Good Sam gone Bad Sam?

[lijbs]

Well, if you are a Good Sam lover this post is probably is going to change your mind or at least make you think twice.

To start with how many times in a calendar year are you going to receive a membership package from Good Sam asking you to join "Roadside Assistance" or "Travel Assistance"? It even includes your own membership card! It kind of makes me feel the same way (squeamish) when I used to receive the Publishers Clearing House Package in the mail. Ask ONCE not every other month! I hate junk mail!

Sorry for that side track. The real reason why I am writing this post is because today I tried to make a purchase from the Kingston NY Camping World. I was in the market for vent covers. I spent the past 6 days with my Allegro chapter on a trip to Verona NY. Everyone seemed to feel that the proper choice would be the Maxxair vent cover. They make the 850 (in white) and the 950 (in black). I researched the product and I found out there was a Good Sam on the way home to Long Island in Kingston. Well rather than purchase them online and pay for shipping I thought I would stop directly at the store.

The price online for the 950 was $99.74 Original price $140.00. Shipping add $9.00 Originally $21.00.

So I arrived in Kingston and made a beeline for a sale rep that would be able to get me 3 units. While I was waiting for them to surface my wife and I picked up several other items. Time to checkout..... The cashier was new and required some assistance for a OJT lesson, once she located the UPC code on the surprisingly large but light box it rang up for $122.00! I asked her where did that price come from and her advisor said that was the MEMBER price! I told her I was a Good Sam member and that I saw online it was $99.74 for members. Not knowing how to handle this situation her advisor stepped in to give her the formula for recalculating the price.....It went like this, $122.00 minus $99.74 equals $22.26 minus $9.00 equals $13.26. She then told her to add the $13.26 to the online price of $99.74 which equalled $113.00 each! Once I realized what she was doing I told her that I was taking the three units with me. She said "that's fine but the price was still going to have the $9.00 added to the online price!"

If that were the case the number should have been $99.74 plus $9.00 which equals $108.74. She tried making up some rule of reason why Camping World needed to charge for shipping even though they weren't going to ship the items! If that was the case I wasn't going to purchase them. She continued to try to explain that the price online needed to have the shipping added to it if purchased in the store?????? I wasn't interested in hearing any more.

Lastly, (I promise) while I was on another trip I stopped into Camping World in Harrisburg PA. I made another purchace and while checking out the cashier asked if I wanted to renew my membership for another year for a few dollars off the normal price. I though about it and realized that there was a good possibility that I had just renewed from home. Well that was the case and if I had taken that cashier up on her offer I would have been pre-paid through 2016.... WHY ask for money when it was obviously not necessary!

Camping World, Motorhome Magazine, Good Sam all the same owner? Good or bad?

I'm sure I'm not alone here. I would be interested in hearing other individuals opinions and experiences.

[jablair]

This is the first time you ran into this problem? Almost any site which has both online and retail stores has a similar policy. When you purchase on line you pay shipping. When purchased in the store the price includes the shipping. So if adjusting for online versus in store prices they will include shipping being added to the online price. One may disagree with this policy but nonetheless the fact remains that the retail store price has to cover the shipping charges incurred by the store.
When I recently purchased new 19.5" tires for my truck. I could have order them online from Tire Rack or some other online source, Then pay for the shipping and go find a tire shop any pay them to mount the and balance the tires. Yes the online price looked cheaper buy a good amount per tire. Even more so when considering I was purchasing six tires. Or could have done what I chose to do after checking prices online. Went in to my local tire store purchased and installed the same tires for the essentially the same as the online price with shipping and mounting fees. Actually my local dealer was selling them just a few dollars cheaper.

[Bumps]

I've never heard of such a thing ... that's ridiculous! /ken

[rivraton]

Almost any site which has both online and retail stores has a similar policy.

Home Depot does not, Wal~mart does not, Harbor Freight does not, Tractor Supply does not, I could give you a VERY long list of vendors that don't screw their customers. (at least not like that)

[Steve N Sal]

Any large company that has items shipped to them are freight prepaid. Especially one the size of CW. If they are paying freight then someone in there purchasing department needs to be replaced. If it's a specialty item that one would not carry in the store then that may be understandable but vent covers??? They order those by the case. I understand a stand alone store needs to make a profit so the item will be more in the store then online but they shouldn't be telling a customer that they have to add a freight charge or part of one. That's ridiculous.

[Ranger Smith]

Seems every time I go to a camping world the cashier is "in training". I try to avoid them like the plague.I called them last week to see about a 5th wheel hitch. Tried 2 different stores in the area and got either put on hold for 15+ minutes or someone would pick up then immediately hang up. Never got my info and ended up buying from E-Trailer.

The other posters are correct no one adds shipping to an in store item unless it is a special order item. I'de tell em to stick it. Cound have bought them through Amazon with $3.99 shipping

[JC2]

I don't do Camping World or Good Sam for many reasons. There are many other places that have much better prices and service.

[BCooke]

Try having 2 memberships in one house...
My parents were already lifetime members. I was asked if we wanted to upgrade to lifetime... so they upgraded my parents life to lifetime plus... it took 1/2 hour at a rally to straighten it out. To this day I do not get any fliers or sales adds.

[TomandGloria]

FWIW, here at KOA in Nashville and ran into Camping World next door. Finally got a cashier who knew what he was doing and was actually very customer oriented. Probably helps that he was around my age and did not need to be helped by anyone younger.

[SkiSmuggs]

I have to admit that the junk mail from Good Sam's trying to sell me yet another form of insurance is ridiculous. I have their roadside assistance even though I also have it cheaper on my auto policy simply because my insurance company probably wouldn't know how to handle a broken down fifth wheel.

[Planocat]

[QUOTE=Steve N Sal;2159885]Any large company that has items shipped to them are freight prepaid. Especially one the size of CW. If they are paying freight then someone in there purchasing department needs to be replaced.


Now, IMHO, that's one giant piece of misinformation !!

[topdownman]

The ONLY reason I have a Good Sam Membership is for the camping discounts and magazine. No road service through them and most items I buy online from Amazon and get free shipping from them. On occasion I have dropped into a Camping World store more or less on a sightseeing expedition.

[n5pht]

I am rarely close enough to stop in at a Campers World - but will say the one in the Valley of Spokane, WA matched Amazon price for me on a item around $100. Showed manager the Amazon price on my phone and they matched but added the Amazon shipping - seemed reasonable. But generally it seems any store that is just camper related is way too high.

[spritz]

I must be on another planet, I have shopped at a CW in Rogers Mn with no problems yet, going on 4 years.
I get the GS ins mail almost everyday. I already have them??? Why they don't know that I don't understand?
If I had the monies that they have spent sending me the ad I could upgrade my Class A