While at Shark today we made a discovery, the dealership had broken my headlight!!

Let me explain, a couple of weeks ago i had to go in as id lost a bulb inside the headlight unit, it was a bumper off job to get it out and as it was my fault left me £80 worse off, expensive mistake.

While washing the car the other day i had noticed that the headlight they had removed wasn't lining up properly with the bonnet, i just assumed something hadn't been screwed back properly and was going to call them up.

Today the guys found that the bracket holding the headlight had been snapped and they had attempted to secure it in place with tie wraps!! and hadn't replaced one of the bolts on the other side. The only thing left holding it in place was one bolt and a tie wrap!

Ive called the dealership who were very apologetic and are picking the car up tonight to sort it out, problem is, I'm not sure i trust them with the car anymore!

Thats shocking......the bodging barstewards! 

Bit of an update, i was late getting back from Shark (car is driving amazingly, review to come) so left the Skoda service manager sat outside the house for an hour!!

 

They have given me a Rapid Spaceback while they look at mine, the more i think on it i can't get away from the fact that this is out and out deceit! If i hadn't been at another garage i very much doubt that the dealership would have told me. 

 

The question I'm now pondering is do i need to contact Skoda UK and/or trading standards. 

Bit of an update, i was late getting back from Shark (car is driving amazingly, review to come) so left the Skoda service manager sat outside the house for an hour!!

They have given me a Rapid Spaceback while they look at mine, the more i think on it i can't get away from the fact that this is out and out deceit! If i hadn't been at another garage i very much doubt that the dealership would have told me.

The question I'm now pondering is do i need to contact Skoda UK and/or trading standards.

Skoda UK and ask as goodwill to have the job cost refunded

Oh my goodness, that is absolutely disgusting behaviour.

 

100% contact Skoda UK, not only should the dealer be refunding you the £80 to remove the loose bulb they should be replacing the headlight FOC and of course be offering some sort of goodwill gesture, a free service for example.

 

For allowing a car to be bodged in that way should see disciplinary action taken against either the technician or the service manager.

 

Something has gone very wrong here, either the technician has been too afraid to tell the service manager of his mistake, or the service manager was trying to avoid the cost of a new headlight.

 

No wonder the service manager was so keen to collect the car in person, his corner cutting has been discovered. Make sure you speak to the dealer principle and let him know what his workshop is up to.

 

Unbelievable, my blood is boiling.

 

Skoda UK need to know to fire a warning shot across these cowboys.

 

Oh, make sure you name and shame the dealer so we can all avoid these idiots.

Edited 19 November, 201411 yr by silver1011

Which dealership was it out of curiosity, if you don't mind divulging?

Its Mitchell Skoda at Cheshire Oaks, Ellesmere Port, I'm still in shock, they are trying to play it as an isolated incident, in my experience its never the 'first time this has happened' just the first time they've been caught. 

Isolated incident, my arse!

 

Once this horrible case of pure stupidity has finally been resolved to your satisfaction and you've received grovelling apologies from Skoda UK and the dealer principle be sure to tell everyone here...

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/34781-mitchell-skoda-chester/

Isolated incident, my arse!

 

Once this horrible case of pure stupidity has finally been resolved to your satisfaction and you've received grovelling apologies from Skoda UK and the dealer principle be sure to tell everyone here...

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/34781-mitchell-skoda-chester/

Will do, its a real shame as I'm friends with the owner but he seems to think his staff are not capable of such things even when i showed them the pictures!

 

Ive just emailed Skoda UK and there response will determine wether i take this to trading standards. 

Shocking I'd take it further for sure, makes my blood boil when people bodge stuff, just tell them and repair it accidents do happen.

Don't settle for a apology make sure you get something

Fingers crossed

That's absolutely awful . Honesty is always the best policy. This in the end will cost them a lot more than a headlight.!

Apprentice?

 

More likely to be scare of 'fessing up to a mistake.

Bracket failure is very common on some models of VAG car, there is a repair kit for virtually every model and therefore no need to replace the light. I fitted the repair kit to my previous Audi and all was good again.

 

Replacing the light can have a negative impact at resale as it looks like the car may have had a frontal impact because of the difference between the two.

Bracket failure is very common on some models of VAG car, there is a repair kit for virtually every model and therefore no need to replace the light. I fitted the repair kit to my previous Audi and all was good again.

 

Replacing the light can have a negative impact at resale as it looks like the car may have had a frontal impact because of the difference between the two.

