Land Rover Customer Service

[RRphantom]

Hello to everyone. My father ordered a Freelander 2 under the government officers permit scheme back in June 2011. It was to be delivered by the end of October but due to numerous issues with Land Rover the delivery took place only in Jan 2012.Once the vehicle was cleared and was in the dealer's yard, we were allowed to have a look before the actual delivery to us took place.Upon inspection we realised that it has several dent marks on the bonnet and rear passenger door. Also there is a deep scratch on the front passenger door as well. The experience is very appalling and I urge any prospective buyer to be careful. Also I humbly request for any opinions from the forum members as to what action we should take. Furthermore the agents are attempting to make a local fix, but we believe this is not acceptable as 100 percent recovery to original quality is not achievable. At this point we are inclined to reject the vehicle, and I would like to know from everyone whether this would be the correct approach.

Thanks

[Crosswind]

Just a question... was it from Frontier (LR agent) or was it some other importer who brings down recons?

I asked that question because Frontier doesn't offer FL2 now afaik. You must be one of the few people who have managed to get one. This is due to global supply and demand.

May I suggest sending a PM to forum member Gummybr with your concern?

[Watchman]

If you dont want a local paint job you only have 2 other options

1- ask for them to replace the doors and bonnet with new ones. (so you'll get a OEM paintjob)

2- reject the vehicle and take a risk of waiting for another unknown period for a replacement.

Personally, since it took 7 months to get the vehicle in the first place, I would go with option 1.

[rangerover]

Well, if you look at most brand new imports, you will be amazed at the condition these vehicles arrive straight from the port. Some of the dents / scratches cannot be totally avoided. These are general accidents / damages that occur during the logistics process. I have seen brand new car fleets ranging from Toyota's to Bimmers been sent to specialist detailing centers to condition the cars prior to delivery.

However you should demand the vehicle to be in the condition that you paid money for. The agents or the importer should do this, as such damages are covered under the insurance policies obtained during importation (Which you have paid for under C I F)

[Sampath Gunasekera]

If these things happened at marine transport you can claim it form Insurance

This kind of importation must covered by an Insurance policy. Check your agent’s “Profoma Invoice” which you use to open the L/C and you will see incoterm is CIF COLOMBO .

CIF means, Cost (price up to loading port) + Insurance + Freight.

So you can claim this from Insurance but be hurry.

Also some people import their high valued vehicles in containers due to more safety while shipping. Also at clearing stage these vehicles keep parked separately from other imported vehicles in the yard at the port . This is safer. But freight cost is bit higher.

Please check your original shipping documents set you collected from the bank after you paid the L/C . (I think you have a photocopy set with you ) Please check them & Insurance copy will be there.

Edited February 10, 2012 by Sampath Gunasekera

[The Don]

If you dont want a local paint job you only have 2 other options

1- ask for them to replace the doors and bonnet with new ones. (so you'll get a OEM paintjob)

2- reject the vehicle and take a risk of waiting for another unknown period for a replacement.

Personally, since it took 7 months to get the vehicle in the first place, I would go with option 1.

Watchman, I think OEM panels actually come just primered and not in any specific colour. They will have to be painted locally if that option is taken, plus all the upholstery etc will need to be transferred breaking the seals so it wont be original anymore...

[The Don]

Hello to everyone. My father ordered a Freelander 2 under the government officers permit scheme back in June 2011. It was to be delivered by the end of October but due to numerous issues with Land Rover the delivery took place only in Jan 2012.Once the vehicle was cleared and was in the dealer's yard, we were allowed to have a look before the actual delivery to us took place.Upon inspection we realised that it has several dent marks on the bonnet and rear passenger door. Also there is a deep scratch on the front passenger door as well. The experience is very appalling and I urge any prospective buyer to be careful. Also I humbly request for any opinions from the forum members as to what action we should take. Furthermore the agents are attempting to make a local fix, but we believe this is not acceptable as 100 percent recovery to original quality is not achievable. At this point we are inclined to reject the vehicle, and I would like to know from everyone whether this would be the correct approach. Thanks

If the vehicle can be repaired to brand new condition without disassembly (as in the dents pulled out without requiring paint work and the scratch repainted to manufacturer spec) then I'd say take that option. Most cars will endure these type of issues during transit unless transported in a container or with body cladding. Personally I'd ask for money off and get these repairs done yourself from a reputed place, that way it will get done properly. They should be able to claim the money off insurance.

[RRphantom]

So far we have tried out most of the kind opinions suggested by you all. But I regret to update you that they are absconding the matter. Such is the situation and I'm appalled by the way they deal with customers.

[kush]

Hay buddy as far as I know it is not that bad deal as you all least got the vehicle with 3 months delay.

As far as I know if you got down a brand new vehicle the agent is suppose to deliver it in mint condition, they are suppose to do any dents scratchers before delivery.

Look for the customs inspection sheet that should give an indication whether the damage was there at the time of vehicle landing in SL port.

