Service Price-matching!

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partsspecialist

Active Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2008
Messages
411
Location
Bolton/Manchester
Car
Ford Focus TDCI
Hi all, Ive got a flyer thats a mail-shot to all our customers here.
Our service dept is doing a price match on services.

From the flyer
"At Mercedes-Benz Manchester central we will price match any written like for like service quote recieved against the manufacturer's service schedule"
 
they must be quiet.....

Thats a good move from the dealers and abou time too.
 
Hi all, Ive got a flyer thats a mail-shot to all our customers here.
Our service dept is doing a price match on services.

From the flyer
"At Mercedes-Benz Manchester central we will price match any written like for like service quote recieved against the manufacturer's service schedule"
That's fine provided the other place down the road is willing to give a detailed written quote for the customer to take to your place- why should they be willing to do so?
In addition, if I'd been quoted a price with them, why would I then go elsewhere for the same price? I'd feel I should have been offered the same price inthe first place.

RH
 
That's fine provided the other place down the road is willing to give a detailed written quote for the customer to take to your place- why should they be willing to do so?
In addition, if I'd been quoted a price with them, why would I then go elsewhere for the same price? I'd feel I should have been offered the same price inthe first place.

RH

Unless it is just to get that 'all important' MB stamp in your service book!
 
Recently had car serviced. First got a quote from supplying dealer and then a quote from dealer who has serviced previous cars (both MB dealers).

Second quote £50 cheaper.

Cancelled booking with supplying dealer who offered to match the price. said I wasn't interested as I felt they were attempting to fleece me with thir first offer.
 
Raymont good on yer:)

I used to do loads of parts buying and would ring a few places most would be very similiar some would be out of this world and some way to cheap which always made me suspicous.



Lynall
 
I think the logic of expecting the first quote to always be the cheapest is a little bit flawed, how can it possibly ever work like that! It would depend on pot luck of who was asked first.

How about if it worked the other way round - say that the garage decide to increase their prices to match the nearest competitior, if they found themselves to be cheaper! Why penalise the garage for offering to reduce their price to a lower amount than you'd normally pay?

Of course they could permanently reduce their price to that of the lower level, but what happens when they go bust because they've not made enough profit?

Remember, we like to save money, but the garage also have a business to run and need to make a profit.

I don't think they're trying to 'fleece' anyone, it's only £50.

Will
 
From the flyer
"At Mercedes-Benz Manchester central we will price match any written like for like service quote recieved against the manufacturer's service schedule"

Interestingly meaningless wording.

Doesn't cover you for the inevitable extras. And leaves the door open to all of the Assyst Plus variabilities once they hook up to the car.

Who goes out and gets a written quote for a service?
 
Why penalise the garage for offering to reduce their price to a lower amount than you'd normally pay?

Because they wasted *your* time on the first quote ...
 
well , i got a courtesy car with 2 days notice today... now thats a miracle :)
 
Because they wasted *your* time on the first quote ...

On the contrary. Surely it's the other way round by you wasting their time in asking for a price on something that you didn't accept.

Surely if you spent long enough, you'd find someone even cheaper than the second 'cheaper' quote. So what do you do then - penalise the pair of them, because they're both 'fleecing' you?

It's only to be expected that there is some variation in price from different places. So it's inevitable that at least one place will be cheaper, and at least one place more expensive. Wouldn't call that 'fleecing' myself, personally :)

Will
 
On the contrary. Surely it's the other way round by you wasting their time in asking for a price on something that you didn't accept.

Not wasting their time. Giving them the chance of some business.


It's only to be expected that there is some variation in price from different places. So it's inevitable that at least one place will be cheaper, and at least one place more expensive. Wouldn't call that 'fleecing' myself, personally

The fleecing comment isn’t to do with price variation, it’s to do with quoting a price and then being willing to reduce it when I suggest it can be done cheaper. Seems to me that their approach is let’s quote a high price and see if he’s a mug and accepts it, otherwise we’ll reduce it.
 
The problem we have with a local MB/Smart dealer is that they advertise a price for a service then add on VAT, parts and other things that don't always 'need' changed!

