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I don’t want to start something if it is not there but I’ve been with the scheme for 8 years and mid contract dealer visits I’ve never had the best experience, on one occasion being blamed for a fault that occured with the car! me saying it is a common issue (Looking at forums relating to said car) and them saying I caused it with a lack of looking after the car and today making enquiries for a new car as mine is up to be told the wait time is only 19 weeks but we actually have your car in stock.. Oh brilliant I’m thinking then I state I’m a Motability customer, so now I need to speak with the person who deals with that side, so I’m put through and now the wait time in 26 weeks plus and there is also no car in stock ready to go!!
Is it just me ??
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I’ve had cars with other manufacturers. Never had a problem. Been absolutely excellent, truth be told. Only been treated like second class citizen by Toyota.
@Mick03, that is totally unacceptable from a dealership, find another Toyota dealer and take your business there hopefully it is a one off.
that is totally unacceptable from a dealership
Yes indeed, name and shame!
"Come on BYD Seal!"I’ll give the Motability dude a day or two to see if he does indeed phone back like his colleague said he would. If no communication, then I can only assume they don’t want Motability customers. In which case, yes I’ll name and shame. Save anyone else the humiliation of turning up and feeling like an inconvenience. What makes things worse, I had flared recently so was in severe pain but wanted to make the appointment. The effort to get there…. they just don’t understand.
I would say your experience although unacceptable imo and experience could be classed as being quite mild.
When you ring a dealer always ask to speak directly with the dedicated motorbility advisor and if not available ask that they contact you back asap
Dealing with the same person can deliver better results imo
I have only had 1 dealer out of 5 that I would consider as being any good
Seat being the v worse
Problems encountered inc ( to many to list)
Sales/ poor knowledge/Attitude from all/service rubbish/car handover dire and so on
My faith was restored with my first Renault lease
(Over many yrs I have always hated the look of Renault cars that all changed when the Megan E Tec was born)
Renault
Smartness/smell of showroom,immaculate attire worn by all/unhurried,unflustered/many @/call keeping me updated,nothing to much trouble
I was given a delivery time frame and just after through a forum I knew that 34 of my model/colour were on route to the UK
I rang my dealer ( Spoke directly to my dedicated motorbility advisor) updated them and asked if they could grab 1 of the 34 for me
Next day a call to say they managed to secure 1 for me.
I could not have had a better experience from start to finish
Never in past…:but this time communication has been non existent…waited all week till Thursday for email or call finally I called …. In response to my query would get back to me …. Nothing again…..seriously thinking of cancellation of car…..it a 2 minutes to email
In my experience 100% we get treated differently.
Wanted to test drive a Skoda a few months ago and didn’t receive a single call back after leaving my details 3 times and being promised a call.
Over the last 2 weeks I’ve contacted Cupra via the online form and left details by phone twice and no call back. Then decided not to mention I was a motability customer and just like that within 24 hours I have a test drive set up for next week.
Doubt it’s a coincidence.
In my experience 100% we get treated differently. Wanted to test drive a Skoda a few months ago and didn’t receive a single call back after leaving my details 3 times and being promised a call. Over the last 2 weeks I’ve contacted Cupra via the online form and left details by phone twice and no call back. Then decided not to mention I was a motability customer and just like that within 24 hours I have a test drive set up for next week. Doubt it’s a coincidence.
I could not disagree more. our experience has been excellent, VW, Vauxhall and Audi. In the case of Audi both cars we have had from two different dealerships were wrapped on the day of collection and we were treated like royalty, even given an Audi baseball hat.
Chris at Platinum Hyundai in Trowbridge (Wiltshire) is brilliant, I’ve had two Motability cars through him and he’s been 100% on the ball and courteous.
Recent cars: Hyundai Kona Ultimate EV; Volkswagen Caddy Maxi wheelchair accessible; Skoda Enyaq iV SportLine; Vauxhall Mokka-E; Kia Soul EV, Hyundai Kona (again)
There are generally not ‘bad’ brands when it comes to Motability, but bad individual dealerships. In fact, it’s less about bad individual dealerships, but bad individual sales persons.
There are ways that Motability customers can help themselves though. Whether you are a Motability customer, company car driver or private retail buyer, you will never be taken as seriously over the phone as you will be in person. Always visit a dealership in person for the best attention.
