Black Circles and customer service?
Discussion
This is not a rant at all, but I am curious to see how many if any PHers use black circles and what experience they have with them.
I ordered a set of PS4s for my Porsche through Black circles no issues, I then realised that I had ordered the wrong size, I admit I feel foolish for not going out and checking the tyres on the car, but there you go.
Anyway, emailed them to inform them about it, heard nothing.
Turned up at the garage at the agreed time, "sorry sir but we canceled through black circles because were' booked up".
Phoned BC who where very apologetic, I asked for mail order instead and they agreed to cancel the cost of delivery and I would take it to my favourite fitter down the road, again email confirmation followed but again with the wrong tyre size, so I emailed again the correct size.
They turn up today with the wrong size, what am I doing wrong??
Anyone else have this issue?
I would add that I did save money on the tyres that was my main reason for ordering through them but I am asking was it really worth it?
I ordered a set of PS4s for my Porsche through Black circles no issues, I then realised that I had ordered the wrong size, I admit I feel foolish for not going out and checking the tyres on the car, but there you go.
Anyway, emailed them to inform them about it, heard nothing.
Turned up at the garage at the agreed time, "sorry sir but we canceled through black circles because were' booked up".
Phoned BC who where very apologetic, I asked for mail order instead and they agreed to cancel the cost of delivery and I would take it to my favourite fitter down the road, again email confirmation followed but again with the wrong tyre size, so I emailed again the correct size.
They turn up today with the wrong size, what am I doing wrong??
Anyone else have this issue?
I would add that I did save money on the tyres that was my main reason for ordering through them but I am asking was it really worth it?
I ordered a set of PS4s for my 996 a few months ago via black circles and booked Saturday fitting.
The next day they emailed to say they couldn’t do Saturday fitting in my area. The fitting was rearranged for a weekday and they gave me a discount for my inconvenience, so I was quite pleased.
The next day they emailed to say they couldn’t do Saturday fitting in my area. The fitting was rearranged for a weekday and they gave me a discount for my inconvenience, so I was quite pleased.
I ordered a set of fronts for my daughters car.
Popped into garage as arranged. 5 mins later they popped in saying you ordered <tyre size>, I replied yeah, are you going to tell me they're not here? Nope, came the reply. They're here. You just ordered the wrong size for the car
Called BC and they picked up the tyres I incorrectly ordered and delivered the correct size with no additional charge
Popped into garage as arranged. 5 mins later they popped in saying you ordered <tyre size>, I replied yeah, are you going to tell me they're not here? Nope, came the reply. They're here. You just ordered the wrong size for the car
Called BC and they picked up the tyres I incorrectly ordered and delivered the correct size with no additional charge
Have used BC four or five times over the last decade without problems.
Recently ordered 4x MPS4s and booked in at a local garage.
Left the car at the garage, shortly after got a call from the garage that they'd unpacked my tyres, and BC had sent three 18" MPS4s and one 17" Primacy. (packing slip was correct as I'd ordered, but contents were wrong).
Tried to call BC, got stuck in a phone queue, had to call back later.
Ended up having to re-book for a week later, when they managed to send the right tyres.
BC offered me £25 discount (on a £550 order) plus a 10% discount voucher on a future order, wouldn't just give me 10% off the order they screwed up.
Then I had to chase them by email, twice, for the promised £25.
So it's fair to say I'm not that impressed with their service this time.
Having said that, the garage said BC are generally definitely the best of the web-based tyre companies that they deal with, at least from their point of view, but that they'd had a few issues recently, another customer had had the wrong tyres too. So I'm inclined to give them another chance next time I need tyres.
Recently ordered 4x MPS4s and booked in at a local garage.
Left the car at the garage, shortly after got a call from the garage that they'd unpacked my tyres, and BC had sent three 18" MPS4s and one 17" Primacy. (packing slip was correct as I'd ordered, but contents were wrong).
Tried to call BC, got stuck in a phone queue, had to call back later.
Ended up having to re-book for a week later, when they managed to send the right tyres.
BC offered me £25 discount (on a £550 order) plus a 10% discount voucher on a future order, wouldn't just give me 10% off the order they screwed up.
Then I had to chase them by email, twice, for the promised £25.
So it's fair to say I'm not that impressed with their service this time.
Having said that, the garage said BC are generally definitely the best of the web-based tyre companies that they deal with, at least from their point of view, but that they'd had a few issues recently, another customer had had the wrong tyres too. So I'm inclined to give them another chance next time I need tyres.
I had a mixed experience. We put 4 new tyres on our car, which came with a puncture warranty. 6 months later we had a flat (punctured side wall).
I contacted them via the email given, which triggered an automated complaint response!
Had to keep chasing to get a response. They said they would book a replacement but didn't, so I had to without any authorisation as we needed the car back on the road. They agreed to refund, which they did but said they wanted the old tyre back.
At the fitting the garage said they didn't know they had to return the old tyre, so I took it back home. I'm still waiting to hear what to do with the tyre so will probably have to dispose of it myself.
