Ian

Appalling Service and Arrogant Attitude

We bought a Citroen Cactus from Cars Of Fareham for £4,795 on the 29th March 2025 and to say the buying experience from Chris was challenging is an understatement. We returned to pick up the vehicle on Thursday 3rd April after it was given a new MOT on Tuesday 1st April. Upon collection Chris informed me it had an advisory for the "Service brake binding but not excessively, nearside rear" which he assured me his "own mechanic" had addressed and was now completely safe to drive. This was reassuring as I was making a long trip to London with my family the following day. Friday 4th April I moved the car off the driveway and there was an aggressive shudder then it suddenly came to a complete stop and could not be moved. I rang Chris and explained the situation and he said you need to bring it back to Fareham. I said I can't move the vehicle and it's stuck in the middle of the road !! After a fair bit of waffling he sent his breakdown guy to come and pick the Citroen up from my home. A couple of hours later he rang and said "It's the back nearside brake seized on" I was rather concerned at this point as he assured me the day before his "Own mechanic" had put it right. We then discussed how it was going to be fixed and Chris said his "Own mechanic would only replace the brake shoes on the faulty side if necessary" I started to lose my patience a this point and insisted that both sides we were replaced as a matter of safety. At 7pm that evening the car was returned with no apology from Chris with an arrogant, matter of fact attitude. That evening on my journey to London in the Citroen I was pulled over by the Police as the number plate light and brake light were not working and was told to attend to it within 24hrs, bearing in mind the car had passed an MOT provided by Chris only 3 days before ?? Over the past couple of months I've had to get the satnav and reversing camera repaired, replaced the air filter,cabin filter and fuel filter after being assured the car would have a "Full service" before it left the workshop. After raising the full service statement from Chris he argued he never said that and "Would never do a full service on any car and has never done a full service on any car in 20 years" that has left his premises,all he does is "Engine flush,Oil change and oil filter" A week ago when driving the Citroen my wife noticed a knocking from underneath the vehicle so I rang Chris to asked what could be done as it's still within HIS OWN 3 month warranty. He said he would take a look but if it was anything to do with any kind of suspension issue he would "100% not repair it" as it's not covered by his own warranty. I argued this was a concern to me as if I drove the vehicle 25 miles to him and left it for a day and he then decided it wasn't covered by his OWN warranty it would be a waste of my time.Just to elaborate and clarify on the warranty and service he provides: Full parts and labour for 3 months (as advertised on his website) but this excludes EVERYTHING other than the engine and gearbox. Does NOT do a full service and never has done. Chris provides his OWN warranty as he feels the service he provides is better than any warranty any reputable company can provide (in his opinion) The way in which Chris addresses customers genuine concerns is appalling and feels it is and insulate to him personally when questioned.He has no people skills and is an untrustworthy character when it comes to being open and honest about what he's done,what he's not done and what he's promised during the sale of a vehicle. This review is based on my honest experience with Chris at Cars Of Fareham over the past couple of months.The reason I'm leaving this review now is I wanted to see how the full 3 month period would unfold as from very early on I had some reservations about the purchase and service I might expect to receive from him,so glad I did. Any constructive feedback from Chris would be much appreciated.