Lawnmower Parts ripoff

homingbird

Hi i recently went looking for drive belts for a push lawn mower goes itself on the back wheel. The belt on it needed changing so i went looking for them went to a place out in mungret limerick & was charged 22 euro for one belt it needs 2 belts so 44 euro bought one home & was going to use it until i was told of another place so i went their & bought the 2 belts for 8 euro. How can they get away with charging that amount they deserve to go under trying to rip off people like that.

getaroom

caveat emptor

slimjimmc

No rip off, you weren't conned or deceived. They asked for that price up front and you were clearly willing to pay it, apparently without haggling. It's only afterwards that you found a cheaper price which is probably not of comparable quality either considering the massive price difference. You've learned a useful lesson about shopping around.

homingbird

THEY are 2 small belts that could no way cost that much . If i Named the place the floodgates would open with other people that got ripped off by them How would you go about haggling them down to their right price its a shop not a stall in a mart.

davo10

homingbird wrote: »

THEY are 2 small belts that could no way cost that much . If i Named the place the floodgates would open with other people that got ripped off by them How would you go about haggling them down to their right price its a shop not a stall in a mart.

The "right price" is not what the customer wants to pay but what they are willing to pay. You were willing to pay €44 . They are two small belts which precisely fit the machine you need them for, they may not fit another machine nor another machine's belt may not fit yours. The €8 belt may not last as long so that may be money wasted, as a buyer the responsibility is on you to research the item you are looking for.

Saucy McKetchup

homingbird wrote: »

THEY are 2 small belts that could no way cost that much . If i Named the place the floodgates would open with other people that got ripped off by them How would you go about haggling them down to their right price its a shop not a stall in a mart.

From experience I've seen that belts for mowers can vary in price in the region of hundreds, you get what you pay for so you probably have purchased a higher quality of belt.

dudara

As other posters have said, you willingly handed over your money. You have the choice where to shop and spend your money.

homingbird

dudara wrote: »

As other posters have said, you willingly handed over your money. You have the choice where to shop and spend your money.

Until i found out i had been had & took back the parts & bought the other ones which are fine & perfect fit. I will come back in 2 years time & tell you their fine .

Saucy McKetchup

homingbird wrote: »

Until i found out i had been had & took back the parts & bought the other ones which are fine & perfect fit.

They might not be the same quality of belt though

Kenny Logins

homingbird wrote: »

Hi i recently went looking for drive belts for a push lawn mower goes itself on the back wheel. The belt on it needed changing so i went looking for them went to a place out in mungret limerick & was charged 22 euro for one belt it needs 2 belts so 44 euro bought one home & was going to use it until i was told of another place so i went their & bought the 2 belts for 8 euro. How can they get away with charging that amount they deserve to go under trying to rip off people like that.

People walk in and buy them with out doing any research. Simple. Good business IMHO.

L1011

You found an alternative, obviously not the same product if you're making guesses as to whether they're the same quality; and got your money back for the first option. Where's the ripoff?

homingbird

MYOB wrote: »

You found an alternative, obviously not the same product if you're making guesses as to whether they're the same quality; and got your money back for the first option. Where's the ripoff?

My friend was the one who told me to shop elsewhere as he got badly burn't their as well so i will leave it their unless you want me to name the place & see what others say about it . I would probable need to move this to the limerick forum to get replys on the place.

davo10

OP, are they the exact same brand? Was the €22 belt the same brand as the mower and the €8 belt a generic? I don't see what the big deal is here, €22 may be the average price and €8 a low price for belt of this type. If they are different brand, only time will tell if you got a bargain or wasted €8. If there is a moral to this story, it is shop around.

homingbird

Like i said if you want to see the switchboard light up i will name them if you want to move it to the limerick thread.

Saucy McKetchup

homingbird wrote: »

Like i said if you want to see the switchboard light up i will name them if you want to move it to the limerick thread.

To me it looks like to want to name them instead of discussing brand and quality of belt, a question which you've continued to ignore

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

It doesn't matter who they are, or what reputation they have in Limerick, as the consumer issue remains the same.

slimjimmc

Tiana Wrong Oarlock wrote: »

It doesn't matter who they are, or what reputation they have in Limerick, as the consumer issue remains the same.

