[shivasuma]

Oh man. Going through this thread was like deja vu for me! My advise to your friend is, do not back down. The dealer is responsible for any damage. Do not get it repaired under your insurance whatsoever. The dealer knows he is liable. That's exactly why he is acting(going crazy) like that.

First and foremost, get an independent evaluator and get the damage assessed. Don't believe the dealer. He might be trying to cover up something. Also, make sure the assessor is not known to the dealer. He will make a report in favor of the dealer if so.

Now coming to the hard part. I do not think the dealer or the court will give you a new car (since the car is 3 years old and 30K kms done). What you can ask for is a fair price for an equivalent Ecosport + some for the mental agony/inconvenience caused. From a rough estimate, carwale says it's about 7.3L. I would say 8L is a good "exchange price" if at all you want it exchanged for a new ecosport. If not, try getting the money and go with another manufacturer. These dealers will try all the tricks in the book. Do not fall for any. They have no case here. You can go to consumer court. But, the way it works can get very frustrating. It might take years for you to get justice. Unfortunately, that's how it works. If no option is left, go to consumer court. Talk tough with the dealer. And try and get as many pics as possible of the damage.

I would suggest against repair as it involves a lot of uncertainty. First, is the car going to perform well, say after 2 years? Then comes the headache of resale. Cars with major accident repairs have less value. As it is, Ford doesn't command good resale value compared to say Maruti. So consider these things before getting the car repaired.

Good luck to your friend!

[Akib Khan]

Hi. Its really sad to see such customer service given to Indian customers. It reminds me of Mr. Harish's case he fought against Skoda. The mental agony is too much but if your friend has the resource to fight it out then we Bhpians would be happy to lend our support in any way we can. I really hope Ford quickly resolves this issue.
Best Regards.

[NPV]

Empathize with your friend, this is indeed sad and disheartening. When dealers do such things, the manufacturer must step in to support the customers and I hope that is exactly what Ford will do now in this case.

Have you tried talking to a lawyer and see what can be done from a legal perspective in this case ? I'm also wondering what impact of the Terms & Conditions saying it is the owner's sole responsibility when it comes to damages to the car during their pick-up and drop-off service.
Good luck and keep the thread posted with any updates that you can share.

[shivasuma]

Originally Posted by NPV

Empathize with your friend, this is indeed sad and disheartening. When dealers do such things, the manufacturer must step in to support the customers and I hope that is exactly what Ford will do now in this case.

Have you tried talking to a lawyer and see what can be done from a legal perspective in this case ? I'm also wondering what impact of the Terms & Conditions saying it is the owner's sole responsibility when it comes to damages to the car during their pick-up and drop-off service.
Good luck and keep the thread posted with any updates that you can share.

From my experience (the same happened to me, but my car was only 2 weeks old), the dealer is not absolved from blame because of the terms and conditions. I got a new car, but had to fight it out for close to a year and a half. The dealer played the system and tried to delay it as much as possible and the so called honorable judges also played their part (by being absent or going on vacation). Like they say patience is a virtue, especially when dealing with the Indian judicial system!

[createrkid]

Thanks for the support Imaad, I request the people reading this to share this in any way possible. I would appreciate if the mods could do the same too. Thanks a lot again guys. I hope something really positive comes out of this.

[manishkapadia]

No matter what we feel like, a complete car replacement does not happen. Even when I give my car at Solitaire Honda they have this stuck very prominently. I know it sucks.

A fair value which they offer for your vehicle, you may feel short changed. They would not give you the value you have in your mind.

In my opinion below is minimum that you should negotiate with the dealership and get.

They can claim on your insurance. ( Do cashless ) . They should pay the balance. They should pay you for your loss on account of No claim bonus and increased insurance prices next year.

Besides this they should extend the warranty of your vehicle by atleast 2 more years at their cost to take care of issues that may arise out the accident , Plus offer you 2 year services part and labour.

You only need some form of insurance that your issues are going to be taken care of and you do not suffer.

With your family member in hospital you also have to consider the value of your time. Going legal is very tedious and long term. There are armies of lawyers at other end. Your best chance is to get the maximum out of them right now while the issue is still being discussed in social media.
Good luck and I hope this settles amicably.

[rajeev k]

Take it up at the highest level in Ford India.
The Managing Director of Ford India may be apprised.
Though he is moving to Changan Ford it would be of much help in reaching a fair solution if he intervenes.

[anand.shankar]

"Sure Ford, feels like family for a change!"

