Dealing with a dealer!

amacca

Hi,

Could anyone tell me how to go about making an official complaint about a car dealer.

What is the correct procedure?

I feel I was mis sold a car using a warranty which wasn't fit for purpose....sharp practice at a minimum imo

The dealer told outright lies about what the warranty would cover which left me with a false sense of security ...(mea culpa for taking him at his word and not reading the fine print)

Thanks in advance.

ba_barabus

Ccpc are your best bet. What exactly did they say the warranty covered and what has gone wrong?

Atlantic Dawn

Was it from a main dealer or SIMI member?

colm_mcm

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Was it from a main dealer or SIMI member?

amacca

Thanks for the replies,

I was led to believe the warranty covered electrical issues + suspension pump etc. Was a big factor in decision to purchase ...but again my own fault for not reading the fine print etc.....I thought I had covered all bases in detail.........but it was something I was unfamiliar with (which of course is the thing you should be paying the most attention to!

handbrake servo motor gone due to drums seized/corroded and instrument cluster on the blink - pricey on parts and theres a labour element too....facing a bill of around 3k ...about a grand of that I had budgeted for and was prepared to accept....eg: service, gearbox flush (was thinking that wouldn't be a bad idea myself before it was necessary) + any odds and ends like tie rods etc

colm_mcm

Few questions:
Does the dealer have a premises
Is the dealer a main dealer for a car brand?
Is the warranty through a third party?
How long have you had the car?
Were the faults apparent immediately or have they gradually happened?

amacca

Does the dealer have a premises

Yes : office space they work out of (cars in a nearby lock up)

Is the dealer a main dealer for a car brand?

No: they sell used cars. No brand affiliation.

Is the warranty through a third party?

Yes: I'm getting the sinking feeling as I answer these qs I'm not in a good place

How long have you had the car?

10 months

Were the faults apparent immediately or have they gradually happened?

No faults not apparent immediately, it performed well up until a month ago now.. handbrake seized about a month ago I got it released but wanted to wait to go to approved mechanic (approved by warranty company somewhat ironically as it's a condition of warranty -) to get it serviced at same time.

Slight rocking on start up from cold apparent twice about two weeks ago so I parked it up immediately booked it in and it's been there since ... I don't really have an issue with getting it flushed, thought I'd probably have to do that eventually anyway.

Instrument cluster not quite right for two or three weeks too - info/lcd display fades and goes dead periodically ..clocks (Speedo/revs) go dead too ..then recover etc

ba_barabus

What is the car? Age/brand/model/engine/mileage

How much warranty were you given?

3/6/12 month?

amacca

What is the car? Age/brand/model/engine/mileage

Range rover 3.6 v8 2009 mileage around 150k

How much warranty were you given?

3 month warranty from dealer

+ 12 month 3rd party arranged by dealer...which I extended for another 12 months

It was a selling point that it would cover big ticket electrical items, suspension pump etc...lad full of bluster assured me it would. Told me when I rang recently warranty company just trying to get out of it etc

Stupid me for listening and not reading terms and nailing him at point of sale.

Marcusm

The third party warrant should be a regulated financial product. Is it that warranty which you have the issue with vis a vis what it covers and how it was sold?

That is an issue for Central Bank and/or Financial ombudsman.

amacca

Yes that too to a certain extent, the description on the warranty and way its marketed (language on the brochure etc)...its clearly inadequate/inappropriate for the vehicle it was applied to imo

But id take much more issue with the dealers lies ...and my own stupidity at believing them and the bluster ....

CrankyHaus

I had a read through one of those third party warrenties before. It had one term that no objects that are expected to be replaced during the lifetime of the car (basically consumables) were covered. Fair enough.

It had another term that nothing that failed as a result of manufacturer fault was covered. Arguably anything that failed other than consumables could be categorised as this. I put that to the third party offering the warrenty and found their reassurances uncovincing so decided not to buy the warrenty.

OP what specifically is the warrenty company relying on to argue that they don't have to pay?

amacca

CrankyHaus wrote: »

I had a read through one of those third party warrenties before. It had one term that no objects that are expected to be replaced during the lifetime of the car (basically consumables) were covered. Fair enough.

It had another term that nothing that failed as a result of manufacturer fault was covered. Arguably anything that failed other than consumables could be categorised as this. I put that to the third party offering the warrenty and found their reassurances uncovincing so decided not to buy the warrenty.

OP what specifically is the warrenty company relying on to argue that they don't have to pay?

