Joined
·
3,028 Posts
Some of you know my bad luck with shops. Well, this is the first time I have decided to publicly warn everyone about Cherner Lincoln-Mercury of Tysons Corner. They deny that my car was damaged while in their possession! 
[rant]
After having my car aligned at Goodyear on Sunday, I brought my car to Cherner on Tuesday to get a wheel bearing replaced under warranty. They called mid-day to say that they couldn't work on my car because they couldn't get it on the service lift. I shrugged and came to pickup my car before they closed. I was shocked that they returned my car to me with the bumper broken free from the passenger side fender!
I asked my Service Representative to see what had happened. He said, "You brought it here like that." BS! I asked the Service Manager to see the damage. "Old damage. It didn't happen here," he said. I was astounded that these guys were giving me the run-around!
Reluctantly, I took possession of my car and tried to find somebody to take these guys on. I called Mercury Customer Service. They took down my complaint and said they would contact the dealership. Not much help there. I called NADA AUTOCAP to seek arbitration. The guy was friendly, but couldn't do much besides take my statement and forward it to the dealership.
The next day I thought I had an epiphany. The Service Manager suggested I contact my insurance, since that's what insurance is for. He was right! I should contact an insurance company, but not mine. I called Cherner's insurance agent to file a claim. Unfortunately, they refused to investigate because Cherner denied that anything happened.
Finally, I gave in and called my insurance, Progressive. They took down my statement and sent an adjuster to look at my car. The adjuster said it was obvious I hadn't hit anything and that the bumper looked like it had been torn free from the car by getting caught on something. Perhaps ramps or a lift?!? Anyways, I was finally building a case against Cherner. Hopefully Progressive can convince Cherner's insurance that their insured is liable for the damage. Otherwise, it's off to small claims court.
The moral of this story is: don't go to dealerships!
No, it's really TRUST NO ONE. I recommend taking snapshots of your car when you drop it off which put the date on the picture. My car has been damaged at three shops, so take me seriously here.
[/rant]
[rant]
After having my car aligned at Goodyear on Sunday, I brought my car to Cherner on Tuesday to get a wheel bearing replaced under warranty. They called mid-day to say that they couldn't work on my car because they couldn't get it on the service lift. I shrugged and came to pickup my car before they closed. I was shocked that they returned my car to me with the bumper broken free from the passenger side fender!

I asked my Service Representative to see what had happened. He said, "You brought it here like that." BS! I asked the Service Manager to see the damage. "Old damage. It didn't happen here," he said. I was astounded that these guys were giving me the run-around!
Reluctantly, I took possession of my car and tried to find somebody to take these guys on. I called Mercury Customer Service. They took down my complaint and said they would contact the dealership. Not much help there. I called NADA AUTOCAP to seek arbitration. The guy was friendly, but couldn't do much besides take my statement and forward it to the dealership.
The next day I thought I had an epiphany. The Service Manager suggested I contact my insurance, since that's what insurance is for. He was right! I should contact an insurance company, but not mine. I called Cherner's insurance agent to file a claim. Unfortunately, they refused to investigate because Cherner denied that anything happened.
Finally, I gave in and called my insurance, Progressive. They took down my statement and sent an adjuster to look at my car. The adjuster said it was obvious I hadn't hit anything and that the bumper looked like it had been torn free from the car by getting caught on something. Perhaps ramps or a lift?!? Anyways, I was finally building a case against Cherner. Hopefully Progressive can convince Cherner's insurance that their insured is liable for the damage. Otherwise, it's off to small claims court.
The moral of this story is: don't go to dealerships!
[/rant]