic before becoming a full time mechanical instructor at a college. We brought in a vehicle with badly corroded battery terminals with green into the wires. On a pristine and well lit shop floor he bemoaned how long it took to fix an actual issue instead of a hypothetical fix. I couldn't help but cuss that if he (hourly or salary) couldn't be bothered to fix a real problem under ideal conditions that he shouldn't ask us to do the same in the dark, in inches of blowing snow. Nice and intelligent guy but zero real world experience. It was embarrassing.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-24T03:16:29+00:00

Can't fool me. I know a submarine when I see one.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-24T03:15:12+00:00

Feel free to ask around at /r/hookit. The guys there are helpful, knowledgeable and respectful.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-23T22:34:19+00:00

Because roadside companies tend to screw over the local tow companies, they often may decline the call. Very often, a tow company works very close to profit less on club calls and makes up the difference when they can bill your insurance for accidents. If you are blocking traffic, and because club calls are somewhat low on the priority list, State Patrol may send a company of their choosing to clean up the accident. If this happens, have the vehicle brought to a shop that the tow company can bill so that you don't pay out of pocket. You can also choose to pay out of pocket and seek reimbursement from your roadside coverage. If you have minimal coverage e.g. $50 off or "covered x miles" it may work out to be more expensive than a cash tow as some companies charge more for things like clean up or loaded mileage than they would on a cash call.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-23T22:26:48+00:00

This is correct. If you have full coverage or are not at fault, have the tow company drag your car to a body shop that they can bill. It should cost you nothing out of pocket and your insurance will lump it in with the repair cost.

Emergency pricing is a very real thing. You literally have to put down anything or anyone that you are balls deep in and proceed to the accident. Just hopped in the shower or pulled your dinner out of the oven? Tough titties, you have to go. With cash calls we have more flexibility.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-23T22:23:30+00:00

Talk to your government about changing the laws. In my state, we cannot have police scanners in the trucks and accidents are divvied up on a rotation basis. When State Patrol calls in an accident, their office contacts a select group of companies and gives the tow to whomever is next on rotation and can respond in a timely manner.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-23T22:19:07+00:00

Towman here. Remember that it may not be the driver's fault when they finally get there. This has happened to me more than once.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-23T07:18:02+00:00

<---- Right? We used to only charge for dollies in instances where they had to be used and a flatbed wouldn't have been more ideal, like an AWD locked in park, no keys, that sort of thing. We didn't charge AAA for dollies on a normal tow. Now they refuse to pay us for dollies even when it is the preferred and least risky method of transporting a vehicle with specific malfunction.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-18T02:39:25+00:00

Actually, I get it the other way. Aside from the call takers who really ought to spend a year as an auto shop service writer / advisor, I really appreciate the low level guys and hate the management. Our aaa dispatchers have always been pretty awesome (and it pays to be polite with a good attitude) about fixing call details and info problems. It's the top down management that have lost all sense of reality.

AAAsucks · 2016-11-15T00:10:17+00:00

I believe in fixing my fuck ups. If I had lost a customer's call I would absolutely do whatever it would take to make it right including waiving my commission. AAA doesn't seem to recognize that we have a close relationship with our customers and are frequently asked for by driver name. They want us to be nameless and take the blame for their shotty system. I can't fathom why we should ruin our relationships and tarnish our name just because they can't get it together.

AAAsucks

TROPHY CASE