Recently, Mr. Yang from Zhengzhou encountered a bad thing. On February 1, he bought a Mercedes-Benz off-road vehicle in Zhengzhou Zhongxing Automobile Sales Service, with more than 420,000 naked cars. Mr. Yang said that the day after picking up the car, the new car had engine failure lights on, the body shook violently, and the accelerator pedal failed. At this time, the actual mileage of the vehicle is less than 20 kilometers.
Mr. Yang said that after the incident, he asked the 4S shop to return and replace the car, and the 4S shop admitted that the vehicle had broken down, but asked the vehicle to be dismantled and inspected first, and then repaired or other solutions were taken after determining the cause of the failure. On the 19th, an after-sales manager of the store also confirmed the above statement to the New Yellow River reporter. "From the pick-up to the breakdown in less than a day, the actual mileage of the vehicle is less than 20 kilometers, why not refund if there is a problem? Can I still call a new car after it is dismantled? Mr. Yang resolutely disagreed with the demolition and inspection, and it was difficult to accept the plan given by the 4S store. As of now, the two sides are still deadlocked.
Mr. Yang's case is not unique. The New Yellow River reporter further learned and found that when the new car just bought suddenly broke down, there were often disagreements between the owner and the 4S store due to dismantling and inspection and return and replacement. Specifically, car owners often want to directly request the return and replacement of the car, while 4S stores usually require that the car be dismantled and inspected before giving an explanation. Once the return is unsuccessful, which party should bear the loss such as the decline in the value retention rate of the new car after dismantling and repair......These issues have been a point of contention between the two sides.
420,000 new cars broke down, and the owner's request for direct return was rejected
Mr. Yang described that on February 1, he purchased a Mercedes-Benz GLC300L black off-road vehicle at Zhengzhou Zhongxing Automobile Sales Service*** located at No. 22 Zhengguang Road, Jinshui District, Zhengzhou City, and the naked car** shown on the invoice was 425,300 yuan. On the day of pick-up, he went to the 4S store about 1The Sinopec gas station, which is 5 kilometers away, filled up about half a tank of fuel. The next day, on the way back from the car inspection and license plate, the vehicle suddenly had engine failure lights on, throttle failure, body shaking and other failures, he had to park the car on the side of the road, and finally transported it to the 4S shop by trailer.
The invoice for the Mercedes-Benz off-road vehicle GLC300L** purchased by Mr. Yang is 425,300 yuan. Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
On the day of the sudden breakdown of the vehicle, Mr. Yang immediately requested the 4S store to return the car, but the 4S store did not agree, but insisted that it should be dismantled and inspected first, and the cause of the failure should be determined before further processing. Mr. Yang rejected the 4S shop's proposal for dismantling and maintenance, he believed that the new car was less than a day from the pick-up to the breakdown, and the actual mileage of the vehicle was less than 20 kilometers, and it was extremely abnormal for the 4S shop to go through the procedures for him to return and replace the car. And once the dismantling inspection, it is bound to further damage the value and integrity of the vehicle, if the 4S shop finally refuses to return, then who should bear the loss of the vehicle?
For Mr. Yang's appeal, on the afternoon of the 19th, Mr. Guo, the after-sales manager of Zhengzhou Zhongxing Automobile Sales Service, told the New Yellow River reporter that according to the company's processing process, it is indeed necessary for the customer to agree to dismantle and inspect before proceeding to the next step. ”
Mr. Yang's new car is being hauled after a sudden breakdown. Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
Previously, Mr. Guo, the after-sales manager, had introduced to upstream news that the car did have quality problems. However, after the preliminary inspection by the maintenance personnel of the store, there is a high probability that the throttle valve is faulty, which is actually a minor problem and can be repaired. Considering Mr. Yang's feelings, the shop is willing to compensate for 4 times of maintenance. Mr. Guo said that the failure of the new car was scary, and he could understand Mr. Yang's feelings, and it was normal for him to want to change the new car, but he could not change the manufacturer's regulations. Mr. Guo also said that according to the manufacturer's regulations, the throttle valve cannot be replaced. The store wanted to dismantle and inspect to further determine whether it was a throttle failure and whether it was possible that there were other faults, but Mr. Yang did not agree to the dismantling and inspection, and the communication was stuck. "If it's something else, maybe you can change the car. ”
Nearly 20 days have passed since the incident, and Mr. Yang and the 4S store have communicated and negotiated many times around this issue, but no agreement has been reached so far. At present, the faulty vehicle is still parked in the underground garage of the 4S store.
Local Municipal Supervision Bureau: The complaint has been transferred to the relevant departments for processing
After a detailed review of the "Provisions on the Responsibility for Repair, Replacement and Return of Household Automobile Products" (referred to as the "Three Guarantees" Regulations), the New Yellow River reporter found that the regulations clarified the relevant circumstances in which household automobile products need to be replaced or returned due to quality problems. Article 22 stipulates: "Within 7 days from the date of validity of the three guarantees, if the engine, transmission, power battery, driving motor or its main parts need to be replaced due to quality problems, consumers can choose to replace the household car product or return it with the purchase invoice and the three guarantees certificate." The seller shall replace or return the goods free of charge. However, it is not clear how to determine the quality problems of the car.