Case in point 'A Service £99' we charge £98.50 and have done for a while they advertise this 'deal' but then add on a charge for oil, oil filter & VAT. One of our customers who took them up on the offer actually paid about £300 eek:

Kate
 
The fleecing comment isn’t to do with price variation, it’s to do with quoting a price and then being willing to reduce it when I suggest it can be done cheaper. Seems to me that their approach is let’s quote a high price and see if he’s a mug and accepts it, otherwise we’ll reduce it.

That's silly logic.

We are talking about a Mercedes-Benz main dealer. They are a professional business. They are in operation to make a profit - not because they are 'your mate' or 'doing you a favour'.

Why, when they reduce their profit margin to match your comparison price should you be so miffed? If they offered every service at the lower price, they won't make so much profit.

Profit is needed to make a business viable, after all. If they didn't make enough profit, the business wouldn't be running.

They're not trying to make a mug out of you, they originally quoted you the standard price which you could have accepted. I'd be grateful if they offered to match a lower price, personally.

Out of interest, as you had no intention of accepting the lower 'matched' price, why did you bother asking for it? Surely you'd just take the business elsewhere if it meant so much to you? Would you have actually paid the extra £50 if they'd stuck to their original price! :eek:

Will
 
We are talking about a Mercedes-Benz main dealer. They are a professional business. They are in operation to make a profit.

Statement of the obvious.


not because they are 'your mate' or 'doing you a favour'.

Not aware I’d said they were a mate or doing me a favour.

Why, when they reduce their profit margin to match your comparison price should you be so miffed? If they offered every service at the lower price, they won't make so much profit.

They didn’t make any profit at all from me. However, they are free to pursue their business model.

Profit is needed to make a business viable, after all. If they didn't make enough profit, the business wouldn't be running.

Statement of the obvious

They're not trying to make a mug out of you, they originally quoted you the standard price which you could have accepted. I'd be grateful if they offered to match a lower price, personally.

Your choice.

Out of interest, as you had no intention of accepting the lower 'matched' price, why did you bother asking for it?

I didn’t say I asked. They offered when they asked why I was cancelling the booking.

Surely you'd just take the business elsewhere if it meant so much to you?

Didn’t ask so not applicable.

Would you have actually paid the extra £50 if they'd stuck to their original price!

Possibly.

£50 isn’t the issue. It’s their approach to customers.
 
I should probably explain that the reason I went to a second dealer was, in the first place, to do with location. I wasn’t looking for a cheaper quote.

Other considerations being equal £50 wouldn’t make much difference, it is the first dealers approach to customer relations that grates and has probably lost them more than just the business this service represents.

Having said that, I fully respect their entitlement to conduct their business in any way they see fit. If they believe this approach optimises their profit then fine, but I will not be contributing to that profit.
 
Raymont,

Why did you buy your car from the supplying dealer and not from the original dealer that serviced your previous cars ?

R
 
On the contrary. Surely it's the other way round by you wasting their time in asking for a price on something that you didn't accept.

That's odd logic.

So if I approach a vendor for a price and don't accept because it appears too high then it's *my* fault that time was wasted because of their poor offer?

On the contrary - I am giving them an opportunity to quote for business and as long as my expectations were reasonable then if I turn them down because the price was high I haven't wasted their time.
 
raymont said:
Out of interest, as you had no intention of accepting the lower 'matched' price, why did you bother asking for it?

I didn’t say I asked. They offered when they asked why I was cancelling the booking.

Surely you'd just take the business elsewhere if it meant so much to you?

Didn’t ask so not applicable.

Would you have actually paid the extra £50 if they'd stuck to their original price!

Possibly.

£50 isn’t the issue. It’s their approach to customers.

Ray, I'm not here to argue with you, but you've contradicted yourself here.

You called them to cancel the service appointment because you'd found a cheaper quote (£50 cheaper). Going by what you've stated, you wouldn't have known that they'd offer to match the price - so how can you possibly say that you might have given them the business if they hadn't offered to match the quote!

They were damned from the moment you decided to get a second quote.

Will
 
Raymont,

Why did you buy your car from the supplying dealer and not from the original dealer that serviced your previous cars ?

R

Used car.
 

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