Berger service dept not as good as it usd to be.

[berger21]

They used to be good. I never had a problem there until today. I took my car in to have the headlamp reflective bezel replaced under my extended warranty as it is cracked. The technician told me he did not think it would be covered because it is a "trim piece". I told him it is functional and should not be considered trim as it focuses the light from the headlamp bulb. It has a function and I believe it to be safety related. He said I would have to call GMPP to get it covered. I did, they covered it and everything was fine. Then he called them and convinced them it was a trim piece so they decided not to cover it. I got them both on the phone through General motors customer service and they decided it was not a trim piece because it had a function. So they called it a body panel and still will not cover it. Where does a technician get off convincing the warranty group something is not covered when they already decided it was? I am a bit irrate about this and everyong is going to know.

[bad1racing]

Berger21,We are almost neighbors compared to most people on this board.The problem is that most techs dont want to get paid GMPP time for replacing that part when they can get you to pay for it out of your own pocket at customer pay time.Our techs grumble about it all of the time."Gettin screwed by warranty again."I can understand it when you are trying to support a family and household,but,you have to as a tech take the good with the bad.Most warranty time is half to two thirds of what customer pay is.
Kendall

[berger21]

He won't get customer pay by me.I will not pay their price to change something I can do myself in about an hour. I will not even buy the part from them. I would think warranty pay is better than no pay, especially when they are not very busy.

[Xplantdad]

Ahh...customer service at it's best... http://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/no.gif

Much easier to please the customer...but the tech is thinking solely about his bank account. Not a good way to do business. It should never have gotten to the point of having both GMPP and the tech on the phone line together.

The tech will always have plenty of oppurtunity to make up the warranty wages on some other repair. Heck, he wasted more time by arguing what was covered and what wasn't. That alone cost him money.

Worked at a dealership for 4 years...been there done that.

[JChlupsa]

My question is why was the technician setting the rules on what is/not?? Where was the Service Dept Supervisor or someone in Management for the Dealership?

[berger21]

The service dept manager came in and backed him up. I don't know how either have the authority to tell GMPP it is not covered.

[Tom Hartman]

I am a writer at our Chevrolet Dealer, I will bend over backwards to get stuff covered for my customers. I will also take care of the tech. with some good customer pay job or some extra time on a standard warranty job. Our Tech's do not interact with the customers!

[bad1racing]

#1 the tech should not be on the phone with GMPP.We are a small dealership and anytime a tech is not working they are not making $$$ for themselves or the dealership.We have service advisors that handle getting ok's and labor times from GMPP.
#2 The customer needs to be satisified.......Not only did the dealership lose money for a repair and for a part.But they also lost the trust of a loyal customer.Two major no-no's in the auto business.
Some of the bigger dealerships think they can make anyone mad and there are more customers out there just waiting to come through the door.As they say "give a person good service,and they tell three friends."Give a person bad service,and they tell 10-12 people.It doesn"t take long to get a bad reputation.
Kendall

[camarojoe]

Just wondering... how did this headlight reflector get broken in the first place? Was it a factory defect that caused it to crack, or did something smack into it and crack it? (ie. whos fault was it that it is cracked?) Did this question come up in the discussions of if it was covered or not? This is a good example of why i never buy extended warrantys on anything.

[J_D]

Before posting this on this board where Berger Chevrolet is a good sponsor, I would have suggested you speak with a higher authority at Berger Chevrolet (i.e., Matt Berger). I seriously think he would have handled this situation and taken care of the issue for you. Now that you have "blasted" his business on this board, he may not be quite as willing to serve you.

As I own my own business, I can't control what all my employees do or don't do. And yes, I am in the automotive repair business too. However, if it is brought to my attention, I can choose either to help the customer "if" I feel his request is reasonable, or deny it if I feel it is unreasonable.

If this situation occured in my shop and it was posted on the board instead of being brought to my attention first, I might not be as willing to help now as I might have before you seemly sought to discredit my business.

Just my humble opinion.

[JChlupsa]

J.D, Thats why I asked if he talked with a Supervisor or someone in Management at the Dealship. I fully agree with your humble opinion.

[Belair62]

I have to agree on that JD..Berger21 you don't even have an e-mail or real name associated with your user name....maybe you were a jerk to the guy or something...the whole post seems to just be sour grapes to me...this is only your side of a story...

[Xplantdad]

WHoops...I didn't even notice that he hadn't filled in his profile...I thought it was someone else... http://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif

[berger21]

BAD1RACING you are correct it was the Service Advisor I was dealing with, my mistake.

[berger21]

camarojoe - Since there is a lense in front of it I do not see how anything could have smacked it. The lense is OK, although there a some scratches in it. I will never buy an extended warranty again.

