Non-existent parts/repair service

[Dick Wolff]

Anyone had more success than me in getting a repair job done? Had a small crunch to my MG5 first week of September 2023. As of Jan 8th 2024, after two vists to the MG dealer/workshop and one to their nominated body repair firm I have yet to even get a quote for repair, let alone get an order in for parts (which I know will be very slow in coming). If the tail/indicator light had been damaged I would have been off the road for 4 months. If my insurance had to cover the cost of a courtesy vehicle, and if this were a common issue, MGEV insurance premiums will go through the roof.

Given this experience I couldn't recommend an MG to anyone.

 

[TallPaul]

I had a man run into the back of my MG 5 Trophy and crack my rear bumper in March 2023. He admitted liability and the repair from start to finish took 2 weeks, new rear bumper and respray. I was in insured with admiral on their gold policy so I had a hire car included. To be honest I was amazed how quick it all took to sort out

 

[Dick Wolff]

I had a man run into the back of my MG 5 Trophy and crack my rear bumper in March 2023. He admitted liability and the repair from start to finish took 2 weeks, new rear bumper and respray. I was in insured with admiral on their gold policy so I had a hire car included. To be honest I was amazed how quick it all took to sort out

Should have asked - did your repair require parts or were the body shop able to simply repair the crack?

 

[TallPaul]

Should have asked - did your repair require parts or were the body shop able to simply repair the crack?

My repair required a complete new bumper. Which was ordered through MG parts department.

 

[Dick Wolff]

I've decided to get rid of my MG5 as soon as I can get it repaired. I've phoned the local MG dealership and the two separate body repair shops they use a dozen times, and visited them in person, over the last five months (since the accident in early September) and they can't even get me a price for a replacement bumper, let alone the actual part. Apparently MG are not listed on the database that insurance companies use to estimate the cost of parts - one of very few companies not on the list. The dealership has proved spectacularly useless and I think are planning to get out of the franchise because it's an after-sales nightmare. I would discourage anyone from considering an MGEV - which is a pity because the car itself is good.

If someone wants to get an MGEV they must make sure that their insurance covers the cost of a courtesy car while it's off the road awaiting repairs. I suspect that would push the premium up - but there's no way round it, and the extra premium would have to be factored into the price. What would it have cost me to hire a car for six months? Nine months? Will I actually ever get a repair? Fortunately, in my case the damage didn't prevent me still using the car on the road, but if the crunch had taken a rear light/indicator unit out I don't know what I would have done.

 

[Fokmg]

I was lucky, the wife crunched a rear light cluster on the MG5 and my dealer supplied a replacement part within 48 hr and the price was not too bad (1/2 the price on ebay?!!!!!)
I suspect its is luck and how good the dealer is. I have always found my dealer O C Davies to be very helpfull.
I suspect MG have been caught up in their own dramatic sales and have not grown the necessary structure to support the sales?

 

[Lovemyev]

The problem appears to be, if the part(s) are on a back order, that means they are coming from China.
If the part is in stock in the UK then you are in with a better chance of sucess.
MG spare parts supply has simply not kept pace with the huge increase in sales over the last few years unfortunately.
This is extremely frustrating for both the customers and the dealers.

 

[Gomev]

Given other peoples experiences above it sounds very much like the problem is the OP's dealer/repairer.

 

[SantaDan]

Had the misfortune to be rear ended January 2023. Required new bumper and its associated parts as well as rear cross-member. Tailgate was damaged but repairable. Other driver admitted liability and it took 7 weeks in total to repair, although the first 3.5 weeks were waiting for the insurers approval. Great repair and paintwork by the body shop and fully matching Dynamic Red paintwork. Had a hire car for the duration of the repair which, by coincidence, was another MG5!

 

[R08Tam]

Before I got the MG5 I had a Kia Soul EV; lovely car but poor range (110). White van man drove into me and caused damage to steering, front suspension, bumper, lights and wing. It took three months for parts to come from Korea. Kia didn't keep parts for that car in stock in the UK as they only sold 1,100 of that particular model :-( I don't need a courtesy car as I have my Morris Minor to fall back on in emergency.

 

[Lovemyev]

Before I got the MG5 I had a Kia Soul EV; lovely car but poor range (110). White van man drove into me and caused damage to steering, front suspension, bumper, lights and wing. It took three months for parts to come from Korea. Kia didn't keep parts for that car in stock in the UK as they only sold 1,100 of that particular model :-( I don't need a courtesy car as I have my Morris Minor to fall back on in emergency.

Love the Moggy ! .

 

[R08Tam]

Love the Moggy ! .

Thanks

 

[Dick Wolff]

Given other peoples experiences above it sounds very much like the problem is the OP's dealer/repairer.

It was. I've posted below on the main thread

What a saga. It turned out that my local dealer from whom I'd bought the car (Waylands, in Oxford) were spectacularly useless and wasted five months of my time and effort sending me in wrong directions. Thanks to a couple of people posting on this forum it seemed that other people had not had the difficulties I was experiencing. I asked one of them which repairer he'd used and he said Steer. I phoned Steer in Reading (doable from Oxford because there's a good rail link) and within 4 hours I'd got an estimate. Job was booked in, completed quickly (although there was a week's wait) with the car being collected from my home and delivered back. They had no problem sourcing a replacement bumper panel -- so why couldn't the dealership even get a price? It took months to find out that the body shops they'd advised me to use were going to rely on Waylands to source the parts, which they seemed incapable of doing.

There's a catch : my insurers are not on Steer's list of approved insurers, so I ended up being unable to make a claim, meaning I'd wasted two years of comprehensive insurance premiums (although I've been able to keep my No Claims Bonus) and foot the bill myself.

I will be making a formal complaint to the dealership and suggesting that they advise any new buyers to check that their insurers are on Steer's approved list, otherwise they may have trouble finding a repairer in the area who can both source the parts and accept an insurance job from them.

A month and a half ago I submitted a complaint to HQ through the MG website and never got a response.

 

[DewiSant]

It was. I've posted below on the main thread

What a saga. It turned out that my local dealer from whom I'd bought the car (Waylands, in Oxford) were spectacularly useless and wasted five months of my time and effort sending me in wrong directions. Thanks to a couple of people posting on this forum it seemed that other people had not had the difficulties I was experiencing. I asked one of them which repairer he'd used and he said Steer. I phoned Steer in Reading (doable from Oxford because there's a good rail link) and within 4 hours I'd got an estimate. Job was booked in, completed quickly (although there was a week's wait) with the car being collected from my home and delivered back. They had no problem sourcing a replacement bumper panel -- so why couldn't the dealership even get a price? It took months to find out that the body shops they'd advised me to use were going to rely on Waylands to source the parts, which they seemed incapable of doing.

There's a catch : my insurers are not on Steer's list of approved insurers, so I ended up being unable to make a claim, meaning I'd wasted two years of comprehensive insurance premiums (although I've been able to keep my No Claims Bonus) and foot the bill myself.

I will be making a formal complaint to the dealership and suggesting that they advise any new buyers to check that their insurers are on Steer's approved list, otherwise they may have trouble finding a repairer in the area who can both source the parts and accept an insurance job from them.

A month and a half ago I submitted a complaint to HQ through the MG website and never got a response.

Legally you don't have to use a repairer recommended by your insurance company, you can use a repairer of your choosing however you will normally have to pay the bill yourself and then obtain a refund from your insurers.