Cheap, Nasty and certainly not Cheerful (motorpoint.co.uk)

Member Name: Multipla_Buyer

Product:	motorpoint.co.uk
Date:	28/02/08 (1841 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: None

Disadvantages: I feel they tried to con me

My tale begins with a trawl of the net revealing that Motorpoint was selling a Jungle Grey Fiat Multipla Dynamic for £9,995 - a bargain as the nearest comparable deal was from Perry's who will do a UK spec Dynamic Plus for around £12,000 in a solid colour.

The Multipoint car was an Italian import and had climate control and metallic paint so although not UK spec it appeared to be a bargain.

A telephone call ensued and I agreed to view the car at Peterborough that weekend (it was in Derby but they would move it for £50 refundable if I bought it)

After several further phone calls trying to sell me a multitude of unwanted products, I finally agreed a PX value on my car and the salesman asked for a deposit.
I replied I wanted to see the car first and that they had not seen mine to verify the value.
He replied that as long as my car was as I described it, and as the car I was buying had 15 miles on the clock and was "as new", what could go wrong?

So I paid the £300 deposit on 05/02/08.

I was due to pick the car up on 21/02/08 (I was on hols for a week) but there was a delay as the car was "in the workshop".
I was concerned and Motorpoint's reason varied every time I spoke to them: -

* The bonnet won't shut
* The bonnet won't seal
* It needs a new seal (sill?)
* It's the central locking
* We need a bit from Fiat or your warranty will be invalidated
* It's dropped its key code and needs reprogramming.

However, after my wife speaking to the manager and obtaining an assurance we would get a £100 discount for the inconvenience all looked well, if a bit confused.

The next day I got a call, the car was ready!!

Before looking at the car I pointed out to the sales person that the plastic cover for the paperwork was for an "Active" a model not sold in this country, not a "Dynamic" as advertised.
He replied that it had been registered as a Dynamic because of its specification, but unfortunately he did not have the log book as this had been sent to Peterborough by accident and so could not prove it.

Hmmm...

I checked the car thoroughly, given the delay and odd excuses Motorpoint had given, and the first thing I found was two grains of safety glass in the boot, a bad sign, often means its been crashed.

The following is what I had noticed before the salesman found me laying under the car looking for damage and asked me "is anything wrong?"

* The passenger nearside rear wing had been replaced; it looked poorly welded in my opinion.
* The passenger nearside rear door did not shut properly/possibly replaced
* The passenger nearside door sill had been badly fitted/possibly replaced
* There were bits of internal trim missing in the rear
* The whole vehicle appeared to have huge amounts of corrosion for its age. (I found out later that Jungle Grey is a 2006 colour and so the car may be more than two years old so possibly no warranty)
* The access point to the electrics in the driver's glove box had been removed and would not go back in properly.

After trying to convince me nothing was wrong with the car and basically telling me that I didn't know what I was talking about, the salesman said he's get an "engineer" to look at it.

A cup of complimentary coffee later and he reappeared to announce that there was indeed some sort of repair to the rear of the car that Motorpoint had no prior knowledge of, but that maybe we could negotiate on the price.

I replied that I could not consider a car that had sustained unknown but substantial damage and been repaid by persons unknown and that the whole thing stank.

To cut a long story short I asked the sales lad to see the manager but he assured me that he was unavailable and would remain and so I may as well leave (I think they wanted me off the premises ASAP as another customer overheard their suggestion about "negotiating" a price on the damaged car)

He would give me nothing in writing, only a verbal assurance that I would get my £300 deposit back in the post, he refused to credit the card I had paid it on.

This whole thing cost me two days off work, a tank of fuel, charges for changing the insurance and cancelling the loan but I count myself lucky I did not accept delivery or I'd be stuck with it.

Subsequently, after some chasing, the manager advised by phone that he would send £100 as compensation.

My deposit was finally returned by cheque 26/02/08 with no explanation or apology.

Update! On 29/02/08 I received a written apology from the Call Centre Manager and the offer of a goodwill gesture of £100.
I have called and sent a fax to accept, my opinion of Motorpoint will improve if the cheque does materialise.

I would not consider using these people unless you are prepared to have an AA or RAC inspection prior to accepting the vehicle, but be prepared to waste time and lose money if you discover Motorpoint are selling another lemon.

This car is still on sale with Motorpoint (At 4 different brancheds with 4 different milages according to Autotrader's ads) currently for £9,699 - be aware of what it is before you contemplate buying it.

Motorpoint, in my opinion, certainly sells cheap cars, but the car I looked at was nasty and the staff are only cheerful if they are relieving you of your hard earned cash.

If anyone needs additional info such as the registration number of the car and individuals at Motorpoint involved please contact me via this site.

Summary: Best avoided or get an RAC/AA inspection before you pay anything