Beware of Skoda Assistance/RAC

[veedub210]

I am having fun and games today. I'm questioning Skoda's slogan ...'manufacturer of Happy Drivers'!

To cut the story short on Saturday whilst doing the weekly shopping I tried to open the rear driver side window and to my shock the window dropped to the bottom of the door. Tried bringing it up but no joy.

As it was the weekend I thought I'd ring Skoda Assistance instead of ringing a dealer direct. I explained the problem and they said they will get someone out in the next hour, which they did.

A RAC van pulled up outside the house and the breakdown guy had a look and tried his best to to get the glass out and he couldn't. So he took the door trim out and then noticed he still couldn't access the glass as the access was blocked by a metal cover which was rivetted in.

He asked for a drill so he could drill out the rivets and get access which he did. He then somehow forced the glass up and secured it using some gaffer tape.

He then advised I contact the dealer and get it fixed properly.

As I currently work in Doncaster, I rang the nearest dealer which happens to be Hayselden Skoda and booked the car in.

After about two hours they rang to say they have identified the problem. The window had come of the rail and normally is a simple fix. But as the RAC guy was trying to get the glass out broke a few clips, speaker housing and damaged the window motor. The repair for this would come to £300 including labour. They then dropped the bombshell that according to Skoda UK this ISN'T covered under the manufacturers warranty.

I was gobsmacked. I explained if the breakdown assistance is provided by Skoda UK why isn't any damages occured by them not covered by the Skoda UK. They explained the breakdown cover is provided by Skoda UK in conjunction with the RAC and I should raise the issue with them.

So I first rang Skoda UK Customer Services and explained the problem and they mentioned the same thing as the dealer.

So I then rang RAC Customer Services and explained my problem. They gave me a reference number and asked that I get the dealer to email them with a report and an estimate for the repairs. I rang the dealer and they advised they will email the RAC straight away.

Halfway through the day I rang both the dealer and the RAC for an update. The dealer said they haven't heard from the RAC yet. I also asked if I could have courtesy car but all of theirs were out at the moment.

The RAC said they had received all the necessary information and it will take up to 7/10 days for them to complete their investigation. I said I couldn't wait that long and needed my car back on the road as I need it for work. We then agreed that I instruct the dealer to go ahead and make the repairs and I initially pay for it. Also asked the dealer to keep hold of any damaged parts as they might require this as part of their investigation.

So here I am. The dealer have agreed to go ahead with the repairs and I now wait for RAC to come back to me.

SO ALL BE CAREFUL WHEN/IF YOU GET SKODA ASSISTANCE/RAC OUT. IF ANYTHING IS DAMAGED DON'T AUTOMATICALLY ASSUME IT WILL BE COVERED UNDER THE MANUFACTURERS WARRANTY LIKE I DID!

I'll keep you posted on how I get on.

[mdk1]

That's not good, fingers crossed for you.

[FUBAR]

I found myself getting more and more angry as I read that mucker. Gutted to see this its got to be an issue that appears every so often with the assistance thing! Hope it gets sorted quickly keep us up to date!

[jrw]

Simple things is the RAC broke it, the dealer confirms this, the RAC pay.

Take it to court if neccessary. VW assistance seem to be too quick to send out the RAC for the VAG specific technical jobs instead of sending out the proper trained tech that they are meant to.

[m0bov]

i would deal with skoda as they provide the service.

[expostmanpat]

Knew what was coming before reading the full post, unfortunately you instructed the RAC to drill the car in order to secure it. They could easily take the stance that you endorsed the damage and they would otherwise have transported the car/instructed you to take it to a dealer. I would read the small print on the RAC job sheet very carefully I am sure I have read of similar cases.

Good luck

[jrw]

Knew what was coming before reading the full post, unfortunately you instructed the RAC to drill the car in order to secure it. They could easily take the stance that you endorsed the damage and they would otherwise have transported the car/instructed you to take it to a dealer. I would read the small print on the RAC job sheet very carefully I am sure I have read of similar cases.

Good luck

He didn't instruct him, the RAC man asked for a drill.

[cheezemonkhai]

Knew what was coming before reading the full post, unfortunately you instructed the RAC to drill the car in order to secure it. They could easily take the stance that you endorsed the damage and they would otherwise have transported the car/instructed you to take it to a dealer. I would read the small print on the RAC job sheet very carefully I am sure I have read of similar cases.

Good luck

He carried it out though, as while you gave him a drill, that was only to get the metal panel off, not damage the door trim which he did before this.

Also you followed his expert advice

[m0bov]

I would have called out Autoglass myself. But, the other posters do have a point, the guy acted in good faith so would be interested in how this develops.

[Paul007]

I used Skoda Assist last week and they did a very professional job and got me back on the road within an hour or so, having fitted a new exhaust pressure sensor so they don't always do a bad job.

[Carmudgeon]

Did you pay Skoda Assistance/RAC for the breakdown cover? Or did Skoda provide it at no extra cost to you? If the latter, it seems to me that your contract is with Skoda who are therefore responsible.

You are entitled to assume that the RAC man knows what he's doing, so provision of a drill is irrelevant. If he is acting under a contract taken out by Skoda, Skoda should cough up and then take the matter up with the RAC themselves.

[lordrobs]

Which ever way it goes I hope you get it sorted. If they start playing off against each other just stand firm in that you know where your money went (Skoda UK) so your contract is with them and if they think the RAC is at fault (which TBH sounds to be the case) then it is up to them to do the leg work.

[gadgetman]

I had a similar experience see post 6 - http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/71854-new-octavia-24-hours-to-break/

[ChrisRs]

...................... VW assistance seem to be too quick to send out the RAC for the VAG specific technical jobs instead of sending out the proper trained tech that they are meant to.

