Unprofessional, ******* and appalling service delivery!!

DON’T TOUCH CAR CARE WORKSHOP, WATERKLOOF, PRETORIA!!! Please read about the appalling, unprofessional and ******* services rendered to my in-laws. Absolutely disgusting!! My VW Golf TSi, was towed to Car Care Workshop (CCW) in the first week of February 2023 as the oil pump had failed. A quote was given on 11 February 2023 and we gave them the go-ahead to fix the car as the ‘very confident’ owner, told us he had had a similar car to repair before. The first attempt at a repair took 3 weeks. When we fetched the car on 24 February 2023, it had damage on the bonnet and wheel arch, and had to be taken back on 27 February to go to a panel beater. Around 10 March, CCW fetched the car when the bodywork was repaired and then told us the car was back on the ramp as it wasn’t right yet. ‘A bit longer’ was a few months, with excuses of wrong parts ordered or parts not available and the list goes on. Very strange, being a VW, with parts readily available in SA. In the months from February to now – 23 November – we have fetched the car 3 times and had to take it back each time with either damage to the bodywork – twice, or oil pouring out of the engine, or the car not running correctly and the list goes on. The second time we fetched the car, an employee grabbed the key out of my husband’s hand and ran away with it, because we insisted on keeping back a small amount of the original bill, until we were satisfied. How do you treat clients like this?!! Out of desperation, (no car for 6 months with excuses), we took our complaint to the Motor Ombud on 2 August 2023 and our daughter was told by the owner of Car Care Workshop, that he would not work on the car any further until the Ombud had made a ruling. However, on 2 November, we got a whatsapp to say the car was fixed and ready for us to collect and we were sent a bill for all the extra parts they had replaced, PLUS R300 for FUEL, because ‘they drove the car for 500kms to test it’!!! We were not given a second quote for this new bill, (Consumer Protection Act has a lot to say about this) and we did not give them permission to drive the car for 500kms and it is now over NINE MONTHS, that they have had the car. We went to fetch the car on 20 November, and were told that unless we pay this second bill, we could not take OUR car!! So, no chance for us to drive it to make sure it is ACTUALLY repaired properly. We have not been shown any boxes with old parts in them, taken from the car to PROVE that they did in fact replace what they say they have and according to the Consumer Protection Act, repairing the car without our knowledge and without giving us a quote is against the law. We also question whether VW parts have been used. We were never offered a rental car, our car was damaged twice and had to be repaired, we paid the majority of the first bill, but LUCKILY kept back a small amount until the first body work damage was fixed. This new bill, which we knew nothing about, is substantial. What about our inconvenience with not having a car for 9 months, extra expense on our side and just generally a very bad experience from this company. We have no confidence that the car will be in good condition when we eventually get it. They do not deserve to be in business!!! THINK 100 times before you take any car to them.