[berger21]

J_D - I tried going higher but no one returned my calls. I do not know how to get ahold of Matt. I have met Matt (I am sure he would not remember me) and he seems like a good guy. I posted on this board hoping he or someone from Berger may become aware and help me out. If this happens Berger will still be my dealer of choice to deal with. I do not hold a grudge. I have the option of cancelling the rest of my extended warranty and this will cover the cost of replacing it, which I may do. Maybe this post will turn him off from helping me, but I was unable to get ahold of him any other way to this point.

[berger21]

Belair62 - I was very polite, but firm in my position the whole time. I can't say he treated me with disrespect, but he did not have to go out of his way to not cover me.

I have had U-joints on both my trucks replaced at Berger in the last 6 months. This came out of my own pocket. When I bring something in that should be covered I expect it to be.

I have added my E-mail to my profile.

[J_D]

[ QUOTE ]
J_D - I tried going higher but no one returned my calls. I do not know how to get ahold of Matt. I have met Matt (I am sure he would not remember me) and he seems like a good guy. I posted on this board hoping he or someone from Berger may become aware and help me out. If this happens Berger will still be my dealer of choice to deal with. I do not hold a grudge. I have the option of cancelling the rest of my extended warranty and this will cover the cost of replacing it, which I may do. Maybe this post will turn him off from helping me, but I was unable to get ahold of him any other way to this point.

[/ QUOTE ]

Jim...........first, thanks for updating your profile. I know the moderators of this forum will appreciate it as will other members.

Whether Matt remembers you or not is irrelevant. While he is too busy to deal with every little problem his business encounters, you are part of a special club. You own a Berger SS. I am sure that he would care that you don't feel you were "taken care of" properly. Matter-of-fact, I am sure he would care regardless of what kind of car you owned. Good customers are something that anyone in business can't afford to loose.

Let me suggest this, try contacting Dic Jacques there at the dealership. While his position there is that of a salesman, I know that he has Matt's ear. Call Dick and say, "Dick, my name is Jim. I have a Berger SS and I recently had my car there for repair and had a problem with your service department. Could you possibly help me?" and see where it goes. I am willing to bet that Dick will get the ball moving for you regardless whether he knows you or not. You are one of their customers and an important asset.

I learned along time ago that you catch more flys with sugar than you do with salt. Approach Dick in a kind and thoughtful way, not a demanding "I'm irrate and I'm going to tell everyone" manner.

Dick can be reached at the dealership (616-949-5200) or on his cell phone at (616-293-1850)

Good luck and let us know what happens. http://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Charley Lillard]

I am forwarding this thread to Berger. They are great folks. Sounds like a screwup that I'm sure happens in every business.

[sYc]

[ QUOTE ]
I am forwarding this thread to Berger. They are great folks. Sounds like a screwup that I'm sure happens in every business.

[/ QUOTE ]

I have no doubt that once the right folks at Berger Chevrolet are made aware of the problem, it will be dealt with in a very prompt and professional way. http://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/flag.gif

[J_D]

Charley and Tom.........I phoned Dick Jacques yesterday morning (08/30/05) and told him about this. He was going to pull up the thread and read it and then go talk to Matt Berger.

Dick said he remembered seeing a Berger SS in the service department the day before yesterday.

Hopefully.........this was handled yesterday afternoon. http://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Seattle Sam]

So....is there a satisfied customer out there now?

Jim, did you get taken care of by Berger?

[SMGCO]

Again, my dealings with Berger Chevrolet and Dick Jacques et al were excellent. A real breath of fresh air with all the lack of responsibility, lack of respect and poor follow up we encounter now a days.

[Chevy454]

Ain't that the truth...I'm guessing this got resolved, or we'd have heard more!

[elcamino]

I once bought a GM Extended warranty and got screwed on a repair also. I had a 3 yo Olds with 40g miles and had a fuel leak. Took it and they called said my tank was leaking and I needed a new one. But not to worry, you have the GMPP and it will be covered and I looked, sure enough it said entire fuel system. Order tank and they fix it. I go to pick up the car, the service manager says he has to call for authorization and I wait while he calls GMPP, had $100 deduct. I hear them talking (speaker phone) and she asked what was the exact problem with the tank. He says, rusted from inside out at seam, small pin hole. Claim denied, rust not covered. End of story, the service manager screwed me, I now owed them $400. Never again the GMPP, never bought another Olds or a vehicle from that dealer again and I had bough many dating back to my 1970 LS5.

I later found out I could have had a aftermarket tank installed for just about $150.

[Chevy454]

I went down the EXACT same road on the very first car my wife and I purchased right after we married...lesson learned on that one...

[berger21]

I never did get satisfaction from GMPP out of the deal. I think Berger did everything they could, but GMPP was not good to work with at all. They could not agree why it wasn't covered because nothing specifically mentioned this item (wich is why I thought it should have been covered). It was thrown into 4 differnet catagories at different times because no one was sure where it fit. I do have to thank Tom McCaffrey at Berger as he really tried to help me. I will NEVER buy an extended warranty again. I cancelled the remainder of my warranty and got more than enought to cover the replacement part.