I had leased a 2020 Mercedes GLC 4 months back. About 3 weeks back i noticed that left side tail light was not working and the error msg was flashing. I took the car to dealership where i was told to come back in few hours. 2 hours later i got a call that the part has to be ordered from Germany so it will take about 4 to 5 days. I was given the option to take my car back or use their courtesy car. I took the courtesy car. 4 days later I got a call from Mercedes Service department. The guy said that the car got damaged on the lot with some scratches on the rt panel. They said it happened on their premises so they will take care of it. I asked them if damage was bad . He said no its just a little scratch. 2 weeks later i tried to call them so many times to get up date on the status of repair. Was put on hold several times. So finally went in. The service guy said your truck is all ready just getting cleaned up. When i went to pick it up finally 2 hours later I saw huge dent on left side and scratch on back bumper. I was furious since the car was spotless before this. There was no scratch, no dent. The guy went to review the video and said ok we will fix it. Now i do not trust them. When I asked them to show the picture of extent of damage they said they did not take any picture they just saw it and fixed it. I am wondering what happened that the car got dented and scratched at all the sides.
What do i do? what are my options. I was so happy to have my first luxury car but now it seems like a nightmare. I wound appreciate your input a lot.
Should I ask them to give me a new car? I do not trust them anymore. I am not sure what else they have damaged in the inside. Once i take the car out of their lot any left over damage will be come my responsibility. What do you think? Thank you for your help
If god forbid, your vehicle got rear ended by a regular driver, causing a dent and some scratches, would you demand their insurance to replace your vehicle with a brand new one ?
The dealer should be making all the repairs. Good thing you’re leasing so you don’t get hit on the depreciation. Maybe you can ask them to waive your excess wear and tear when you turn it in but I think its dishonest not to disclose the damage in carfax.
Dealer just needs to make good on all the repairs and provide you with the documentation. That way at turn-in, there’s a full accounting of the incident and the repairs were done by an authorized body shop. If there’s any diminished value, that goes to the lessor. In any case, don’t worry too much about it… like others have stated, be glad it’s a lease
These things happen whether it’s MB, BMW, Audi… or even Ferrari the first time is the most difficult. After that… It’s a lease
No, you can’t ask them to give you a new car. And since it’s not your fault, tell him to waive the excess wear and tear when you turn the lease in.
That’s an interesting story. I recently went to a dealership to test drive a glc in NY. They did not have any in stock but the manager told me they had a “special “. I noticed the miles were high and it had regular plates but anyhoo I took it for a spin. While going round the bend at 100 mph, I kinda fishtailed and went off the road. But the 4wd got me back and I was able to resume doing donuts in the meadow.
I kind of returned the test car to the dealership on the low down and just tossed the keys and took off.
Ps I also scraped it bad in the underside going over those rocks and I spilled my beer all over the dash.
Doesn’t work that way. You can ask all you want. Just don’t get offended when they laugh at you.
Who knows. That said, your car is not the first to get damaged in possession of the service department and surely not the last. Accidents happen. Could’ve been someone else picking up their car smacked yours and left. Could’ve been a delivery guy backed in to yours. Could’ve been a careless lot jockey that was jealous. Any bunch of things could’ve happened. Cars have fallen off lifts before because someone made a mistake. It happens.
Let them fix it on their dime
Leave and use your insurance
Leave and open your wallet instead of using your insurance.
Those are your 3 options.
I can’t see anyone agreeing to this unless it’s regarding their repair, and even then it’s a stretch. I wouldn’t blame them either if they scoffed at this. There’s nothing stopping this guy from smacking a car when he leaves, which would be his fault and not the dealership. Likewise, excess wear goes to MB and not the dealer, and the dealer has no ownership interest in the car. That’s like saying I’ll waive any damage you might incur from the tool I rented at Home Depot that I let you borrow while I rented it. Home Depot isn’t going to just say, “ok, you let someone borrow it while you rented it, it’s not your fault. No charge.” They’re going to want their money.
Additionally if the dealer fixes everything up to like-new standards (as they should) then there shouldn’t be any additional wear and tear charges at lease end related to the incident.
Thank you all for the responses. So the problem is that since they have not been fully transparent with the extent of damage. Which as they said was only minor scratches on the rt panel. And i found it out later while they were giving me back my car that there was dent on left side and scratch on bumper. Since they did not take any picture and are not showing me the video I am not sure how bad the car was damaged and what other unfixed issues are in the car. Do you think that calling Mercedes Corporate office and getting an independent inspector/assessor for the vehicle will help to see if the car has been fully fixed?
Show it to them that the sparkles are gone then. They should redo the job considering the fact that they are an authorized MB dealership. Also, once you have received the car, you can take it to any independent shop to get it inspected or actually to another MB dealership.
Question- aren’t the dealerships insured? If that’s the case, can’t you file a claim through their insurance and take it to a body shop of your choice? Even if you can’t, you could theoretically make a demand that they cover the cost of repair at any shop you choose to go to. They can deny that and it all depends on how far up the legal recourse ladder you’re willing to climb.
If the car looks fine on the outside, that’s all that matters. Nobody is going to disassemble the car to do a lease end inspection. A few dents and dings aren’t going to cause any damage structurally.
Thank you for all the inputs. Appreciate it! Lastly, Do i need to notify MB financials and my car insurance company about the damage? Do i need to report this damage anywhere else?
the first time is the most difficult. After that… 
It’s a lease 