We Buy Cars East London

An 2017 Chevrolet was advertised on the We Buy Cars [East London] website as an A Grade vehicle with a Gold Dekra Report stating under the exterior that the body has minor scratches and dents. Upon my arrival on Sunday 12th January 2025 to view the vehicle it was raining heavily the entire day and because the vehicle was standing outside I didn't notice any hail damage to the roof and bonnet of the vehicle. The sales person Anton Pestana [Viljoen] and his assistant didn't point this issue out to me when we did the inspection. I was made aware of the minor dents and scratches on the corners of the vehicle and I noted that.

The next morning I dropped the vehicle off for a service in East London before I had to travel back to Pretoria where I reside. It was still raining when I collected the vehicle from the service centre and still I didn't notice the hail damage. I left around 11am Monday morning 13th January 2024 and arrived in Bloemfontein (my halfway point) around 19:00 when I noticed the hail damage that covered 80% of the vehicle. How that can be described as minor dents and scratches is beyond imagination.

If I was made aware of the hail damage I wouldn't have purchased this vehicle. I phoned Anton Pestana [Viljoen] the next morning and he didn't answer. I then left a message on his WhatsApp and informed him about the hail damage. He left me a message later that he will take the issue up with his manager. The next day after I tried calling him again he left me a message saying I need to log a concern with We Buy Cars and send him the reference number. Up to this day and hour Anton Pestana [Viljoen] won't answer any phone calls or WhatsApp messages.

I took the vehicle to two reputable panel beaters for quotations in Pretoria and Kyle Gents from We Buy Cars who was handling the concern asked me to forward the quotations for assessment. On Friday 17th January 2025 I was informed by We Buy Cars that the claim has been declined because this is seen as cosmetic damage and not mechanical.

I had to get a dent repair specialist to repair the hail damage to make the vehicle presentable at my own cost. Disappointed is a word I have to use at the moment because I would love to use stronger language regarding my experience with We Buy Cars especially the EAST LONDON branch.

I would recommend anyone that's planning to purchase a vehicle from We Buy Cars to be very careful when doing so.