Service and Refund

My experience of booking and servicing of my vehicle at Reeds Bellville, which took place on 12 May 2022.

My partner dropped the vehicle (Opel Corsa 2010) on the above mentioned date for a minor service after 07h00am and collected the vehicle at about 15h30 on the same day.

Before the vehicle was collected, I received a call from Reeds Bellville explaining that the engine light is on (which I am aware of due to the oxygen sensor and I declined diagnostic) and that the Foreman/Engineer/Service Mechanic was unable to “top up” on the coolant due to my water bottle cap being faulty and it would cost me about R3000 to replace which I declined as well. Please note that nothing was communicated to my partner about there not being any coolant in the vehicle upon his collection thereof, however upon dropping the vehicle off at Reeds Bellville service centre, there was in fact coolant in, as my partner had checked this two weeks prior to having the vehicle taken in for a minor service.

On 13 May 2022 – I was on my way to work and after having driven for about +-15km’s the vehicle’s service light and temperature light came on and the vehicle then overheated at around 06h20 the morning and I had to pull over on the freeway. I then proceeded to contact my partner for him to assist as this was the first time this occurred since me owning the vehicle (+-10 years).

We managed to nurse the car home that morning and my partner done a check on the vehicle and found that there was no coolant in the vehicle. The water bottle as well as all surrounding cooling pipes connected to the water bottle and radiator were empty. He removed the bottle cap which took him a few seconds as this was the reason why the Foreman/Engineer/Service Mechanic could not “TOP UP” the coolant. Never was it communicated to myself or my partner that there was no coolant in the car.

Once water was added to the water bottle, the vehicle seemed to be in working order and stopped overheating. Once again, it was never communicated to myself or my partner upon his collection of the vehicle that there was no coolant in the vehicle and neither were the dangers communicated to him if he drove the vehicle off the service floor while having no coolant in. (so according to myself and my partner, there was sufficient coolant in the vehicle but it could not be “topped up”).

I then contacted the Reeds Bellville Manager to inform him of what had just occurred and we were going back and forth the entire afternoon as he did not want to accept responsibility for what had occurred after my vehicle had been serviced at his branch. The Manager then contacted myself on a couple of occasions thereafter and asked that we bring the vehicle back and my partner noted to him that he does not feel comfortable bringing the vehicle back to Reeds Bellville.

I had to take the vehicle to a third party mechanic and he had done a few checks confirming there were no leaks and he also informed me that the minor service would have to be redone as the integrity of the oil has been compromised due to the car overheating.

As a result of this incident, I had to take a leave day from work and have incurred additional expenses (on top of the amount paid to Reeds Bellville) as I had to have the mechanic add coolant into the vehicle and ensure that it does not overheat.

Further to the above the mechanic advised that I would need to take it back to the mechanic for a re-service as soon as possible.

I have been a customer of Reeds Bellville for 10 years and after this incident I am no longer willing to take my vehicle back to Reeds Bellville, as so much more damage could have been caused as a result of the above.

The manager contacted me and informed me that they will be refunding me. Two months later and I am yet to receive my refund.

Customer service at Reeds Bellville is pathetic to say the least.