What Happened To Good Customer Service?

[Brenbo]

Apologies for continuing this thread, but thought I would post that I just recieved a call from VW Exeter about a VIP Event they have coming up to buy a new car at discount etc, I felt obliged to say No I won't be attending and I most likely will not purchase another car from them again due to the recent events concerning their Service Dept, which I also felt obliged to tell the member of sales staff about along with my purchase history with them of a Golf GTI, Golf R etc,.

They said they would get Inchcape complaints dept to call me back at an arranged time for me to log the complaint.  I know these things are fairly pointless and go nowhere, but I feel if you don't tell them they are never gonna know how bad the customer service has been. 

[Exonian]

I’m a bit late to the party here but also use VW Exeter for servicing.

I’m pretty shocked to read this thread and would definitely be voting with my feet myself.

I tend to use the Saturday morning service and generally drop the car off and either get a lift home and collect it later or, as this year, I wandered over to Lidl in Aphington to get a cinnamon bun before strolling back and waiting next to the coffee machine.

What I’ve found on Saturday mornings is they give me a discount off the price without prompting or a free upgrade another service product such as doing an aircon service and refresh.

It seems unfathomable that they treated you this way Brenbo and it’s only right that you feed back the service to their customer relations people.

How did you get on with Murray?
I find their Newton Abbot branch good as far as sales goes unlike VW Exeter sales department who I find awful.

[Brenbo]

Welcome back to UK Exonian I gather you had a slight tail wind on your flight from Florida with the Hurricane over there. 

I haven't been to Murrays in Plymouth yet.  But what I can say is their phone manner is like night and day compared to Exeter recently. They were much friendlier on the phone and informed me of all I might need to know about the service etc, such as brake fluid change, it was a minor service, and so on. I pointed out Exeter didn't even do this let alone give me a sit & wait appointment in the afternoon on anyday.  They also said they would look in to the perished drainage grommet/tube in the tailgate (Exeter told me I had to come back for another appointment to just have it looked at, let alone a 2nd appointment after that to get it replaced). 

Murrays even offered a Service Plan as an option for paying for the Service and said if I decide I want to get the plan, i could pay for it on the day and use it to pay for the service applied on the day or just pay up front without a plan, no pressure.  Exeter did not even inform me of a service plan, or even the brake fluid change and details about the service like it was a minor one. 

All in at present I had next to no advice, help or cooperation for appointment times from Exeter, while Murrays at Plymouth have put them to shame by being really friendly, advising me of info I need to know and offering the Service Plan should I want one and even offering to look in the tailgate drainage tube without any awkwardness or resistance. 

I go in to Murrays for my Car Service next week so will let you know how I get on? 

It such a shame because the customer service I received from Exeter used to be like Murrays up until last year, when they suddenly became awkward and unhelpful.  I guess it could be, as someone else mentioned on this thread that inchcape have centralised their service dept contact centre to a centralised call centre.  I also have to agree with Exonian on the sales staff side of things as well.  Yet again they used to be fairly good a few years ago. 

Lets hope Murrays at Plymouth will continue to restore my faith in good customer service. 

[Exonian]

Thanks for the welcome home, I only wish I was glad to be back home and even more so back to work after three weeks off 
The flight home was very wind assisted and somewhat bumpy! Normally around 8 hours but the pilot managed it in around 7 hours.

I forgot to add in the bit about the grommet in my last post, was three quarters asleep by then.
A night and day difference in service so far by the sounds of it, let’s hope the actual workshop service is as good.
Exeter VW have a lovely showroom and ultra modern facilities and I love the fact the parking bays are designed to accommodate large SUV’s so are nice and wide but service is always hit and miss as they’re so busy and due to their huge customer base they don’t seem to have to worry about the nicer points of customer care. Very anonymously corporate which is a shame as many of their staff have been there a long time and are better than that.

Murray being a smaller (still family owned I think) franchise I’d hope were much better at the personal touch. Smaller dealers rely much more on repeat customers than the big corporates.

