UPDATE, TUESDAY 10/9:
Things have worked out for contestant Michelle Mele. First a competing station WMRQ 104.1 Hartford
offered to fulfill the prize. Then, WCCC
made things right. After being contacted by WCCC, Mele says . "We had a talk about everything that
happened and they offered me compensation that I'm very grateful for. I thank
them from the bottom of my heart for that. They made it right."
Original Posting....
On a whim, radio listener Michelle Mele she entered Hartford’s WCCC / Rock
106.9's Custom Coach Contest. It offered up to $10,000 worth of auto repairs
for a person in need and she won.
"I was so grateful that someone would do something that
nice for somebody," Mele told NBC Connecticut Troubleshooter Monica Buchanan.
But a contest that promised to build dreams was nothing
short of a nightmare for Mele, according to WVIT-TV reporter Buchann. She says promises
of a much-needed wheelchair lift, paint job and even a quick vacuum were
broken.
"When they brought the car around, I almost burst into
tears. Nothing was done to it, it looked exactly like it did when they came to
pick it up," Mele said.
According to the radio station's website, three small
Connecticut businesses teamed up for the contest. K&J Auto in Wolcott would
repair any mechanical issues. PN Auto in Cheshire would repaint and detail the
winning car, while Custom Coach in Southington promised customized work, like a
lift.
"As far as WCCC listeners know, somebody won the
contest and somebody got the prize. That didn't happen," explained Mele.
Mele turned over the keys to her car on August 8. No
timetable was specified in the contest rules, but she says she was told her new
and improved ride would be revealed at Custom Coach's car show on August 19.
But the 19th came and went with few apologies and requests for more time. Mele
says after 21 days without a way to and from therapy, she had had enough.
"I was getting sicker and it was really bad. I needed
my car back," said Mele.
She says it took several days of unanswered and unreturned
phone calls before Chris Caldarola from Custom Coach got back to her. Before
she got the keys though, she was asked to sign a contract that read
"Custom Coach and 106.9 WCCC are not responsible for any promises and/ or
work that was not done."
"I was heartbroken. I was grateful that the one place,
K&J Auto in Wolcott, did do the work and fixed all the mechanical
stuff," said Mele.
Receipts show K&J Auto in Wolcott finished replacing
Mele's brakes, struts, serpentine belts and catalytic converter on August 28 to
the tune of about $2,300. But Mele says P&N Auto and Custom Coach didn't do
a thing to her car.
As for WCCC, they’ve posted the following on their Facebook
page.
Many of you have contacted us regarding the inaccurate and misleading report that aired on WVIT-TV last night. We would like to set the record straight regarding this situation. Michele Mele won a contest we had on Facebook and was awarded a $10,000 car makeover. Three Connecticut businesses agreed to donate their services for this promotion – Custom Coach, PN Auto Body, LLC and K & J Automotive. The mechanical work took longer than anticipated to finish due to the fact that Michele’s car is quite old and it was difficult to get the parts quickly. Once the basic mechanical problems were fixed by K & J Automotive (about $2,500 worth of work), the vehicle was taken to Custom Coach. Custom Coach was planning to do a number of alterations to the vehicle, including installing a ramp in the back in order to facilitate the storage of Michele’s wheelchair. This was going to take at least a week. It was at this point that Michele demanded that Custom Coach give her back her car even though the work had not been completed. Custom Coach was perfectly willing to do the work, but Michele wanted her car returned to her. We continue to work on a solution to this situation.
WCCC-FM
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