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      09-14-2015, 02:18 PM   #1
ianfp
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Dealer has crashed my car!

So, my 2013 X3 went in for new front discs because there was some scoring on one and even though they are in spec and the car has 14000 on the clock, I wanted new ones. So, the dealer did their normal collection service and replaced the discs and I paid on my card - all so far OK.

About an hour later, the service manager phoned to tell me there had been an incident with my car i.e. their driver had crashed my car into the back of another car! (Fortunately no one hurt).

The car was driven back to their body shop for assessment and I have been told that it needs a new bonnet (hood), new front wings, new bumper, new adaptive Xenon headlights and any other parts that may be necessary. They are having to send it to their sister dealership with a better equipped body shop for full assessment.

They have loaned me a brand new 3 series GT whiel mine is being repaired.

What do you guys think? I have told the dealer that if it is possible in any way for me to be able to tell there has been a repair, it would not be acceptable! They said that it would be as new, but I am worried, firstly because it has now been in an accident and secondly because I have my doubts about matching the Titanium silver. Also what else has been shocked in the impact that cannot be seen? Also, will the resale value fall as a result?

Not quite sure what to do! Do any of you guys have any experience of BMW damaging your car??
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      09-14-2015, 03:20 PM   #2
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Ask them to buy your car at a fair market value.
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      09-14-2015, 03:48 PM   #3
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One of my fears - I always state no test drives unless I'm in the car. I'd ask for a new X3.
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      09-14-2015, 04:08 PM   #4
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The X Men, if they gave me pre-accident market value, there is nothing else that could replace my car. They are quite rare in my area.


DonC, they weren't test driving it, but delivering it back to me after carrying out some scheduled work. I have used that dealership for years and they always collect and deliver.
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      09-14-2015, 04:32 PM   #5
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So sorry to hear about your difficulties, Ian.

It seems you probably had to sign a document for the Driver to take it to the Dealership, so there should be fine print there to indicate the liability risk they (and you) were assuming. I have no background in insurance matters, but if this had just happened to me, I would be on the phone with my insurance team for a bit of advisement on the legal issues surrounding such and how best to proceed. I suspect this isn't the first time such has happened, so you may have some experience to draw from...

Best wishes for a successful conclusion.
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      09-14-2015, 04:37 PM   #6
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Max, thank you very much for your message! My insurance company isn't involved with this as BMW dealer is covering it on their insurance. I'm not sure if I have any legal cover with my policy, but I will have a look and consider contacting them.

Thanks again!
Ian
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      09-14-2015, 05:28 PM   #7
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I'm not sure if you would be as lucky but my wife had a honda dealer repair her door from a newly purchased vehicle because of a paint gouge on the rear door. They estimated it would be a week or so and lent her a car. At the two month mark I asked her if she heard anything back from the dealership and she replied no.
She called them and they forgot to fix the car so it took another week but it was finally done.
I would ask for the nicest loaner you could get and then I would drive it and disconnect your phone forever!
Alright back to the advice...
You may not get any money for diminished value but you may ask for a free extended 100k warranty. You never know unless you ask. Heck I just found out my friends wife asked for free lifetime car washes at the Lexus dealer after they purchased the vehicle and got it.
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      09-14-2015, 09:40 PM   #8
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I don't know how it works in the UK, but in the US if you do not report it to your insurance and you have a problem with their repair you have no recourse. I would make sure there is an agreement in writing with dealership and that you get an allowance for diminished value. When you sell, it will be obvious that it has been repaired and will be worth less. This should not be something you take a hit on, they are at fault. Good luck.
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      09-15-2015, 02:02 AM   #9
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Ian firstly sorry about your mishap

Secondly you need to inform your insurance company. Tell them the vehicle has been damaged by the dealer and that the dealer are sorting it. It will not affect your premium or no claims, but if there are any issues with the repair quality you can then get your insurance company involved. Also should YOU have an accident in the vehicle at a later stage, and the insurance company find out the vehicle had an undeclared accident in your ownership they may decline to pay out.

Thirdly, find out who the dealer are using, qualify them and if you are unhappy then tell the dealer where you want it repairing.

My local dealer uses an independent body shop which is fully BMW approved and they are absolulety superb ( ok twice for me )

Let them assess, and once you know the full extent of the damage and repairs then the time comes for a calm adult conversation with them about the way forward

If the repairs are done right, following a low speed shunt, then you should never be able to tell
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      09-15-2015, 02:06 AM   #10
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Ian

Sorry just reread .. Your car needs bonnet and wings ?

Have the airbags deployed ?

I think you need to see the car in its pre-repair state to assess yourself as to how hard the impact was
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      09-15-2015, 02:35 AM   #11
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Wow, unbelievable!
I would definitely inform your insurer in case the other party involved try anything on and then contact your insurer due to the vehicle being registered in your name, regardless of the fact that the dealer have already provided their details.

As Andy mentioned, you should check out your car in it's current state and maybe take some pictures for reference. If the dealer have their own body shop then I would expect them to do a decent job, otherwise it's definitely worth checking who's doing the work.

Good luck!

P.S. I know it's off topic, but how is the 3 Series GT?
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      09-15-2015, 07:09 AM   #12
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Thank you guys for all your input!

Andy_o: thanks for the advice about contacting my insurance company - I will do that! The dealer is a reasonably large multi franchise and they have their own body shop. I have no idea about the quality of their work. The air bags didn't activate!

I have a photo that the dealer sent me and I will post it later.