Agent charges over 1.0 Mill as I remember so get them to do the insurance and any other stuff if applicable if they don’t you could go to consumer authority and lodge a complaint.

If your dad is the actual recipient of the permit being a government official he will be able to expedite the matters with the consumer authority.

I would urege you not to take the delivery of the vehicle until the matter is sorted.

I must tell you this is a common issue with cars imported to SL they get damaged at the port at agents yards course they do not have proper facilities.

I don’t think you have the option of rejecting the vehicle as it was imported under your dad’s name and under the concessionary permit.

I know of number of people who lost money vehicles not being delivered by the agents in time and all of them give crap service even after charging the customers through their nose as agent charges.

[VVTi]

What kind of damage are we talking about here? Is the vehicle in driveable/usable condition? IF that is the case, take the delivery machang. Leaving the vehicle there will make it only age faster and there will be more and more issues for you to sort out later. Take the damn thing home and take matters from there. YOu have alerady dumped a lot of money, hopefully hard earned honest money in to it. SO no point in keeping teh vehicle there or refusing to accept delivery. Only you will end up beingthe loser.

A paint scratch or a dent or two is not the end of the world, and on a LR it adds charachter...

Besides, aggravating the agent will not help you much as you will need them more than they need you later on for servicing, and software updates ect ect. The new LRs are not exactly the old SIIIs where you can work on it with a sledgehammer and I doubt many are out here in SL who can handle such work.

Edited February 17, 2012 by VVTi

[LS110]

A paint scratch or a dent or two is not the end of the world, and on a LR it adds charachter...

Very true. Sad to observe some of the new breed of LR owners (defenders included) not getting the 'character' part

[Kavvz]

Very true. Sad to observe some of the new breed of LR owners (defenders included) not getting the 'character' part

You're kidding right? RRphantom's family goes out, spends big bucks on a brand new Freelander 2 but when they go to take delivery of it they find it damaged and in less than new condition. Your solution is for him is to 'get with the character' of the brand and accept it? How is that fair on this guy and his family?

You think the think the reaction a principle agent for Land Rover overseas in a situation like this would be to say: " Oh Mr Customer, that's the nature of the brand. Get with the 'character' of it please and accept delivery"? Oh hell no. The agent would have fixed the dents and delivered the car to him in showroom condition. Most likely they'd drop it off to his door with an apology and compensation for the incident in way of free petrol, oil changes, floor mats, extra credit towards the payments whatever...

[Watchman]

You're kidding right? RRphantom's family goes out, spends big bucks on a brand new Freelander 2 but when they go to take delivery of it they find it damaged and in less than new condition. Your solution is for him is to 'get with the character' of the brand and accept it? How is that fair on this guy and his family?

You think the think the reaction a principle agent for Land Rover overseas in a situation like this would be to say: " Oh Mr Customer, that's the nature of the brand. Get with the 'character' of it please and accept delivery"? Oh hell no. The agent would have fixed the dents and delivered the car to him in showroom condition. Most likely they'd drop it off to his door with an apology and compensation for the incident in way of free petrol, oil changes, floor mats, extra credit towards the payments whatever...

You clearly dont live in sri lanka machang

[Scooter]

What happens os is u the purchaser usually don't even know about the bingles. Give ya an example, walked past a smash repair shop couple of months ago in the south of Sydney, ya should have seen the state of the rear corners of two non-plated brand-new Landcruisers in the yard, they must have been having a bit of a bang against each other on the RORO. Anyway, they'll just get tinkered and out the door they go to the happy new owner. Sweet, eh?

[Kavvz]

You're kidding right? RRphantom's family goes out, spends big bucks on a brand new Freelander 2 but when they go to take delivery of it they find it damaged and in less than new condition. Your solution is for him is to 'get with the character' of the brand and accept it? How is that fair on this guy and his family?

You think the think the reaction a principle agent for Land Rover overseas in a situation like this would be to say: " Oh Mr Customer, that's the nature of the brand. Get with the 'character' of it please and accept delivery"? Oh hell no. The agent would have fixed the dents and delivered the car to him in showroom condition. Most likely they'd drop it off to his door with an apology and compensation for the incident in way of free petrol, oil changes, floor mats, extra credit towards the payments whatever...

You clearly dont live in sri lanka machang

A level of customer service close to that could occur in Sri Lanka too: In fact my family faced the same situation in Colombo about 10 years ago. At the time of accepting delivery my parents noticed some stretches and brought them to the attention of their sales rep who offered to fix it at no cost to us via the dealership. The (Fiat) dealer at the time had the car ready for us a week later with with floor mats as well as a tank of petrol as a token of their appreciation. Not a bad trade off as we bought a cheap run-about and weren't too worried about OEM standard paint matching etc.