 

http://workshop-manuals.com/skoda/fabia-mk1/vehicle_electrics/electrical_system/lights_lamps_switches_outside/headlight_xenon_light/replace_headlight_fixing_brackets/

 

No part numbers there but the beasts exist! At least for the Fabia Mk1. Unexpectedly pragmatic and helpful.

 

@OP: Whatever happened when they replaced your bulb, you should have been informed. Precise circumstances will likely never be known now but I'd lean towards the hamfisted apprentice view. Dealership need to reinforce their ethical policy. Cocking something up is OK (don't do it too often). Covering something up allowing no recourse to dialogue or recompense was all too likely to turn around and bite them in the arse. Likely one person having a bad day and exercising poor judgement. Now they have a PR problem.

 

PS: Please leave a note in the dealership's topic linked higher up. Together with final resolution when it's all over.

 

J.

Shocking behavior by the dealer,

 

having said that, you state you are friends with the owner, I'd let him sort this out and keep it within the dealership. If my car new had been re-mapped and the dealer knows this, plus you state that it's been re-mapped on briskoda  it might be an idea to keep him on side. If any warranty work needs doing at a later date Skoda might take a dim view.

 

Not saying what they have done is expectable but it should have been repaired in the first place

 

Just my thoughts

As above says its shocking best to do all work you can do yourself, any mistakes you make is down to you. My car had a full service before i purchased from dealers oil was low pollen filter full of leaves all ticked off as done.

 

Nobody knows what is botched up by the stealers until somebody unearths it. 

Update time:

The service manager waited outside my house last night for an hour, I was late getting back due to witnessing an accident (truck pinned a Fiat 500), he was very appolagetic and left me with a Skoda Rapid 1.6tdi (nice car).

I had emailed the owner with the pictures who went straight into action and even called me up at 11:30pm last night to check I was OK and appolagise again.

By 12:30 today I had a call to say that the technician responsible had been confronted and confessed to everything. The headlight has been replaced, car valeted, filled up with diesel and the money I had paid out has been refunded.

Mark Mitchell (the owner) had the technician bring the car back to me at 3:30pm and apologise in person to me for his actions. He simply said that they were inexcusable and had brought himself and the company into disrepute, he is facing disciplinary action at work also.

I really felt for the guy, we all make mistakes, some easy, some hard, unfortunately for him this is one of the hard ones he won't forget.

I'm happy with the outcome and the way the dealership has delt with the situation and the technician responsible.

Due to the way this has been handled it hasn't put me off Mitchell Skoda at all, in fact it has shown me that they are open and transparent when issues with their staff are brought to light.

Update time:

The service manager waited outside my house last night for an hour, I was late getting back due to witnessing an accident (truck pinned a Fiat 500), he was very appolagetic and left me with a Skoda Rapid 1.6tdi.

I had emailed the owner with the pictures who went straight into action and even called me up at 11:30pm last night to check I was OK and appolagise again.

By 12:30 today I had a call to say that the technician responsible had been confronted and confessed to everything. The headlight has been replaced, car valeted, filled up with diesel and the money I had paid out has been refunded.

Mark Mitchell (the owner) had the technician bring the car back to me at 3:30pm and apologise in person to me for his actions. He simply said that they were inexcusable and had brought himself and the company into disrepute, he is facing disciplinary action at work also.

I really felt for the guy, we all make mistakes, some easy, some hard, unfortunately for him this is one of the hard ones he won't forget.

I'm happy with the outcome and the way the dealership has delt with the situation and the technician responsible.

Due to the way this has been handled it hasn't put me off Mitchell Skoda at all, in fact it has shown me that they are open and transparent when issues with their staff are brought to light.

That sounds really good mate.

That sounds really good mate.

Really happy with the outcome, plus I've been itching to drive Sharky

Fantastic result, they have redeemed themselves.

 

Sending the guy out to apologise in person was very good.

Fantastic result, they have redeemed themselves.

Sending the guy out to apologise in person was very good.

Youre right and it made all the difference for me, showing they are serious about confronting that kind of practice. He's only been there a month and came from a VW dealership, makes you wonder what kind of culture exists in that dealership?

We all make mistakes, it's human nature.

 

It is how they are dealt with that makes the difference.

You're right and it made all the difference for me, showing they are serious about confronting that kind of practice. He's only been there a month and came from a VW dealership, makes you wonder what kind of culture exists in that dealership?

 

Probably why he did it. Made a **** of something simple whilst in "new boy's" probationary period. I reckon he won't skate again this year.