Anyone use this outfit?
Well if you do use this lot, beware!
I was a bit late paying the invoice (31 days 
), mainly due to a family bereavement, having to organise a funeral etc, then dashing off on a pre booked holiday.
While I was away I was made aware of the oversight in a phone call from some obnoxious cow in their accounts department in Letchworth wanting immediate payment there and then, I explained I was away and couldn’t do anything until the following weekend (5 days away) This wasn’t good enough for her so she promptly passed the matter on to a debt collection agency.
As promised I paid the account in full direct to Stapletons upon my return, but by then the sons of dogs DCA that Stapletons had instructed were already bombarding me with phone calls and letters, but more worryingly they had sent an unsolicited email to a female relative of mine who has the same surname and christian name initials, but absolutely no connection to the business, demanding payment in full plus their fees.
So now I’m being taken to court by the DCA under the “Late Payments Of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998” for the massive sum of £96.54. With their bumped up fees and court costs they’re claiming a total of £181.54.
The service I got from the depot at Warrington was faultless, but I’ve now sourced cover from another provider, and no doubt Stapletons can manage without my £3k per year spend on tyres. Despite complaining to Stapletons accounts dep, they claim its out of their hands, so a letter to the CEO/MD is on the books, we’ll see how that goes 
If you’ve paid direct to Stapletons the collection agency have no valid claim so just tell them to do one.
If you’re not careful your credit control dept can end up being a customer prevention dept. Place I used to work all the best sales guys would regularly leave because accounts kept upsetting their best customers.
should have used the one we get off people
sorry i havnt had the invoice/its down for payment next week/can you send a statement the list goes on
But you were already a month late paying. You would have had a payment term already on your account (28 days?) So that’s 2 months to pay the bill - possibly more if you had a longer invoice due date.
Despite the anguish a funeral can cause most plan and arrange it within the space of a week and most holidays are 1-2 weeks long.
The lady in accounts has probably heard every excuse for not payment available so despite the validity of what you told her I doubt she’d believe you.
Bottom line is pay your bills if you don’t want debt collectors chasing you.
m1cks:
The lady in accounts has probably heard every excuse for not payment available so despite the validity of what you told her I doubt she’d believe you.
Bottom line is pay your bills if you don’t want debt collectors chasing you.
Of course in a perfect world you are right, but…
Own Account Driver:
If you’re not careful your credit control dept can end up being a customer prevention dept. Place I used to work all the best sales guys would regularly leave because accounts kept upsetting their best customers.
I paid the account in full, when I said I would/could, which unfortunately wasn’t good enough for some power crazy tin goddess in accounts. We’ll see what the MD/CEO has to say when he finds out accounts are selecting the people who it deems fit for the company to deal with. As I have a broad database of customers I know only to well the problems of chasing money, and customers who take the pee on payment terms. But as long as they eventually pay then its not really a problem, I just load the rates on the next job 
does seem like a few excuses here …Maybe you should have just paid it before going away but we have all been guilty of same at some time or another. Probably going to be sorry for saying this but I think the problem was caused by yourself…
Well I admit it that I paid the invoice late, but when it was paid, it was paid in full.
If they were still waiting for some or all of money I owed then they would be justified in claiming anything they were entitled to, I know I would.
Letters to Mr Kenji Murai, CEO of Stapletons and Kwik-Fit resulted in nothing apart from a response by the accounts department at Stapletons, and basically they couldn’t give a [zb] about my ten years of custom, it wasn’t their problem anymore as the matter had been passed on to the money grabbing DCA (Direct Route Collections) who have taken full advantage of legislation that I didn’t even know existed.
But heyho, such is life and I’m going to have to pay up, once bitten, twice shy and all that.
So there you have it, if you have an account with:
Stapletons (Tyre Services)
Kwik Fit
Central Tyre
(They’re all part of the same group)
FFS pay your account on time, you’ve been warned
Mmm, part of the Kwik Fit group. 
Own Account Driver:
Mmm, part of the Kwik Fit group.
Yep, apparently 
well, if you wanted a tyre shop with a personal service and who also cared for your ten years of customership, you’d need to find a mom and pop - type of establishment and not a small part of a big corporation.
milodon:
well, if you wanted a tyre shop with a personal service and who also cared for your ten years of customership, you’d need to find a mom and pop - type of establishment and not a small part of a big corporation.
that’s right if you don’t need mom and pop to repair the other side of the country
Most small independents are in a network
Mine can areange a callout in uk or anywhere in europe but still get that personal care by people who do give a f@@@
Pwrsonally keep all corresponda ce right to them saying and proof and paid to supplier etc
Then let them take you to court
Cant gove you a ccj for a devt thats paid
Why didn’t you just pay on the phone when the grim reaper in accounts called you ?