Bad service

This serves as a formal complaint to you as the owner of Zambezi auto BMW dealership and a request for your intervention with regard to the attitude and conduct of your Service Manager by the name of Rudi.

I am driving a BMW 520i 2012 model registration BW90 LY GP. For your information I have been a BMW loyalist since 2005 having driven more than 4 models in the past and unfortunately your Manager is just about to cause me to hate the brand

My complaint starts from June 2018, which is a period within which I started bringing my car to your dealership for an engine warning light problem. If you go to my file you will realize the number of time since then I have brought the car your dealership and to date it is still not 100% fixed either because of its being misdiagnosed or badly fixed and in all these times I was required to pay, which I did not have a problem to, acknowledging that my car was out of motorplan. However as a loyal customer I would have expected your dealership to be much more customer caring as in the long run I felt that they did not know what they were doing and in the process I was made to loose a whole lot of money

Subsequently, I engaged BMW SA customer care to intervene and assist in resolving the problem. Their intervention led to my car being booked for more than 2 weeks and in the process I was loaned a car by your dealership

However in this car loan I was made to sign a loan agreement without being taken through the car to check its conditions. I later discovered that the car’s battery had problems and even its key after a day died of batteries and had to operate it manually. I complained and the key was sorted out and told that the warning light about the battery is not a problem as the car will not die on me.

I was later phoned to return the car as it has been bought and I promptly did as requested. I was then given another car while my car was being fixed. However two hours after leaving the first loan car I was phoned to be told that the windscreen has a chip/ crack and that I am responsible. However my question was when did that happen and how could I have missed it and how do I know that the windscreen was like if nobody cared to take me through the car and confirmed the conditions I took it out

As if that was not enough Rudi ( Service Manager) decided that from henceforth I will no longer be given a loan car. At this point I felt that you Manager conducted himself as though he was making me a favour and that I must bow to him if the favour is to be continued and I refused to do this cause I thought the decision to loan me a car came as a result that , in line with customer care, the dealership felt that they owe it on me to ensure that while they are trying to fix my car I remain mobile

Last frinday I came to collect the car which I was told will cost R18900 and I came ready to pay but on arrival the price had changed to R22000 without anybody caring to get authority from me as and when the the costs were escalating

I paid even though I was not happy but as I was leaving the dealership I realized that my car’s aircon was not working (no cool air) and return immediately to report this problem which problem I have complained about and brought it twice to the dealership in Decemeber 2018 and January 2019 to be regased, which was as per the advice of your service manager and all the time I was made to pay

I was told the problem will be sorted out within an hour and because I had to rush to my next appointment I then made an appointment to bring the car on Monday morning ****h March 2019) which in this case because I was out of town using her car, my wife brought the car and was assured that it will be ready before close of business

When my wife knocks off she was collected from her workplace by One of your employee by the name of Edgar. When she got to the dealer she was told the car as not ready. She tried to engage with Rudi to indicate that she does not have mobility and has got a child to pick up and drop at school and can’t the dealership loan her a car while they are fixing this one

However the attitude of Rudi was that if I don’t care and will not loan you a car cause your husband has damaged (as if this fact was proven cause the last time we discussed it he was blaming Goodwill on how the car got damaged)our loan car and have decided to no longer loan him car. It is this attitude that notwithstanding my wife’s being stranded, Rudi did not give a hoot about a woman being stranded after hours until Edgar sacrifices his personal car to loan to my wife to be able to collect my daughter from a school sports, be able to drop her this morning and go to work

The intervention I need from you is:

- is this the customer care ethos your dealership is living by ( not to be compassionate and care about women and children)

- is this dealership ran according to rules or based on Rudi’s moods such that if he cannot prove wrongful acts in a customer he decideds that he will punish such a customer by not fixing his car correctly but also make a customer desperate and beg him for a service that in normal circumstances BMW does offer

- is Rudi so powerful to make these un- BMW brand decision to the detriment of the brand’s reputation without consequences

- How many customer have left your dealership or worse the brand because of conduct and attitude of people like Rudi, who is forever playing lotto in his office and not playing his managerial role and where he does, his attitude stinks

I would therefore would like you as the owner to please resolve this impasse and intervene by:

- ensuring that my car is correctly fixed

- your Manager change attitude and is dealt with based on what he did to my wife yesterday

- if the car is not ready today, that my wife is given a loan car so that she can return Edgar’s personal car

I am available to meet with you at your convenience. I am available on this email address or ********** / ********** 431

I am hoping for your speedy intervention and prompt response to my complaint