ComplaintsforD & S Automotive Collision & Restyling

• Initial Complaint

  01/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Delivery Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  So I dropped my car off Thursday, December 15th at D&S Automotive. Enterprise give me a rental car and I was told by D&S Automotive that it could be a very long time before I get my car back due to part shortages, this whole time my car was with them I was tracking what was being done to my car. I have a 2022 ****** ******* *** hatchback and I have the Toyota app that tracks everything that has to do with the vehicle, including if the doors are unlocked, if the doors are open, if the hood is open, if the windows are open, the tire pressure, if the car is on, if the car is off, if there are any fast accelerations, harsh braking’s, and harsh cornering’s; and the trips that are taken in the vehicle. They took 3 trips in the vehicle in the span that they had the vehicle, and the 2 trips they initially took were normal, just down the road and back, which I was fine with because you have to test the vehicle before you work on it and after you work on it. But there is this one trip on December 23rd that I noticed that didn’t make sense. It showed them in the parking lot going in circles during a Blizzard Warning, my app said they drove 1 mile in 34 minutes! Although they continue to tell me that they only drove the car from the back of the building to the front of the building, which is about 100 feet or so of driving, so where’s the other 3/4 of a mile at?? They insist they cannot send me any video of the cameras but they can send me pictures of certain times the cars being driven normally on the cameras. Also, I called on December 27th to check up on the status of my vehicle because I haven’t heard anything in 12 days and they told me the vehicle was done that day which is a lie because my insurance company and the service writer told me it was done on December 23rd which was the day the issue was happening. I just wanna get to the bottom of this because nothing adds up and my family and friends think so also. If you need anymore information please feel free to call me

  Business response

  01/04/2023

  
  The customer did indeed drop his cars off for repairs on December 15th, 2022 with a mileage of 6025 miles on the odometer. The vehicle was fully inspected, documented, and a repair plan was created and completed on December 16th, 2022. At 10:24am on December 16th, 2022, a Repair Planner reached out to the customer to communicated the Repair Plan that had been created for the customer, and addressed and concerns the customer may have. The vehicle was originally scheduled to be delivered on December 23rd, 2022, but due to weather concerns and constraints, the vehicle delivery date was pushed back to December 27th, 2022. The customer was contacted on December 27th, 2022 to inform them their vehicle was complete and ready to be delivered. The customer stated they had some concerns with the repairs in reference to the vehicle being driven in an excessive or malicious manner. These concerns were communicated to both a General Manager as well as the Repair Planner attached to the file. The customer was informed that D&S would review video footage to ensure that their vehicle was indeed not mishandled while in our possession and the customer was ensured that any behavior like that is not tolerated by our business. The customer took delivery of the vehicle with 6031 miles on the odometer.
  
  The customer was provided a series of 12 photos on 12/23/22 beginning with a timestamped photo at 11:15:21 showing the vehicle parked in the back lot. The vehicle was started and allowed to naturally warm to ensure freshly repaired parts would not be damaged by a snow brush or ice scraper as local weather was in blizzard conditions. The following photos show the vehicle remaining parked until 11:38:44 where it was backed out and began to be pulled around to the front of the building. The vehicle arrives at the front of our shop and is pulled into the building at 11:40:09 where it remained inside for the remainder of the repairs until the following Tuesday (12/27/22) when the business was reopened from the Holiday weekend. The customer was sent these photos via email on December 29th, 2022 at 3:31pm. As a sign of good faith, the customer was allowed to take their vehicle without paying their Insurance Deductible so they would not be held liable for additional cost being accrued by a rental vehicle. It was also explained to the customer that unfortunately we do not possess the ability to send recorded video via email and that the time stamped photos provided were, we felt, sufficient to ease their concerns as the photos showed the vehicle could not have been driven maliciously during the time in question. Customer ceased communication after that.
  
  We also communicated to the customer that due to space constraints, it would be highly unlikely that the vehicle could be driven in the matter in question due  proximity of vehicles. The vehicle was also taken on Test Drives to ensure alignment/repairs were effective and to check the Safety ADAS systems on the vehicle. There is also a likelihood that the vehicle was moved around the shop to make way for other vehicles that were brought in as well, which could show movement on the GPS unit of the vehicle.
  