Indeed, and the only consumer issue I can see is that the OP didn't shop around until later. It's a bit like going into an TV shop and buying a €500 TV, then discovering Lidl are selling same size TVs for €300. Both TVs perform the same basic function, but are you getting the same product? Not likely.

Sulla Felix

slimjimmc wrote: »

Indeed, and the only consumer issue I can see is that the OP didn't shop around until later. It's a bit like going into an TV shop and buying a €500 TV, then discovering Lidl are selling same size TVs for €300. Both TVs perform the same basic function, but are you getting the same product? Not likely.

Even if they were the same exact televisions, the first shop isn't to blame for someone not shopping around and realizing they could get the same cheaper. Retailers don't have any obligation to sell at the cheapest possible price but some people have a sense of entitlement.

Phil_Lives

Past experience from the business:
you might have been ripped off by the first dealer, you might not.
if they were genuine parts then the distributor is the one ripping you off most likely.
The margin most distributors give their dealers is either 25% or 33% and on a 22 euro belt that is not a good profit for what are slow moving parts.

with most parts you are stuck and the distributors have you over a barrel but with belts you can usually go to an agri-spares store and get a good quality belt at a fraction of the price unless the belt is of a very special design. Note agri-stores can carry rubbish belts too so take care.

lawnmower business is a horrible business. 8 months of the year nobody wants to know you are and then for 4 months punters tell you that they can buy a completely inferior product for hundreds euro less in a hardware store and that it is "really" as good as the one you have on the showroom floor.
Glad I'm not in the business.

Saucy McKetchup

Phil_Lives wrote: »

8 months of the year nobody wants to know you are and then for 4 months punters tell you that they can buy a completely inferior product for hundreds euro less in a hardware store and that it is "really" as good as the one you have on the showroom floor.

Exactly, you get what you pay for.

homingbird

THE BELTS were 4 euro each 8 euros the pair versus 44 euro in lawnmower shop . The shop i bought bought them in said he probably bought the belts off him & jacked up the price to make a tidy profit.

Phil_Lives

homingbird wrote: »

THE BELTS were 4 euro each 8 euros the pair versus 44 euro in lawnmower shop . The shop i bought bought them in said he probably bought the belts off him & jacked up the price to make a tidy profit.

Can you lay off on the accusations of being ripped off until you can prove that you bought generic belts sourced in an agri-spares store rather than original parts sourced from a distributor. Once you are sure of that it is you're duty to let it be known that he is a rip-off merchant.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

homingbird wrote: »

THE BELTS were 4 euro each 8 euros the pair versus 44 euro in lawnmower shop . The shop i bought bought them in said he probably bought the belts off him & jacked up the price to make a tidy profit.

Just to be clear. Were the belts the exact same product - maker, product code etc?

homingbird

No but good Quality all the same. Lesson learned

Saucy McKetchup

homingbird wrote: »

No but good Quality all the same. Lesson learned

Would that lesson be that you get what you pay for

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

homingbird wrote: »

No but good Quality all the same. Lesson learned

Then how could he have bought them from the other shop and jacked up the price? You are comparing apples and oranges and no rip off is proven whatsoever.

homingbird

Can anyone on here justify the price difference i might start a new thread in limerick section to clear this up.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

homingbird wrote: »

The shop i bought bought them in said he probably bought the belts off him & jacked up the price to make a tidy profit.

Tiana Wrong Oarlock wrote: »

Just to be clear. Were the belts the exact same product - maker, product code etc?

homingbird wrote: »

No but good Quality all the same. Lesson learned

Am I missing something here?

slimjimmc

homingbird wrote: »

Can anyone on here justify the price difference i might start a new thread in limerick section to clear this up.

How can anyone here justify anything when you haven't given exact details of each product. All you've told us is that they are belts, different brand so not identical. You also say the cheaper ones are good quality with no explanation of how you came to that conclusion (user reviews, own experience?). You've provided little in the way of justifying your own claims of a rip-off.