Appalling Service from Branch to SA Head Office

Hi,

BMW South Africa and their services are appalling to say the least. My BMW went into their Cedar Isle branch in Fourways on the 28 August 2018, because my car sounded like a tractor. My car stayed at this branch for just over 3 weeks as they had to basically strip my engine as they couldn't find any fault on a key check nor when they ran it on the computer diagnostics.

I am a new Mom, and requested a vehicle as I needed one as my car was my independence and needed to be able to drive around and tend to my babies requirements, which included buying food etc. I was refused a courtesy vehicle more than once and the consultant dealing with my account was apparently also refused a vehicle on my behalf numerous times. I was told I needed to fit into a certain criteria, then when the consultant managed to get a courtesy vehicle for me after weeks of working on my vehicle and no luck as to where the noise was coming from, I went in to collect this courtesy car, however, had to sign documents whereby I either insure this vehicle on my own personal insurance or agree to an excess of R 26000.00 that I would be liable for, should I be involved in an accident. Firstly, this is completely outrageous, disgusting and completely ridiculous. Why should I as a BMW customer have to accept any terms, when 1, BMW South Africa and its respective branches should have insurance for all their courtesy cars they give to their customers and 2, why the hell would anyone agree to insuring a vehicle that they do not own, wouldn't I, the customer, be liable for an increase of premium as I am insured for a certain vehicle and amount!? And in actual fact, why should one have to explain as to why one needs a vehicle, I understand that there might be a waiting list or not one available, however in my past experiences, when I took my previous cars in (purely for a routine service), if the respective branch didn't have a vehicle available, one of the consultants offered my theirs - THAT is customer service, You could learn something here...

This is the 1st BMW I own, and I can tell you now, this will be my last, apart from no longer liking the brand, the vehicles and the people that work in BMW has put me off the whole lot.

I complained to the dealer principle of Cedar Isle about the service, to which she merely forwarded my email to the very person I was complaining about, did absolutely nothing to help or sort the situation out, except get an empty apology from the service manager.

After getting my BMW back on the 17 September 2018, I informed the consultant the very same day that I was not happy with certain things as they still seemed to be faulty, to which I was told by the service manager it could be because the vehicle was standing for a long time. Surely this should not be that case...

And low and behold my car went into limp mode on the 12th October 2018.

On the 12th October I called the consultant that was dealing with my vehicle to ask for her assistance, however was told she was currently busy with customers, so I left a message for her to call me back, some time later I called again and was told the same thing, a third time I called and was told the same thing, to which I requested to speak to her manager, informed him of my issues and he then told me to contact BMW oncall and they can tow me... 10 minutes later I then received a call from the consultant saying she had just received my messages, I then also informed her about my issue and that I was basically on my way to them to drop off my car as I was close to them, to which she said I couldn't bring it in today, I would need to schedule it for the following week. Now, forgive me if I am wrong, but when your car is in this state, you cannot just drive home and then go in when 'they' decide the time is right for them... MY CAR WENT INTO LIMP MODE, which meant there was an engine issue. I did inform the service manager that I would try drive to them.

I managed to get home, and on arrival I called your BMW Customer service number ***and spoke to a gentleman who assured me all would be rectified, I told him about my issues, he told me that each branch has their own terms and conditions regarding vehicle loans etc however the criteria you need to fit into is a BMW South Africa standard. I am still waiting for this chap from BMW customer services to email me the contact details for the BMW Waterfall branch as well as an outcome to the issues raised at the Cedar Isle branch.

I then, after waiting 2 weeks, emailed customer services about my grievance to ********** on Monday 29 November 2018, I received a response from a lady named Mrs Pansy Mncube who said the following: 'Dear Candice, We acknowledge receipt of your e-mail and its contents thereof. We do however require more of your details in order for us to open a case. If you could kindly provide us with your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), which you will find on your license disc, we will be able to open a case for further investigation into the matter. We trust the above meets with your approval. We assure you of our best attention at all times. Kind regards'

This email was received Tuesday 30 November 2018, I rep**** with my vin number early Wednesday 1 November 2018, It is now Friday 2 November 2018 19:00 and still yet to receive a response to this 'best attention'! 3 days later is not the best attention and anyone can tell you that!

My next step is to contact BMW Germany as well as other influential people regarding this matter. I know it is a Friday afternoon and most people are off for the weekends, and understand weekends are that, I do not expect a response now, however come Monday afternoon 17:00 and I have not received a call or email from someone that can actually make decisions and someone that calls shots around this, this matter will be taken further.

Kind regards

Candice Cross