Actually, let me start out by saying I may be wrong when I say Specialized has "horrendous" after-sales customer service.
That would imply some level of service. Whereas Specialized has not deigned to provide any so far.
Let me take a step back. February 2021, Tour of Goa. I hit an unexpected pothole on the second stage at 48kph, crashed and went off the road into a ditch. I was surprisingly ok, my poor Venge was smashed.
Yeah, it sucked.
Ok, Specialized has a crash replacement program, no worries, I will try that.
Then the first problem occurred: I had bought the bike from in Kuala Lumpur (because India doesnt have a Specialized dealer) but we spend a lot of time there, so that is/was pretty much a local shop for me. Except that this store was no longer a Specialized dealer but had switched to Trek. They put me in touch with someone else, who was, and weeks went by without an any movement.
I realize that there is a shortage of bikes and parts. All I wanted to know was (a) what my replacement frameset would be (I was concerned that with the Venge being discontinued, it would no longer be available), (b) what color it would be and (c) what it would cost me. Given that, I would place an order and then get the new frameset whenever I got it - I was not in a big rush for that. But I did want a resolution and to get the process moving.
However, despite several messages, I got no info.
Finally, fed up, I emailed Specialized in March. After 3 weeks, I got a reply saying their Malaysian distributor would get in touch with me. That's it. Still no info.
I also wanted to see if i could document the crashed frame by photo/video, so I would not have to keep the frameset lying around after that (it is taking up space). But apparently, I need to bring it over for them to document it - which, under normal circumstances would not be an issue. But while Covid means that Specialized can get away with taking weeks to reply to my email, apparently they will not do me the courtesy of finding an expedited solution to confirm my crashed frame.
So as of now, it has now been 2.5 months and Specialized has not been able to even let me know what frameset they will provide and what it will cost. I cannot make a decision on a replacement frame until I hear back from them, so I am stuck in a limbo. In fact, in 2.5 months, Specialized has not even officially registered my crash replacement request, so my process of getting a new frame has not moved forward an inch. And all this while, I have a broken frameset taking up a lot of space.
Let me recap the build: Venge. Dura Ace Di2. Roval CLX64s. Quarq carbon powermeter. S-Works Power Arc saddle. Everything top-of-the-line. This was my dream build. And we also have 2 Di2 Shivs in my household - one is mine, one is my wife's. And this is how Specialized responds, by dragging its heels.
Let's be clear - they are not going to be giving me a replacement frameset for free. I will be paying more or less wholesale rates for it. This is also a part of their vaunted "Rider Care" package. But apparently, they have zero interest in even communicating with their customers over this matter.
By comparison, when I bought my Factor, one part was mixed up in the box of spares. Factor immediately couriered me the replacement part the next day, ensuring I got it before a riding camp. We were planning to get an S-Works SL7 for my wife. But given this atrocious lack of service, I would recommend to everyone that they get a Factor Ostro or ONE instead. Better service all around.
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