Equity penetration diagram of the 4S store involved. Source: Tianyan Check.
Tianyancha information shows that Zhengzhou Zhongxing Automobile Sales Service was established in 2020 and is jointly held by Tianjin Zhongyuan Star Investment and Henan Vantone Enterprise Management Service. According to public promotional materials, this is a high-quality specialty store whose main business is to sell Mercedes-Benz series products.
On the 20th, the New Yellow River reporter consulted the official customer service of Mercedes-Benz headquarters on the problems reflected by Mr. Yang, and the staff said that there were no relevant technical personnel in the customer service center, and the details of the vehicle needed to be tested in the 4S store to confirm the cause of the vehicle problem. If you want to return or exchange the car for free, you still have to meet the relevant conditions of the "three guarantees". The New Yellow River reporter asked whether the "inspection" was equivalent to the "dismantling and inspection" required by the 4S store, and the other party said that this "is really not understood", and as an automobile manufacturer, it can only assist consumers to communicate with the 4S store.
Regarding Mr. Yang's experience, Zhu Ke, a lawyer at Beijing Wanbo Law Firm, suggested that if there is a quality problem with the new car, consumers should take photos in time to retain the evidence, and contact the 4S store for negotiation as soon as possible. If the negotiation fails, you can report to the local consumer rights protection committee and seek its assistance.
Mr. Yang revealed to the New Yellow River reporter that he has complained to local consumers about the matter**, but has not yet received the result. On the 20th, the New Yellow River reporter called the Zhengdong New District Market Supervision and Administration Bureau, and the staff responded after inquiry, and the complaint had been transferred to the relevant departments for processing.
After the new car is faulty, the disputes of "dismantling and inspection" and "return and exchange" continue
In the investigation, the New Yellow River reporter found that in recent years, car purchase disputes similar to those encountered by Mr. Yang are not isolated cases.
According to relevant ** reports, in December last year, Mr. Hu in Jinan, Shandong Province, spent more than 1.2 million yuan to buy a Cayenne at the Porsche Centre in Licheng. As soon as I drove out of the 4S store, the vehicle broke down and "lay down". Mr. Hu did not agree to the demolition and inspection, and asked to return the car directly, but the 4S store said that if it did not carry out the demolition inspection, it would not be able to carry out the next step of negotiation, and the two sides were at a stalemate, and Mr. Hu could only compromise and agree to let them dismantle first, but he never recognized the dismantling and inspection.
In February 2019, a female car owner made a down payment of more than 200,000 yuan in a Mercedes-Benz 4S store in Xi'an and bought a Mercedes-Benz car. Before the new car drove out of the yard of the 4S store, it was found that there was an oil leakage problem in the engine of the vehicle. She initially did not agree to the dismantling and inspection, but hoped for a refund or a replacement car, and after communicating with the 4S store many times, she was told that she could neither refund nor change the car, and could only replace the engine according to the "three guarantees" policy of the car. After the first fermentation and official intervention in this matter, it was finally determined that the Mercedes-Benz engine involved had assembly quality defects, which was a product quality problem, and the female owner reached a settlement agreement with the 4S store such as car replacement compensation.
Screenshot of the Black Cat complaint platform.
When the New Yellow River reporter searched on platforms such as Black Cat Complaints, it was found that there were a considerable number of complaints from new car owners. Many car owners reported that after the sudden failure of the new car, the 4S shop usually refused their request to return and replace the car, and insisted on dismantling and inspecting the vehicle. Car owners questioned this practice, believing that it was an overlord clause and that the potential losses caused to the new car should be borne by the 4S shop.
At the same time, some car critics revealed to the New Yellow River reporter that when the car owner encounters a similar new car dispute, usually the 4S store will seek to settle with the car owner. In the negotiation process, the owner can often only agree to the 4S shop to dismantle and repair the vehicle. As compensation, it is common practice for 4S stores to provide a certain amount of free maintenance services, or to extend the warranty period of the vehicle accordingly, but these are often difficult for consumers to accept.
In this regard, Zhu Ke said that after the new car he just bought broke down and was handed over to the 4S store for dismantling or repair, on the one hand, the new car will become an "old car", and on the other hand, it will also face certain disputes in the division of responsibility. For consumers, after the new car breaks down, it is also in line with the psychological expectations of normal people to want to return and replace it directly. Once the new car is dismantled and inspected, if the vehicle does not meet the relevant regulations on the return and replacement of the car in the three guarantees, it will have an irreversible impact on the value and integrity of the new car, and there will often be disputes about how much the relevant loss is and who should bear it.
Zhu Ke suggested that 4S stores should take into account social responsibility while pursuing profits, and in view of the current differences, they should properly consider their legitimate demands from the perspective of consumers, and even if they must carry out "demolition inspection", they should also give consumers full compensation for the corresponding potential losses.
Reporter: Wang Likui Editor: Yu Dan Proofreader: Dong Ping