Tora Finally Commits to Customer Service

[Bruce Arnold]

In Tora's latest blog, he discusses the service problem. I'm glad to see an honest admission of Juiced Bikes' failures on the customer service front, and a commitment to improving it. This has kept Juiced from enjoying a higher regard among ebikers.

Here's the link.

 

[TMH]

Thanks for sharing this. I hadn't been following the Juiced Bikes blog since receipt of our HyperScorpion.

Tora has actually responded directly to me (through the Service Ticket system) regarding the issues with our HyperScorpion. After a couple of emails with Tora, it seems like the subsequent Juiced Customer Support agent has been communicating in a much more timely and frequent manner.

I am surprised that the troubleshooting which Juiced asked me to do was rather minimal - check connections, unplug and re-plug certain wires, try the bike without the display connected to see whether it was a display issue. That's pretty much it.

When those items did not address the issue (no motor power and continually flashing '0.0' V on the display, 10 total miles on the bike's odometer), they immediately started talking about replacing it with a whole new bike. Since I did not keep the shipping box after the initial test rides confirmed the bike's functionality, they were going to set up my taking it to a local bike shop for disassembly, packaging and return shipping to Juiced, all on their dime.

I live maybe 4-5 hours away from Juiced and suggested that maybe it would be more cost effective (and less susceptible to shipping damage) if I drove down and 'met them half way' to do the bike exchange. They are willing to do this, and we are now waiting to schedule that event for when the next lot of Brushed Aluminum bikes arrives (in a couple of weeks).

All in all, my use of the Juiced Service Ticket system started out with pretty quick responses, then went into a period where there was very little communication from them, and has now gone back to quick responses again. Understanding what they are going through with the e-bike sales boom along with launching the new Scorpion models and supply chain/transit disruptions, I will say that they have so far done fine with my issues. A little slow for a while, but then they recovered.

I am glad that the HyperScorp isn't our first and/or only e-bike. Even with it out-of-commission we are still able to ride every day. If it had been my introductory e-bike I would be really bummed that I still couldn't be riding. Tora understands this, and the impact that it will have on his company if it continues (especially with their current flagship product). I'm glad that he is taking steps to improve Juiced's customer service/support. Overall I really do like their products.

 

[teskow]

I have a 2018 version of the RC and it has been a very good machine. In the beginning I had a couple of small issues that customer service took care of quite promptly. As of late though I haven't been liking what customers have been saying on the blogs about Juiced Bikes and the customer service. It would not encourage me to buy any of the product in spite of it being a good unit. Nobody wants to be stuck with a unit that the company has gone belly up. Good product or not, everything breaks at some point and if parts and service is not available one is stuck with a product that is worthless. Not a place I want to be.
Hey Juiced, get with the program. Do what need to be done and get this show back on the road and running right.

 

[Asher]

This must be the 'exciting information on a NEW e-bike project' Tora promised in July.

 

[Billretired]

Missing small parts box when received my order for Crosscurrent S2 today.

Got my bike and opened it up ready to put it together and small box that holds the charger, pedals, etc is missing. Assume those parts come in a small box in the big bike box. Box from Fedex beat up a little but bike looks okay with the foam packing.

I though Juiced opens the bike boxes and it is quality checked. I called juiced and get the usual we are busy with orders phone message and says to send an email and will get back with you in a few days.

I though when the Juiced owner sent out notice on their web site they will improved customer service I was not expecting to only get part of my bike and can’t ride it.

So frustrating with can’t trust a company when they say they inspect the bikes when they get them in from China. If they do inspect the bikes then they need to fire there quality control person

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Missing small parts box when received my order for Crosscurrent S2 today.

Got my bike and opened it up ready to put it together and small box that holds the charger, pedals, etc is missing. Assume those parts come in a small box in the big bike box. Box from Fedex beat up a little but bike looks okay with the foam packing.

I though Juiced opens the bike boxes and it is quality checked. I called juiced and get the usual we are busy with orders phone message and says to send an email and will get back with you in a few days.

I though when the Juiced owner sent out notice on their web site they will improved customer service I was not expecting to only get part of my bike and can’t ride it.

So frustrating with can’t trust a company when they say they inspect the bikes when they get them in from China. If they do inspect the bikes then they need to fire there quality control person

Cross-posted word for word from another thread.

 

[Tino]

My wife and I decided three months ago that ebikes would be just the ticket to get us riding again. I immediately began researching ebikes. I was overwhelmed with all of the different brands and types of ebikes available. Juiced quickly came to the top of my list because I felt they were a tremendous value. As I refined my search, I noticed that Juice has more than a normal amount of quality control issues and poor customer service complaints. Though I really felt like the CCX was the perfect bike for us, I decided it was not in our best interest to purchase from Juice. I decided to look for a similar bike from a different brand. I did not want to pay thousand's of dollars for a headache.

