Discussion
I paid a £3k deposit at the begining of January for a new 997. 2 days before collection, last week, they phone to say it's now £2k more. But hold on a minute surely you are bound by the price listed on your Order Form. You know your Order Form, the one that you drafted with all the conditions on the back, the one you filled out listing the price, accessories etc. Sorry we can't shift our position it's £2k more.
I'm informed by the legal profession that they haven't got a foot to stand on. The question is- is it worth the hastle. It leaves a bitter taste and has marred my introduction to Porsche. I'm now thinking is this a sign of things to come from Porsche? I find it particularly irritating in view of their commitment and pledges here:
http://content3.eu.porsche.com/prod/company/philosophy.nsf/gbrenglish/whowearecustomers
Having read the other thread about the apparent unfriendliness of some Porsche owners compared to TVR owners (sold my TVR last year) I hope things only get better.
I'm informed by the legal profession that they haven't got a foot to stand on. The question is- is it worth the hastle. It leaves a bitter taste and has marred my introduction to Porsche. I'm now thinking is this a sign of things to come from Porsche? I find it particularly irritating in view of their commitment and pledges here:
http://content3.eu.porsche.com/prod/company/philosophy.nsf/gbrenglish/whowearecustomers
Having read the other thread about the apparent unfriendliness of some Porsche owners compared to TVR owners (sold my TVR last year) I hope things only get better.
Yes it was a mistake. Just spoken to the MD and he is prepared to go halves on the difference. I'm not an unreasonable person! (most of the time anyway). He recognised that they made other errors on the Order Form which clearly wicked him off.
So the moral to the story - make sure you know what you are signing. I typically never read the small print nor pay much attention to such matters. The next time I spend close on £70k, hopefully I will.
So the moral to the story - make sure you know what you are signing. I typically never read the small print nor pay much attention to such matters. The next time I spend close on £70k, hopefully I will.
C310 said:
Yes it was a mistake. Just spoken to the MD and he is prepared to go halves on the difference. I'm not an unreasonable person! (most of the time anyway). He recognised that they made other errors on the Order Form which clearly wicked him off.
Surely if you've signed the bottom of the order form on which it states the full price, it's that price you will be required to pay. A Contract has been offered and accepted on the understanding you've paid your deposit.
Yes, I understand that they've made an error but it's tough luck for the MD and the salesman should look to make up the loss else where on any future deals.
IMHO I'd stick to my guns.
>> Edited by AC79xxx on Tuesday 22 March 10:27
This is unfortunate, but I'm sure porsche have a clause which means they can withdraw from the sale and return your deposit at any time - so if you want the car you're going to have to pay the extra £1K. Think positively in that although it was unexpected, you're the only person in the UK to get a discount from an OPC!!!!
Any Porsche drivers are not less friendly than TVR drivers - there's just a LOT more of them, you just have to find the true enthusiasts - join the PCGB, go to meets etc etc....there are a lot of VERY friendly porsche drivers out there.
Any Porsche drivers are not less friendly than TVR drivers - there's just a LOT more of them, you just have to find the true enthusiasts - join the PCGB, go to meets etc etc....there are a lot of VERY friendly porsche drivers out there.
I would never want to openly defend the OPC network but I think it depends on exactly what mistake has been made. If all the items are on there but there is a simple error in adding things up properly then you ought to pay the propper price. Similarly if you know the car was ordered with special cheetah print seats and dash top but they forgot to include it`s price on the bill then it`s going to be down to you.
Where they would struggle is if they listed the car at a price but forgot to include something like an "on the road pack" charge which included delivery to dealer, washing, pre-delivery service, etc, etc then they would struggle as you had no way of knowing you were going to be charged for that.
Basically if you knew damn well they had made an error but were hoping to get away with it then tough luck. If you genuinely thought the cost of the car included "standard" items then you`ve got a better argument.
There is a lot of confusion but just because a young lad with a pricing gun wacks £19.95 instead of £1,995.00 the shop doesn`t have to sell you a cheap plasma telly !
Henry
Henry
Where they would struggle is if they listed the car at a price but forgot to include something like an "on the road pack" charge which included delivery to dealer, washing, pre-delivery service, etc, etc then they would struggle as you had no way of knowing you were going to be charged for that.
Basically if you knew damn well they had made an error but were hoping to get away with it then tough luck. If you genuinely thought the cost of the car included "standard" items then you`ve got a better argument.
There is a lot of confusion but just because a young lad with a pricing gun wacks £19.95 instead of £1,995.00 the shop doesn`t have to sell you a cheap plasma telly !
Henry
Henry
Greig, They can pull out of the deal but have to make up the difference in price when you buy elsewhere. Don't ask me to quote the legislation. However, it's slightly academic because you go back on the waiting list.
Henry, The mistake was entirely of their own doing. The system for pricing new 997s is different from last year. Their confusion (the sales chap said the new system was very confusing) arose on the leather which is standard in the UK but still needs listing. This was omitted from the Order and is best part of £2k. The sales chap also forgot to include the tinted windscreen, again another UK standard fit. Actually this seemed to infurriate the MD as much as anything. Incompetence came to mind. The date on the Order Form was incorrect. So it was lack of attention to detail. I knew nothing of the problem until a couple of days before collection. Anyway it's now resolved. The MD was very apologetic and agreed to throw a few things in as a gesture of goodwill.
