Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  01/24/2025

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  My husband went to Benson dealership on December 6th to purchase a pre-owned certified used Chrysler Pacifica van. He reviewed the Carfax and the information about the van with a salesperson, Malak, from Benson. He paid cash for the vehicle and traded in our old van. He was assured that we would receive the title and North Carolina registration for the van, and was given a temporary tag. We were also required to send the title for the van we were trading in, which we did on December 23rd. We still have not received the title and the van has not been registered in North Carolina as of today, January 24th. My husband and I both have called multiple times to resolve the issue and have not received a concrete answer. In addition, to the issues with getting the title and tag, a week after we purchased the van we realized the air conditioning was not working. We had to take the van to a local dealership to have the air conditioning fixed, which was covered by warranty, but required the van to be in the shop for 9 days. This should have been caught under the pre-owned, certified inspections. We are concerned that the Benson dealership sold us a van they knew did not have working air conditioning. And now we cannot get them to respond to why they have not registered the vehicle in North Carolina and sent us the title.

  

  Business response

  01/27/2025

  Tell us why here..***** ****** I would like to start off by thanking you for your business and time on the phone today. I think we could have done a better job for you and I will work with our team to improve where we missed the ball. We could have done a better job communicating and getting back to you. With that said, I also think its important to mention why we are just now getting your car registered. You traded us a car with a clear title and didn't bring your title with you to the dealership. Per our agreement you agreed to send us the title when you got home. Once you got home and noticed an air conditioning issue you decided to hold the title until you were able to figure out what was wrong with the air conditioner. Your assumed, wrongly, that Benson sold you a vehicle knowing the air wasn't working. Actually the opposite happened. We paid our technician to charge the system because the air wasn't cooling properly. The repair worked to fix the problem and we sold the vehicle under that assumption. After looking into the notes where the other dealer fixed your air conditioning issue we see the other dealer put an evaporator in your vehicle. This was a result of a small leak in the system which we couldn't tell at the time of purchase because the system took the complete charge. Only time for such a small leak to depressurize the system would let a mechanic know to go to the second step. We received your trade title over a month after the purchase. We immediately sent the paperwork to the DMV and they registered it immediately when we called them. We don't register vehicles until they are paid for and the title is part of that transaction. When we fall short is important to me. Everything we did I would ask our team to do again except for not returning a phone call or email. I have addressed this with those involved and will do my best to make that better in the future. Sincerely, Chris B***** (General Manager)

  Customer response

  01/31/2025

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau,
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********* and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me as long as we receive the title for the van. We have received the license plate and registration but not the title yet. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ******** *****

• Initial Complaint

  11/01/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  ZERO calls or updates on a brand new truck that has been in service since the day after we bought it. We have had to call for all updates and zero response to emails sent to the sales manager and the general manager. Very disappointed in how they treat customers after the sale.

  

  Business response

  11/04/2024

  Spoke with the customer as soon as I saw this review. We believe this is resolved and customer is satisfied. If not, we will do what it takes to get the vehicle fixed. Chris B***** General Manager

  Customer response

  11/13/2024

  The consumer stated this issue has been resolved.

• Initial Complaint

  04/12/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  03/23/2023- Leased 2024 Jeep Wrangler (Willy’s) and traded in 2019 Jeep Wrangler 03/25/2023- Vehicle Leaked after rain, leak came from above rear view mirror onto radio screen on dash, called service and an appointment was made for 06/03/24. Was told there was nothing sooner. 03/26/24- Received call from Patrick (salesman) and told the appointment was scheduled for June and he moved the appointment up. 04/02/24- Dropped Jeep off at service department. Confusion with staff because vehicle was not in my name. Staff seemed irritated with each other during the process.Told it would take 3 days. 04/08/24- no call after 6 days to let me know what was going on. Called service department and they did not know who I was or what vehicle was mine. They called back and she said they did not know anyone was already in that vehicle. She stated they could not find any leaks and someone would call me back. 04/09/24-Called service again because no one called me back, asked if my vehicle was ready for pick up. They said yes and I could come pick it up. 04/11/24- Vehicle leaked AGAIN!!!!! Same area as before. Took photos. Called service and they again told me they could get me in 06/03/24. I asked what was done to jeep before and she said she would have to transfer me. Got voicemail and left message. No call was returned from the service department. Called and spoke to salesman Patrick again and sent him the photos. He stated he showed his boss and his boss would call me. Later in the day I text Patrick again because I had not received a call. He stated he spoke to his boss and that I could come in Monday for another look. 04/12/24- Checked loan with ****** for previous vehicle sold to Benson on 03/23/24 and loan has not been paid off for previous vehicle. Previous vehicle was showing on the website on 03/25/24 with a lien still on the vehicle. Patrick (salesman) has done nothing wrong and has tried to help me with all of these matters

  

  Business response

  04/22/2024

  We dropped the ball on this one. I called the customer the minute I received the complaint. I worked with our management staff to get this repair completed and kept the customer updated daily while we got this resolved. I called **** ****** today and made sure she had no other issues and she said she didn't. She has my contact information and will reach out in the future if she has any other issues. Chris B***** General Manager.

  Customer response

  04/22/2024

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau,
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***** ******

• Initial Complaint

  01/25/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I bought a truck in Feb 2022 that had an ionizer machine the first time i looked at it. I noticed the carpet was wet. I was told that the truck carpet had just been cleaned. The truck had 8 months / 10,000 miles left on the warranty so I bought the extra BUMPER TO BUMPER WARRANTY that covered everything for basically the next five years. After a bad storm that caused significant rain over a period of days in December 2022, I noticed the passenger rear floor was wet. I vacuumed over a quart of water out of the floor and called for service. It took a little over three weeks (until January 17th) to get the truck water tested. They found a cracked 'third tail light' and a bad rear window seal. The total for both repairs is about $1800 - NONE OF IT COVERED BY THE "BUMPER TO BUMPER" WARRANTY. Now I can't get anyone to return my call to discuss mitigating my loss on this truck or to cancel the warranty that plainly says is able to canceled. This is what gives used car dealers a bad name. I bought from Benson because they are supposedly reputable after being in business over 65 years. But when they sell a car, they sell useless warranties and will not mitigate a customer's loss on a known issue that should be covered by a recall. I desire the repairs to be made under the SC Lemon laws and a full refund for the useless warranty I was sold as "bumper to bumper".

  

  Business response

  01/31/2023

  Mr. ****** came in and met with one of our managers and we cancelled his warranty and refunded what was owed for the cancellation. I called Mr. ****** the next day to see if there was anything else that he needed and he said no. Chris B***** General Manager

  Customer response

  02/01/2023

  Better Business Bureau,
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. I am afraid that I've learned a valuable lesson about warranties, reputable dealers and honest management. I am disappointed that Benson Chrysler will do no more to repair a vehicle they knew was damaged when they sold me in February 2022, as evidenced by the placement of an ionizer in the vehicle when I first test drove it. I was told that the carpet had just been cleaned.  I will continue to post these truths on social media to warn my friends, family and associates to avoid Benson Used Cars at all costs. 

   

  I was also told by Chris that he would have done much more to assist me if I had contacted him prior to filing this complaint, despite the fact that I had been awaiting a promised call for a week with no voicemails, texts or calls during that time. I had made numerous attempts to reach Scott G***** and Joe V***** and was ignored. 

  
  Regards,
  
  **** ****** 

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