discussion Getting a free kit, in mitigation of bad advice....

[pjgtech]

Anyone who has read my latest build, Revell German Half Track, will know that I had problems with the tracks. One was too long, one was too short and was not clear in the instructions which glue to use on the tracks.
So I contacted Revell Customer service, and they advised using their Contacta adhesive on the tracks, which I then did.
This basically ruined the tracks into a soft gooey mess and did not stick them together either!
I managed to (sort of) resolve the issue by using CA glue, but the tracks were still ruined and if you look close the join is totally bodged and, every time i look at it I can see the issue, so its bugging me that the model will never be as good as it should be.

Subsequently I decided to email and complain to Revell, based on the fact that their direct advice to me resulted in the model being damaged, and thus my enjoyment of it. Also bear in mind how much time we spend on these things, in this case I've been building this model for a good couple of week and that equates to many, many hours, so all wasted time too. I did ask for a refund, but....

I know in the great scheme of things a slightly damaged model is not really a major issue for anyone, and its a first World problems and all that. Yes, yes, I know. But I am the type of person who is not afraid of complaining, or pointing out when a product or service is of sub par quality or otherwise does not meet expectations. (And the older I get, the more grumpy I get, the more exacting my standards get, etc, etc, and I fully embrace that, Lol).
If no-one says anything, then everything just gets worse, standards drop, product quality and QC suffers, etc, etc. As long as the complaint is polite, concise and asks for a reasonable resolution, then I don't see a problem.

Anyway long story short, Revell have replied and offered me a free kit as some sort of mitigation/compensation. Only offered me one of two kits mind, I opted for a T26 tank. So another one for the shelf.

The moral of this story, if it ain't right.....complain!

 

[PaulTRose]

Well done for getting something out of them

 

[Steven000]

Good to read you got a new kit

I ruined so many Revell kits without compensation lol... xD

 

[pjgtech]

TBH, I wouldn't mind if I ruined it myself, but as it was a direct result of their own advice, I thought I'd try a complaint email, nothing to lose really other than two minutes of my time.

 

[pjgtech]

Just looked at the kit as I thought it might be 1:72, as the photo they showed was very small so could not really see the details, but its actually 1:35 scale, so not too bad. Looks like its normally £30 but is reduced to £20. Its this one:

 

[HAWKERHUNTER]

Well done Revell. Credit where credit is due, great customer service.

 

[Jim R]

That's a decent result. Revell have done the right thing. You have every right to complain, just have to be polite and to the point. No

 

[pjgtech]

Exactly as above, if you are polite, state the facts and are not unreasonable in your demands, you can usually get some sort of result.
I would certainly not describe myself as a serial complainer, but I have complained about several things in the past and have always got something in return, eg: a replacement, a full or partial refund or a voucher or discount code . So its definitely worth doing if you are not satisfied as a customer.
Its too easy sometimes to just put up with bad service or faulty products.
And yes, well done to Revell for responding and offering some sort of remedy....

 

[Geoffers]

Well done for complaining and well done to Revell for a fair resolution

Geoff.

 

[PaulTRose]

That T26 looks an interesting little thing

 

[Miko]

Great customer service from Revell, which is encouraging that they acknowledge and go beyond our consumer rights in order to maintain customer satisfaction


Miko (feeling more fondly of Revell in the light of this post)

 

[pjgtech]

Got an email earlier today confirming they have posted it out today.....
We can all agree that sometimes stuff goes wrong, we are only human, sometimes a customer receives bad service or is sent a faulty product or whatever, it happens. But, IMHO, what matters is how the company or business then deals with that complaint.
As stated above, they seem to have responded positively to my complaint, so good on them.

 

[Mr Bowcat]

I refuse to build Revell kits, every one I have ever tried as had problems somewhere.

 

[pjgtech]

To be fair, I've only done two Revell kits so far, the PT-579 torpedo boat, no issues with that. And this German half track, and if I'd just been advised correctly to use CA, (rather than Revells own contacta adhesive,) then the tracks would not have melted, so the kit would then have been ok, as I had no other major issues with it.

 

[stillp]

I've built a couple of their 1/72 AFVs with no problems, but the 1/32 Mosquito and the Eurocopter were absolute disasters.
Pete

 

[pjgtech]

This turned up in the post today, so Revell did provide a replacement kit, so fair play to them....