“We have had excellent service in the past, but oh how standards have slipped!
If you are to entertain buying a car from Arnold Clark Warrington please make sure you sit and read every last bit before signing anything, even if it takes all day as they say to you "sign here as its only what has been discussed" No please go and read.
They rush you, then pass you to a less competent person to finish the paperwork.
Do not purchase the extended warranty, or the service & mot.
Never will we go near this organisation ever again.
Very expensive lesson to learn.
Please don't be the next victim.”
“I’m stuck in the middle really, Buying the car was pretty easy it did take them 2 days to contact me to say the finance was in place etc, the car then took 4 days till I saw it had an mot on it and 12 days until it was delivered to my local branch so in total from calling and giving the go ahead to reviveing the car was 18 days which is a very slow process. I called for updates on multiple occasions and had no response or contact back, I got to the point where I thought the car might come it might not who knows and didn’t really care it sort of sucked the fun of buying a new car from the deal.
I asked them about 3 advisories that was on my cars mot and they said they’ll of been done and I’ve had the car checked and they haven’t been done, called the branch and they said they’d get back to me no response for 3 days so called again no response for 4 days in the end I’ve travelled 3 hours to speak to them and they said advisories are advice and don’t need to be done and they won’t do anything about it but tried to give me a quote from servicing department to pay for them out my own money.
I wouldn’t shop here again the preparation of the vehicle was rubbish and the lack of updates and communication from the sales team is the real issue here I wouldn’t of even been looking at the mot advisories if they actually kept in touch with me throughout the process.”
“If I could have given no stars, I would have!!!
Posting on behalf of my parents
I am absolutely appalled by the service I have received from your service department at the Stafford branch of Arnold Clark.
I purchased a car from you last April. Mark Wesson was the sales assistant and I cannot fault his service. He was incredibly helpful and initially I was really pleased with the product I had purchased.
In January 2023, I realised that the MOT had lapsed and so I booked the car in for its MOT and the service that was included in the package when I bought it. I took the car in on 27th January.
I received a phone call later that day to say that the car had failed its MOT and that it needed a replacement catalytic convertor. Obviously this was not cheap and we were quoted £1000 to get the car sorted. I literally had no choice but to agree to have the work done. I rang again on 1st February and was told that it was not yet ready.
Please bear in mind that each time I ring, I have to leave a message and wait for someone to call me back and I usually end up chasing a call back. This standard of service is incredibly frustrating
We were then told that we could collect the car on the afternoon of 3rd February. We collected the car, paid the money required and left. After we had been driving for approx 30 minutes, the service light came on to say that there was a fault. It was too late to go back to the garage so I had to wait until Monday 6th February to call the service department.
I called on 6th February. I eventually spoke to the service department & explained about the service. I was told that this would be because the Ad Blue needed topping up. Should this not have been as part of the service? Or should I have not at least been advised to check for it. I asked the assistant where the ad blue was on the car and the reply I received was 'I haven't got a clue!!. I know where it is on my car but not sure about yours. You can drop it back to us and I'll try and find it for you'. I certainly wasn't going to take a 45 minute journey for this sort of attitude. This didn't exactly fill me with confidence. In the end my son-in-law googled it and we managed to find out what we needed to do.
This solved it for a week but the light then came on again. We arranged to return it on Feb 20th. The service engineer checked it and said that there was a leak on the ad blue pipe, which would need fixing but they would have to order in the part. Due to the distance we had travelled, Anna suggested that we took it to a local garage to get the work done and then if it was covered under the warranty, we could then make a claim afterwards. I called Arbury Motors in Lichfield and they told me that there was a recall on this vehicle and the catalytic convertor should have been replaced free of charge. I was given the phone number for Citroen customer service and they confirmed that there was an on-going recall on this model. They also indicated that I had a case to take legal action against Arnold Clark if I didn't get a refund.
I'm afraid this is just not good enough. I'm sure you can understand why I am so frustrated. I am in my 80s and my husband is 86 and we bought this car thinking that it would be a reliable vehicle for us but it's proved to be nothing but trouble. And then to find that we have paid £1000 for something that should have been completed free of charge, literally just adds insult to injury.
I would also like to point out that your service dept claim to have carried out a full service on the vehicle and yet they failed to complete the service book, so it looks like I will have to make yet another trip to your garage to get this stamped. Based on the current level of service I have received from your service department, I have to question whether the service was actually completed.
I sent an email to Arnold Clark at the end of Feb complaining about the service i’d received. I have constantly had to chase for a response and the last conversation I had was on Friday 10th March when I was promised a call back on Monday 13th. It’s 10 days on and I’ve heard nothing. The standard of customer service has been appalling and I was obviously sold a vehicle that wasn’t safe. It has so far cost me £1600 for repairs and I’ve not even had it for a year yet.