I am really worried about colour matching Titanium silver especially if they have to spray front wings! Also very worried about residual value and I want to try and get a guarantee of no loss in value at least if traded in with them!

Petex3 thanks for your comments! The 3 series GT is quite nice, but only a 2.0D, but it has all the sport goodies. It drives very much like a 3 series, but I have been very careful with it as we have had torrential rain and I don't wish to do what they did to me!

Ian
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      09-15-2015, 09:28 AM   #13
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If the hood, headlights and quarter panels need to be replace, its a fairly serious accident and probably some internal damage is likely. Chances are, the dealer will not give you fair market value for your car, but you should ask anyways. The second best option is try to get some sort of diminished value claim from the dealer's insurance company as the car will be worth less at resale, you might want to get a lawyer involve. Since you are not a paying customer at the dealer's body shop, I would pay very close attention to the quality of work and the time line. Good Luck.

Last edited by The X Men; 09-15-2015 at 12:09 PM..
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      09-15-2015, 11:16 AM   #14
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Ian, sorry to hear about this but in my view the ball is very much in your court. This is not something you had any part in so I feel you are entitled to be very fussy about the repair. If it is not 100% to your satisfaction, simply decline to accept the car and keep the keys to the 3 GT in your pocket as that's a £35k bargaining tool right there. Once you're happy with the repair on the outside, tell them you want an independent vehicle engineer to produce a full report on the vehicle at their expense.

Once all this is ok, then I'd be asking the dealership what they are going to do to compensate you for your time and the huge inconvenience. Free servicing? Monetary compensation? BMW accessories range etc etc? You should see this incident as a 'gift' and ensure you come out of it better off than when you went in. Good luck.
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      09-16-2015, 02:16 AM   #15
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The X Men, thanks for your comments. I will try and get some form of written guarantee from the dealer as to value.

Flipflop99, thanks a lot for your comments! I don't know where I would stand legally if the car is not to my satisfaction once repaired, but I think I will do as you suggest and not take the car if there is anything about it that I don't like.

I am fairly stressed out about the whole thing and need to try and figure what approach to take. All the while things are occurring to me like impact stress that all the joints and bushes have taken and all the unseen things that could have a shorter lifetime as a result of the crash.

Thanks all for your comments!
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      09-16-2015, 11:37 AM   #16
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Sorry to hear about your car being damaged.

As others have said advise your insurance company for information but saying you are claiming through the dealer. This gives you fallback should the dealer not resolve the problem to your satisfaction.

Ask the dealer to pay for an independent inspection to confirm all the issues have been identified and repair is the best option.

If you agree on repair do not accept the car until you are happy with it. A good bodyshop will be able to match the paint - we had metallic paint on a 4x4 repaired and you wouldn't have known the repair was there.

Unfortunately the same 4x4 was written off recently - the SO's car - so we know too much about insurance companies. The car sustained significant frontal damage but the the air bags did not deploy and the passenger cell kept us safe.

We used our preferred manufacturer approved bodyshop. They were concerned about future problems relating to an issue with the gearbox (wouldn't select gear initially when they took it into workshop) that might cause problems in future but insurance company would refuse to cover them. The independent assessor for the insurance company had same concerns about that and also the rear suspension. We reluctantly agreed write-off given the risks of the car being repaired and then underlying problems occurring which we would be liable for.

Sad the Shogun has gone as we'd had her from 3 months old and she'd only done 32k in five years. They're like hen's teeth so her replacement is a 2011 BMW X3 with rather more miles on the clock.

Last edited by Cobstar; 09-17-2015 at 01:02 PM..
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      09-17-2015, 01:25 PM   #17
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I would ask them to find you a replacement car to be honest, say you simply don't want a damage repaired car.

Say you are more than happy to give them a couple of weeks to source one, but you don't want that car back.
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      09-17-2015, 01:26 PM   #18
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Should add, you're in a pretty good position to start demanding. Speak to the dealer principal and explain you simply don't want it back.
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      09-17-2015, 06:24 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gIzzE View Post
I would ask them to find you a replacement car to be honest, say you simply don't want a damage repaired car.

Say you are more than happy to give them a couple of weeks to source one, but you don't want that car back.
sorry to hear -- I WOULDN'T GET A REPAIRED CAR AFTER IT HAS BEEN IN ACCIDENT AND IT WASN'T ME WHO DRIVEN IT.


mentally i would be pissed and it would be on my mine for the rest of the time i i own it.

i want a new one replacing it.
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      09-19-2015, 05:09 AM   #20
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I have been advised by the dealer that the damage is confined to the outer panels and headlamps and that it will be fixed by next week.

I have re-stated that I want a guarantee that the value of the car will not be reduced as a result of the repair and that if in any way I can tell it has been repaired, that I will not accept it.

I have a friend who is a top paint and bodywork specialist who will come with me to view the car, but beyond that I do not know what will happen. I have not spoken to anyone about exact compensation and I am not sure what I should demand or expect?

The loan 3 series GT is very nice to drive by the way!
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      09-19-2015, 06:38 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ianfp View Post
I have re-stated that I want a guarantee that the value of the car will not be reduced as a result of the repair.......
How will they be able to do that? And how would you ever know anyway unless the dealer says "we will knock off £2k as it has been damage repaired."
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      09-19-2015, 04:48 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gIzzE View Post
How will they be able to do that? And how would you ever know anyway unless the dealer says "we will knock off £2k as it has been damage repaired."
They probably won't, but I am thinking about trying to get an up front deal and trade the car straight back to them against a new one. If the deal isn't good enough, I will speak to the dealer principal.
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