Called dishonest at car dealership! What redress?

[needsnewartsyinsta]

I damaged my car a few weeks ago hitting the front bumper and needed the front camera push back into place which required the bumper to be removed.

I got a quote for my local garage and also a quote from the dealership, as the dealership quoted £165 to do the repair as opposed to £150 at the independent garage - they said it's a quick job but they do charge a minimum of 1 hours labour for any job, I decided to go with the dealership as it would be £15 more and my car is less than 3 years old and still under warranty

After dropping the car off I got a phone call today saying that they would need to charge me an extra hour's labour to remove the bumper I authorised the work to go ahead, however when I got there I did ask for records of how long had been spent on my car to justify the additional hours labour. The sales assistant was extremely rude when I explained to her but I was querying the charge for additional hour given that I've been quoted £165 to fix the camera back in place, check the sat nav and check the boot light however when I dropped the car off I said I didn't need these two additional bits of work done doing anymore just the camera put back in place, which i didn't see was 2 hours labour. She said the £165 charge was the initial charge for diagnosis and a flat charge however long diagnosis takes, and that any repaid were extra. I said this had not been explained to me when i was quoted for the work and I was taken by surprise when they called me about the additional charge, i agreed it because I need my car back but I didn't feel the quote had been properly explained to me

After I had paid for 2 hours labour and was ready to go, the sales assistant said to me that I simply didn't want to pay the additional work and I was being dishonest about expecting the quote to be the cost that I would pay. I found this extremely insulting, and asked to see her manager. He spent 10 minutes getting briefed by her, but then said he didn't have time to discuss this with me and he would phone me tomorrow. I I said to him that's fine he could speak to me by phone but I I'm expecting a written apology from the sales assistant.

I bought this car from you at this dealership as I have done with all my previous cars, in the dealership there is a sign saying they will not tolerate abusive aggressive behaviour but I consider that I have been abused. I'm planning to e-mail the manager tonight to set out what's happened, I think calling a customer dishonest is inexcusable, I am in a profession which requires absolute honesty and will not tolerate being spoken to in this way.

Any tips for what I should say to the site manager tomorrow? This is simply unacceptable - unfortunately as my car is still under warranty I will need to go back there for servicing but I'd rather go anywhere else!

yanbu. It is not ok to call someone dishonest and you’re entitled to object!

This!
Are you sure you weren’t rude to her? After all, you were arguing about the bill. Also, the word ‘dishonest’ makes no sense in the context you are claiming she used it.
They may have failed to fully explain their costing policy for repairs, or you may have failed to understand it. Either way, there’s been a lack of communication which has escalated into a row. I’m afraid the garage will likely side with their staff and possibly see it as you being the rude one here. Time to let it go.

Complain to the main Ford Dealership. They will take that rudeness very seriously. Might make it harder to go back to your local garage though!

You’ve been scammed. It’s the same MO as when your car goes in for a service and whilst it’s up on the ramp they give you a call to let you know they’ve found nails or screws in one or both front tyres and sow a seed that the car is really not safe to drive unless you get them changed and they need go ahead whilst you’re on the phone, catching you off guard so you don’t have time to properly think about it, and of course tyres cost ££ more from the dealership than they do from Kwik-Fit. The 1st time they got me, 2nd and 3rd times I was a bit wiser.

I’d take it further OP. Dog with a bone etc. get sight of that original paperwork and go from there.

They wouldn’t let me see the initial paperwork I had signed that morning which had a quote of £165 on

I mean, that strongly suggests they know full well that the paperwork wouldn't support their argument doesn't it! If it backed up what they were saying they'd have whipped it out like a shot I'm sure! Mad!

Just give them a review online and be honest. I did check reviews before buying my car and it did influence my decision. I travelled a lot further to avoid a dealer with shitty reviews.

I wouldn’t use that dealership again op.
Why would you, they sound dishonest.

The last Ford dealership I visited to look for a new car, the guy told me to return with my husband, I’ve never been back.

Just vote with your feet. Perhaps complain to the main dealership.

there is a sign saying they will not tolerate abusive aggressive behaviour but I consider that I have been abused

I think you are in the right, OP, but as other posters have said, they really won't care and will probably be having a laugh about it.

Another thought - I don't know how this works, but do these dealerships have a bigger company they work for? Write to them.

Oh, but you just touched a nerve with me about these signs, they're appearing everywhere at the moment.

I am regularly treated with rude and aggressive, treatment by rail/train staff - you are very luck to find the one or two who aren't rude.