I dug my heels in because one doesn't expect to pay that kind of money and be dealt with in such a shoddy manner. Had they (the sales people) notified me of the problem at the outset and not tried to wriggle out I might not have been so willing to pursue matters. £2k is still a lot of money whichever way you look at it.
Henry, The mistake was entirely of their own doing. The system for pricing new 997s is different from last year. Their confusion (the sales chap said the new system was very confusing) arose on the leather which is standard in the UK but still needs listing. This was omitted from the Order and is best part of £2k. The sales chap also forgot to include the tinted windscreen, again another UK standard fit. Actually this seemed to infurriate the MD as much as anything. Incompetence came to mind. The date on the Order Form was incorrect. So it was lack of attention to detail. I knew nothing of the problem until a couple of days before collection. Anyway it's now resolved. The MD was very apologetic and agreed to throw a few things in as a gesture of goodwill.
I dug my heels in because one doesn't expect to pay that kind of money and be dealt with in such a shoddy manner. Had they (the sales people) notified me of the problem at the outset and not tried to wriggle out I might not have been so willing to pursue matters. £2k is still a lot of money whichever way you look at it.
Obviously you`ve both sorted things out and well done for that, it is a very difficult situation although the pricing error does seem to be along the lines of "things that you knew were std on UK spec cars and thus assumed were included in the price".
I could have sworn I heard someone from a big office in Reading bleating on about the reason UK cars were more expensive was because you got a load of gear (leather and top tinted windscreen), included in the price !!
If it`s any consolation I think it`s all to do with a thing called customer experience. It starts with the ergonomics of the building, choice of materials, spatial relationship between the customer and the product, lifestyle compatability and ends with information interface. They just missed out buying a car from the middle !
Henry
I could have sworn I heard someone from a big office in Reading bleating on about the reason UK cars were more expensive was because you got a load of gear (leather and top tinted windscreen), included in the price !!
If it`s any consolation I think it`s all to do with a thing called customer experience. It starts with the ergonomics of the building, choice of materials, spatial relationship between the customer and the product, lifestyle compatability and ends with information interface. They just missed out buying a car from the middle !
Henry
Henry, Un/fortunately I never got the hands on customer experience. It was all done on the telephone (actually by my 17 year old son). I suppose if I had studied matters long enough I might have picked up that they had made a mistake but I can't help thinking there's more to life! I assumed (wrongly) that they would take care of the pricing and the detail.
What I objected to was being presented with another £2k at the 11th hour. "Your car is ready for collection Sir, day after tomorrow and the price is ...." No mention of any increase. Then when I question the increase I'm told that leather is standard and you have to pay for it. No problem there but why wasn't I told about it initially? Why are you putting your hand in my pocket and searching for some more money? Hang about a minute this is your mistake not mine.......... Eventually they came clean and admitted it was their fault. All very good but the customer relationship has just turned sour. So what are you going to do about your mistake? Nothing was the reply. Splitting the difference was fine with me.
What I objected to was being presented with another £2k at the 11th hour. "Your car is ready for collection Sir, day after tomorrow and the price is ...." No mention of any increase. Then when I question the increase I'm told that leather is standard and you have to pay for it. No problem there but why wasn't I told about it initially? Why are you putting your hand in my pocket and searching for some more money? Hang about a minute this is your mistake not mine.......... Eventually they came clean and admitted it was their fault. All very good but the customer relationship has just turned sour. So what are you going to do about your mistake? Nothing was the reply. Splitting the difference was fine with me.
It has always struck me as odd the way people order cars and they turn up on a rather ad-hoc basis. Your car will be available in April then in February you get a call to say it`ll be arriving in two weeks, come on down with the money ! Similarly April can sometimes turn into June. Then there is the need to get rid of your current car.
In fairness I only ever hear things from the people who`s cars we are buying in order for them to pick up the new Porsche and maybe Porsche GB would tell us their delivery times are fixed or that dealers are happy to keep cars stored until the arranged delivery date but that isn`t what I`ve experienced in the past.
Porsche are at that difficult size where unlike, say BMW, they aren`t large enough to offer total customer satisfaction and back-up. But unlike, say Bentley, they are too large to offer one-to-one levels of pre/after sales relationships with the factory.
It also doesn`t help that I do feel they`ve forgotten the core of their business. The sell cars, not lifestyles. You aren`t going to live in their product, just drive in it, eat the odd cornish pastie in it and, if you`re very lucky, enjoy the odd furtive moment in it !
Henry
In fairness I only ever hear things from the people who`s cars we are buying in order for them to pick up the new Porsche and maybe Porsche GB would tell us their delivery times are fixed or that dealers are happy to keep cars stored until the arranged delivery date but that isn`t what I`ve experienced in the past.
Porsche are at that difficult size where unlike, say BMW, they aren`t large enough to offer total customer satisfaction and back-up. But unlike, say Bentley, they are too large to offer one-to-one levels of pre/after sales relationships with the factory.
It also doesn`t help that I do feel they`ve forgotten the core of their business. The sell cars, not lifestyles. You aren`t going to live in their product, just drive in it, eat the odd cornish pastie in it and, if you`re very lucky, enjoy the odd furtive moment in it !
Henry
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