Mercedes Rust Policy - Please read and advise

[W210 Fan]

After the gathering in Ascot on Friday Will said to me to get my car into a Merc dealer to get the rust done as it had a service within the last two years, So today I went to Tony Purslow and put forward my case, I was told that because I had only had the car 4 months I was not entitled to a claim as according to Mercedes I could have brought the car cheap knowing it was rusting to get MB to pay for it and sell it as non rusty Merc so they refused, if I had owned the car for more than 2 years it would have been a different matter, has anybody else come across this?

I now have a decision, I could pay £100ish and get the rust sorted myself on the wheel arch which is getting worse and the wait to get the rest done which isnt so bad or just pay the whole lot myself which will only be a couple of hunded quid (3 weeks fuel!)

Also anybody in the surrey area I am organising a GTG for mid sep, leave you name in this thread please!

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=28558

 

[KLP 92]

I owned my E55 for 2 weeks before i submitted my rust claim. Had no probs.

 

[PeterE320Cdi]

I owned mine for 4 weeks before submitting a claim, ended up having to pay 35% contribution to the cost.

 

[stats007]

That's utter crap. Tony Purslow aren't in a position to comment. All claims are mitigated by Milton Keynes.

 

[Will]

I agree - sounds as though you're being fobbed off.

Where in the terms and conditions does it stipulate how long you should own the vehicle for?

Try another dealer or ask to speak to someone with more sense of customer service.

It's not as though Tony Purslow will be paying for it anyway.

Will

 

[petef]

After the gathering in Ascot on Friday Will said to me to get my car into a Merc dealer to get the rust done as it had a service within the last two years, So today I went to Tony Purslow and put forward my case, I was told that because I had only had the car 4 months I was not entitled to a claim as according to Mercedes I could have brought the car cheap knowing it was rusting to get MB to pay for it and sell it as non rusty Merc so they refused, if I had owned the car for more than 2 years it would have been a different matter, has anybody else come across this?

I now have a decision, I could pay £100ish and get the rust sorted myself on the wheel arch which is getting worse and the wait to get the rest done which isnt so bad or just pay the whole lot myself which will only be a couple of hunded quid (3 weeks fuel!)

Also anybody in the surrey area I am organising a GTG for mid sep, leave you name in this thread please!

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=28558

Whether you bought the car cheap is irrelevant. If the car has a warranty. its been serviced according to the book whats the problem ??....You know the more I read about rust claims and the behaviour of mercedes dealers I thank god I have a BMW. Now I know people will come back and say either "you only get the exceptional cases on the forum" or "bmw will have the same problems with their dealers", but I am saying this with all honesty we do not get such poor reports from bmw main dealers on the bmw forum.....infact they are extremely rare. Merecedes would have a long way to go for me to buy a newish one.....

 

[delb0y]

So the car has to have been serviced at the main dealer within the last 6 months to put a claim in for rust? I have a 52 plate c220 and its rusting quite bad at the top of the rear window and boot lid where the seal is. Just had a service B done at a indie not too long ago but all previous service stamps are from the main dealer.

 

[KLP 92]

So the car has to have been serviced at the main dealer within the last 6 months to put a claim in for rust? I have a 52 plate c220 and its rusting quite bad at the top of the rear window and boot lid where the seal is. Just had a service B done at a indie not too long ago but all previous service stamps are from the main dealer.

My E55 hadn't been serviced for 23 months and it wasn't a prob. As long as its serviced at its scheduled intervals, 10-15k or 2 years then its ok.

 

[NAG]

After reading about people's successes here I went along to the MB bodyshop here. My car is a w202 and has a full SH but not all by MB.
The chap at the bodyshop said that MB would probably not entertain this claim (all 4 wheelarches and boot lock area are rusting).
He also used this excuse of the fact that I had not had the car that long.
I argued this as being a pretty pants excuse and asked him to submit the claim anyway, so he took photos etc etc.
Lo and behold a few weeks later he phoned me saying that the claim had been rejected but to come in and see if they could quote a reasonable price to do the work. £1600 approx it would cost to put all things right !
I politely declined to take up this offer.
Haven't been back since, have been thinking of going to a dealer in my area and trying again, but if I've been KB'd once, it'll probably happen again :-(

 

[stats007]

Write to MB asking why it was rejected and get copies of the Eskulab reports mentioning that you're seeking legal advice.