I contacted them via the email given, which triggered an automated complaint response!
Had to keep chasing to get a response. They said they would book a replacement but didn't, so I had to without any authorisation as we needed the car back on the road. They agreed to refund, which they did but said they wanted the old tyre back.
At the fitting the garage said they didn't know they had to return the old tyre, so I took it back home. I'm still waiting to hear what to do with the tyre so will probably have to dispose of it myself.
I've used BC many times in the last 15 years.
Twice the fitting centre have pulled the 'no tyres' or 'wrong tyres' on the day of fitting, and tried to bump me back 24 or 48 hours.
Fine, I said cancel my order and refund me please. Both times the BC customer support person got involved and about an hour later the correct tyres magically turned up and were fitted at the previously agreed time.
My guess is the fitting centre had a more profitable customer on the ramp so thought they could bump me.
For me, the appeal of BC is they offer you an exact time slot to book. It's a bit pointless if they then try to move you back 48hrs.
Anyway, that fitting centre is no longer on the BC website.
Twice the fitting centre have pulled the 'no tyres' or 'wrong tyres' on the day of fitting, and tried to bump me back 24 or 48 hours.
Fine, I said cancel my order and refund me please. Both times the BC customer support person got involved and about an hour later the correct tyres magically turned up and were fitted at the previously agreed time.
My guess is the fitting centre had a more profitable customer on the ramp so thought they could bump me.
For me, the appeal of BC is they offer you an exact time slot to book. It's a bit pointless if they then try to move you back 48hrs.
Anyway, that fitting centre is no longer on the BC website.
I've used BC in the past and all was good. Planning to order 4 Michelin PS2's and sent them an enquiry about the manufacture date of the tyres. They replied that the tyres could have been manufactured up to 5 years ago 
As Michelin own BC I asked them about this, so far I haven't received a clear answer.
As Michelin own BC I asked them about this, so far I haven't received a clear answer.I used them recently. Booking cancelled the day before as the garage's tyre fitting machine had broken. Their email customer service was absolutely rubbish so I found a phone number, called them, they promised to ring back in a few minutes with an alternative booking which they did and also gave me £20 discount for the inconvenience.
blade7 said:
I've used BC in the past and all was good. Planning to order 4 Michelin PS2's and sent them an enquiry about the manufacture date of the tyres. They replied that the tyres could have been manufactured up to 5 years ago As Michelin own BC I asked them about this, so far I haven't received a clear answer.
They said the same to me when I asked about manufacture dates on my Michelin PS4s. I went ahead with the order anyway and the tyres turned up with a date code showing they were only about 6 weeks old. As Michelin own BC I asked them about this, so far I haven't received a clear answer.I've used Black Circles a couple of times in the last couple of years without any problems.
On those occasions I used their own-branded 'pitstop' at Bar Hill, Cambs; car onto ramp at appointment time, correct tyres in stock, job done in reasonable amount of time, pressures set to sensible amount. Can't find anything to grumble about. I would use them again.
On those occasions I used their own-branded 'pitstop' at Bar Hill, Cambs; car onto ramp at appointment time, correct tyres in stock, job done in reasonable amount of time, pressures set to sensible amount. Can't find anything to grumble about. I would use them again.
I’ve used them for years and never really had an issue.
Recently though, I ordered some Michelin Cross Climates for my shed. I dropped the car off at the garage, and an hour or so later I received a text with a link to ‘view your vehicle report’. There was work listed for ‘mandatory rear light’ £109 and ‘wiper blades’ £25, and for me to ‘click to authorise’.
I knew there was nothing wrong with either, so decided to walk to the garage to find out what was going on. Just as I arrived there I received a call from them to ask me again if I wanted the work doing. By now I’d found the car in their car park and invited them out to show me the work that needed doing. They then sheepishly admitted to having “made a mistake”.
I believe it was clearly a blatant attempt to try and squeeze extra cash out of me through dishonest means. It left a sour taste. However, I don’t blame Black Circles for this. It was the fitting centre that was at fault.
It did make me wonder though, on a set of four tyres, how much are these places making out of a Black Circles order? Probably not a lot.
Recently though, I ordered some Michelin Cross Climates for my shed. I dropped the car off at the garage, and an hour or so later I received a text with a link to ‘view your vehicle report’. There was work listed for ‘mandatory rear light’ £109 and ‘wiper blades’ £25, and for me to ‘click to authorise’.
I knew there was nothing wrong with either, so decided to walk to the garage to find out what was going on. Just as I arrived there I received a call from them to ask me again if I wanted the work doing. By now I’d found the car in their car park and invited them out to show me the work that needed doing. They then sheepishly admitted to having “made a mistake”.
I believe it was clearly a blatant attempt to try and squeeze extra cash out of me through dishonest means. It left a sour taste. However, I don’t blame Black Circles for this. It was the fitting centre that was at fault.