Wasnt it the weekend though?

[jrw]

Wasnt it the weekend though?

What difference does that make? Its a 24/7 service.

[ChrisRs]

Because mechanics finish work at 12.00 on Saturdays

Thats why :wonder:

[Stuart_J]

The RAC are deemed to know what they are doing, they have it appears damaged your car, you as Mr average customer can not be expected to know what they should or should not do. They havent said they wont pay & will investigate. Being a large organisation this could take a few days. They are not going to pay out until they are certain its their fault, Until you have their response you dont know the outcome. These things are usually solved by fair & firm discusions. Personally I would not have accepted the 7 - 10 days,& threatened them with the cost of car hire if they couldnt respond within 48 hours but as you have agreed to pay that is not now an option. Should you have incurred any additional expenses as a result of their actions you could reosnably expect to have those back. I find with most oprganisations if they are genuinly at fault they will admit it, the trouble is these days many people in the UK have an attitude of trying it on to see what they can get, Im not sdaying that you are but its why they are often hesitant to admit liability without full investigations

I would also write to Skoda saying how disapointed you are with the company they use for their assistance & copy it to the RAC, they may consider it worth contacting the RAC as well if they dont think you have been fairly treated.

A plus to the RAC, they made your car secure, they could have just said "soory mate" cant help & they havent yet said they wont pay up

Edited 8 September, 2011 by Stuart_J

[veedub210]

Thx all for your responses. Post the event I have now know more about how I should have dealt with this.

I totally agree with Stuart_J's comments and I will be pursuing RAC regularly to get an update and possibly some compensation.

My main aim is to get the car back on the road. Today I am using my wife's Kia Picanto. Eventhough it's a 'nice' car I really do miss the comforts/functionality and most importantly the power the Octy has.

I will also seek legal advice and pursue both Skoda UK and the RAC. Threaten them with the usual and also contact Watchdog, Which and Consumer Direct regarding my experiences.

I'll keep you posted.

[veedub210]

Gadgetman, this is spooky! ...there are lot of similarities between your posts and mine...

1) Which dealer did my car come from? - Marlborough Skoda, Isleworth

2) Skoda blaming RAC and the RAC blamin Skoda.

3) RAC saying I signed a disclaimer, I only signed a form saying the work is complete and completing a questionnaire on his PDA.

Did you ever get any compensation from anyone?

I had a similar experience see post 6 - http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/71854-new-octavia-24-hours-to-break/

[jrw]

Because mechanics finish work at 12.00 on Saturdays

Thats why :wonder:

What? They only work office hours do they? What a load of rubbish. They aren't normal mechanics from your local garage - they are VAG patrol techs. I have had them out on a Saturday afternoon for my Polo and my dad had them out on a Sunday when a coil pack went on his Polo.

[Grizzle]

yeh we called vw assistance on a Saturday at 5:00pm

[expostmanpat]

I had a similar experience see post 6 - http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/71854-new-octavia-24-hours-to-break/

Knew I had read similar previous :|

[paully]

Sorry to hear of your troubles and its something I will bear in mind, thanks for the heads up....As others have said you might end up having to take legal advice. However the law of contract comes into this, and the recovery service contract, which you pay for hidden in the overall price of the car, comes into play. The contract is between the owner and Skoda UK...The RAC are acting as sub contractors on their behalf. You do not have any contract directly with the RAC per se. The claim therefore falls fair and square on Skoda UK. Sadly I feel both of these monkeys will try to avoid re imbursing you in which case get some good legal advice.All the best

[veedub210]

Cheers Paully, will do.

P.S. I see you are from Dewsbury, I'll keep an eye out for you ;-)

Sorry to hear of your troubles and its something I will bear in mind, thanks for the heads up....As others have said you might end up having to take legal advice. However the law of contract comes into this, and the recovery service contract, which you pay for hidden in the overall price of the car, comes into play. The contract is between the owner and Skoda UK...The RAC are acting as sub contractors on their behalf. You do not have any contract directly with the RAC per se. The claim therefore falls fair and square on Skoda UK. Sadly I feel both of these monkeys will try to avoid re imbursing you in which case get some good legal advice.All the best

[VRS-LE-OCT-II]

I had an interesting Roadside assistance experience about a year ago, went like this:

Engine management / exhaust system lights came on, car went into limp mode. Drove it home 30mph (the car was just over year old), I then tried calling my local Skoda dealer (not where I had bought the car*) to book it into garage for a look at the problem. Was told they could not look at the car for 2-3 weeks. I was asked if I had bought from them before I was told this.

I then consulted this very good forum about what roadside assistance meant.

So called Roadside assistance, they came (I am sure it was a VAG mechanic not the RAC) he told my good lady that it would need to be taken to the local dealers (those who said 2-3 weeks for looking at it), in the meantime we were to call Enterprise for a "loan car",

after 3 days we were told, if our local Skoda garage did not undertake the repair (turned out to be a simple valve solenoid change out) then they would be liable for cost of the hire car after 3 days. Not Skoda UK.

This is where the story gets quite funny to me, wife called up Enterprise and was asked which type of car we had, she explained we had a diesel estate car, she was offered (and took instantly) a Brand new 2010 BMW 520D Sport Estate - Leather, sat nav the work. 4 days later we had our LE back in the driveway!, 1 day into paying for the Beamer hire car our local dealer fixed the car under Skoda warranty as they should have done from the first moment I called them. :no: :no: :no:

I have to say, If I have any problem again I will be involving Roadside assistance as the leverage you have over the dealer (who should be doing work for Skoda UK customers - not just his sales). Amazing how a 2-3 week envelope for seeing my car was shortened once they were paying for the hire car, assigned to us by Roadside assistance.