 

[Vlad]

As the rust issue is becoming more and more well known Mercedes are having to deal with an ever increasing claim rate on the W210.

To deter people from buying W210's on the cheap and then getting MB to stump up for paint repairs they are starting to clamp down on claims and this is one of the reasons why length of ownership is coming into the equation......I understand that cars are being bought cheap at auction and were then driven straight to the dealership once the registration book comes through with the new name.

Early last year I submitted a claim on a E240 having only owned it for 2 weeks and I was successful......a friend tried to do the same thing last month with the same dealer and his claim was rejected due to length of ownership, whereas another friend had a successful claim on his CLK that he had owned for three years....both cars were of a similar age and mileage....

In a way its a bit like having a used vehicle warranty, if you buy the car and submit a claim within weeks of taking out the warranty you can bet your last dollar that the claim will be rejected....MB are now starting to take the same view on the rust issues.

 

[C240Sport97]

I have a lot of sympathy with this.

In a way it a bit like having a used vehicle warranty, if you buy the car and submit a claim within weeks of taking out the warranty you can bet your last dollar that the claim will be rejected....MB are now starting to take the same view on the rust issues.

 

[Mr E]

If this is being handed down by MB, then there is a bit of naughtiness involved. i have to be careful as there are various versions of Mobilo documentation, but all say that the warrenty is tranferable and nowhere in the (albeit very sparse) Ts&Cs does it mention an ownership period before it kicks in.

Simply ask for the Ts&Cs to be shown to you

 

[Glenn Smith]

I owned my c230k for a month, noticed some rust and claim was successful, but only after ringing dealer, they never actually got back to me, in fact i'm still waiting an answer to some bits 2yrs later, now the new tailgate they fitted is also going rusty!!! I give up, i'll run the merc into the ground and not buy another, after all, warranty or not who wants the agro?

 

[Pietre]

I owned my W210 for a few months and claimed for rust on the boot lid which was replaced, i have had the drivers door repainted, and have the car booked in on the 23rd to have the front wheel arches done, all paid by Mercedes. I was told the door was not a valid claim but they put it in at my insistance. I also pointed out that if unsuccesful I would be taking the car somewhere else for servicing. Strangely the claim was accepted.

 

[W210 Fan]

Seems to be very mixed results then, nothing too clear cut, i have decided to sort the rust out myself and sell the car as she is a license to speed, will buy something cheap and small as I am saving up to move abroad anyway, will I still be welcome on here if I own a Ford Puma, I will miss the power but not the hole in my wallet,

Anybody want a Black E55 with black leather?
Apply within.....

 

[goldestate]

The warranty runs with the car, length of ownership is not relevant, if an owner put his car into an auction maybe because of rust perhaps he/she should have been told about it earlier by his MB dealer by letter. the cars are expensive the servicing is expensive the rust is a manufacturing problem and as expensive and inconvenient as it is the buck stops with DC, maybe one of those overpaid F1 drivers might take a pay cut! if rust affected cars are allowed to proliferate the damage to the brand will be long lasting and far more expensive in the long run remember a new E-Class is easily in the £30,000 -£40,000 bracket thats a lot of £1500 warranty claims.

 

[jay73]

That's utter crap. Tony Purslow aren't in a position to comment. All claims are mitigated by Milton Keynes.

correct !!!

Write to MB asking why it was rejected and get copies of the Eskulab reports mentioning that you're seeking legal advice.

Very good advice and definately worth acting on

 

[Dieselman]

will I still be welcome on here if I own a Ford Puma,

NO....

 

[Birdman]

I now have a decision, I could pay £100ish and get the rust sorted myself on the wheel arch which is getting worse and the wait to get the rest done which isnt so bad or just pay the whole lot myself which will only be a couple of hunded quid (3 weeks fuel!)

Get the £200 paint job done and enjoy the car. You can lose your licence in any car on the road (unless it's on false plates) but you'll never get a buzz like driving an E55 slowly.

Is it painted a flat black, or Obsidian metallic black (much hangs on the answer!)?