Pit Falls of Buying Online By Mark Smith
30 years experience in flooring and U.S. patent holder
The Internet can help consumers get information and ideas, find out what is available or new, find a store, and educate the consumer. For example, when a customer comes into our store the first thing that we ask is; “what areas in the home are you putting the flooring, what colors and styles are you looking for, and are you going to install it yourself or would you rather have it professionally installed?” We also ask our customers if they have researched and gained information online? If she has been visiting supportive manufactures' sites then thats great. However, we would like our customers to know that buying online has many pit falls. We have learned this first hand buy experiencing freight damage very often, even in our bulk purchasing.
If our customer brings up pricing that she has seen on the Internet than we explain the problems that can arise when purchasing products online. We then discuss the list of services that we offer, services that are critical to a successful installation that she wont get on the Internet:
Handling, Freight Damage
Installation Management and Warranty
Warranty Issues and Considerations, like a 3rd Party Installer, (some manufactures only offer a one year warranty on products purchased online) See Warranty Card.
Job Conditions, Resolutions and responsibility
Freight on Carpet and Vinyl is probably not significant, and many online stores point out that savings in sales tax offset the cost of freight. Given the weight of Laminate flooring, nearly 1,750 pounds a pallet, this is not likely equal.
A larger issue with the freight is damage and claims. Given the distance that the flooring must travel, damage becomes more of a problem and having to order 5-10% more product to cover the damaged freight, very costly. If the consumer sees the damage when the shipment arrives and refuses the shipment the customer is out of luck. The Internet store has your money already in there bank, and in most cases will not take the material back. The Internet company will tell the customer that the problem is within the freight truck line company and they would have to take it up with the freight company, GOOD LUCK!
Furthermore, if the customer tries to file a claim with the fright company, the claim might not be paid. Usually, the trucker will claim improper packaging. If the damage is not discover until after the material is received the customer loses out and also loses the sq. footage. Even if only a carton or two is damaged, the customer will have to reorder and hope that the replacement material is from the same texture and locking system. Some online stores sell irregular, off goods and discontinued products, so this may be more difficult than you think. The damage might not be discovered until installation, which means getting the installer back to complete the job at a later date is very time consuming and costly. Even if the homeowner is installing the job there selves, this problem is very aggravating because of personal time loss.
Finally, there's the inconvenience factor. The customer will have to be home to receive the shipment and some trucks will not deliver to residential area, furthermore, the customer will be responsible for unloading and inspection of the material, and might not know what to look for.
We could write several pages on installation, but contracting with an independent installer is fraught with danger. The installer more than likely may not have a license or a stationary business location, these are known as “tailgater's”. If the customer is lucky enough to get a quality installer, she will be lucky to have him show up on time. On top of that, he could have jobs that he supplied the materials for that take priority over a one-time labor only installation. There is a good chance this is the first time the installer has seen the job site. Suppose he finds there are job conditions to be corrected, or the customer is short on materials and proper trim pieces before installation? The installer might just lay it down anyway, exempting warranties and leaving the customer to live with the result. You get the picture!
This scenario illustrates why it's important to point out the reasons not to buy flooring, (an expensive and complex product that needs proper installation)
on the Internet or by someone posing as a contractor.
What if the customer still wants to buy the flooring on the Internet? This is when we would inform the customer about our job management package, which may include all or more of the following.
A job-site visit to check job conditions, identify minor conditions and quote a price on any major conditions.
Measure the job allowing for waste, provide accurate measurements, assess proper trim peaces needed and specify proper underlayment needed for your specific application.
Order the material, receive the material and inspect for damage, “damage occurs all time”. See photos above.
Schedule the installation based on the date the material is expected to arrive and a time agreeable to the customer.
Store the materials until ready for installation.
Deliver the product to acclimate prior to installation.
Manage the installation.
Dispose of old flooring and any waste or scrap from the new installation. We will also take care of any dump fees.
Last and most important; Warranty the finished installation (satisfactio guarantee).
Each of these services has a value and a cost that you can be assigned individually or as a group. In the slim chance that everything goes smoothly when ordering online and finding a qualified installer, the Internet cost of the product plus our value added services will roughly come up to an equal price, with no warranty issues. Even if the the costumer rejects our package, at least they have been made aware of the added value and services that we provide.
The key is to deal with a reputable store, and a knowledgeable sales person that can relate to your job specifically. If you eventually buy online we suspect that you will come back to us looking for advice, tools, and proper installation methods. In many cases customers come to our store looking for trim pieces, underlayment and extra boxes to replace damaged ones to match their flooring products and become frustrated when its too late to help.
* While writing this article, two separate customers came into our store looking for help with the exact same problems mentioned above. So there you have it!
18851 Microtronics Way, Unit 1A , Sonora, California 95370 | 209.588.8181
A larger issue with the freight is damage and claims. Given the distance that the flooring must travel, damage becomes more of a problem and having to order 5-10% more product to cover the damaged freight, very costly. If the consumer sees the damage when the shipment arrives and refuses the shipment the customer is out of luck. The Internet store has your money already in there bank, and in most cases will not take the material back. The Internet company will tell the customer that the problem is within the freight truck line company and they would have to take it up with the freight company, GOOD LUCK!
Furthermore, if the customer tries to file a claim with the fright company, the claim might not be paid. Usually, the trucker will claim improper packaging. If the damage is not discover until after the material is received the customer loses out and also loses the sq. footage. Even if only a carton or two is damaged, the customer will have to reorder and hope that the replacement material is from the same texture and locking system. Some online stores sell irregular, off goods and discontinued products, so this may be more difficult than you think. The damage might not be discovered until installation, which means getting the installer back to complete the job at a later date is very time consuming and costly. Even if the homeowner is installing the job there selves, this problem is very aggravating because of personal time loss.
Finally, there's the inconvenience factor. The customer will have to be home to receive the shipment and some trucks will not deliver to residential area, furthermore, the customer will be responsible for unloading and inspection of the material, and might not know what to look for.