Should labour be part of a recall fix?

marcarm

I have a set of MTB forks that have been recalled for a simple fix. The advice was to contact the local dealer and get it booked in.

I have done this, but the bike shop want to charge me £25 labour.

I understand this will not be done for free, but surely as it is a recall the labour charges should be borne by the manufacturer so I am not out of pocket?

nickcc

Only have experience with car recalls and they certainly included the labour cost.

Zandoni

I’d contact the manufacturer and find out, it’s most unusual to charge.

marcarm

That's what I thought, I called the bike shop and they booked it in after speaking with the bike manufacturer (not the fork manufacturer I will add) and they informed me parts are included but not labour.

I will add I didn't buy it from this shop, but surely that shouldn't affect a recall? I understand it may affect a warranty claim, but this is not a warranty claim

Edit: I looked on the manufacturers site and there is an official distributor not far away so have sent them an email to see what they say.

I'm not overly happy in paying £25 labour for what is effectively unscrewing something and then screwing it back in with some threadlock attached.

shaun_from_Africa

Are they Ohlins forks?
If so, it appears that the bike shop you are dealing with is correct.

https://www.ohlins.com/recall/mtb-air-forks-rxf-36-29-27-5-rxf-34/

After a repair have been made, customers can register for a voucher at ohlins.com/recall giving them free of charge materials for a full service (labor not included) and a soon to be released performance upgrade to the RXF 36. The voucher form will be found here at ohlins.com and will go live the coming week.

marcarm

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

Are they Ohlins forks?
If so, it appears that the bike shop you are dealing with is correct.

https://www.ohlins.com/recall/mtb-air-forks-rxf-36-29-27-5-rxf-34/

That bit you posted is about the free service.

You get a voucher for free parts such as seals etc, but have to pay the labour for the service.

I believe this is for the inconvenience of having to take the bike in for the recall fix and separate to the repair they are proposing.

But yes, they are Ohlins forks

The rest of the statement

We are advising customers globally who have purchased Öhlins RXF36 Air and RXF34 Air suspension forks, including those installed as original equipment on Specialized-branded Enduro, Stumpjumper, Fuse, and Levo mountain bicycles, to immediately stop riding and bring them to an Öhlins, Specialized or other authorized dealer to receive the repair.

After a repair have been made, customers can register for a voucher at ohlins.com/recall giving them free of charge materials for a full service (labor not included) and a soon to be released performance upgrade to the RXF 36. The voucher form will be found here at ohlins.com and will go live the coming week.

marcarm

My bike is now with the distributor and they are doing the fix for free, just thought I would update.