Never again on a Beretta, Sako or Tikka!! Beretta customer service SUCKS!

lifesupport4u · Dec 4, 2018

I purchased a Sako A7 a year and a half ago. The rifle doesn't group as promised. I have spent time and money putting 2 sets of rings on it, 2 scopes, trips to the range and various boxes of ammo. I have had friends shoot it. Its the only rifle I own that I have not been able to get to group. My 5 other rifles have no issues.

I told Beretta about the issue and they suggested sending it back. I gave them all the details, advised them I bought it a year and a half ago and don't have a receipt. They gave me info stating they will pattern the rifle and if it groups sub MOA they charge $70, if not they correct the problem and it is no charge.

About a week after I send the rifle I get a phone call from Beretta. They request $85 to clean and shoot/ group the rifle, before it has been shot... not because it grouped ok. The lady told me it's out of warranty because Sako is warrantied for a year. I advised her the information I had received in the box and online stated 2 years. She then stated the manual told me I had to have mailed the warranty card to get a warranty. The manual did not say this upon my review and despite tearing my house apart I can't find the receipt or get a duplicate from the gun shop where I purchased it.

Long story short, it was then going to be $85 plus cost of any repairs. No warranty. And I was already out $40 for shipping and insurance. I got ticked that they won't take care of me after purchasing a $1,200 rifle and putting a year and half of time and money into trying to get it to function as promised. If they were not going to honor their warranty, why would I want their gunsmith working on it anyways? I will have another gunsmith I have used in the past take a look.

Long story short, and the reason for this post is mostly to inform others that the Beretta customer service is terrible. There are companies that stand behind their products with no questions asked... like Leupold and Vortex. Then there are companies that will do anything they can to get out of warranty work like Beretta.

Beretta had the chance to correct a bad situation and to show me they stand behind their products. They could have made me a customer for life... but instead they lost me.

I will never again purchase a Beretta, Tikka or Sako product. Many of their products may function great... but if they don't work as promised don't count on the company to have your back and make it right.

Beretta SUCKS! I hope you take this into consideration in your future purchases.

OhHeyThereBen · Dec 4, 2018

I will say that if you couldn't get the rifle to group within the first six months you probably should have sent it back earlier. To send it back a year and a half after the purchase and expect them to have a gunsmith check it out, spend the money on different ammo testing it, and ship it back to you after that long I would say is a stretch for most rifle companies.

However, if they told you over the phone that they would do the testing and fix it if there was an issue or charge you $70 if there wasn't an issue they should do that. Typically customer service centers have their calls recorded. This would be a good instance to have asked for the call recording number or kept exact track of the day/time you called so they can reference the call.

VikingsGuy · Dec 4, 2018

I am sure if that happened to me I would be equally irritated, but for others that are considering these brands I have had 6 Berettas and 5 Tikkas over the years and each has been problem free. They are both on my “must consider” list when looking for new firearms.

brymoore · Dec 4, 2018

$500 for your poor shooting rifle.

Gr8bawana · Dec 4, 2018

If you're not happy you're not happy but I will say that a year and a half is a long time to decide the rifle isn't to your liking. It doesn't take that long to try different ammo and switch scopes.

belly-deep · Dec 4, 2018

Funny with all the Kimber hate that this could even occur.

LuketheDog · Dec 4, 2018

Huh, I have a Beretta shotgun that I've owned for 20 years. With it I have shot competitive trap and skeet, hunted ducks, upland, and small game. I don't know how many rounds I've put through it, but I stopped counting at 6,000. I have not had a jam, misfire, or malfunction of any kind for the entirety of my ownership...Beretta is AWESOME!!

In reality, maybe you should have taken care of this a little sooner, I don't think it's all on them after this long...

Walkathon · Dec 4, 2018

I have a Tikka .270 that had a head space issue (not enough) out of the box and it was very difficult to close the bolt. I took it back to the Cabelas, they sent it to Beretta, and I had the gun back in 2 or 3 weeks. They verified the head space was less than spec and opened it up. Gun shoots great. Sucks that you had a bad experience.

belshawelk · Dec 4, 2018

They can’t void a warranty because you didn’t send card in. You’ll need to prove purchase date. I deal with no warranty cards sent in all the time.

VikingsGuy · Dec 4, 2018

belshawelk said:
They can’t void a warranty because you didn’t send card in. You’ll need to prove purchase date. I deal with no warranty cards sent in all the time.

