False Advertising Angers This Consumer

About a month ago, I received a packet of coupons and ads in the mail for businesses in my area. The packet was distributed by a company called ValPak.com. One business in particular was especially interesting to me. That being for a free "Touchless Automatic Wash" at a place calling itself "Sparkling Car Wash". Especially considering how dirty my car was. According to the coupon it is a $6 value being given for free. What a deal right? That's what I thought. Just drive through and get your car washed without getting out of your car and washing it with the hose. Which I normally would do.
There was one catch according to the coupon. That being:

Present Coupon

To Attendant

Sat-Sun ONLY 10 AM-6 PM

Expires 2/28/11

Well I arrived this weekend only to find no attendant. I could not find an attendant anywhere. I called the number listed on the coupon. Only to get the voice-mail. So I left a message and decided to drive to another location. Thinking will maybe this guy was sick. I arrived at the 2nd of the three locations listed on the coupon, (although their signs says there are 6) and again found no attendant around. I again called the number which was the same number posted on the sign at this location. This time getting an answer. The guy who answered told me that the only location with an attendant was the one on Jolleyville Road. Which is also one road I am not familiar with. I also was fed up and wasn't driving all over the city to find a free car wash. I told him that he lost my business and he said "Okay, no problem." I had intended to be back to that first location I went to wash my car when I needed it, but not now. I will not being doing business with someone that puts out false advertising. If the free car wash was for only one location, it should say that. It should not list three locations with mini maps of those three areas.
You can bet I will let ValPak know. In addition I will contact the Better Business Bureau about this unscrupulous business.

One final thought, when I lived in Topeka there was a car wash that I won free car washes from the radio station on a couple of occasions. The owner was a friend of mine and I made a point of going to that car wash for all my car wash needs while in Topeka. Well anyway, he didn't have an attendant on duty either. In fact the (black and white) coupon was designed in a way to be read by the dollar bill slot and the one presenting it would just insert it into the slot like they would a $1 or $5 bill. In my opinion that was a much better system.

This "Sparkling Car Wash" here in Austin will never see a single dime of my money after this stunt.

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