Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/10/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

   I am rejecting this response because: My car is not fixed, it is actually in worse shape then before I brought it to them. Newell's, never responded to the pictures of their employees in the process of causing my electrical problems that made my car need the modules. Newell's did not respond to the damages that were caused by their employees which I attached another picture of the drill in my leather seat. I have pictures of over spray as well. There is a gouge mark above my glove box. Besides the damages on the inside and outside, I now have the 2 doors that no longer lock. I attacked pictures of my Jaguar app that is linked to my system which clearly shows there are problems with my doors because that happens when I try to lock my car doors. It clearly says that my doors are still unlocked. I had to take my car to another car shop because of all the problems I have been having since bring my car to Newell's. A ******* ********* Liaison met me at that particular shop to help assess how much damage was done my Newell's and assess all the work that was poorly done. I tried to explain to Manager ***, what my jaguar app was saying and his words was well I don't have that app to look at it so I tried to show ***, my app after my complaints about my doors not locking but he just stood there shrugging his shoulders. The entire conversation I had with *** was him saying it is not his problem and how much he is not responsible for the damages and refused to also look at the pictures of his employees with the drill in my seat. *** said they will not be fixing anything so of course I do not accept the response. My Agent had to get involved because of the lack of communication and when they did communicate it was mainly untruthful. There was too many change of picking up my car dates, I stand by my first complaint which the only thing that has changed is that I got my car back but with poorly done work and more damages.
  
  
  
  y car just sitting there, I received a text and call telling me my Jaguar will not be finished until September 7, 2023 and even though they're late with the repairs, they're not going to supply me with a rental. I was also informed that my car was just now being painted even though it's been disassembled since my appointment date on August 14, 2023. On September 7, 2023 I got another text now saying it will be finished September 8, 2023. On September 8, 2023, Newell's told my Insurance Agent, after my complaints, that only the trimming needed to be put on but I received a call from Newell's telling me my doors are still off. I have threatened to sue them after finding out all the lies Newell's told was because I now have electrical problems with my 2 passenger side windows. If Newell's can't fix my car, they should get someone who can fix it instead of causing more damage. My Insurance Agent had to get involved as well. As of September 10, 2023, I'm still without my car and no ETA.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/22/2023

  The vehicle was dropped off for repair on its scheduled date
  of 8/14/23.  The vehicle then went
  through the disassembly phase during which we created a repair plan, an
  estimated completion date, ordered parts, and uploaded the information to the insurance
  company for review and approval.  We do
  not pre-order parts for many important reasons; in this circumstance the most
  important reason being that our Jaguar supplier does not allow parts to be returned.  We are not able to take the risk of ordering
  a non-returnable headlight that costs over $4,000, as well other very expensive
  non-returnable parts, until the vehicle is in process.  This practice is common in the collision
  repair industry as the space, parts carts, staff, and funds needed for that
  level of inventory would be prohibitive. 
  When we checked on parts availability two weeks before the vehicle’s
  arrival, the parts were estimated to be 3 days out, at the point of order they
  were estimated to be 4-5 days out.

  On the morning of 8/15/23, the customer’s agent called and
  we discussed this process, as well as the estimated completion date, and her
  lack of rental coverage. We are not able to supply vehicles to make up for customers’
  lack of rental coverage.  This would be a
  tremendous expense.  When a customer does
  not have rental coverage, that is something that should be discussed and
  reconciled between the policy-issuing agent and the policy holder.  The agent then asked if we could put the
  customer’s car back together until the parts are in.  I told him that was not possible as it was
  only a few days before parts would arrive, the insurance adjuster would not
  authorize time for an additional reassembly and disassembly, and driving the
  vehicle in that state could also be a safety issue.

  Vehicles go through many phases and departments during the repair
  process.  The amount of time spent in
  each phase depends largely on the size and type of repair, the response time of
  insurance, parts procurement, and the type of vehicle.  This vehicle was checked in, pre-washed,
  pre-scanned, disassembled, waited for authorization from the insurance company,
  waited for parts, went through the body repair department, paint prep,
  paint/refinish, reassembly, post-scan/calibration, quality control, cleanup,
  and file auditing.  On 9/8/23, During the
  reassembly phase we diagnosed an issue, the vehicle was scanned, and it needed
  a door module.  Since this last minute
  part was to extend the estimated completion date and we understood her issue
  with alternate transportation, we did offer to put the customer in a rental as
  a courtesy.  During the diagnosis of the
  issue, the customer arrived to our facility to see the vehicle.  Since it was still in reassembly, she was not
  inspecting a complete vehicle.  We made
  her aware of this, and we did not try to return her vehicle to her without the
  module.  After the customer left, we got
  a call from her agent saying that she did decide to utilize the courtesy rental.  That was arranged with a local rental company.  The module arrived on the afternoon of
  9/14/23, and the vehicle was completed on 9/15/23. 

