Here's a thought - if it's your fault, maybe you should take care of it.

I've heard Town Fair Tire was pretty good about service, so I went there to get a flat fixed. They justifiably told me I needed new tires (they were probably 20,000 miles overdue), so I hooked them up with my credit card. Four new tires, mounting, an alignment, a cheap little insurance policy, and an hour later and I had my car back in tip-top shape. Except for 2 cracked hubcaps.

Well, at least they told me they broke a hubcap. That was courteous of them. But they didn't tell me it was two, though. What they did say was to get them fixed (maybe at a dealer) and bring them the bill. Isn't that great??? They make the mistake, and I have to spend my time to fix it (and my money, before getting it back). I can't wait to get them fixed, bring them the bill, and have them state that they won't reimburse me. Or that I can get a store credit. I'll have to keep you updated.

This is not the first time I've been told to take care of a problem I didn't cause, and then worry about collecting on the bill later. Amazing that so many companies don't have policies in place to deal with this. Maybe Stew Leonard's (a grocery store) has the best policy ever, which goes something like this: "Rule Number 1: The customer is always right. Rule Number 2: Go back and read rule number 1."

Town Fair Tire should have access to a huge inventory supply company. They could order the parts and call me when they're in. Then I could drive back and have them fix the problem. Instead, I just called the dealer, ordered the parts I needed, and will have the dealer put the hubcaps on. The two hubcaps cost about $75 - each! Wha ha ha. That'll show 'em!

(I hope.)