Motor Clubs Cancelling Calls

[Onsite Auto & Truck Repair]

 

Edited August 19, 2019 by Onsite Auto & Truck Repair

[thtdon]

One thing that I have caught them at is they are stealing my over-mileage.  I have been charging $4.00/mile for over-mileage for a number of years.  Obviously, the over-mileage rate is higher than the loaded mileage rate that they currently pay us.  A while back, I noticed that I hadn't collected any over-mileage from a customer in several months.  It seems like the only time that I collect over-mileage from a customer is when he is paying the over-mileage with cash.  If Agero could figure a way for the customer to jam the cash into the phone receiver, we would lose that too.   I have had a number of customers complain to me that Agero charged them $4.00/mile for the over-mileage.  That's what I charge, but I don't tell them that.  On a long tow, I need the higher over-mileage rate to make up for the lower standard rate that they are paying us.  About a year ago, I towed a car from a local college here, to a nearby repair shop.  It was a minimum loaded mile tow, covered in full by the customer's Progressive Insurance coverage.  Her limit was $50.00.  The next day, I towed the car back to the college.  The motor was blown in the car.  She had recently bought the car, before she left home for college.  So she wanted it to go back to the local car dealer back home, so they would change the engine under warranty.  The next day, I got a call to tow the car from Massachusetts to New Jersey, which is where the woman was from.  I asked about coverage.  I was told that the call was covered in full, at the standard rate.  I asked about over-mileage.  I was told that Agero had collected the over-mileage directly from the customer using the customer's credit card over the phone.  I was expected to transport the car to New Jersey at the lower standard loaded mile rate, and to return home empty.  Like I said, I need the higher $4.00/mile to make up for the lowed standard loaded mile rate.  Without the higher over-mile rate, the call is not worth doing.  It is not worth starting up the truck for such a low fee.  I told Agero to shove the call.  I talked to the customer.  She confirmed to me that they required her to pay the over-mileage directly to them.  So ultimately, it was their intention to steal my over-mileage money all along. 

 

A few years ago, I discovered the hard way that they had cut the winching fee by cutting the minimum time from 60 minutes to 30 minutes, resulting in them cutting the fee that they paid us in half.  The actual hourly rate is the same.  They just cut the billable time in half.  I had recovered a car that was accidentally driven down a flight of cement stairs from a higher parking lot to a lower parking lot.  When I reconciled the monthly statement, that's when I discovered their fancy accounting.  I called to complain.  I was told that the rate is the same as before.  They just re-wrote the rule of how much of the call they covered, even though my contract with them called for the full fee.  They did not notify us about the change, so we did not have the opportunity to charge the customer a co-payment.  I have never winched another car out of the mud, or from a snowbank for them again. 

 

And like the rest of you, I have also experienced their refusal to pay for GOAs.  They probably pay for 1 out of every 5 submitted, even though I always get the dispatcher's name and extension number. 

 

I have done a couple of SWOOP calls.  I knew that there was a connection between Agero and SWOOP because they called me on an Agero outgoing phone line.  I have every outgoing Agero line saved and identified.  So there's no question.  I charged them a higher rate than my Agero rates.  And I made them pay by credit card. 

 

And finally, I noticed recently that there is a line on the emailed call sheet that is appears that if there is an overnight storage charge, it is all-inclusive.  I called about that.  And I was told that they would no longer pay any overnight storage charges.  I indicated to them that I no longer offer overnight storage.  The dispatcher stated that I am required to provide overnight storage when requested.  And I told her that they are required to pay for said storage, when requested. 

 

I do very little for them at night anymore.  Most of the night calls are garbage.  I get a ton of requests for service that are miles and miles away from my contracted area.  Most of the night requests are for out-of-area calls.  I am sick of getting awakened at 3:00am to change a flat tire in Portsmouth, NH, Boston, MA, etc.  When my part-time night driver left, I haven't had any luck finding a replacement.  There isn't enough billable night work to justify paying a guy to be available all night anyway.

 

I have been with Cross Country/Agero for somewhere between 35 and 40 years.  They used to be the best to deal with.  Now they are a nightmare for me every day.  I love my job because I leave people better off than when I found them.  But the administrative crap that I have to deal with is killing me.  I will be 66 years old next week.  It is my intention to begin collecting Social Security when I turn 67.  And I have been planning to continue to work on light duty as long as I can.   Agero will put me in the ground before that.