James Boat and Fiberglass Repair

Hi Mia, thank you for your review, and I'm sorry for the slow response. It seems you have found a solution to your issue and that's good.

My name is Gregg and I handle the web stuff for James. Obviously I missed your review, and I apologize for that.

In recounting what happened with James, he stated that he tried to help, but you were insistent on ordering an aftermarket platform that in the end didn't fit properly. He regrets that result, but the pictures you showed him seemed like they would fit your current holes and it would be a simple and relatively inexpensive repair.

When it arrived and they discovered that the support arms were different than the original, and it wouldn't line up properly, it became apparent that this would either have to be customized (involving fiberglass and gelcoat repair) or it wasn't going to work. As you expressed a lower budget solution, it was determined that he pull the plug on this repair.

Again, James always tries his best to represent actual repair scenarios, and is capable of any sort of custom work (he does quite a bit of it), but since he didn't order the part himself and you didn't want to go further to customize this repair, he regrets that he couldn't help this time.

I hope the repair you sustained worked out well for you.

Hi Kelli, clearly you are a bit upset. I'm sorry about that.

Yes, my name is Gregg. I am the webmaster for James. That is, I designed his website and help him with sites such as this as he isn't a techy sort of guy. He fixes boats, and he is damn good at it. I wish we could meet under better circumstances, but such is the nature of things like this, so it is what it is.

As with most disputes, both sides tend to feel strongly about their respective positions, and I'm not here to diminish yours. But I do think it fair to shed light on the entire picture, especially for those who are using this medium to investigate who they do business with.

Having spoken with James about this, I hope I can do just that. And, if I say something that is incorrect, please contact me and I will do my utmost to make it right for you. I mean that sincerely.

I am told that when the boat was brought to James for repair, it was contracted for gelcoat and body work to be done. The engine issue, since you were still under warranty, was mutually decided to be best handled by an authorized dealer, which is located in Rocklin. So, the work by James was to be handled first, then you were to take it to the dealer for the engine work. Correct so far?

Once the work was completed, professionally and beautifully, (see pictures), he informed you that it was ready to pick up. Due to an accident or other incident that occurred on a trip out of country, you were unable to get the boat then. It was an unfortunate situation for both you and James, but certainly not James' fault.

As Christmas was approaching and the end of the year, and James was attempting to close the books on 2021 (which was certainly a challenging year for many businesses due to Covid and the restrictions on businesses and individuals in our fair State), he agreed to hold your boat and continue to store it safely, which takes up room in his shop, as long as payment was made as the job was completed as agreed. Due to the challenges that kept you away, and perhaps frustration at the situation at hand, that payment became an issue and finally James was told that payment would NOT be made.

Of course, NO business that has done work as agreed wants to be told they won't be paid. The tone of that communication changed, from both parties perspective. From that point, and as stated in the contract that was signed, it was asked that you pay for storage. Now the issue of the space being taken up and no payment made, came to a head. It was at that point an attorney was threatened to be called, and is the common practice over the years James has done business, over 37 now, he stopped speaking with the client who issued the threat, you.

The police were called and James produced the paperwork to them, signed, and that ended that legal challenge. It is my understanding that partial payment was made, but James wasn't going to release the boat (especially under the threats being made) until it was paid in full.

I should mention here that it is NOT the practice generally of James to charge paying clients storage fees. It is generally set up to charge to insurance companies while they decide what course of action they want to take. It's common practice and practical too, since he can't have boats sitting around in limited space and then months down the line carted off without action by the insurance company. This generally gets quicker service (good for clients who want a resolution) from them and aides the process.

This, however, is written into contracts for situations such as this, a customer who refuses to pay in a timely fashion. In the end, you were NOT charged for time stored, despite the back and forth regarding when to pick up the boat. Legally, you COULD have been charged, but that was waived - as is the common practice of the business - once the job that was contracted was paid in full. This despite many weeks that the boat actually did take up shop space.

Two final points I'd like to make.

First, in business as in life, sometimes things don't always go as planned. Things happen, circumstances arise, and challenges come up that were not anticipated. In this case, it seems that certainly occurred. We are sorry about that, truly.

Secondly, it's important to point out that the actual work that James was contracted to do WAS done and done professionally, and ON TIME. If able, I will post pictures to show the work. It is, after all, what the business was supposed to do, and was done impeccably.

Again, I'm sorry to "meet" you this way. Please contact me if I can be of any further assistance.

Update: As I am unable to post photos here, I will post them under "Kelli M" in the business photos and videos section of the business. It shows great work, so why not? These will post soon.

Hello Mike, thank you for your response.

My name is Gregg and I handle the web stuff for James. It's not that he can't address his own business, just that tech and online communication is not his strong suit. Fixing boats is.

Having said that, there was clearly a problem with yours and for that we are very sorry. I am told that James has every intention to follow through and correct your vessel, but this move to a new shop (a product of growth and satisfied customers actually) has caused an issue that unfortunately we have very little control.

The new shop is set up and authorized for fiberglass and gelcoat work, while the upholstery shop is not. The new shop is great in that there is a good amount of additional space for this work, but the downside is that it didn't come with a large door to help get in larger vessels like yours.

James has applied for the permit for the large doors, but is waiting on the government to approve that application and then the install of the new doors. The doors are ready and waiting, but the permit is still "in progress". Nobody is more frustrated about this waiting period than James, as it severely limits the new shop's access and utilization. We simply can't get your boat inside - and it is too nice a rig to leave outside unprotected. He has every intention to honor his word and correct the work himself. It is relatively minor, but we do understand that anything less than perfect is unacceptable and intend to make it right.

We certainly made a mistake by not a thorough check of your boat after we had done the initial work, and that is certainly on us. However, as stated, we do intend to fix it right and sincerely apologize for the delay which the government is causing in this case.

At least at this juncture you are able to use the boat during the season and know that we will be reaching out as soon as we can get your vessel in the shop where the work can be done and its secure.

Hi John, thank you for your review.

My name is Gregg and I handle the web stuff for James.

I understand that you have been in pretty consistent contact with James so this issue should be resolved shortly. I also realize it has taken longer than desired, and for that we apologize.

Sometimes in business things come up where timing and circumstances don't line up very well. It's never intended, and that seems to be the case here. James acknowledges that he does owe you those funds, and intends to settle that as quickly as possible.

The recent expansion of our shop and move from two locations to one large one has created a challenge to say the least. The new shop and the old have both needed to be paid through this process, but now a complete move out of the older smaller facility has been accomplished. However, as government sometimes makes it challenging for the small businesses out there, it certainly has happened here too.

Our newer larger building has had to have new doors and ventilation installed, at great expense, and permits and inspections have needed to be completed as well and most of that has all been held up for various reasons (by vendors and government) causing strain on job timing and cash flows. These issues seem to be nearly resolved, but unfortunately your particular case got caught in this web and had you not pulled your boat from our repair (your request, not for any work we did or didn't do) this might not have occurred.

Again, we regret the delay but pledge that this WILL get resolved to your satisfaction. We ALWAYS strive to provide superior quality work and happy clients. We regret that hasn't been the case for you John.

Hi Jessica, sorry to hear about your troubles with this.

Yes, my name is Gregg and I do the web work for James as that isn't his forte. James has been repairing boats for nearly 4 decades (40 yrs) and is very good at it, but his online skills are lax so it leaves it to me to pass along his thoughts on these things.

For the record, I'm not here to "clean up" anything, just set the record straight if necessary. Calling an expert like James who has been in business that long "dishonest" is quite an insult. Let's see if we can address your concerns logically.

James does do insurance work. In fact, a LOT of it. Your other comments do not fit YOUR case, however, since you were not at the shop for insurance work.

Business hours, in general, are done by appointment. Yelp does not provide a clearcut way to express that, so we have posted hours with what they provide. As a result of this misunderstanding I will be making changes to the hours after talking with James. It's best for him to make appointments with potential clients so that all that is required can be gone over, discovery of any additional needed work can be discussed, and a proper agreement can be arranged to either go forward with the work or part friends. None of those things occurred in your case.

As to the "hung over" comment, you should know that James does NOT drink or do drugs and has operated completely SOBER for 24+ yrs. As that is a sensitive subject, I hope you understand us answering that off the cuff comment. He's NEVER "hung over".

Per the conversation you did have on the phone, and the fact you just left your boat at his shop, the communication that should have happened didn't. When he saw your boat, and it's overall condition (obviously very worn with likely structural damage as well as the obvious cosmetic issues), he hit you with a high estimate, planning to come across internal issues if he did the work.

James is really a very hard worker and accomplished boat expert. Being insulted doesn't sit well with him, or with most folks.

People are welcome to look deeply into his work and comments both good and bad and make a determination of who they do business with - it's how it works in a free society. I'm sorry you were so worked up, but I can only wish you the best with whomever decides to help remedy your situation.

For the record, James' shop turns over jobs fairly rapidly and the facility means he can only have a few boats at any one time. We are confused why you called it "messy/stinky hoader hole", but it is true that there are chemicals involved in most aspects of the repair process and perhaps you didn't realize that.

You're welcome to post anything you like, but it's interesting it got so personal considering you never even met James face to face. Nor me for that matter.

Best of luck to you, and whoever decides to tackle the rebuild of your boat.

Thank you for your comments Billy.

As is often the case, it takes insurance companies some time to respond to estimates and decide what settlements they will provide for a damaged vessel. That was also the case for your situation, but as we charge the insurance companies for storage (we are a small business operating in a limited size facility, and as such space is at a premium), we will generally get that from them in the final payout.

We came to learn that apparently you received the settlement from insurance directly ($5000, right?) and THEN decided to pick up your Waverunner and have it repaired elsewhere. As that payment did not pass through us, we didn't have an opportunity to settle with insurance on storage and therefor the charges passed along to you. Had you done the work through us, this would not have ever been an issue for you.

We can only guess why you chose not to do the work through us, but usually if an insurance company pays a customer directly and not through the repair facility, then the customer may decide to have it repaired for cheaper elsewhere or perhaps not even at all.

We appreciate the fact you called the Dixon PD, as we ALWAYS strive to do business above board and legally, and with a simple explanation the PD was satisfied that we were operating within the law and in accordance with the good practices that we have abided by for decades.

We hope that you found a good result in repairing your Waverunner and we are sorry that we couldn't do our excellent work for you. Best of luck to you and have safe fun on the water!