It did make me wonder though, on a set of four tyres, how much are these places making out of a Black Circles order? Probably not a lot.
Used to use them every time just to supply tyres when I had access to a fitting machine. Lots of sets of tyres for me and direct family.
I changed jobs and no longer had access to fitting machine so the next set I used the local recommended fitting centre. The
s there ruined all 4 wheels, hid my car off site so I had to sign paperwork before seeing it. Drove it straight into the service centre to complain. They just stuck to their own made up story saying they didn’t do it despite the clear fresh marks that only a with a fitting machine could make. Garage wouldnt accept any responsibility so passed me on to Black Circles customer service who completely took the garages side. About a month of emails, photos, phone calls that basically consisted of various people there calling me a liar and me proving them wrong they eventually conceded that it did look like fitting damage but said they would only cover the cost of 1 wheel refurb and only when I sent them the invoice showing that I had had all 4 refurbed.
So their great customer service was to give me £50 back on £200 I should t have been spending.
Tried to speak to and email they guy in charge but he wouldn’t even acknowledge me and staff wouldn’t pass me up the chain to complain.
Not that they particularly care but me, my family and any friends I have told about it haven’t used them since.
I changed jobs and no longer had access to fitting machine so the next set I used the local recommended fitting centre. The
s there ruined all 4 wheels, hid my car off site so I had to sign paperwork before seeing it. Drove it straight into the service centre to complain. They just stuck to their own made up story saying they didn’t do it despite the clear fresh marks that only a with a fitting machine could make. Garage wouldnt accept any responsibility so passed me on to Black Circles customer service who completely took the garages side. About a month of emails, photos, phone calls that basically consisted of various people there calling me a liar and me proving them wrong they eventually conceded that it did look like fitting damage but said they would only cover the cost of 1 wheel refurb and only when I sent them the invoice showing that I had had all 4 refurbed. So their great customer service was to give me £50 back on £200 I should t have been spending.
Tried to speak to and email they guy in charge but he wouldn’t even acknowledge me and staff wouldn’t pass me up the chain to complain.
Not that they particularly care but me, my family and any friends I have told about it haven’t used them since.
Funnily enough ordered a set of PS4s last Thursday with an estimated delivery (no fitting) for today but was adivsed I'd receive an email when despatched and that courier requires a signature.
Didn't hear anything over the weekend so assumed probably tomorrow delivery, until got a phone call from a courier outside my house at 9.30am this morning. Fortunately I work less than 10 mins away and he was a decent chap who hung around but a bit shoddy.
Used them several times for supply and fitting with no probs, though the garage is close to my office so I just drop it off in the AM for them to do at their convenience.
Didn't hear anything over the weekend so assumed probably tomorrow delivery, until got a phone call from a courier outside my house at 9.30am this morning. Fortunately I work less than 10 mins away and he was a decent chap who hung around but a bit shoddy.
Used them several times for supply and fitting with no probs, though the garage is close to my office so I just drop it off in the AM for them to do at their convenience.
Edited by Henz on Monday 4th November 21:30
I have always used Black Circles for all our tyres for about the last 4 or 5 years (i.e. since I found out about them).
i find the web site so much friendlier than a guy over the counter at any tyre fitting place. When face-to-face they seem to be reluctant to offer a full range, with prices, and I get the feeling they're always trying to plug certain brands, or to get rid of old stock on me.
In contrast, on the BC web site I can take my time, compare things as much as I like, and choose as I wish.
Only once have they sent the wrong size, and it was all sorted out for me by the fitting shop (which is nothing to do with BC), and they made another appointment for me about 4 days later.
I'm happy to recommend the whole process. Having said that, I'm talking about normal all-weather tyres for mass-produced family cars, nothing fancy. I've no idea if the good feelings would extend to up-market stuff.
i find the web site so much friendlier than a guy over the counter at any tyre fitting place. When face-to-face they seem to be reluctant to offer a full range, with prices, and I get the feeling they're always trying to plug certain brands, or to get rid of old stock on me.
In contrast, on the BC web site I can take my time, compare things as much as I like, and choose as I wish.
Only once have they sent the wrong size, and it was all sorted out for me by the fitting shop (which is nothing to do with BC), and they made another appointment for me about 4 days later.
I'm happy to recommend the whole process. Having said that, I'm talking about normal all-weather tyres for mass-produced family cars, nothing fancy. I've no idea if the good feelings would extend to up-market stuff.
Scrump said:
blade7 said:
I've used BC in the past and all was good. Planning to order 4 Michelin PS2's and sent them an enquiry about the manufacture date of the tyres. They replied that the tyres could have been manufactured up to 5 years ago As Michelin own BC I asked them about this, so far I haven't received a clear answer.
They said the same to me when I asked about manufacture dates on my Michelin PS4s. I went ahead with the order anyway and the tyres turned up with a date code showing they were only about 6 weeks old. As Michelin own BC I asked them about this, so far I haven't received a clear answer.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff