Local Dealer Pickup: What happens if you notice that the car was damaged?

[DonBlack]

I'm getting ready to pickup my car tomorrow from my local dealer and am worried about what to do if I notice any damage on the car that occurred during shipping.

Should I still take delivery? What have other people done?

...keeping my fingers crossed on a smooth pickup!

[TheGuest]

I've seen people said on this forum that BMW will take care of the repairs if you have a proof that your car was not damaged when you dropped it off. So take some pics of your new toy with a time stamp and let it flow over the ocean :) (This is what I am going to do)

Good luck!

[JSpira]

I've seen people said on this forum that BMW will take care of the repairs if you have a proof that your car was not damaged when you dropped it off. So take some pics of your new toy with a time stamp and let it flow over the ocean :) (This is what I am going to do)

Good luck!

What difference would it be if the car were damaged BEFORE you dropped it off? What you said makes no sense.

[TheGuest]

let me make it clear if it was not :)

Take pictures of what the car looked like when it was dropped off so you can compare it to itself once it gets to whatever the destination is. So

If new damage on the car
dealer fixes it
else
nothing to do

Cheers.

[JSpira]

let me make it clear if it was not :)

Take pictures of what the car looked like when it was dropped off so you can compare it to itself once it gets to whatever the destination is. So

If new damage on the car
dealer fixes it
else
nothing to do

Cheers.

Still makes no sense. What about "old" damage (prior to drop-off)?:dunno:

[waoudi]

I thought any damage in europe is covered by the insurance, and any damage in transit is covered by the shipping insurance and thats why cars go to the VPC so that all that stuff is taken care of.
fortunately i had no damage on the car at drop off. The only reason the shipping company makes you check and sign the document is so that its not their fault.

-wael

[JSpira]

The only reason the shipping company makes you check and sign the document is so that its not their fault.

-waelKorrekt, or should I say ,,duh``. :angel:

[LDV330i]

Still makes no sense. What about "old" damage (prior to drop-off)?:dunno:My bumper was scraped after I dropped the car off in Europe. I asked my CA to check for that specific damage prior to me coming to the dealership. When I got to the dealership my CA told me that since the damage must of happened after I dropped it off and after it left VPC ("because they always fix any damage") it would be up to me to pursue my claim with Wagoneer's, the inland trucking company. I went and talk to the manager and told him that I did not feel it was my responsibility to personally pursue the claim. He directed the CA to take care of filing the claim. The CA then proceeded to ask me to sign a condition of vehicle receipt report which was prefilled to indicate that my car was received in perfect condition. I refused and told him I needed to note the damage. He told me BMWUSA did not accept anything but a "no damage" report. After much arguing I was able to note my damage at the very top of the report. BMWUSA did pay for the repair but I was asked to make my own arrangement for 5 days of a rental car. :mad: When I got home I took pictures of the damage and e-mailed them to the CA confirming that he witnessed the pre-delivery damage and would file a claim with BMWUSA. I later found that the offloading report at VPC noted the damage to the bumper but it was not fixed at VPC. :confused:

[waoudi]

My bumper was scraped after I dropped the car off in Europe. I asked my CA to check for that specific damage prior to me coming to the dealership. When I got to the dealership my CA told me that since the damage must of happened after I dropped it off and after it left VPC ("because they always fix any damage") it would be up to me to pursue my claim with Wagoneer's, the inland trucking company. I went and talk to the manager and told him that I did not feel it was my responsibility to personally pursue the claim. He directed the CA to take care of filing the claim. The CA then proceeded to ask me to sign a condition of vehicle receipt report which was prefilled to indicate that my car was received in perfect condition. I refused and told him I needed to note the damage. He told me BMWUSA did not accept anything but a "no damage" report. After much arguing I was able to note my damage at the very top of the report. BMWUSA did pay for the repair but I was asked to make my own arrangement for 5 days of a rental car. :mad: When I got home I took pictures of the damage and e-mailed them to the CA confirming that he witnessed the pre-delivery damage and would file a claim with BMWUSA. I later found that the offloading report at VPC noted the damage to the bumper but it was not fixed at VPC. :confused:

Which dealer did you have that problem with? Please let it not be Advantage Midtown!

[LDV330i]

Which dealer did you have that problem with? Please let it not be Advantage Midtown!I like many other Houstonians chose to buy my ED car from a small town dealer because they offered very aggressive pricing.

If you will note in my original post I asked the dealer to check for bumper damage BEFORE I went to the dealership. An Austin B'fester who did ED the same week I did had bumper damage but did not notice it until got home. He never got full cooperation from the dealer in getting the car repaired. It was never repaired. The damage to the undeside of the bumper happens on ED cars becuase they are shipped withou shipping blocks which allows the cars sit lower than US delivery cars and underside of the bumpers may hit the ramps inside the transport ship.

I have posted quite often telling people that they need to inspect their cars thoroughly prior to accepting redelivery. While many claim that VPC fixes all damages whether or not noted in the Drop-off report many time things fall through the cracks. It has also been reported that BMWUSA has stated that any damages prior to redelivery need to be reported as claim by the dealer for processing.