Tora's blog post changes everything for me. I feel he is being genuinely sincere. He recognizes that if these concerns stick, it will sink his company. I am sure that his investors are playing a part in this change as well.

One thing continues to concern me though. Tora failed to mention improving Juice's quality control issues. I hope that this is an oversight on his part. Isn't it obvious that Juice should improve the quality of the product? Doing so would immediately lessen the amount of customer service correspondence they would have to address.

None the less, because of Tora's post, we will be purchasing two CCXs. I will keep my fingers crossed that Juice will sort out and fix not only the customer service issues but also the quality control issues as well.

 

[Billretired]

Yes I also think juiced bikes are good quality for the price. But quality control is an issue when I order a bike and don’t get all the parts and they say they inspect the bikes when they get the bikes from China.

still waiting to hear from Juiced about my missing bike parts.

Once I get to ride my crosscurrent s2 and it works good as I expect it will I plan on ordering another bike from Juiced for my wife.

 

[Asher]

I'm guessing that Juiced will improve it's QC to what it has been historically, which wasn't that great to begin with, but apparently better than now. Unless Tora hires an executive whose whole job is QC and customer experience. Tora likes to build new things not work on existing ones.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

I've never felt that JB's QC and customer service is as bad as some make it out to be. People love to complain. JB has sold many thousands of bikes. They couldn't have all been that bad. I've had very little trouble with mine until the clutch went out and service was good when that happened.

I'm not saying it's all good. We all know there's been a need for improvement. But the thousands of happy customers don't write in to say "great bike, no problems."

Just maintaining perspective. The odds are pretty good that you can order one of their bikes and be happy with it. Just not as good as they could or should be.

A lot of us have said, since the RCS came out around two years ago. That if Tora put as much of his skill into developing QC and customer service as he does into new products, there'd be no stopping JB from becoming a top tier ebike brand. I was disappointed when the Scramblers came out because he hadn't fixed the problem yet. Maybe now that will happen.

 

[Explorer-1]

I figure there CS could be a lot worse than we think; I'm making a somewhat educated guess that the majority of e-bike buyers are not visiting any e-bike forms at all.

Anyway, just words for now, Tora is good at words, we'll have to wait to see what real actions follow. I agree though, with better CS, and Parts supply they could be a much higher regarded company across a broader customer range. They do get a lot right, so it's a shame that they miss on on little things/details, and on the big issue of CS and parts.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Anyway, just words for now, Tora is good at words, we'll have to wait to see what real actions follow.

Agreed. I'm hoping this works out well, but not yet optimistic.

 

[Armchair]

I figure there CS could be a lot worse than we think; I'm making a somewhat educated guess that the majority of e-bike buyers are not visiting any e-bike forms at all.

Anyway, just words for now, Tora is good at words, we'll have to wait to see what real actions follow. I agree though, with better CS, and Parts supply they could be a much higher regarded company across a broader customer range. They do get a lot right, so it's a shame that they miss on on little things/details, and on the big issue of CS and parts.

Right, on both accounts. Facebook user groups are a much better indicator of good and bad stories. That being said there are a lot of FB posts of failing parts and people sharing customer service stories that get much more attention then a typical forum post. I'm particularly surprised by the failed kickstand welds that some people are posting. A lot of the Juiced employees are members of the groups and it isn't good optics. There is a reason Tora had to put out that letter.

Edit: Just for the hell of it I just checked the Scorpion fan group and one of the latest posts was someone recording their phone calling Juiced bikes support. It doesn't get to a human but an automated voice which tells the caller that the call can't be connected and to use email support. No option for voicemail anymore I guess.

 

[teskow]

I am old enough to remember several introductions of new products like e-bikes .Numerous companies jumped into the fray to start with. As time went by they got weeded out and only the ones with decent products, customer service and marketing skills survived, Snowmobiles being one that comes to mind. My lord there were a lot of brands.
Being a customer of Juiced I will say my unit is a fine product and am completely satisfied with it. I am hoping they, Juiced are one of the e-bike companies that survives. I will do my part in helping them survive.
Will I make excuses for them if they don't perform, no, but If they perform I will support them. Let us hope that is the case and they turn out to be one of the survivors of the new e-bike industry.

 

[Islander1]

Juiced WAS in my top 3 choices for the CCX. The customer service issues were too big for me to ignore. Also, I decided a mid drive was best for me. I ordered a Dōst Kope, Sept/Oct delivery.

Honestly, I do not believe most ebike companies open their boxes between ship delivery and customer delivery.
Good luck with your Juiced bike. Lots of fun ahead.