Secondly, there is no need to volunteer the information up front that you are a Motability customer, nor do you have to deal with the designated Motability sales person from the moment you walk in. I learnt this trick during the many years (pre Motability) that I was a company car driver. Salespersons would ask the minute that I walked in if I was a private or lease customer. If I said the latter they immediately lost interest, so I used to say “well I’m entitled to a company car or a cash alternative, so might consider buying privately”. That always threw them and, to be on the safe side, they treated me like a private buyer, so were helpful and offered decent test drives etc.
I now do exactly the same as a Motabilty customer. If they ask, I say that we are able to order a Motability car but are also considering leaving the scheme and buying privately. In reality, that’s true, but doesn’t have to be. It works though. Our last two Motability cars were from BMW and Hyundai. Both dealerships were brilliant. Multiple 24 hour test drives and superb service from the first visit to collection. Basically, you have to know how to play the game, but phoning dealerships is rarely going to get this level of service.
In fairness to BMW and Hyundai, in both cases they knew from the start that we were looking at a Motability car and we still got an exceptionally high level of service, but I had bought private cars from both dealerships previously, which might have made a difference.
I have recently taken the plunge and ordered an electric car but i live in a housing association house so had to seek permission to have the electric charger installed at my property, (no home charger no electric car it’s not worth the hassle if you can’t charge at home as this is where the big saving is).
I saw a deal in December from a dealership which offered half price advance payment up until the 31st December the dealership was 4 hours drive but the £1250 saving made it worth while, Me and the wife booked a premier inn to break the journey we attended the dealership the next morning to order the car and i wanted to add the advance pack at £2035 to the car which needed to be paid but as i had not heard from my HA to see if i was allowed to have the home charger fitted the dealer said we have a window to add and pay for the pack before it goes into production then its too late, so ordered the car and made our way home.
I heard back from my HA on the 04/01/25 and was delighted to learn we can have the charger fitted to our home.
So i sent an email to the dealer on the same day 4/01/25 to inform him it’s been approved for my home charger and how much longer has the car got before going into production so that i can pay and have the pack added? I heard nothing back and just presumed he was maybe on holiday or just busy.
I then received an email from the dealer on the 10/01/25 saying that the car has gone into production and i can no longer add the pack (which i need) He then said have you not heard back from your HA?
I rang the dealer and spoke to him saying i had sent an email on the 4th Jan to inform him i need to make payment for the pack to which he said he hadn’t received any email, then replied oh its in my junk folder?
He then said leave it with him and see what he can do, A week past and i received a call on Friday morning at 10am on the 17th Jan to say that he had sourced a vehicle with the required pack but the car was in a different colour to what i had chosen, i was happy with that colour, and he said again leave it with him he will sort out all the paperwork and ring me back with the details rather than staying on the phone, i waited all day that Friday expecting the call to say its all in order but it never came.
The following week I have been busy with appointments and having the charger fitted to the house among other things and hadn’t heard from him all week so i decided to ring around midday on Friday the 24th to be told he was dealing with a customer can he call you back? It never came. So i still do not know if i have a car on order or not??
How do people feel i have been dealt with by this dealership/dealer ?? Am i going to have to pay the new Advance payment which is £2799 instead of £1250 ?? This is the first time i have experienced anything like this having been on the scheme for 18 years so not sure what to do next.
As I mentioned (much) earlier in this thread our local VW dealer is truly appalling. I’ve been completely ignored on at least 3 visits, proably because I tend to wear jogging bottoms and a fleece hoodie for comfort! At just a bit under 6’6″ I’m hard to miss, add my 6’3″ son and we do really stand out!
My last visit was when I was looking at the Tiguan R-Line in Feb 2020, nobody interested at all, I talked to a couple who were also waiting to speak to the Motability chap, said they’d been there a while then gave up and walked out. I managed to catch him when he walked straight past me to refill his coffee, I asked about delivery dates and the £600 off that JCT600 were offering at the time and he just said no and walked off, no discussion, no delivery info or anything else, just no. No interest at all in making a sale.
Went to SG Petch and ordered a Seat Ateca, very friendly and very good afterwards. The VW dealer also has a Skoda franchise, this (in the past) had been very good with my, bought a second hand Yeti then a year later got a great lease deal on a new one. With the current Enyaq ordering was pretty hit and miss, they refused to give me the reduced price for the Velvet Red paint, which many users have had it at, insisting it was the full price (over £1000) not the difference between it and metallic.