This is one of the reasons i keep repeating to the SA, not to take a TD unless I am available or if he is willing to own up if any damage is caused. I even force them to write it down on the job card. Also, I make sure he writes the ODO reading nice and clear! The free pickup/drop service is something I avoid like plague! Not all the folks at Svc Centers are bad, but I for sure know some are real morons. I know I cant save my car from every possible damage, but I do my best to keep her safe, however I understand that everyone wont be able to dedicate time similarly.

Easy & fast solution : Use the insurance, ask the Dealer to bear the difference, and compensate for NCB, may be pay for a standby Zoomcar in the interim.

Given the kind of schedule the car owner has (as described by the OP) I wonder if she or her family will ever be able to pursue this legally.

[dinesh6481]

Don't buckle down. Ask for the payment of cab on daily basis and don't use your insurance cover. I would suggest to make a next visit with a lawyer in tow and let him do the talking. I have seen the tone and tenor mellow down instantly when they deal with the legal mumbo jumbo. And one last thing- don't deal with intermediate or lower level employees, if you can find, then find the highest ranking person or showroom manager/owner. You can send a notice to Lathangi for as little as 200/-. It's worth an expenditure.

[johnruben]

Really sad to hear, I can imagine the pain that she has to go through for someone else's mistake.

This is the number of my friend, his name is Girish Gowda and he is a lawyer who deals specially with this type of cases, you can contact him and start your legal proceedings.
PH: 9880196313

We should not let this type of people go unpunished.

[chaustsher]

Really sorry to hear/read about this.

One thing I noticed is that the customer has been dealing with Ford India representatives and hasn't tried escalating it to the parent company in the U.S. I know it is a long shot but you would be surprised that it works.

A friend of mine was in similar situation with Hyundai and had to deal with same sort of bullshit with the local dealer in bangalore. Despite of all his efforts he could not extract a fair deal from Hyundai India OR the dealer. At this juncture, he involved Hyundai headquarters in South Korea by emailing their customer care dept & PR contacts. He got a new car in a week !

This works because the parent organisations abroad are usually more empathetic towards customers(and also scared of law suits )

I believe the affected party here should also try this approach. Since the car is 3 years old, a new replacement may not be given but she can definitely expect a fair value deal. She can try approaching https://twitter.com/Ford

All the best !

[shankar.balan]

Sadly many of these car dealerships are owned/ run by goon-ish types. They are the ones who have the capital and the real estate/ land bases from which to operate these dealerships and service centres.

Normal consumers can't do much against these monsters. Irrespective of their designations/ and / or training and orientation etc provided by the parent companies, these guys remain true to their goon-ish tendencies...

[Kratos453]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Sadly many of these car dealerships are owned/ run by goon-ish types. They are the ones who have the capital and the real estate/ land bases from which to operate these dealerships and service centres.

Normal consumers can't do much against these monsters. Irrespective of their designations/ and / or training and orientation etc provided by the parent companies, these guys remain true to their goon-ish tendencies...

I agree that customers cannot do anything but Ford can. A company fears one thing and one thing only, bad-reputation. A company like Ford is building their empire from ruins in India with new launches and if news like this starts circulating in social media it would bring doubts to many. Ford Ecosport is their best selling car and if they cannot sort out such issues without bringing into the media's attention, they are going to have a hard time.

[swiftnfurious]

Appalling experience! But I think we have enough successful cases in favor of the owners to give it all you have.

What's the IDV on the car now? Isn't that the price both the parties should look at, to consider as a fair price? I understand the 7L is reached by evaluating the car with a used car dealer but how did the CEO reach at a 4L ?

As read in multiple posts, I don't think a new car is a possibility. And please don't get the car repaired on your own. It's not only the NCB for the coming year that you'll miss, but for the entire future years. If you have a 35% NCB as of now, you will have to start from a 20% NCB eligibility 2 years later, whereas you'll be eligible for 50% if the claim was not made.

And as I am told, the dealerships are supposed to have their insurance to cover the accidents caused by them. They probably don't want to lose out on their NCB and hence pushing it on the customer.

Edit:: Please try amicable solution before you decide to go the legal way. It's a mess though a lot of us would love to read the story of your persistence and patience. I guess you could also chip in for a trade in with a brand new Ecosport with fair discounts and value for the old car; this might be a better option for the dealership as well than giving a value of the crashed vehicle.

[humyum]

She needs to be given a new car, Period. The dealership and Ford should take up the tab, why should the customer suffer because a Ford Dealership employed a Schumacher as a driver.

And Mr Pradeep needs to take his resume and put it in the dustbin, how does it matter to the customer if he has 15 years experience or is an astronaut. Disgusting.