Chevrolet Dealer Complaint: All Parties Need Goodwill

(Baonghean)- In mid-November 2015, Nghe An Newspaper received a complaint from Mr. Dinh Phung Khang, residing in Hung Dung Ward (Vinh City) against Chevrolet Dealer (No. 219, Le Loi Street, Vinh City) for selling cars with many defects and being irresponsible to customers. Through investigation, we realized that the parties involved need to have goodwill to resolve the issue...

According to the petition, at the end of June 2014, Mr. Dinh Phung Khang bought a Chevrolet - Cruize, a small car, painted in gold, with frame number 969EEH921820, engine number 6D31410500 at the Chevrolet dealership located at 219, Le Loi Street (Vinh City). After using the car for more than 2 months, he discovered that the car had many errors; including errors that could not be warranted, such as engine and body. The errors of the car include: The car was brought to the garage urgently (engine error); rusted body panels; broken water nozzle; electric mirrors that sometimes turned on, sometimes did not; the air conditioner in the car did not show; the logo on the front of the car and on the 4 wheels was rusted and oxidized; the electric key was broken; the gear lever handle was swollen; at 9:31 p.m. on November 3, 2015, the car lost its ignition; November 15, 2015, the car's handbrake did not release, ABS reported an error...

Faced with the condition of the car, Mr. Khang went to the dealership many times to complain, but the staff denied responsibility and refused to resolve the issue; the customer service spirit did not meet the requirements as "advertised", so he wrote a petition requesting the press to speak up so that the authorities could inspect, resolve, and ensure consumer rights...

Mr. Dinh Phung Khang is pointing out the windshield washer nozzle error.

“Seeing it with my own eyes”, I saw that the errors on the Chevrolet - Cruize that Mr. Khang pointed out were indeed correct. For example: On the car door, there was a phenomenon of rust extruding outward; the surface of the logo on the wheels, although not scratched, was stained from the inside; the front windshield washer system was turned on but the water did not come out but flowed into the engine; the mirror switch only opened halfway and then stopped; the electric lock showed an ABS error… Mr. Khang said: “I saved up and relied on my brothers to have enough money to buy the car for the purpose of commuting and business relations, not to buy a “pile of scrap metal”. When I bought it, people said it was a “3-piece” product assembled in Vietnam. But…”.

Discussing the car manufacturer's warranty implementation, Mr. Khang affirmed that it was very irresponsible. He had gone back and requested warranty dozens of times, but among the car's defects, up to now, only the logo on the front of the car and the gear lever handle have been replaced. When requesting warranty for these newly replaced parts, the dealer also refused to perform...

Official dispatch to the Consumer Rights Protection Association of Chevrolet Nghe An Branch.

The Chevrolet dealer representative said that for Mr. Dinh Trong Khang's car errors, they had strictly followed the warranty procedures according to the company's regulations. Mr. Dau Cong Loc - Deputy Director of the dealer, said: The Consumer Rights Protection Association had asked them to respond to Mr. Khang's complaint. On November 16, 2015, the Chevrolet dealer issued Official Letter No. 133-CV/DL detailing the car purchase situation, warranty promotions, measures to handle warranty complaints and proposed a solution.

According to this document, the Chevrolet dealer basically acknowledged the car's defects that Mr. Khang pointed out, and at the same time proposed a warranty plan, but Mr. Khang did not accept. The company agreed to replace the following parts: windshield washer nozzle; generator; electric key; rusty door. Regarding the paint blistering at the rear of the car, for which Mr. Khang requested the entire side panel to be replaced, the Chevrolet dealer did not agree, because this was a paint defect, not a defect in the panel material; furthermore, the warranty as requested by Mr. Khang was beyond the dealer's authority; not in accordance with the warranty policy.

Mr. Loc said: Actually, we have worked very responsibly. Mr. Khang complained about the warranty twice in July and September 2015. The first time, he reported 2 errors in the car logo and the gear knob, the dealer completed the procedures and the company allowed him to replace it. The second time, Mr. Khang reported 6 errors, we completed the procedures to request the company but there were some issues that he did not agree to. To resolve Mr. Khang's issue, we even proposed to buy back the car at the correct selling price, but Mr. Khang did not accept and asked to bear additional interest, vehicle registration fees, etc. Thus, the dealer could not resolve the issue.

Chevrolet car dealer (No. 219, Le Loi Street, Vinh City).

Raising the issue with many car manufacturers, if a car is found to have a defect, they will voluntarily recall it to ensure brand reputation, why doesn't Chevrolet do this? According to Mr. Loc, among thousands of cars, it is inevitable that there will be a few with defects. If the car has a serious defect, causing a safety risk, the company will recall the car. With Mr. Khang's car, those defects can be replaced, so the company carries out the warranty and has fulfilled its responsibility. Mr. Dao Cong Loc said: "Raising the issue of buying back the car in the reply letter to the Consumer Rights Protection Association has demonstrated its responsibility...".

Buying a car costs a lot of money, so if you buy a defective car, it is normal for customers to have reactions like Mr. Khang. Through investigation, both Mr. Khang and the Chevrolet dealer confirmed that they had forwarded relevant information to the Consumer Protection Association. I think that, with its responsibility, the Consumer Protection Association should connect the two parties to meet in a spirit of harmony and goodwill to discuss and propose solutions.

Ha Giang