Edited February 20, 2012 by Kavvz

[Watchman]

A level of customer service close to that could occur in Sri Lanka too: In fact my family faced the same situation in Colombo about 10 years ago. At the time of accepting delivery my parents noticed some stretches and brought them to the attention of their sales rep who offered to fix it at no cost to us via the dealership. The (Fiat) dealer at the time had the car ready for us a week later with with floor mats as well as a tank of petrol as a token of their appreciation. Not a bad trade off as we bought a cheap run-about and weren't too worried about OEM standard paint matching etc.

You'd be the fortunate few I would think.

But with each brand's agent having the monopoly over the brand (especially when it comes to permit imports or valuations etc) they really dont need to give two farts about customer satisfaction... Its unfortunate, but its reality.

[MoneyMaker]

I personally feel the agents here in SL lack professionalism!!!!

[LS110]

You're kidding right? RRphantom's family goes out, spends big bucks on a brand new Freelander 2 but when they go to take delivery of it they find it damaged and in less than new condition. Your solution is for him is to 'get with the character' of the brand and accept it? How is that fair on this guy and his family?

You think the think the reaction a principle agent for Land Rover overseas in a situation like this would be to say: " Oh Mr Customer, that's the nature of the brand. Get with the 'character' of it please and accept delivery"? Oh hell no. The agent would have fixed the dents and delivered the car to him in showroom condition. Most likely they'd drop it off to his door with an apology and compensation for the incident in way of free petrol, oil changes, floor mats, extra credit towards the payments whatever...

Its about being realistic, why do you want to reject the vehicle because of a few dents/scratches that generally occur in shipment/clearing. The intelligent thing is to understand that these things happen and get the agent to repair it locally and take the vehicle. I think it would be a very very long shot to ask the agent for brand new panels and get them.

The part about character was said in general about land rover ownership these days... lets say RRPhantom decides to take the landy out on a bit of softcore offroading (say minneriya or yala block 1... sticking to the normal trails...), he's sure to pick up a few scratches at least.... now what, bring it back to 100% original quality.... ?

if you haven't got it yet let me be very clear... if you own a land rover and you use it like a land rover is meant to be used... and if you haven't got any dents/scratches on it already, you are guaranteed to get them some day..

[Pericles]

A paint scratch or a dent or two is not the end of the world, and on a LR it adds charachter...

Well, in that case, I added some character to a Discovery last week

[LS110]

You think the think the reaction a principle agent for Land Rover overseas in a situation like this would be to say: " Oh Mr Customer, that's the nature of the brand. Get with the 'character' of it please and accept delivery"? Oh hell no. The agent would have fixed the dents and delivered the car to him in showroom condition. Most likely they'd drop it off to his door with an apology and compensation for the incident in way of free petrol, oil changes, floor mats, extra credit towards the payments whatever...

Height of optimism in this day and age.

dude, agents are a necessary evil in getting down the vehicle, and as Vvti has earlier pointed out with the newer landys, you need them more than they need you.

@RRPhantom - Save your energy for the many battles ahead without wasting it on a issue like this which can be sorted out with a bit of common sense.

Edited February 20, 2012 by LS110

[Scooter]

And it could have been worse than a scratch and a ding:

[Kavvz]

Its about being realistic, why do you want to reject the vehicle because of a few dents/scratches that generally occur in shipment/clearing. The intelligent thing is to understand that these things happen and get the agent to repair it locally and take the vehicle. I think it would be a very very long shot to ask the agent for brand new panels and get them.

I'm not suggesting that RRphantom should do anything. Members with more experience dealing with the principal agents have provided quite a bit of input and overall I think the general consensus is that its best to let the dealer go ahead and paint the car locally at no cost. Now whether RRphantom wants follow that advice is besides the point.

My reflection was that:

1. Its unfair that you should slander someone for buying a Land Rover and worrying about the paint job / dents / scratches and maintaining it in OEM condition. Lots of buyers get SUV's for on-road use only and really at the end of the day there's there nothing wrong with that is there?

2. Its unacceptable for the local agents to have such shoddy customer service when principal agents overseas hold their customer service levels much higher and go the extra mile on behalf of their customers. As 'Watchman' pointed out its probably because the local agents have a monopoly.

Edited February 21, 2012 by Kavvz

[LS110]

1. Its unfair that you should slander someone for buying a Land Rover and worrying about the paint job / dents / scratches and maintaining it in OEM condition. Lots of buyers get SUV's for on-road use only and really at the end of the day there's there nothing wrong with that is there?

Objective was not to slander or ridicule anybody. What RRP does with his landy is his business entirely. Idea was to communicate that the situation at hand was not a drastic one, especially considering the brand purchased and what most users do with it.

2. Its unacceptable for the local agents to have such shoddy customer service when principal agents overseas hold their customer service levels much higher and go the extra mile on behalf of their customers. As 'Watchman' pointed out its probably because the local agents have a monopoly.

There are quite a lot of unacceptable things (other than agents behaviour) happening these days which is out of ones control. Eigther you can split hairs and end up losing some more.. or make the best out of the situation.

Edited February 21, 2012 by LS110