[internationlriders]

I live in Canada, and have family in Seattle and when visiting them about 2 1/2 months ago my 1LE broke down in Seattle. There is another thread in the issues section about this. The dealer didn't have a courtesy car to provide me and wasn't able to provide a rental car through Enterprise, the US GM partner, to get me back across the border so instead they reserved an Avis car and told me I would be reimbursed by GM after the car was fixed. It turned out my car had a spun crank bearing and needed an engine replacement due to internal damage, so after three weeks I got my car back. I returned the rental car two days after my car was ready for pickup and the total was $950 USD. So I submitted the claim through Roadside assistance as instructed by the service manager, and waited about two weeks for a check to arrive. Low and behold I receive a check for $500 CAD! My total is about $1200 CAD and now GM is telling me they will only cover $500 and I should have read the warranty manual... well now I definitely should have but this seems very negligent on GMs behalf not to mention being that my brand new car had a failed engine a rental should be covered for the time my car is broken no? Roadside assistance is trying to escalate this and told me to ask the dealer to foot the remainder of the bill out of pocket which I'm following up on now but this seems like terrible PR for them. If they have such broken communication between them and their dealers there must be a lot of others in the same boat as me.



Any suggestions from anyone else who may have had a similar issue?

[germanicus]

Thats pretty pathetic!
GM should make it right.

[Spartan268]

Originally Posted by internationlriders

I live in Canada, and have family in Seattle and when visiting them about 2 1/2 months ago my 1LE broke down in Seattle. There is another thread in the issues section about this. The dealer didn't have a courtesy car to provide me and wasn't able to provide a rental car through Enterprise, the US GM partner, to get me back across the border so instead they reserved an Avis car and told me I would be reimbursed by GM after the car was fixed. It turned out my car had a spun crank bearing and needed an engine replacement due to internal damage, so after three weeks I got my car back. I returned the rental car two days after my car was ready for pickup and the total was $950 USD. So I submitted the claim through Roadside assistance as instructed by the service manager, and waited about two weeks for a check to arrive. Low and behold I receive a check for $500 CAD! My total is about $1200 CAD and now GM is telling me they will only cover $500 and I should have read the warranty manual... well now I definitely should have but this seems very negligent on GMs behalf not to mention being that my brand new car had a failed engine a rental should be covered for the time my car is broken no? Roadside assistance is trying to escalate this and told me to ask the dealer to foot the remainder of the bill out of pocket which I'm following up on now but this seems like terrible PR for them. If they have such broken communication between them and their dealers there must be a lot of others in the same boat as me.



Any suggestions from anyone else who may have had a similar issue?

Sorry to rail this off topic but I'm curious which dealership you went too? I'm basically trying to build a personal list of dealers to try out and dealers to avoid. Personally so far the Richmond Dueck has been good to me and the Dueck on Marine have been faking their papers 3/3 times so far. Caught them each time. My only suggestion is possibly going to a different dealership but that will be a hard time for yourself since it's better to goto one that's familiar with you and the car.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by Spartan268

Sorry to rail this off topic but I'm curious which dealership you went too? I'm basically trying to build a personal list of dealers to try out and dealers to avoid. Personally so far the Richmond Dueck has been good to me and the Dueck on Marine have been faking their papers 3/3 times so far. Caught them each time. My only suggestion is possibly going to a different dealership but that will be a hard time for yourself since it's better to goto one that's familiar with you and the car.

I don't know how the system works but I'm 90% sure his rental reimbursement check came from GM itself, and not the individual dealer he went to visit. I don't think the dealer really has a say in this matter. Although this is a pretty screwed up deal.

Did GM specifically choose what car?
Were there any mileage limitations imposed the Avvis of which they charge you more?
What about the destination charge since you drove it from Seattle back to Canada? (usually rental companies charge more if you are not returning it to the same location.)

I'm getting a Vibe that GM is feeling they are only responsible for a "reasonable" amount of miles and likewise no destination charges...

[internationlriders]

Originally Posted by Spartan268

Sorry to rail this off topic but I'm curious which dealership you went too? I'm basically trying to build a personal list of dealers to try out and dealers to avoid. Personally so far the Richmond Dueck has been good to me and the Dueck on Marine have been faking their papers 3/3 times so far. Caught them each time. My only suggestion is possibly going to a different dealership but that will be a hard time for yourself since it's better to goto one that's familiar with you and the car.

I bought the car from Barnes Wheaton in South Surrey but they didn't have anything to do with this and they have had excellent service all the way. Because the car died in Seattle I left it at Bellevue Chevrolet.

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

I don't know how the system works but I'm 90% sure his rental reimbursement check came from GM itself, and not the individual dealer he went to visit. I don't think the dealer really has a say in this matter. Although this is a pretty screwed up deal.