  We have documentation of the arrival of the part, the rental
  vehicle usage, photos of the vehicle before, during, and after repair, photos
  of unrelated prior damage, signed authorization form, conversations we had with
  the customer and her insurance agent, as well as insurance submissions and
  approvals, and other pertinent information relating to the repair.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/27/2023

  I wanted to add this picture to prove that my vehicle is not secure after Newell's removed my doors. I rejected Newell's response since my car is not fixed and the last picture I sent with my initial rejected response, was a picture of my hood because it no longer lines up. What I want from this complaint is for my car to return back to working condition, my hood lined back up and I want the damages that occurred while in the care of Newell's fixed as well. The tint on my front passenger window was also scratched. Everywhere Newell's employees were working, now has some kind of damage or malfunction. This business should be ashamed of the workmanship they displayed but after talking to Manager *** with his unprofessional attitude, I'm positive that they are happy with the horrific service that was provide by them.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/03/2023

  As previously mentioned, the issue with the module was
  discovered during reassembly.  This issue
  was not caused by the repair; it was discovered late in the repair stage.  The technicians working on the vehicle during
  the customer’s walk around were in the process of diagnosing that issue.  That is what is shown in the picture.  The scan technician had his system hooked up
  to the vehicle to execute that scan/diagnosis.  
  The seat was not missing leather, it could have used a thorough
  cleaning, but it was not damaged during the repair.  We apologize that we did not give the seat more
  attention during the cleanup process.  We
  did not pry or have any procedures that would have called for prying on the
  dash/glove box.   The door appliqué in
  question was never in the paint booth, and neither was the bumper.  That is shown in the attached pictures.  1 shows the door curing without the appliqué,
  and the other shows the car covered/masked and the bumper (which the customer
  was showing the top part as “overspray on the hood”) was not on the vehicle
  when it was sprayed.  All of the appliqués
  on the vehicle show wear/discoloration, shown in the attached photos.  If the appliqué required additional cleaning,
  we would have been more than happy to do that prior to the unfounded
  accusations that were taking place when the customer came to pick up the
  vehicle.  She accused us of using paint
  thinner all over her appliqués and dash. 
  That is not something we would ever use in that manner. 

  As previously explained, all estimated completion dates are
  estimates only.  When a completion date
  changes, it does not imply that anyone is lying or being deceptive.  It only means that the vehicle will not be
  done on that estimated date, and a new estimated date is then supplied to the
  customer.  Completion dates change all
  the time, sometimes vehicles are done sooner than originally estimated and
  sometimes they take longer than originally expected.  These dates are given when the vehicle has
  been fully blueprinted so that more information is available when creating that
  estimated completion date.  We understand
  that in a perfect world, we would be able to tell customers an exact date that
  would never change before they even schedule their repair, but that is simply
  not possible.  We are sorry for the
  inconvenience that may cause, and we try to educate our customers on the
  importance of rental coverage for that reason.

  We understood that the discovery of the module issue
  extended the date for the customer, and that if we had caught it earlier the
  vehicle would have been done sooner.  Therefore,
  we offered to provide her with a rental vehicle for that inconvenience.  If there is a problem with the calibration
  between the app and the vehicle, that would be best addressed by a dealer and
  submitted to insurance at this point. 
  The way the customer treated our staff from the very beginning was accusatory,
  aggressive, and disrespectful.  When
  talking over an issue, our staff was not able to get a word in to try to
  explain or work with her on anything.  
  We understand that most people don’t understand the details of various
  processes in auto body repair, so we attempted to explain them many times
  including a long detailed conversation with her agent in the beginning of the
  repair.  Customer was unwilling to listen
  or try to understand the complexities that can create a lengthy repair.  The expectation of having a vehicle fixed in
  a few days only exists on very small repairs under very specific
  circumstances.  When the manager went
  over the vehicle with the customer, he had already reviewed the photos, scans,
  and conversations with the agent and staff. 
  He was not willing to subject the staff to the customer’s yelling and
  hostility going forward.  As previously
  mentioned, if there is further calibration needed to reconcile the app, that
  could be easily coordinated with the dealer and insurance company.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/04/2023

   I am rejecting this response because: My car is not fixed and my Key fob is not connecting to my car as well. My doors are not responding therefore the two doors that were supposed to be fixed by Newell's no longer lock. *** treated me very poorly in front of my 8yr old daughter. I asked ***, did he treat his non black customers as badly as I was treated. I had to give my 8yr daughter a early lesson about racism which was very hurtful. I did not want to make all of this about racism but the continued excuses needs to stop. As for my behavior, being constantly lied to for 34 days would upset anyone and the only thing I threatened was a lawsuit which made them angry. I have the right to say if you can not fix it, just get someone else to do it. The pictures I uploaded in the beginning has actual Newell's employees in the photo with the drill. The fact that Newell's has taken more time typing out excuses other than actually apologizing and fixing their mistakes, that means this is definitely no longer a reputable company since **** is not running it anymore. My insurance agent said he is willing to back me up on my claims against newell's.
  
  
  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/04/2023

  I was just informed the ******* *********, was charged a programming fee that was not carried out by Newell's. Newell's took on the job for the programming of my doors and key fob so it was not the responsibility of the dealership. If they could not complete this task, the check should not have been cashed so a new check could have been issued for the lesser amount and another check would have been issued for the work from the dealership.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/05/2023

  besides the negligent employee with the drill in my seat in the picture, there is clearly a picture of the tech guy with his lap top, connected to my system they say they do not do., Newell's just can not be truthful. If he is not supposed to be in my system, he should not have been in it causing the damages to my system that I have been claiming.