Be keen to hear how you do get on, it’s always good to hear dealer experience feedback as most of us on here are very particular about our cars. 

[Brenbo]

Am hoping Plymouth provide a good service and MOT.  Need to have something to keep other local dealers on their toes and not get too complacent.  Will definitely keep you posted Exonian once I have been.  As you say we are particular about our cars and some of us treat them better than our other halfs. 

I agree, as you say smaller dealers do rely on repeat customers, and this is what I like about going to a smaller dealer, although they are fast becoming a dying breed. Which is a shame

I also agree with your points about VW Exeter.  Their Showroom etc, is a great setup, but the restrictions and red tape put on their long serving staff on how they are to deal with customers must frustrate them to no end.  It has become too souless and over coporate, and in the process forgetting ultimately that without customers they would not be there.

[Ryan90GTI]

Happens regular when I take my car to VW. Appointment is first thing in the morning and they always call me at 16:30 to tell me it's ready to collect. 6+ hours to do a service?

Got a mate who works at a dealership and he tells me they do the same thing. They do the service as and when they get round to it to cut a long story short.

I always went to Awesome GTI for any of my work doing but even they started getting sloppy.

[Brenbo]

It seems to be, becoming a more common occurence with the customer service side of things getting sloppy and time taken, taking longer than it used to.  If I lived closer to any of the dealerships I would not mind as much if that was the case of drop in first thing in the morning and then pick up later in the afternoon.  But when you live approx +40 miles away.  It is a lot harder to do such a thing without either taking time off work to do it or even being late for work. 

I also would not mind if it had always been the case about no sit & wait appointments etc (apart form first thing in morning), if it had always been the case with the dealership.  But when you know only a year ago they were doing sit & wait appointments without fuss, any time of day within a core time and it is only a recent thing they do not with a lot of resistance to accomadate those who live further away. 

It does come across as a bit frustrating and a lot harder to get your car looked over by a dealership service dept.  It also focusses the mind on whether the dealership is worth dealing with in the future if this is how they treat existing customers.  They eager enough to take your money but once they have it they are not keen in keeping you as potential returning customer.

[Brenbo]

Just to sum up this thread, I have just returned from VW Plymouth where my Golf had just had a third year, Service, and first MOT.  I have to say after my experience of VW Exeter's lack lustre customer service over the last two years it was refreshing to see VW Plymouth demonstrate that good customer service has not become extinct. At VW Plymouth, The service dept staff were polite and showed they had years of experience and knowledge.  They also informed me of everything I needed to know in good time, which exeter did not and the attitude that came across was to put the customer first and make the experience as stress free as possible.  They also seemed to be more flexible with their appointment times (especially sit and wait).  The cherry on top was the fact they replaced the drainage grommet in the tailgate without making a big thing of it.  Exeter was gonna make me do 2x 80mile trips to do this, the first to look at the grommet and the second to have it repaired such a hassle for  a £5 tube. Which Exeter has replace once before.
All in I would say my experience of the customer service at VW Plymouth was very good and VW Exeter could learn a thing or two from them.  The galling thing about it is VW Exeter used to be like it 4 to 5 years ago but things have gone down hill over the last few years in regards to their service.

I have to get the oil changed in the haldex system next over the next few months.  I am thinking I will go to VW Plymouth again seeing as they know how to treat their customers to keep them returning

[Exonian]

Thanks for the very thorough update Brenbo.
It’s really good to read you had such a pleasant experience after how this thread started!
That’s service how it should be.
It looks like they’ve gained a regular customer. 

[Brenbo]

Yeah, if the next service dept appointment goes as stress free/as well as the one just gone, I would say that VW Plymouth have probably gain a new regular customer.  However I will still see what Exeter can offer as a deal for a new MK8 Golf GTI / R. I know from past experience a few years ago, someone I know has been offered a really good offer from VW Plymouth for a new MK7 GTI PP against what Exeter offered.  So here's hoping they will be just as good with their deals for the MK8 when it arrives.