Booked online for the 3rd service of the vrs on Monday this week. Received a confirmation email - 3pm, Wednesday.

Thought I'd give Gordon Lamb, Derby a call just to check that all was well for today.

GL- sorry sir, we've got no record of your booking, can you come tomorrow?

ME - no, iv booked the afternoon off work, so I'll have wasted my time and holidays AND it means more of my time to bring it back again tomorrow.

GL - I'll have a word with the manager and get back to you.

GL - hello sir, can you bring it today and leave it with us till tomorrow? Two hours won't be enough time to complete the service.

ME - no, I need the car this evening.

GL - OK, can you bring it at 2 instead of 3?

ME - ok, but will it be done today?

GL - yes, it will be 158pounds.

ME - we will discuss the cost when I arrive as if I didn't call you up, I would have turned up unexpected and turned away, then make the trip again tomorrow, Which would have seriously wasted my time and lost me money. All btw would have been due to your failing in online bookings. I will see you at 2 today, good bye.

You can imagine my annoyance as this is my first dealings with any skoda dealershop and it's been complete fail.

Think I'll just pick up the phone and call first next time.

Edited 12 February, 201412 yr by mrburdon123

Is £158 for the 'Minor Service'  30,000 mile/3 years,  and a Brake Fluid Change.?

 

EDIT,

2 hours is 30 minutes more than is required to complete the 3rd service, if it is in on time and started within about 10 minutes 

of being driven around to the Workshop,

If the Technician Drives it he can take it on its Road Test.

 

??? Ask if it had its Road test !!!!

http://www.skoda.co.uk/owners/service-and-maintenance/national-pricing/servicing

http://www.skoda.couk/owners/service-and-maintenance/national-pricing/maintenance

Cheaper than this is nice, and easily achievable for 'Non participating Dealerships'.

Don't think I would ever book a service on-line.

I would like to speak to someone about the work involved, and more importantly haggle!

The cost of servicing is nearly always negotiable

Sort of glad I'm not the only one a bit let down by GL Derby. I went there because my dad used to have a superb from their chesterfield branch and the service was always excellent so was lead on by the name.

If you see Simon could you ask him to hurry up with my car and make sure the dent in the door & wheel curbing has been resolved from one of his other customers when he lent it out?! Lol!

I'll post my experience when it's all finished.

Can I provide the oil and spark plugs I want using and get them to fit during the service?

Someplaces you can, but you need to ask them.

 

They may not be prepared to fit other types of Spark Plugs than the normal OEM ones,

 Even where they Cross Reference and are totally suitable,

& they may say that if they do fit the ones you supply , you may invalidate your Warranty.

I'd never book a service online.

Dont then.

 

Someplaces offer Discounts for Booking online, and what is the difference,  

often the Person on the phone has no more of a clue anyway.

Often they still mess up a Booking, tell you one thing and book you for another, then its your word against theirs, 

it turns out it was Fionas day off & they do not know who was on the desk.

 

Book online, if they mess you up, ask for Compensation/Discount of a bit more off,

If not Received, Name and Shame and cost them Business with bad publicity..

My first (10,000 mile) service was booked online for Fish Brothers Swindon, They phoned me about 20 minutes after I got the confirmation email just to say they had it confirmed in their books for the time and date I'd specified! 

 

Worked a treat for me!!

I started to book my daughter's Ibiza in for its year 4 service on-line, but I got concerned that there was not enough scope for chatting about what/what not they needed to do. So, I missed out on the Seat roadside rescue/recovery freebie. A month later, I plucked up enough courage to book an MOT on-line for my 2011 S4, that went very well, next morning I got a text from service reception confirming my booking etc, 5 minutes later that was followed by a phone call from a service person giving advice like "remove all person effects and place service book on passenger's seat in case they needed it"  - job went like clockwork, they did not even try to sell me their £59 MOT + parts insurance against failing next MOT - this made me happy as I didn't expect a 4 year old Audi to fail its next MOT! The only moan I had is, when checking available dates and times, if you check how to use these VAG on-line booking systems during working hours the available dates/times are live, at night they are not viewable, probably makes sense, but leaves you wondering how soon you can get the job done.

 

On the topic of supplying your own parts for servicing, I'd expect the best you should expect to do is to buy the parts from that dealers parts department with an agreed discount and leave them and the sales receipt in the car just prior to service time. Think of this, you supply, even as in your case Skoda parts, garage fits the parts, parts found to be defective - who's fault is that and who pays to sort it - you for both extra parts and extra labour - now where has any potential saving gone?

Edited 12 February, 201412 yr by rum4mo

Dont then.

 

Someplaces offer Discounts for Booking online, and what is the difference,  

often the Person on the phone has no more of a clue anyway.

Often they still mess up a Booking, tell you one thing and book you for another, then its your word against theirs, 

it turns out it was Fionas day off & they do not know who was on the desk.

 

Book online, if they mess you up, ask for Compensation/Discount of a bit more off,

If not Received, Name and Shame and cost them Business with bad publicity..

Or in my case when going to the Seat dealer and booking car in, only  a sales person around, wrote everything on a scrap of paper - on day of service, receptionist did not know much about my booking, but they did the job and did not phone me to ask if brake fluid "wanted" changing, so maybe someone found a scrap of paper eventually.