The sales department were amazing and so is the receptionist, Anna but the service dept lets you down and as a result I would never recommend or use again.
I am STILL awaiting a response to my complaint so obviously customer service is not high on your priority list.
I would appreciate a resolution and also to be compensated for this appalling service. I would also appreciate a full and proper service to be carried out and the book stamped accordingly”
“Me and my partner bought a Peugeot back in September, within days of having the car we we phoned in to report a knocking noise coming from the front of the car. When I took the car in to be looked at the mechanic took it drive and without even having a look was adamant it was the anti roll bar and drop links, he said he’d order the parts and get us booked in when we came back from our holidays. That was in September and the parts still haven’t come, not only that the engine management light came on so I booked it in for its service and they diagnosed the knocking noise as coming from the gear box. A fault that will cost thousands and thousands of pounds to repair or replace. And surprise surprise, they are claiming now it’s out of warranty they won’t fix it even though the fault was reported well within the warranty period. But are willing to replace the anti roll bar that doesn’t actually need replaced and haven’t been in rush to fix for the past 7/8 months.
I’ve raised a complaint with head office, I’ll be seeking legal advice and reporting them to trading standards and the motor ombudsman regardless of this outcome.
Please anyone reading this, you may get a better deal at Arnold but for the sake of saving a few pound save yourself all the stress and time spending your hard earn money costs with dealing these clowns and go somewhere else that values your custom.
Arnold Clark don’t give a hoot about it’s customers, if it did it’s after care wouldn’t let the after care it’s customers have to endure so painstaking and difficult.”
“PLEASE READ BEFORE PURCHASING YOUR VEHICLE AT ARNOLD CLARKE IN LEEDS:
Vehicle: Audi SQ7
Reg: FM18 TNK
My experience at this branch has definitely been my worst customer service experience to date. Our journey started off with a simple search on autotrader looking the ideal car for our family. After finding the most suitable vehicle we contacted Arnold Clarke in Leeds about an Audi SQ7 and spoke to a sales representative called Adam Abdennour. At first Adam was professional and continually contacted myself through the process to close the deal. After several calls from Adam an agreement was confirmed and the car was secured with a deposit.
We were advised that the car would be ready within a few working days as the vehicle was ready to go but would only need a valet. The next day I received a text message from Adam to contact him regarding the vehicle to which he advised me that the vehicle had presented itself with an engine fault displaying a light on the dashboard. He then advised us that the car would go to Audi for a diagnostic as the Arnold Clarke repair centre didn't have the tools/equipment to fix the issue however had diagnosed the problem. At this point he stated that the car was booked in at the end of the week for repair with Audi.
This went on for an average of 3 weeks and we were having to chase Adam and his branch for updates as they were not calling us with updates. On several occasions I spoke to the receptionist who advised me that Adam and the branch manager were busy and would receive a call back but this didn't happen every time. Even to a point that the receptionist advised me to call Audi myself for an update which I eventually did. After calling Audi, they told me that the car had 3 issues and the cost was an average of £7k repair and that Arnold Clarke had not signed the work off to be completed. From this point for weeks we didn't hear anything from Arnold Clarke with an update and we were calling every week at least 2/3 times for an update ourselves. At this stage we contacted the Customer Service at Arnold Clarke HQ who said it would take take up to 48 hours for them to get an update and allow the branch to contact us from the complaint they had added to the system. Again..no call from the branch.
We then contacted customer service again, this time they stayed on the phone whilst they got the branch manager to be added to the call. Finally got talking to the branch manager (George Ferebee) who clearly stated that it was not his responsibility to get involved in customer service complaints and that the car was now with an Audi specialist to be repaired. He also advised that he would get an update in a few days and call me with an update. 5 days went on an no call from anyone!
Luckily I had at this stage started to look at cars elsewhere and found the same make and model of vehicle at a different dealer. Within 2 days of the deal I had collected the new car and even then I didn't get a call from Arnold Clarke. Moving forward I had called customer service and requested for my deposit back which I am now waiting for.
My conclusion: Arnold Clarke in the past was in my eyes one of the best dealers from the experience of my last two cars, but I can honestly say I would never ever recommend them to anyone again. It may be that you get a good deal from Arnold Clarke but their aftercare is the worst within the used car industry. Even with them offering a 2 year warranty with my deal and not able to arrange a repair before I even collected the car shows how insufficient their warranty and aftercare is. This really needs to be reviewed by the senior operations manager to make them aware how pathetic the customer service is at the Arnold Clarke Leeds branch.
What's even strange is that within a day of requesting my deposit back, the car has gone back on sale as seen on their site which only reflects that the branch must have either made an error in the deal they offered us which due to their loss were just fobbing us off so we cancel the order or they have done a bodge job of the repair.”
