Dear BMSC,
It has come to our attention recently that a member of your club has stated publicly on several occasions that we quoted him £800 to hand build from scratch, with all new parts, a tuned 200cc all-Italian Lambretta motor. In fact, what was contracted was the supply of a hand-built Indian 200cc STAGE 4 electronic motor with an Italian race-spec crank, big bore exhaust and Jetex carburettor, fitted and adjusted and running, all for £800. That price even included the removal of his existing engine.
We wish to emphasise that we are not, nor ever have we been, in the market for building all-Italian new motors. We also wish to defuse this situation where we are being cast as wrongdoers, when in fact, what we supplied was a very reasonably priced engine. The motor was sold with a parts warranty but the customer decided to get it fitted to his scooter elsewhere for a reduced fee to us of £750. Subsequently, the customer then decided to take it to a third party (a well-known shop in Bristol) whose judgment and expertise is unquestioned and is well-respected by us. He decided it would run better with a different clutch. The customer has now decided, wrongly, that we are liable for the labour costs of the third party.
We are sure it goes without saying that the last thing we want to do is start a heated internet forum debate and we sincerely hope it does not become heated. We feel we have a good relationship with the BMSC. Its members are always very welcome in our shop and we have a large number of valued customers who are BMSC members. But we feel this allegation is serious and needs addressing.
We wanted to set the record straight about the two aspects of this matter. That we would never dream of misrepresenting the origin of a new engine we would build and that warranties can only be operated in accordance with the conditions on which they are offered.
The person has now written to us demanding compensation of £200 and has made complaints to several trade and consumer agencies. He is now threatening legal action. We have written a letter back and stated our position. We would be very happy, if this is escalated, to publish on this site our letter to him, if it is deemed by your club as necessary in what could be classed by local scooterists as a serious matter.
Best wishes,
Dave and Emma
Fanatic Scooters
0117 902 8656