Following collection I went back about the Canton sound system, initially the sales manager said yes, his Octavia sounds a lot better than that, so booked it and on collection got told there’s nothing wrong with it. After that I’m in no hurry to use them again, had to have the 12v battery replaced in December and the service team were pretty good, they wouldn’t do collect/return as they used to do with the Yeti but they did give me an Enyaq 80iV as a loan car so at least I could get in!.
Please excuse spelling/typos. Apart from being a clot it turns out I had one on my cerebellum that's now causing various problems!
@eckst3 Well done for getting your home charger sorted. As you say, it’s pointless getting an EV if you can’t charge at home, as 100% public charging will end up costing you more than running an ICE car and you will have a load of added hassle that would make you yearn for a 5 minute petrol stop!
Sorry to hear about your problems with the order. As per my previous post, this is sadly yet another example of why it’s always best to deal in person at each stage rather than over the phone or via email. Dealers are far less likely to palm people off or lie to them if you are stood in front of them. I appreciate that you were 4 hours from the dealership, but a few pointers for next time;
When a dealership chain offers a discount off the AP, it is always worth checking if your nearest dealership will match it. Again, don’t ask over the phone or via email, as they won’t take you seriously and will almost always say no, but visit them. Look at the car, express an interest and then finally deliver the line that another dealership is offering £x off and it’s obviously worth you travelling to get that discount. I have managed to get 2 different dealerships from 2 different manufacturers to match offers by adopting that approach. Neither was offering AP discounts at the time and were completely different groups to those that were. One wouldn’t quite match the discount but also offered me 15% off the options, which more than made up for it. In your case, where a long journey and hotel stay was needed, a lesser discount (and discount off your option pack) could have still made it worth your while ordering locally. You may, of course, have tried all of this, in which case I apologise, but it may serve as a useful tip for others.
The second point is that it is wise not to agree to paying any money up front, even for optional extras. I have added lots of options to Motability cars over the years and not paid for them until the day I take delivery. Dealerships are quite at liberty to ask you to pay up front but many don’t so, again, challenge it or shop around.
To answer your final question, you will pay the AP that applied at the point that you ordered the car, as long as the dealership actually ordered it at that time. Some people get unstuck by trusting that the dealership placed the order immediately, when many don’t. Always check your online Motability account for confirmation of your order and AP. Bizarrely, the Motability system showing that your car has been ordered does NOT actually mean that the car HAS been ordered, just that Motability Operations have agreed to the dealership ordering it at an agreed AP, which is shown. The actual order is between the dealership and manufacturer and you need to ask the dealership for a manufacturer order tracking number to ensure that the car has actually been ordered. Dealerships often ‘sit’ on orders for several months as they don’t have available build slots, yet people trust that the car has been ordered as it shows as such on the Motability system. It’s all very confusing!
Finally, if all else fails and you arrive to pick up the car and it’s not exactly what you were expecting (colour, specification, options etc), you can refuse to enter your PIN and walk away with no obligation. You have not entered into a legally binding contract until you enter the PIN and, even then, the contract is between you and Motability Operations. At no stage do you enter into a legally binding contract with a dealership so they have to refund you any money that you have paid to them, but some make it very difficult, hence why it’s best not to pay anything until the day you take delivery. Hope that helps.
I think it’s down to the dealership. We’ve used the same dealership for our last 4 cars, got to know the Motability guy quite well. He always returns calls and always gets us a nice pod coffee and biscuit. When we wanted a test drive in the Enyaq, I gave my license, he completed and online form, threw a set of keys at me and said take it for an hour.