Did GM specifically choose what car?
Were there any mileage limitations imposed the Avvis of which they charge you more?
What about the destination charge since you drove it from Seattle back to Canada? (usually rental companies charge more if you are not returning it to the same location.)

I'm getting a Vibe that GM is feeling they are only responsible for a "reasonable" amount of miles and likewise no destination charges...

So the rental car was chosen by the Bellevue Chevrolet dealer and came with unlimited miles so my total bill was just the daily rate and I dropped the rental back to Avis in Bellevue. Yes the reimbursement came from GM directly and apparently that is GM policy to only issue a maximum $500 allowance for being stranded out of town.

[IntricateDetail]

That's pretty miserable and incompetent on GM to have a limit on something like that. What they should now do is give you "money" in the form of free oil changes, or something that will effectively equal the amount they didn't give you back in "cash". They have the ability to make it right, even if they can't "pay cash" for the rental car...because of the warranty wording. If they value customer loyalty and loyalty to customers, they'll make it right.

[sykb47l]

Originally Posted by internationlriders

....The dealer....told me I would be reimbursed by GM after the car was fixed.

Doesn't seem like GM is at fault. The dealer gave you incorrect information or failed to mention limits of the reimbursement. I would speak to whomever told you that you would get a full refund; at the dealership.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by internationlriders

So the rental car was chosen by the Bellevue Chevrolet dealer and came with unlimited miles so my total bill was just the daily rate and I dropped the rental back to Avis in Bellevue. Yes the reimbursement came from GM directly and apparently that is GM policy to only issue a maximum $500 allowance for being stranded out of town.

I used to live out there in Seattle and frequented Bellevue quite often. Nice town.. but back on topic.

This really is a screwed up deal. I would be tempted to contact an attorney to see what they say about it but I would think that would get expensive and fast. Unfortunately the legal system sucks which is why we get shafted so easily.

Here's what I would do first, contact GM customer service with your receipt for the repairs of your vehicle in hand and tell them your whole situation and tell them you feel you deserve to be reimbursed the entire amount for the rental especially because this was a GM fault, you had no control over how long they kept your vehicle or how long the repairs took, If GM is only liable for $500, especially if its because it went over the daily limit, then the dealership should be liable for keeping your car. If they fail to comply, completely f- the hell out of the survey they send you for the repairs to the vehicle. TRUST me this gets ALOT of attention and the dealers HATE it, Either the service manager or customer service will call you back, see if they're willing to work with you then.. if not still.. then pursue legal action if you're willing to.

Originally Posted by IntricateDetail

That's pretty miserable and incompetent on GM to have a limit on something like that. What they should now do is give you "money" in the form of free oil changes, or something that will effectively equal the amount they didn't give you back in "cash". They have the ability to make it right, even if they can't "pay cash" for the rental car...because of the warranty wording. If they value customer loyalty and loyalty to customers, they'll make it right.

Agreed, the same policy implies if you have a car accident.. If the body shop keeps your car longer than the estimated repair time, they are liable for the incurred rental costs... GM should be no different in a warranty claim.

Originally Posted by sykb47l

Doesn't seem like GM is at fault. The dealer gave you incorrect information or failed to mention limits of the reimbursement. I would speak to whomever told you that you would get a full refund; at the dealership.

Not exactly no. The dealer told him he would be reimbursed, and GM did reimburse him, just not the full amount. Dealer has no control over what GM reimburses, however it is possible that the dealer is at fault if they kept the car longer than the estimated repair time and failed to reimburse him the other half .. then I could see the dealer being at fault.

[JamesNoBrakes]

Originally Posted by internationlriders

I live in Canada, and have family in Seattle and when visiting them about 2 1/2 months ago my 1LE broke down in Seattle. There is another thread in the issues section about this. The dealer didn't have a courtesy car to provide me and wasn't able to provide a rental car through Enterprise, the US GM partner, to get me back across the border so instead they reserved an Avis car and told me I would be reimbursed by GM after the car was fixed. It turned out my car had a spun crank bearing and needed an engine replacement due to internal damage, so after three weeks I got my car back. I returned the rental car two days after my car was ready for pickup and the total was $950 USD. So I submitted the claim through Roadside assistance as instructed by the service manager, and waited about two weeks for a check to arrive. Low and behold I receive a check for $500 CAD! My total is about $1200 CAD and now GM is telling me they will only cover $500 and I should have read the warranty manual... well now I definitely should have but this seems very negligent on GMs behalf not to mention being that my brand new car had a failed engine a rental should be covered for the time my car is broken no? Roadside assistance is trying to escalate this and told me to ask the dealer to foot the remainder of the bill out of pocket which I'm following up on now but this seems like terrible PR for them. If they have such broken communication between them and their dealers there must be a lot of others in the same boat as me.



Any suggestions from anyone else who may have had a similar issue?

