Sorry if this is off-topic or has been answered before, but does anyone know a direct e-mail address for Mazda UK Customer Services? I’ve had no joy raising them by phone and I don’t want to use their standard ‘fill in your complaint and we’ll get back to you form’ on the website because I’m fed up being fobbed off.
It always winds me up how companies give you any amount of easy options to give them money, but when it comes to accepting potentially negative feedback they make it difficult.
Rant over - sorry, I’m just pissed about something…!
I note a quick Google throws up quite a few other rants about Mazda evading queries. After three MX5’s from new, I think I’ll be parting company from them next time around.
It’s a long story, but shortly stated: I’ve a two year old Venture Edition (from new). Some twonk drove into my wing before Christmas in the work car-park and cleared off without leaving a note. I left it into my local dealer for body repair. New driver’s door and a respray totalling about 1200 pounds. When I got the car back the Venture edition badge on the driver’s side was missing. Contacted the dealer who basically gave me the run around saying they’d get a new one and fit it. Five months (and several calls to the dealer) later I e-mailed the salesman I bought the car from to see if he could find me someone sensible to talk to. He came back to me to say, sorry, can’t get you a Venture badge as Mazda aren’t making the model anymore - and suggested that the best thing to do was for me to try to find one on EBay…
After buying four cars in eight years from the dealer (three of them from new) I frankly found that suggestion appalling. I made the point that I only left the car with the dealer to fix because I expected to get it back in exactly the same state as before it was hit, but that was clearly a waste of time and not a mistake I’ll make again. Surely there must be a Venture edition badge somewhere in the UK. I know that it sounds rather petty, but, to be honest, it’s not the first cause for complaint I’ve had with the dealer re: servicing and frankly it’s the straw that’s broken the camel’s back etc.
I decided to escalate things to UK customer services only to find that there’s no direct e-mail, and that hasn’t improved my overall experience, especially as I note that there’s a direct address for Fleet issues but not for individual customers. I know I sound like a grumpy old man, but I’m getting fed up with it. And I know the simplest solution is for me to buy a badge (probably of dubious quality) from Fleabay, but frankly it’s the principle of the thing. Oh God, I sound like my father
The one e-mail address I do have is that of the Chief Executive’s Office, but I’d rather not wake him up unless I really have to…
I would send/ take this link to your dealer and get them to buy and fit it for you, at the end of the day this is a dealer issue and Mazda will revert you back there as the dealers are independent, regardless of who you speak to at Mazda.
This is listed as genuine part from a company who specialise in buying up the remnants of these things (probably why Mazda don’t have any), seems like a good business practice as I am sure you won’t be the first person in this situation.
Personally, Id get them to fix this for you this way and get the blood pressure back down a bit, it is probably not worth this level of angst - though I do see its maybe the last in a chain of things, in which case I would put the complaint about the dealership as a whole in a letter and post it, that way you definitely get an answer.
Mazda Motors UK Limited, Customer Relations Centre, Riverbridge House, Anchor Boulevard, Dartford, Kent, DA2 6SL
The only question that is probably worth asking of Mazda Motors is why they are not retaining parts of this nature until the new vehicle warranty period is exhausted, which on a special edition is quite a defined period…
Thanks to all for your postings. MX5 solidarity in action.
SafetyMatch, NickandJane and Harco - was very tempted to escalate to CEO; I had a real gripe with Orange a couple of years ago and when I got nowhere I emailed their CEO only to find that , hey presto, problem could actually be solved after all. Probably the fact that I e-mailed his office twice a day until I got a call back had something to do with it. Stubborn Northern bugger. Me that is, not him - no idea if he’s Northern…
RoadsterRobbie, no luck with their published phone number, only served to raise blood pressure.
Nick and Anna - thanks for the 01322 number. It’ll be taken down and held in reserve for the next time. My patience, thin as it’s getting with age, longs for the halcyon days of ringing a company, getting straight through without having to input your DOB, the number you’re ringing from, your favourite colour and inside leg measurement before spending half an hour listening to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons until you actually hear a human voice.
And finally, IanF - many thanks for taking the time to independently check that out. Even if, as you put it, it was only making a few quick calls (and I suspect it probably took more time than that) I am very grateful for the trouble you went to. It means I can stop winding myself up that the dealer just can’t be bothered, and armed with the link, I’ll be making sure they order and buy from that site, and fit the blooming thing. They don’t really have an excuse not to, but if there’s any further diffs then I know what to do next.
Just my two penn’orth - during my dispute with Coventry Mazda, I found Mazda UK most unhelpful. Far from being there to ‘protect the brand image’ as I expected, they seemed to be merely an extra defence for whatever chicanery the dealership wanted to get up to. Customer Service in particular - first I was told I had no rights as the car was ‘sold as seen’, a line which Trading Standards say went out with the Ark. Later I spent several days fielding emails & phone calls from a guy who kept telling me he was doing everything he could to help me, but in fact he never deviated from the line that I should take the ‘fixed’ car back from the dealership. After I shelled out £180 for an RAC report proving the car was ‘a wrong un’ and the dealer eventually caved in and refunded my money, I received a cringeworthy email from the CS guy basically congratulating himself and Mazda for all the help they’d given me.
It seems lots of us have had something of a hit and miss experience with after sales. It definitely does give you pause when you come to part with your hard earned cash next time round.
Some good news at least - my dealer has purchased the badge for me and I hopefully will be getting it on Friday.
Only seven months after the original “incident” but hey ho, it’s a good job I have patience. In fairness the sales bloke at the dealers that I’ve know for years was very helpful in resolving the issue. It’s just a shame he had to be dragged into it.
And yes - I fully agree with other posters - in cases where you’ve been left with no choice, go straight to the top. Assault the Ivory Tower brothers and sisters.
Thanks to all for your help and your posts. Greatly appreciated.