“Everything that could go wrong went wrong.
1st - I will never even go to them again.
Example: quoted £200+ to change a rear light bulb that it costed me less than £20 and it took three minutes to change myself (I am not a mechanic)
Quoted £ 700+ to replace back brakes and discs. Found an honest mechanic (the one I used to go to before I was stupid enough to buy their extras) and spent £ 300.
They lie throught their teeth and try to rip us off at every turn with their policies (oh, this is not refundable, oh that is not covered) It's a given that most newer cars are too complex and difficult to repair compared to cars made before 2016, but Arnold Clark verges on criminality and I hope they will get their comeuppance one day. If you ask them a question in writing, they call you back so there is no record. I bought a new car and was clever enough at the time not to go back there for "services" because they check next to nothing. However I became stupid when I got their guaranteed used. I was supposed to be under warranty but they did not honour one single thing so far. Never again. conversely the only decent AC is the one in Auchinloch, and Springburn is kind of ok. But please avoid the one in Dennistoun as they are professional con men.”
“Took my deposit then sold my car didn’t tell me sorted the car finance out Monday agreed to collect Friday tried to call Thursday it was his day off ?
Called Friday they lied saying he was in a meeting
Called back then with a customer
Called back he finally came on the phone to say he sold my car my deposit would be refunded in 7 days
I asked to speak to the manager still waiting a call back after a day
Disgusting to treat customers this way stay away I was let down and left without a car stay away leeds branch”
“My Duster was in for a service and they changed a filter priced at nearly £29 I could purchase one for under £5 ,I know dealerships are dearer but thats over the top !!!”
“Warranty was a waste of money, wear and tear on after 15k miles on clutch… sold a lemon, paid extra for the warranty. Feel proper stitched up. Never mind the customer service which is bloody awful. Don’t go near this dealership!”
“Awful! Do not use AC 2 daughters and a friend bought cars from these cowboys all developed serious problems which AC would not repair! Also they use the same scamming Credit Company that own the Timeshare company says a lot!”
“Chasing a deposit paid for a car I cancelled buying due to the cyber attack. Arnold Clark have no right holding onto people's money.
Now it is reported millions of customers details have been stolen and at threat of being released into the dark web. They have put society at risk. No one contacts customers to update them on this. Disgraceful”
“Never would I use Arnold Clark, there corrupt liars only thing there interested in is a sale, traded/bought a car on 12th January the car I got wasn’t right kept losing power and gaining again, so handed car back on 16th January, which Arnold Clark none his mechanics could find fault, so they asked me to take car a test drive with 1 of there mechanics, right away car done Excatly what I said, so mechanic swapped seat with me, says yes I know what it is, but these cars are made to be like that. So he tested another car same make/model while I was in passenger side which same happened, so told them didn’t want car, they have given me 7 days to pick another car (which I can’t see, I feel bullied pressurised into buyin another car) which I haven’t don’t and don’t want to, I honestly thought u where in ur rights u could cancel within 7 days which Arnold Clark say if if car is faulty and no fault, on finance agreement says 14 days, called finance company they says only Arnold Clark can cancel as it’s not went live yet, so Arnold Clark still asking me pick another car, and says no matter what wether I have car or not finance company comes getting it from me in full in 28 days?? I’m not willing pay for something I’ve not got, or happy with…”
“Bought a car in October. Car was delivered 2 days late due to faults. Had the car 2 weeks and it broke down, garage changed a sensor. 3 weeks later the same thing again but this time the engine had no oil in it. The car was supposedly serviced before collection. We told them at this point if it happened again we would be rejecting the car. It broke down again and sat at our house for 3 weeks as they couldn't arrange an uplift as their computer system was down. They eventually lifted the car a week ago and said they would refund our deposit and finance. This still hasn't been done and we are getting sent from pillar to post trying to get an answer. An absolute shambles of a company who don't care as long as they have your money.”
“I have bought at least 6 cars in the past from Arnold Clark but after this experience I won’t be going back.
My 3 year old £21k car I bought from Arnold Clark on 23rd December has no heating, alarm going off constantly, EV battery only holding half charge, false tyre pressure warnings, dodgy key, not FSH as told.
Originally told they couldn’t order parts as the system was down. Then the parts aren’t available from the supplier. Today I was told nobody could talk to me as the systems are still down.
The only people who have responded are customer service. Nobody in sales or management will even return my call. Customer Service have not even managed to get anyone to call me.
3 weeks in and I have an undriveable car and Arnold Clark Linwood won’t even call me back.”
“What went wrong I'll tell u what went wrong I got a car of u the price was 11499 pounds two months later I went to see I could trade in for another car has I did not like the one I got was told my car was only worth 7250 a drop of 2249 pounds which dam right v scandals so that's what wrong .”