Did you get it in writing? That is ALWAYS the key, ALWAYS protect yourself. I recently had a saga where a glass shop scratched my instrument cluster, which eventually got fixed at the dealer where they parked it with the bumper up against the curb, scratching it, so they had to get that all fixed and repainted/re-protected. These businesses did the right thing, but as an investigator, I know to collect the evidence, write down who I talked to, summarize my conversations, sign a document attesting to the conversation, take pictures, if things start to go south, send them a registered letter and un-registered copy asking them to make arrangements within 10 days to fix the matter, and so on. Usually when businesses sniff out that you are protecting yourself, they do the right thing, except for the ones that are clueless and will lose miserably in court. These steps aren't usually necessary, but when you start encountering a situation like yours, where your LT1 had to be replaced and all of the stuff associated, you should be documenting each and every step/development, just in case.

[sykb47l]

Originally Posted by internationlriders

....The dealer....told me I would be reimbursed by GM after the car was fixed.

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

Not exactly no. The dealer told him he would be reimbursed, and GM did reimburse him, just not the full amount. Dealer has no control over what GM reimburses, however it is possible that the dealer is at fault if they kept the car longer than the estimated repair time and failed to reimburse him the other half .. then I could see the dealer being at fault.

The dealer told him he would be reimbursed and they picked the car and rental company. They either told him it would be in full or failed to tell him there were limits of $500. GM reimbursed him per the written policy it seems. If the dealer gave him incorrect info or only half of the story what did GM do wrong? GM told him in writing that the reimbursement would be $500(via manual). If GM did exactly what they have written in his warranty how are they are fault?

Example: I sold you a product and then verbally told you there was a manufacturers rebate of $1000.....You later read the rebate form and see that the the rebate is only $500, do you fault the manufacturer?

I could only see him having to pay for the two days after the car was done. Unless GM stalled the repair its the dealer that needs to own the additional cost. But the original post doesn't state that. Had the dealership provided him a courtesy vehicle this would not be an issue at all.

Keep in mind, i'm not saying that he isn't due a refund. I'm just saying that the dealer appears to have messed up based on the data we have here.

[HDRDTD]

I have also had the dealer just add the cost of towing and rental to the repair bill sent to the insurance company that was covering the accident damage.

Perhaps the OP's dealer could do a similar thing with bundling the rental cost (above the reimbursed cost) into the warranty claim for the engine ?

Just a thought.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by sykb47l

The dealer told him he would be reimbursed and they picked the car and rental company. They either told him it would be in full or failed to tell him there were limits of $500. GM reimbursed him per the written policy it seems. If the dealer gave him incorrect info or only half of the story what did GM do wrong? GM told him in writing that the reimbursement would be $500(via manual). If GM did exactly what they have written in his warranty how are they are fault?

Example: I sold you a product and then verbally told you there was a manufacturers rebate of $1000.....You later read the rebate form and see that the the rebate is only $500, do you fault the manufacturer?

I could only see him having to pay for the two days after the car was done. Unless GM stalled the repair its the dealer that needs to own the additional cost. But the original post doesn't state that. Had the dealership provided him a courtesy vehicle this would not be an issue at all.

Keep in mind, i'm not saying that he isn't due a refund. I'm just saying that the dealer appears to have messed up based on the data we have here.

Yeah I get what you're saying and I agree its a screwed up deal, however; per the OP the dealer never said it would be a full 100% reimbursement, but only that he would be reimbursed. Technical things like that matter in court which is why it won't hold up. Unless the dealer said he would receive a 100% reimbursement, they are not legally at fault. Its misleading definitely and I don't agree with how it was done, but technically his manual stating the reimbursement amount will supercede anything the dealer says unless the dealer makes it clear that the reimbursement will be 100% and they technically never did. GM did reimburse EXACTLY as the dealer said as the dealer never specified any amount or any percentage or thatit would be a 100% reimbursement, but merely..that he would be reimbursed, and GM did.. ..a partial reimbursement. The error is that we assume that the reimbursement always means 100% ... but in this case it was not.

This isn't to say that I AGREE with what the dealer did..especially given they chose the car and such.. I feel they should be responsible..but..I am implying in legal terms it may be harder than you think to come after them

[internationlriders]

So the update is I escalated this within Roadside assistance and have a customer service representative who actually cares and is pushing through their management team to get the full reimbursement. I'll hopefully have an update soon.

[Yellow6thGen]

Originally Posted by internationlriders

So the update is I escalated this within Roadside assistance and have a customer service representative who actually cares and is pushing through their management team to get the full reimbursement. I'll hopefully have an update soon.

Request to speak to the the DM of the deelership. Does your insurance coverage cover the cost of rental car coverage? If the dealer made the reservation the dealer should cover it... It’s a new car... How many miles and how long in service?

Reach out to this guy http://www.camaro5.com/forums/member.php?u=29125