This happened to me with a dealership. The car was under warranty and needed about 7 visits and they messed it up every time and would not be honest. It wasn’t about the money it was about the time. I would call them and tell them the issue with the car, they would book me in for a ‘repair’ and drive 20 miles (only nearest dealer) to drop my car for the whole day, only to get a call to collect it and they tell me this was just a ‘diagnostic visit’ and I had to go back another day for a repair. They refused to let me book a diagnosis visit where I could sit and wait, saying they had to keep it all day. Even when I would ask them on the phone or in person ‘will this be repaired today or is it just diagnosis’ they would say oh yes, it will, then I would get there and they would hand the car back unrepaired. Then they ordered all the wrong parts. It got to the point where I made a complaint and they provided me with free courtesy cars as I had been taking time off work and making my own way round a 40 mile trip for the same repair over and over.

I don’t think dealerships are well organised and the service agents do not actually know the information most of the time, they seem to make it up and their communication isn’t great but I blame their managers and the dealerships for promoting this culture and their business practices, not the workers themselves. I was always polite to the workers. For the dealership it’s all about profit obviously and their low paid workers are just as much under pressure about that.

Long story short, raise complaints about their communication but I would perhaps not demand an apology from the service agents

You do sound a little bit like hard work. Even in the two original quotes there was only a difference of £15. I don't think you should have been called dishonest. You could sue them for slander. I suppose.

Slightly off topic. It is amazing that so many companies have these signs up as I find that is their poor service/rudeness that causes a more 'agressive' response from the person they are meant to be helping. They never seem to think that if they improve the service or show more empathy it will improve the customers response.

10 miles is nothing. We travel 100 miles to a dealership we like because their service is exceptional. Our nearest dealership is 10 miles and their staff are absolute crap which is why we didn’t buy a car from them, and only had it serviced there once, which was a fiasco. They even screwed up a recall which we thought they’d be ok for as it was a simple swap of an o-ring, but they had it all day and then phoned to say they’d forgot to order the part, despite the car having been booked in six weeks in advance. The one 100 miles away never put a foot wrong, buying the car was a pleasure and the services since have been faultless, plus we’ve been able to speak to technicians on the phone a couple of times for queries - not fobbed off with counter staff relaying messages. Just shop around, the crap dealerships will only learn if they lose business. Far bigger impact than someone pretending to say sorry!

No.

It’s surprising how many people on this thread are misunderstanding what the OP is upset about. Not the miscommunication about the quote, but the accusation of dishonesty. That does make me wonder if the garage will also misunderstand if a formal complaint is made, however I would agree that you should make it. Casually accusing someone of lying is very offensive and is not good practice by any business.

It sounds like service advisor made a mistake. They didn’t want to admit to this so called you dishonest.

I’m not sure this is unheard of in the motor trade (either making mistakes or blaming customers)

When ( or if) the manager calls, then as with any complaint, simply state what went wrong and what you want them to do to make it right

Check if they have a complaints process and if they are part of an Ombudsman scheme

Frankly, you are not going to get a letter of apology from the service advisor, so be prepared to accept a goodwill gesture for the “misunderstanding
“ if one is offered.

Honestly you are being weird and naïve to expect honesty and truth from a car dealership and pursuing an apology from them is pointless. You learned an expensive lesson, you won't get any money back, never do business with them again.

Didn't they give you a copy of what you signed?

I have found that car dealerships and associated garages, always make their pricing and costs as complicated and obscure as possible, so that they can overcharge. I remember buying a car in the 80s on finance, and paying a lot more than I thought I had been quoted verbally, when I checked the paperwork before signing. Also service schemes look to be good value until you realise that they don't cover what you thought they would. They seem to excel in verbal trickery, so that even the most astute customer falls for it.🙄

I mean demanding a written apology from the sale advisor is pretty hilarious, like she gives a shit 😆. You should get a response from their complaints dept but don't expect one from the staff member, that's not how businesses work.

I guess, unless it's evidenced the advisor can turn around and say you're lying about what you allege she said. It can't be proven unless they have sound recording cctv so you'll get a "we've discussed this with the staff member in question and provided training" response.

The ACTUAL problem here is their unwillingness to be open about their charges. That is what you should pursue not your hurt feelings, as you genuinely should be able to get a breakdown of work and what you have or have not authorised.

Eh. Good luck finding one outside the main dealerships. I’ve tried for one of my cars and I have to go to the main dealership to have it done. Every experience with the main dealership makes me want to slap them. Great car, terrible staff.

Just Google review them OP to warn others, both about the surprise charge after the initial quote and then the employee calling you a liar when you queried it. Garages can be a nightmare.

YANBU. It was rude of the service advisor to call you dishonest.

Sadly I recall bad experiences with Ford garages over the years.

Ford UK Managing Director is Lisa Brankin:

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