  Customer response

  01/04/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  

   [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]

  
  
  

  So yeah I do not accept due to the fact they never called me to tell me anything. They never called to tell me the delivery date was pushed back, and they also were not the ones who called me, I called them on December 27, 2022 as you can see in those attachments of the phone call I made to them. I had to call after almost two weeks and find out what was going on. Gideon the service writer called me on the next day on the 16th to tell me he looked at my car and stuff that needed fixed bud that was the last time I heard from them until I called myself 11 days later. Still doesn’t make any sense to me. So you’re saying my app worked the two times you guys drove it, then all of the sudden the last drive taken it glitched out? No, I beg to differ.

   

  Regards,
  
  ***** ******  
  
  
  
   

• Initial Complaint

  07/28/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was in an accident on April 26,2022. My car was towed to D&S Automotive & Collision per insurance. I initially did not want my car to be worked on by this collision site and expressed this to my insurance company. I asked D&S if they would be able to do an estimate to see how much the damages would be and I was told by D&S very rudely and dismissively that they would not do an estimate on my car without them knowing for certain that they would be doing the repairs. I reached back out to my insurance company to have my car towed to a ***** dealership, however when I called to check the status of that tow I was told by insurance that D&S refused to release my car due to it being in a state of disassemble. I had no choice but to keep my car at D&S due to the state of it. During this whole process I never got any calls for updates, I would constantly have to call to find out the status on my own. I was also told by D&S that many of the parts needed to repair my car were on backorder and that I would have to call ***** to have them expedited. I was e-mailed a list of parts, however, they were not the correct numbers needed to get the parts expedited through *****. I had to call a ***** dealership to get the correct codes. During this long time of trying to get the parts, I was still not getting any updates if they were receiving any parts or what the status of my car was. Furthermore, when I would call for updates and express my frustration the staff was very dismissing. The tentative dates for the arrival of parts and overall repair constantly kept getting pushed back. Also, once the parts needed were finally arrived my car had to be taken to a ***** dealership to have the sensors recalibrated. My car was sent over to the dealership with no front bumper and the shields hanging down and dragging on the ground. I was not made aware that my car was being transferred, so I'm unaware if my car was driven or towed to the dealership. ***** sent a video and I have the proof.

  Business response

  08/01/2022

  We regret to hear that the customer's experience did not live up to our high standards of customer care. We were unaware that the customer did not want her vehicle at our facility when it arrived. After review of the vehicle's damage and creation of the preliminary estimate, it was discovered that many of the parts needed were on backorder. Unfortunately with supply chain issues, timely parts procurement for many vehicles is a challenge. We would never refuse to release a car, and we apologize if that is the message that was received. The only thing we can think of is that we did communicate that a complete estimate would be done once the vehicle was authorized for repairs and torn down. Many times there is damage to the vehicle that cannot be seen until the vehicle is taken apart. Upon learning of the backordered parts, we did speak to the insurance company and customer and learned that the customer was considering taking the vehicle to the dealer for the repairs. However, we explained that the parts procurement would be universal, as we get the parts from the dealer. In addition, disassembly of the vehicle had already begun and parts were on order. We offered to release the vehicle for transfer to the dealer, however requested payment for the work that had already been done. The Insurance company agreed that it didn't make sense to move the vehicle for it to be in the same situation, waiting on backordered parts.

  We try to be as responsive as possible and update the customer regarding the status of repairs. Our Customer Service team called the customer every week or two, per the expectations set when the vehicle was dropped off. We were also sure to update the customer when each part was received. In light of the feedback received, we acknowledge that we could have increased our communication frequency, considering this customer had concerns.

  We did everything we could to get the parts here as soon as possible. We had another customer who called the same dealer to request expedited parts and it worked, so we suggested the customer do the same in hopes to help speed up the process and potentially get her rental covered. Unfortunately in this situation, it did not help and the dates continued to change, as parts arrival dates continued to change per the dealer.

  To ensure safe usability of the vehicle, calibrations are at times required at the dealer. There were two parts we still needed to finish the reassembly of the vehicle. Rather than waiting two additional days, we received confirmation from the dealer that they could perform the calibration without those parts so we sent the vehicle for calibration without them to save the customer time on the back end. Per the dealer, they take video of all recalibrations and if the customer's information is in the system, it automatically sends them the video. We have requested video for review.

  While there was much out of our control for the timeliness of this particular repair, we do pride ourselves on customer experience and hold ourselves to a high standard in this area. We regret that the customer had a bad experience and strive to learn from all feedback we receive so that we can set accurate expectations, and improve our communication process. We encourage the customer to reach out at 440-255-5400  and ask for the manager so that we can discuss a remedy.

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