Claim for damages

I collected the car on 17th August. To date, no responsibility has been taken for the damage caused to the car i bought, under the impression and promised by Andile it had no bumps, scratches or any damage. Herewith a FEW emails, trying to solve the problem! 18th August 2017 From me - to Andile Ntoagae Hi Andile Attached, please find pics for right front of car. There are two dents and a few scratches. Please let me know how we can sort this out? Thanks. Ruby 18 August 2017 From Andile; Lindsay Saker - to me Hi Ruby I actually also spoke to the courier company, they accept responsibility for the incident as I also sent them images. So I filled out the above form that they sent to me and I sent it back to them to process the claim, I have never done something like this before so I am awaiting their feedback on what the next step is. Will keep you informed. Regards Andile Ntoagae 11th September 2017 From me - to Andile Ntoagae Hi Andile Its over 2 weeks since I sent attached quotation for panel beating. Please let me know when I can book my car in? This matter needs to be addressed immediately. Much appreciated. Ruby 14th September 2017 From me - to Andile Ntoagae and VDS Group Hi Andile and Madelein This is unacceptable. On collection, I walked around the car and didn’t notice any damage. However, it was midday with the sun directly above. The car is metallic silver and depending on the sunlight, the damage is not that obvious!! Once I parked the car at home, the light had changed and the dent was visible. On closer inspection, there are little scratches too, but if you don’t see the dent, then the scratches are not obvious either! I took photos and emailed Andile, knowing that I had only driven from Strand to Fish Hoek, not parking anywhere along the way. The panelbeaters that have quoted on fixing, say its possible that the rope/cable that held the car in place on the transport vehicle was too tight and caused the right front fender to be pushed in and scratched. Or they say the car may have moved on the vehicle while being transported, and something pushed the right front fender in. On collection of the car, no VDS employee went anywhere near the car with me. I signed a delivery note and the receptionist asked me to check if I had two keys. The car was not inspected by a VDS employee with me, nor did a VDS employee sign the delivery note, stating there was no damage. I would appreciate a better understanding as to what is meant by obvious damage? As I believe your insurance company cannot say the dent and scratches were not caused during transport. Regards Ruby 14th September 2017 From Andile; Lindsay Saker - to me and VDS Group Good Morning Madelein I sent an email to Thea 2days ago and called the office and she was not in at the time, The images that my client sent me was that of the dent on the right front fender of the vehicle, the dent was not present at the time the vehicle left Joburg, so this happened along the route to Cape Town. I myself have a copy of the check sheet that was inspected by the VDS employee. What was said with regards to the dent when the vehicle was released in Cape Town? Regards Andile Ntoagae 14th September 2017 from VDS Group - to Andile Ntoagae Good day Andile It’s not our duty to inspect or show damages out to clients , as the Cape town staff is not aware of the state the vehicle was given to us, that’s why we have a condition report in JHB. The delivery note specifies “ car was received in good order “ and signed off , no damages was noted. Client left premises, and afterwards claims damages, leaving grey area, as are we really to blame for the damages? Because the process was not followed, it makes things complicated and our insurance company is not willing to pay. 14th September 2017 from me - to VDS Group It is obvious the car was not in an accident between Strand and Fish Hoek. It is also obvious that the damage did not occur from anybody bumping the car while parked anywhere. The damage according to the panelbeaters, occurred during transit. Most probably the rope/cable holding the car in place on the truck, was tightened too tight. That is the conclusion the panelbeaters gave me. On collection of the vehicle, my boyfriend and I were asked to check the car had two sets of keys. I was not told to do any kind of detailed inspection. And considering my excitement at receiving a new car, I did not think it would have any damage as I knew no-one had driven it. My understanding was that it was safely transported on the truck. Please also take into consideration as I mentioned before, the car is metallic silver. In midday sunlight, the damage is not obvious! Only once I got home and the sunlight had changed, did I see the that the right front fender was dented. The fender does look as if it was squeezed by a cable. I bought this car under the impression it had no dents and scratches. According to Andile's drop-off report, this is true. It is only reasonable and fair for me to expect to receive the car in the same condition that Andile sent it. I bought the car from Lindsay Saker, therefore it is up to Lindsay Saker to ensure the car is delivered in the condition I expected to receive it. …………….. 14th September from me - to Stefan van der Walt: Lindsay Saker Hi Stefan Thank you for your mail. The delivery note I signed, is not signed by the VDS driver or company representative. The official stamp does not appear on the document. And ‘inspected and received in good condition’, does not mean a comparison condition report was done. My understanding is there should be at least a 48 hour notice-period for any damage that may have occurred during transit? For example, if something under the car had been damaged, I would not have discovered that until I drove the car. The reason for insurance is to cover mishaps, such as what happened to my Audi. Please keep me posted as to the way forward, as I urgently want to sort this out. …………….. Last communication from Lindsay Saker - to VDS 14th September 2017 Good day Madelein, My I please get a copy of the documents the client signed on collecting stage? From my knowledge, a status report should be done when dropping off the car on your premises(which was done) and another status report should be done once the car arrives at the allocated destination. These reports need to be signed off by the collecting party and to be matched to ensure that no damage was caused during transportation. Accidents happen rapidly thus for processes to be in place. We pay for a service which includes insurance for things like this. Please send me the requested report the client signed when the car was collected. Regards Stefan van der Walt