Sam

A recent review of my experience

I have previously written a review, however as of yesterday I deleted this due to being intimidated and bullied into removing by Birchwood Ford which is being treated as review gating. After seeking further advise I have been advised that I am able to express my review without hindrance or intimidation based on my experience. Not to mention my surname was mentioned which is in breach of GDPR. I have copied below the response received which has also been forwarded to the Motor Ombudsman - "Mr ***, whilst we appreciate your frustration, in our previous written communications both parties agreed to a resolution to your dispute. You are now posting inaccurate and misleading reviews, to which we request you cease and desist immediately from your trolling activity. Should you wish to discuss, please contact us direct." - This is just one of the multitude of examples of the customer service that has been presented during this investigation. Additionally, for the record, the dispute has not been resolved and remains with the Motor Ombudsman for investigation. In November 2020, my car went for a service and MOT at Birchwood Ford in Hastings, when dropping off the vehicle, I reported that the break were squeaky and that could they check these during the service. The car needed new brake discs and pads as well as one new tyre which meant the vehicle was in for a few days. Around 5 miles after leaving Birchwood Ford, I heard a large bang from one of the tyres, I was 2 minutes away from my house so I stopped the vehicle to see the plastic wheel arch underneath the car had come away and started digging into the tyre, I called Birchwood Ford back to get this recovered as it was unsafe to drive. To then be told by both Birchwood Ford and Ford Protect my vehicle did not have breakdown recovery. I had to then unsafely drive my car to Birchwood Ford in Hastings and pay for the damage caused which meant my vehicle was in for 2 additional days. I was also told on my arrival that I was covered for breakdown recovery (this is disproven later down the line). Evidence has been provided in order to support this claim. At the time of sale I was told by the Sales Agent that the car had breakdown cover included, I have only recently found out that this is neither included on the Fixed Care nor Warranty as the breakdown cover only covers Ford vehicles, the sales agent did not inform me of this which means I have been driving without breakdown cover for over three years, not impressed to say the least not to mention missold. During November 2021 my car went for a Service and MOT at Birchwood Ford in Hastings. This was completed within a day in which it passed its MOT. A minor oil leak was reported at the time and the service team explained that they would call back to book this in. This then led up to late December with no call back. I called as I knew the importance of getting this done. This was then cancelled a few days beforehand by Birchwood Ford in Hastings. I then rebooked this into Birchwood Ford in Eastbourne in order to get this fixed. I dropped the car in at 0800 to receive a call at 1630 to explain that they couldn't find the oil leak and it would need to be booked back in, this then delayed the process by another month. The service team were then able to find the leaks (Nearside head gasket and oil sump) so there were two minor leaks. They explained the car was safe to drive and they would refer this to the warranty company as well as Toyota. The warranty company (Ford Protect) refused to fix this due to it being classed as 'Wear and Tear' (I am in the process of obtaining a letter from Toyota to explain this was mechanical failure and not wear and tear meaning the warranty company and Birchwood Ford would be liable).The warranty and fixed care also cover car hire, however, there was an unnecessary charge for this during the point of servicing and MOT. I did challenge this at the time to receive the response from the Birchwood Ford Service team 'our policies have changed and drivers now incur a fee for car hire' bearing in mind I have a contract in place that stipulates this. This was also questioned when the car was due to potentially go over to Toyota for the repairs. When speaking to Birchwood Ford in Eastbourne in relation to the warranty company refusing to cover the costs, they asked me to contact the warranty company directly to dispute this. To which I explained to the warranty company about the conditions set out in the warranty certificate and contract. Ford Protect was not prepared to pay for the necessary parts due to mechanical failure. A few days later I received a letter through the post from Ford protect offering for me to renew my warranty which clearly shows Cylinder Head Gasket as unnecessary costs that may be incurred. Not only is this misleading but it is classed as mis-selling.