GALLERY: 102 days of panel beating
LITTLE FALLS — Heinrich has been on a rollercoaster ride after his car dealer crashed his car.
A Little Falls resident has been in a tug-of-war between his insurer and panel beaters after his car was damaged.
Heinrich Toxopeus took his car in at Renault Northcliff on 10 December last year, when the motor started making a noise when the car started. According to him, the vehicle was taken for a test drive and was crashed while in the care of the dealership on 11 December.
“Renault said they will pay the excess for the car to be repaired and they towed in the car and supplied me with a new car at the same cost as mine. My insurance, King Price, took the vehicle from them and sent it to their panel beaters and it has not been fixed to this day.”
It has been more than 100 days that Toxopeus has been without his car and he said contacting the panel beaters or his insurer is often in vain and the car’s damages keep adding up.
Corné Wolmarans, technical director at King Price, said the current problem with the car was that the alternator was not charging the battery. He admitted that a problem like that usually takes a day to repair.
Toxopeus bought his vehicle in January 2014 and had not had it for a year before the incident occurred. He added more and more problems seem to arise whenever he refers back with the panel beaters, who have had his car for 102 days.
According to Renault’s dealer principal David Geary, the driver slipped on the wet road and crashed into a barrier.
“The vehicle needed to be driven for quite a distance to ensure that it was fixed. The driver was on the highway, driving at around 80km per hour and he slipped on the wet road and unfortunately, crashed. We have offered to pay for the client’s excess and lent him a brand new Renautl Duster for the time being.”