As I mentioned (much) earlier in this thread our local VW dealer is truly appalling. I’ve been completely ignored on at least 3 visits, proably because I tend to wear jogging bottoms and a fleece hoodie for comfort! At just a bit under 6’6″ I’m hard to miss, add my 6’3″ son and we do really stand out! My last visit was when I was looking at the Tiguan R-Line in Feb 2020, nobody interested at all, I talked to a couple who were also waiting to speak to the Motability chap, said they’d been there a while then gave up and walked out. I managed to catch him when he walked straight past me to refill his coffee, I asked about delivery dates and the £600 off that JCT600 were offering at the time and he just said no and walked off, no discussion, no delivery info or anything else, just no. No interest at all in making a sale. Went to SG Petch and ordered a Seat Ateca, very friendly and very good afterwards. The VW dealer also has a Skoda franchise, this (in the past) had been very good with my, bought a second hand Yeti then a year later got a great lease deal on a new one. With the current Enyaq ordering was pretty hit and miss, they refused to give me the reduced price for the Velvet Red paint, which many users have had it at, insisting it was the full price (over £1000) not the difference between it and metallic. Following collection I went back about the Canton sound system, initially the sales manager said yes, his Octavia sounds a lot better than that, so booked it and on collection got told there’s nothing wrong with it. After that I’m in no hurry to use them again, had to have the 12v battery replaced in December and the service team were pretty good, they wouldn’t do collect/return as they used to do with the Yeti but they did give me an Enyaq 80iV as a loan car so at least I could get in!.
You think your VW dealer is bad our Stafford dealer would not even let us look or test drive told us to look inside one of the old sold customers car. Rude.
The Skoda dealer struggled to speak to us let alone view a car.
Toyota and Suzuki could not do enough, we had a Suzuki.
Unfortunately I have suffered a brain injury and occasionally I get confused and often say the wrong thing.
@Jojoe – Quite right, the Ford Motability lady is brilliant, just a shame the newer Kuga FHEV wasn’t available when she ordered it for me, was supposed to be an MY24 but all it had was a mild facelift with the same problematic info system so went for the Enyaq instead.
@Oscarmax – Glad I don’t have your VW dealer! mine was bad enough! Audi and previously Skoda were very good, Seat/Mazda frachise likewise.I think the worst for me was Lookers VW in Newcastle, after my Yeti got wrote off the Tiguan I’d ordered from JCT600 was nowhere to be seen (due to Covid delays) so I looked around and Lookers assured me there was one on the way over they had available. So, cancelled the JCT order (and lost the £600 discount) and placed the order with Lookers, 2 days later he rang me and said sorry, we didn’t have one after all!.
At that point I had no car (hire car had gone back) and I had to find something very quickly, luckily the Seat dealer had an Ateca, but, not the diesel I wanted as they’d been removed from the scheme in the Q3 update, so I ended up with a 1.5TSI petrol for the next 3 years.
Please excuse spelling/typos. Apart from being a clot it turns out I had one on my cerebellum that's now causing various problems!
Gloss Guy, Thank you for your knowledge and informative feedback, I will take this on board for future ordering, Not sure if my dealer reads this forum hahaha but I had a phone call a couple of hours after posting my listing from him and he confirmed to me that the car was on order and delivery should take place sometime in march, he also said not to worry atm about any payments for the added pack or advance payment until a couple of days before collection. I feel like a right plonker now. But as the saying goes, communication is key.
Gloss Guy, Thank you for your knowledge and informative feedback, I will take this on board for future ordering, Not sure if my dealer reads this forum hahaha but I had a phone call a couple of hours after posting my listing from him and he confirmed to me that the car was on order and delivery should take place sometime in march, he also said not to worry atm about any payments for the added pack or advance payment until a couple of days before collection. I feel like a right plonker now. But as the saying goes, communication is key.
Delighted to hear it’s all sorted for you. Never feel bad about asking. We are (mostly) a friendly community here and always happy to help through what, at times, can feel like a minefield!
I have just had a great experience with our local Skoda dealer.
Said it would be 4-5 months if I wanted a special colour but he had 5 on his list that were in Europe waiting for a ship and would be here within 2 weeks. So I picked one and because it took four weeks they knocked £1,000 off the AP
Well chuffed with my Kodiaq Phev and the service from Telfords Skoda Carlisle.
It’s definitely the dealership and the individual Motability adviser rather than the brand.
Today my daughter picked up her Motability Peugeot 208 from Bristol Street Motors in Northampton and the advisor was excellent – yet Peugeot in Leicester is the only dealership where my wife was made to feel unwelcome (albeit a few years ago).
We’ve always been very impressed with our local Toyota dealer (Vertu Leicester) but we’ve always dealt with the same salesman.
I wonder how much of the discrepancies described here are down to (a) training by Motability or (b) salespeople just being demotivated in their jobs?
Edit: Maybe another point regarding how dealers view their customers is whether they keep their disabled spaces clear for disabled drivers rather than loan or staff cars – this was an issue with 3 of the 4 dealerships we visited today with only Hyundai passing the test!
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