Company Car Drivers - How do they manage in everyday life
Discussion
Okay so for the day job (i.e. needing to pay the bills etc) I work for the service booking department for a large vehicle leasing company, and at the moment we seem to be getting inundated with requests for cars to be collected to garages for frankly stupid things. Today’s prime example:
The windscreen washer thingies are empty, what do I fill them up with.
Or
I've got a little light showing on my dashboard, what does it mean?
I am resisting the urge to call people idiots at the moment, but I am utterly stunned how thick these people, who will be on typically larger salaries than myself can be so down right stupid!
The windscreen washer thingies are empty, what do I fill them up with.
Or
I've got a little light showing on my dashboard, what does it mean?
I am resisting the urge to call people idiots at the moment, but I am utterly stunned how thick these people, who will be on typically larger salaries than myself can be so down right stupid!
Just because they know eff all about cars doesn mean that they're stupid.
Their car is a perk of their job. Having a car that just gets serviced/fixed/replaced on their behalf frees them up to spend more time and energy on their job. Your job as an employee of the service company is to perform those services on their behalf.
I bet they could ask you 3 questions about their job that would leave you totally non-plussed.
(I am not condoning total ignorance of car condition or maintenance, merely pointing out that it's not the fire front of everyones mind).
Their car is a perk of their job. Having a car that just gets serviced/fixed/replaced on their behalf frees them up to spend more time and energy on their job. Your job as an employee of the service company is to perform those services on their behalf.
I bet they could ask you 3 questions about their job that would leave you totally non-plussed.
(I am not condoning total ignorance of car condition or maintenance, merely pointing out that it's not the fire front of everyones mind).
Edited by WeirdNeville on Thursday 17th February 13:43
farrendahl said:
Okay so for the day job (i.e. needing to pay the bills etc) I work for the service booking department for a large vehicle leasing company, and at the moment we seem to be getting inundated with requests for cars to be collected to garages for frankly stupid things. Today’s prime example:
The windscreen washer thingies are empty, what do I fill them up with.
Or
I've got a little light showing on my dashboard, what does it mean?
I am resisting the urge to call people idiots at the moment, but I am utterly stunned how thick these people, who will be on typically larger salaries than myself can be so down right stupid!
The only way to get stuff sorted out on the books is to go via the leasing company. I have experience of leaseplan and alphabet.The windscreen washer thingies are empty, what do I fill them up with.
Or
I've got a little light showing on my dashboard, what does it mean?
I am resisting the urge to call people idiots at the moment, but I am utterly stunned how thick these people, who will be on typically larger salaries than myself can be so down right stupid!
If I want a bulb changed, I'm not allowed to do it myself - I'd not be reimbursed for the bulb and if anything went wrong it would be my fault.
There's no arguing that people who can't get their heads around a refill of windscreen washer fluid or top up oil are dense.
For pretty much everything else, there's no choice but to call the leasing company. These are the guys who won't allow a smart repair (no, we have to respray the whole car...).
By the way, one of the companies I've dealt with replaced one tyre on the front axle with another tyre of the same size and from the same company, but with a different load rating (ie, a different tyre construction). There are morons on both sides of the company car industry.
C
Corpulent Tosser said:
The windscreen washers I am surprised at, the warning light less so, OK it is probably in the handbook, but lets face it, a leased car, the operator has no financial interest in the car and just wants to use it as a tool for his/her work.
Oh I know that, it just does stun me that these people, who have surely been driving for a couple of years at least have no concept of what some of the things they need to do with their car are. I guess I just find it hard to fathom that somebody like my aunt, who knows absolutely nothing about cars other than "it's a blue one" does a better job of general day to day maintenance than seemingly 90% of the company car drivers I talk to.CraigyMc said:
The only way to get stuff sorted out on the books is to go via the leasing company. I have experience of leaseplan and alphabet.
If I want a bulb changed, I'm not allowed to do it myself - I'd not be reimbursed for the bulb and if anything went wrong it would be my fault.
There's no arguing that people who can't get their heads around a refill of windscreen washer fluid or top up oil are dense.
For pretty much everything else, there's no choice but to call the leasing company. These are the guys who won't allow a smart repair (no, we have to respray the whole car...).
By the way, one of the companies I've dealt with replaced one tyre on the front axle with another tyre of the same size and from the same company, but with a different load rating (ie, a different tyre construction). There are morons on both sides of the company car industry.
C
Again I'm not denying that and I do find it pretty stupid that we won't allow somebody to do a bulb change him or herself or even fit new wiper blades. I do however though find it inexcusable to not know what the basic warning lights on your dash are, or what liquid to pour into the screen wash reservoir.If I want a bulb changed, I'm not allowed to do it myself - I'd not be reimbursed for the bulb and if anything went wrong it would be my fault.
There's no arguing that people who can't get their heads around a refill of windscreen washer fluid or top up oil are dense.
For pretty much everything else, there's no choice but to call the leasing company. These are the guys who won't allow a smart repair (no, we have to respray the whole car...).