That it's not on a list of covered items. So I suppose it's straightforward in that sense. I should have read the list fully ..... I believed the dealers nonsense ... there's not much in my defence on that point in my own mind

(Despite there being context/extenuating circumstances re the pressure I was under to get something and the months of fruitless searching and boloxing beforehand + chancers on donedeal - basically it was a vehicle to cover two purposes and I should have bitten the bullet and got a vehicle for both, probably wouldn't have worked out much pricier)

ba_barabus

The handbrake sounds like wear and tear in fairness.

The rocking you mentioned you'd have to expand upon, what exactly is wrong there?

An electrical fault on the dash would need to be diagnosed, it could be anything from an earth to a failed instrument cluster but I'd be surprised if it was covered by a third party warranty.

In fact I'd be surprised if they covered much on a high mileage, 10 year old Range Rover.

amacca

ba_barabus wrote: »

The handbrake sounds like wear and tear in fairness.

The rocking you mentioned you'd have to expand upon, what exactly is wrong there?

An electrical fault on the dash would need to be diagnosed, it could be anything from an earth to a failed instrument cluster but I'd be surprised if it was covered by a third party warranty.

In fact I'd be surprised if they covered much on a high mileage, 10 year old Range Rover.

Yeah ... despite the misleading name, description etc on the warranty I don't think my issue is really with the warranty company hence the wondering about what the procedure with Mak8ng complaint about dealer ...

Ok on the handbrake, perhaps you are right if it was just a normal hand brake and not an electrical servo connected to calipers/drums which destroys servo if they seize id probably just ask the mechanic to fix and take 300/400 of a hit ....when it's 1200 and i was assurred the warranty covers big ticket electrical items by the dealer I can't but help feeling aggrieved

In the context of the above when ipc goes as well and it's not covered I'm fairly pissed off in the context of above. .... so yep failed instrument cluster...not dodgy contacts on battery or earthing somewhere.

Rocking not a propshaft etc according to mechanic (ironically propshaft is covered by warranty) gearbox flush will sort it he says.

ba_barabus

amacca wrote: »

Yeah ... despite the misleading name, description etc on the warranty I don't think my issue is really with the warranty company hence the wondering about what the procedure with Mak8ng complaint about dealer ...

Ok on the handbrake, perhaps you are right if it was just a normal hand brake and not an electrical servo connected to calipers/drums which destroys servo if they seize id probably just ask the mechanic to fix and take 300/400 of a hit ....when it's 1200 and i was assurred the warranty covers big ticket electrical items by the dealer I can't but help feeling aggrieved

In the context of the above when ipc goes as well and it's not covered I'm fairly pissed off in the context of above. .... so yep failed instrument cluster...not dodgy contacts on battery or earthing somewhere.

Rocking not a propshaft etc according to mechanic (ironically propshaft is covered by warranty) gearbox flush will sort it he says.

I've done the electric handbrake on a Passat before, 1100e iirc. Very pissed so I know that pain.

As you say, your problem here is with being mis sold a warranty rather than, I assume, Mapfire the warranty company.

I'd imagine CCPC is the best place but I wouldn't expect much comeback as proving this is going to be very difficult.

I'd try and get a second opinion with a specialist as there could be fixes that they're more familiar with.

mickdw

2 issues here, none of which you can do much about.
You bought a car that is known to need frequent costly repairs and you didn't do your homework on the warranty.
All you can do now is see if you can reduce the repair bill. Used parts? Cluster repair specialist etc. Might not be as bad as you think.

cpoh1

mickdw wrote: »

2 issues here, none of which you can do much about.
You bought a car that is known to need frequent costly repairs and you didn't do your homework on the warranty.
All you can do now is see if you can reduce the repair bill. Used parts? Cluster repair specialist etc. Might not be as bad as you think.

This. Without sounding harsh you bought what was originally a premium car that is now 10 years old, has high mileage and is notoriously unreliable. It may have been cheap to buy (relative to new) but they are never cheap to maintain.

You have so much going against you - you signed the 3rd party warranty, the dealer didnt put anything he said in writing and its been 10 months since you bought the car off him, quite a bit of time.

Try and find a good indie Range Rover mechanic and keep some money aside for future repairs they are inevitable with that car.

amacca

mickdw wrote: »

2 issues here, none of which you can do much about.
You bought a car that is known to need frequent costly repairs and you didn't do your homework on the warranty.
All you can do now is see if you can reduce the repair bill. Used parts? Cluster repair specialist etc. Might not be as bad as you think.

Yep .. fair I suppose.

Although it dispute it's two issues. I'd say one issue, I stupidly trusted dealer.