Dealer put a 1" gouge on the door after service - How much should I hit them for?

[brian b 2]

I took my car in for 30K service, and they put a 1.5" gouge on the rear passenger door - no dents, but it a deep scratch.

The service advisor said they will make it right by repainting the door, but I have reservation they will screw it up - i.e. mask mark from around the window trim, door handle, and etc.



I think the next best thing is to ask for a credit for future maintenance work or straight cash settlement. What would be a reasonable price to ask?

 

[William Washington]

Reasonable is to let them fix it, and give you a lender while it's in the shop.



They either have a qualified body shop, or farm their body repairs out to a qualified one



Let them handle it.



If it ends up not fixed to your satisfaction ,take them to small claims court.

 

[FlipTrac_511]

They should take care of it under "lot damage". Tell your service advisor about it ASAP and make sure he makes a note of it on your invoice or something. This happened to me just recently. My Trac was in for service and when I came to pick it up, the first thing I did when they pulled my Trac up was give it a walk-around for damage. Sure enough, scratch on the bumper and took the paint right off, plus a minor scratch on a fender. I told the service advisor right away and he made a note on my service invoice. My Trac is at their bodyshop as I type. It seems everytime I leave my Trac at the dealership in duration I get it back with a scratch! They do take care of it, but it's one big hassle and it's just bad business.

 

[Kevin Palmer]

Nothing...



They simply owe you the repair and great customer satisfaction.



I agree with the lender of a decent ride during the repair time.



Don't misunderstand. I'd be pretty mad and very disappointed about it. But legally, I am pretty sure they only owe you the service to put it into the condition it was prior to the accident.

 

[FlipTrac_511]

I agree with coastie. Dealership's obligated to fix it that's for sure, but I wouldn't rustle anybody's feathers for anything more.

 

[Dale Paris]

its not like they did it to mess with you, they have already said they would make it right,





why be a hard ass and screw with them?

 

[brian b 2]

I have reservation that they will NOT do a good job, so I figure may be it's better to just trade it off for service.

 

[Kevin Palmer]

They are required by law to make it like it was. If they do not do a proper job then they have to do it again or pay someone to do the job properly.



Like I said, I would not be happy but I would trust the dealership to do it right until they prove otherwise...

 

[ChrisW Vincent]

A friend of mine had his dash gouged by the tech removing the inspection sticker. He had them pay straight cash. Its marked up but not down into pad. He explained to them either you pay me cash (it was a small amount $500 I think) Or they were going to have to give him a new dash. The ford dealer just decided it was just cheeper to pay him off.

 

[Tom Schindler]

I have reservation that they will NOT do a good job, so I figure may be it's better to just trade it off for service.

In other words, "I just want to take the money and run..."



Just let them fix it and go on with your life.





Tom

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Have them fix it. I have a customer that does just this kind of work for the local BMW shop. His work is so good it looks better than factory. Hopefully, they have a guy that can do this quality kind of work.