By the way, one of the companies I've dealt with replaced one tyre on the front axle with another tyre of the same size and from the same company, but with a different load rating (ie, a different tyre construction). There are morons on both sides of the company car industry.
C
CraigyMc said:
The only way to get stuff sorted out on the books is to go via the leasing company. I have experience of leaseplan and alphabet.
If I want a bulb changed, I'm not allowed to do it myself - I'd not be reimbursed for the bulb and if anything went wrong it would be my fault.
There's no arguing that people who can't get their heads around a refill of windscreen washer fluid or top up oil are dense.
For pretty much everything else, there's no choice but to call the leasing company. These are the guys who won't allow a smart repair (no, we have to respray the whole car...).
By the way, one of the companies I've dealt with replaced one tyre on the front axle with another tyre of the same size and from the same company, but with a different load rating (ie, a different tyre construction). There are morons on both sides of the company car industry.
C
Indeed, the cost of washer fluid/ additive is also not reimbursed, so the company car driver books it in to have this topped up.If I want a bulb changed, I'm not allowed to do it myself - I'd not be reimbursed for the bulb and if anything went wrong it would be my fault.
There's no arguing that people who can't get their heads around a refill of windscreen washer fluid or top up oil are dense.
For pretty much everything else, there's no choice but to call the leasing company. These are the guys who won't allow a smart repair (no, we have to respray the whole car...).
By the way, one of the companies I've dealt with replaced one tyre on the front axle with another tyre of the same size and from the same company, but with a different load rating (ie, a different tyre construction). There are morons on both sides of the company car industry.
C
pp
Having worked in leasing/rental for a third of my life, I feel your pain. These people are not "drivers", they are merely steering wheel attendents. And we share the road with them...
I've sent brand new vehicles out on 3 year contracts and during the handover I've always made sure I, or my drivers do a full walk round with the customer - showing them where fuel, oil, water etc goes, where the hand book is, the spare wheels & tools etc. There is also a service reminder sticker in the window, and we also show them where the basic controls are - lights and indicators.
Some of the more memorable quotes...
Handing over a Vectra with touch sensitive indicators "oh, I don't think I'll bother using them then."
"I won't need to know where the oil is - it's a new car so why will I ever need to check it?"
"How is it my fault if the engine has seized due to lack of servicing - it's your car, you should tell me when it is due."
"I'm not paying for the recovery call-out - I wasn't shown where the fuel guage was."
"The car is on the A6 near Garstang with the keys in it - my colleague picked me up, so if you can recover it and change the flat tyre then deliver it back, that would be great."
"I'm not paying for the call out for the broken beacon" - A high roof Transit had been driven into a low carpark - £9k roof repair...
"I crashed because your tyres had no tread on them" - "but you have been the sole driver since it was new 46,000 miles ago" - "yes, but it is your car so you should know when to change the tyres, I could have been seriously injured, and my wife and children were in the car as well!"
And yes, some of these people did have well paid jobs, some did have degrees and letters after their name, but not one of them had any sense or reason about them. We've all met these blithering imbeciles as we've gone through life.
I've sent brand new vehicles out on 3 year contracts and during the handover I've always made sure I, or my drivers do a full walk round with the customer - showing them where fuel, oil, water etc goes, where the hand book is, the spare wheels & tools etc. There is also a service reminder sticker in the window, and we also show them where the basic controls are - lights and indicators.
Some of the more memorable quotes...
Handing over a Vectra with touch sensitive indicators "oh, I don't think I'll bother using them then."
"I won't need to know where the oil is - it's a new car so why will I ever need to check it?"
"How is it my fault if the engine has seized due to lack of servicing - it's your car, you should tell me when it is due."
"I'm not paying for the recovery call-out - I wasn't shown where the fuel guage was."
"The car is on the A6 near Garstang with the keys in it - my colleague picked me up, so if you can recover it and change the flat tyre then deliver it back, that would be great."
"I'm not paying for the call out for the broken beacon" - A high roof Transit had been driven into a low carpark - £9k roof repair...
"I crashed because your tyres had no tread on them" - "but you have been the sole driver since it was new 46,000 miles ago" - "yes, but it is your car so you should know when to change the tyres, I could have been seriously injured, and my wife and children were in the car as well!"
And yes, some of these people did have well paid jobs, some did have degrees and letters after their name, but not one of them had any sense or reason about them. We've all met these blithering imbeciles as we've gone through life.
Steve in Stoke said:
Having worked in leasing/rental for a third of my life, I feel your pain. These people are not "drivers", they are merely steering wheel attendents. And we share the road with them...
I've sent brand new vehicles out on 3 year contracts and during the handover I've always made sure I, or my drivers do a full walk round with the customer - showing them where fuel, oil, water etc goes, where the hand book is, the spare wheels & tools etc. There is also a service reminder sticker in the window, and we also show them where the basic controls are - lights and indicators.
Some of the more memorable quotes...
Handing over a Vectra with touch sensitive indicators "oh, I don't think I'll bother using them then."