I am not saying it’s the case here, but some manufacturers will give a base warranty (a year for example) and then grant the customer a bonus warranty extension (a second year for example) in return for registration. That works in some states, can’t speak to all.

Deleted member 16014 · Dec 4, 2018

That's a bummer, but I'm gonna keep buying them.

ImBillT · Dec 4, 2018

Never had a Sako that wouldn’t shoot. A guy at our local benchrest club used to shoot a factory Tikka for HBR in the open class, and frequently won. He also had full custom .308s and a 30x47 that shot no better. You could probably sell the gun for a reasonably high price even disclosing your issue. 18 months is definitely a long time to decide on a gun. It’s still a shame that their warranty didn’t work out better for you. I’ve had issues with a Leupold return. Even the most widely acclaimed name in the business didn’t live up to some pretty reasonable expectations when their rings failed to fit, despite their ring height chart, and after the customer service rep admitted the chart was flawed, they wouldn’t exchange the rings because they were scuffed during mounting. How do you turn in a front ring without it scuffing? I still buy Leupold, and will continue to buy Sako.

BlakeA · Dec 4, 2018

SnowyMountaineer said:
That's a bummer, but I'm gonna keep buying them.

This^

lifesupport4u · Dec 5, 2018

I get those who will keep buying it and I understand that most of their products probably work without an issue.

I wasn't "deciding" on this rifle for 18 months... I still want the rifle... I just want it to function as promised. For the last 18 months I was trying ammo, rings, multiple scopes, trips to the range each time.... I live over an hour from a decent range and I work a full time job and own a business. It doesn't work for me to swing by the range each week. On top of that... I kept assuming it was something I was doing... ammo, rings, scope, my shooting, something loose... etc.

And to all the comments about this being a long time... they have a "2 YEAR WARRANTY"!

Lesson learned on my part to be more careful with receipts. I will start keeping digital copies. However, some companies will give the customer the benefit of the doubt and that is the kind of company I prefer to buy from.

ImBillT · Dec 5, 2018

I don’t disagree with your disappointment in the way they handled it. Once they had your gun in hand they should have jumped through their butts to prove that something was wrong or that you were wrong. Nonetheless, excellent customer service is fairly rare, and they are more likely to produce a firearm that exceeds expectations than a lot of their competition.

plumber1969 · Dec 6, 2018

lifesupport4u said:
I get those who will keep buying it and I understand that most of their products probably work without an issue.

I wasn't "deciding" on this rifle for 18 months... I still want the rifle... I just want it to function as promised. For the last 18 months I was trying ammo, rings, multiple scopes, trips to the range each time.... I live over an hour from a decent range and I work a full time job and own a business. It doesn't work for me to swing by the range each week. On top of that... I kept assuming it was something I was doing... ammo, rings, scope, my shooting, something loose... etc.

And to all the comments about this being a long time... they have a "2 YEAR WARRANTY"!

Lesson learned on my part to be more careful with receipts. I will start keeping digital copies. However, some companies will give the customer the benefit of the doubt and that is the kind of company I prefer to buy from.

Where did you buy the rifle from? Could you return to the store and ask about getting a copy of the receipt?

ImBillT · Dec 6, 2018

^^^ great point!

kansasdad · Dec 6, 2018

Another thought.....to purchase you had to have federal forms/background check filled out before you were authorized to purchase this firearm. Serial number is included. Therefore you have a record of date and exact rifle purchased. I am certain Uncle Sam's finest could help you out in your quest to verify purchase date.

ImBillT · Dec 6, 2018

kansasdad said:
Another thought.....to purchase you had to have federal forms/background check filled out before you were authorized to purchase this firearm. Serial number is included. Therefore you have a record of date and exact rifle purchased. I am certain Uncle Sam's finest could help you out in your quest to verify purchase date.

Government officials should not actually have the serial number, although they may anyway. The dealer on the other hand is required by law to have that information. I don’t know if it will prove that he is the original owner or it’s orug sale date, but it’s certainky worth a try.

Cableguy224 · Dec 7, 2018

ImBillT said:
Government officials should not actually have the serial number, although they may anyway. The dealer on the other hand is required by law to have that information. I don’t know if it will prove that he is the original owner or it’s orug sale date, but it’s certainky worth a try.

Yep, The dealer has to keep the sale date on record. I had to go back to my dealer for that info to get warranty work on a Sig.

I’d go to your dealer to get a copy of the sale.

Never again on a Beretta, Sako or Tikka!! Beretta customer service SUCKS!

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