"I won't need to know where the oil is - it's a new car so why will I ever need to check it?"
"How is it my fault if the engine has seized due to lack of servicing - it's your car, you should tell me when it is due."
"I'm not paying for the recovery call-out - I wasn't shown where the fuel guage was."
"The car is on the A6 near Garstang with the keys in it - my colleague picked me up, so if you can recover it and change the flat tyre then deliver it back, that would be great."
"I'm not paying for the call out for the broken beacon" - A high roof Transit had been driven into a low carpark - £9k roof repair...
"I crashed because your tyres had no tread on them" - "but you have been the sole driver since it was new 46,000 miles ago" - "yes, but it is your car so you should know when to change the tyres, I could have been seriously injured, and my wife and children were in the car as well!"
And yes, some of these people did have well paid jobs, some did have degrees and letters after their name, but not one of them had any sense or reason about them. We've all met these blithering imbeciles as we've gone through life.
what replies/end results did you give to these people?I've sent brand new vehicles out on 3 year contracts and during the handover I've always made sure I, or my drivers do a full walk round with the customer - showing them where fuel, oil, water etc goes, where the hand book is, the spare wheels & tools etc. There is also a service reminder sticker in the window, and we also show them where the basic controls are - lights and indicators.
Some of the more memorable quotes...
Handing over a Vectra with touch sensitive indicators "oh, I don't think I'll bother using them then."
"I won't need to know where the oil is - it's a new car so why will I ever need to check it?"
"How is it my fault if the engine has seized due to lack of servicing - it's your car, you should tell me when it is due."
"I'm not paying for the recovery call-out - I wasn't shown where the fuel guage was."
"The car is on the A6 near Garstang with the keys in it - my colleague picked me up, so if you can recover it and change the flat tyre then deliver it back, that would be great."
"I'm not paying for the call out for the broken beacon" - A high roof Transit had been driven into a low carpark - £9k roof repair...
"I crashed because your tyres had no tread on them" - "but you have been the sole driver since it was new 46,000 miles ago" - "yes, but it is your car so you should know when to change the tyres, I could have been seriously injured, and my wife and children were in the car as well!"
And yes, some of these people did have well paid jobs, some did have degrees and letters after their name, but not one of them had any sense or reason about them. We've all met these blithering imbeciles as we've gone through life.
transit man - you're paying, surely
flat tyre man - you're an idiot and if the car has been stolen then YOU will be reimbursing us
tyre man - what the hell was the end result of that?
amirzed said:
what replies/end results did you give to these people?
transit man - you're paying, surely
flat tyre man - you're an idiot and if the car has been stolen then YOU will be reimbursing us
tyre man - what the hell was the end result of that?
More often than not I ended up going back to their transport managers for passing on the recharge invoices. Tyre man did try start legal action against us, but his employers took our side and he was subsequently dismissed. Not just through this, but by all accounts he was a loose cannon within their business. Jeremy Kyle contestant material, and habitual sick note user.transit man - you're paying, surely
flat tyre man - you're an idiot and if the car has been stolen then YOU will be reimbursing us
tyre man - what the hell was the end result of that?
With regards the car left at the roadside, that was awkward. It was on his own insurance so he would have been responsible, but as many are aware, leaving keys in the vehicle tends to negate any policy. We had to send a driver up to the vehicle and wait for it whilst it was recovered, no sign of the alloy wheel lock, so couldnt change and secure the vehicle himself. That ended up costing the drivers employers about £1200 in recharges!
Thinking of another one - we delivered a car on a Friday afternoon and parked it on a sloped driveway, did the inspection and took the handover digital images. It was a new employee who was starting work on the Monday.
The following Monday and all hell has broken loose.
The driver was in a serious condition in hospital after the car started to roll down the drive. She tried to stop it, but it rolled over her, breaking her back, pelvis and fracturing her skull.
Her employers' H&S team were on the case, as were mine, Peugeot had been contacted to see if there were any known issues with the parking brakes on the cars and ambulance chasers had already been appointed! Statements were taken, threats made - all sorts of things going on. My driver was properly distraught, feeling he was responsible for not securing the vehicle.
This went on for about a few days until we checked the digital images to see if the handbrake position could be seen from the interior vehicle condition shots.
This was our eureka moment.
They not only showed the handbrake fully up, but also showed that our driver had reversed the car onto the drive for the handover. When it rolled off the drive and over on the Saturday, it had been nose in on her drive. As she was not insured on the car until the Monday morning, she had denied driving the car in the meantime, but the fuel and mileage checks done during the police investigation showed it had covered 100 miles since delivery. Even presented with this evidence, she still denied ever moving the car.
Some people out there are just beyond belief.
Oh, and the burnt out Transit found parked up on Saddleworth Moors, allegedly caused by an electrical fault.
The forensic investigators found the remains of a camping gaz stove and tea making equipment in the drivers footwell which sort of killed their electrical fault argument.
The forensic investigators found the remains of a camping gaz stove and tea making equipment in the drivers footwell which sort of killed their electrical fault argument.
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