If work goes sideways, don't expect customer service!
My BMW was broken into on Christmas Eve 2018 when my car was only a few months old. We brought it to Glass Doctor in North Vancouver for repairs; it was an ICBC claim. They repaired my glass and I was happy enough. Strangely, soon after the repairs (documented by repeated visits to the BMW dealership) my glass on the window they repaired would only intermittently go up and down. I would hear a clicking noise when it didn’t work and thought it may have been an electrical issue and did not consider that it may have been the glass replacement as that seemingly looked fine to me; hence bringing the car to BMW and repeatedly complaining to them about the window. Sure enough, every time we brought the car to BMW for 2.5 years, they would check the window and it would work without issue. Finally, in Jun 2021 I asked BMW to investigate further as it did not work just as often as it worked and I wanted to get it fixed. After having no car for 2 days, BMW advised me in simple terms that the after market glass that Glass Doctor installed was not the correct thickness and not clipping correctly to the regulator. The regulator was going downwards making a clicking sound as the glass remained up. This explained what I was hearing. They agreed to change the regulator under warranty and told me that they would replace the glass without charging for labour as they had dismantled everything already, however, I would have to pay for the glass. After not having a car for 2 days, knowing that Glass doctor had installed the wrong thickness to begin with and fearing that they may damage the newly installed regulator, I asked BMW to go ahead and install the proper glass.
In the meantime, I had contacted ICBC to ask what I should do, they advised me to call the manager and tell them my story. Three business days after I had found out that Glass Doctor had installed the wrong glass, I called them and explained the situation. A manager by the name of Justin called me back. He had the customer service and resolution skills of a 10 year old. He kept telling me it’s been 2.5 years and asked why I didn’t come to them sooner, to which I repeatedly told him that until I had been told a few days earlier, I did not think that the glass not going up and down was related to their work but rather an electrical issue with the car. He repeatedly asked me the same question. He proceeded to tell me that when they install glass, they check to see if the glass goes up and down; repeatedly I kept telling him that meant nothing as the window has been intermittently not working for 2.5 years, perhaps testing for the 2 minutes immediately after installation isn’t a true indicator that the work has been definitively completed correctly. He blamed BMW for not sending me back to them sooner and claimed it was their fault. He told me that the glass is not the wrong size (keep in mind he’s never looked at the faulty glass, which I still have) and BMW is trying to make money off me. I advised him that BMW has paid for a new regulator and all labour and only charged for the cost of the glass - $255. He asked me what I wanted him to do and I said to reimburse me for the replacement glass that was installed and was told he was unable to do anything for me. He also repeatedly told me that he couldn’t refund my deductible; I wasn’t asking for a refund of my deductible but my out of pocket cost for repairing their faulty work.
I accept responsibility for initially incorrectly assuming that the issue wasn’t their fault and not going to them sooner instead of repeated visits to BMW. The bottom line is that they installed the wrong glass (confirmed by multiple mechanics at BMW) and are saying that they didn’t. I guess if your job is without issue this company would seem fine enough, as they initially did for me but if you have any problems don’t expect any resolution or customer service. Save yourself time, money and peace of mind; if you have a broken window and it’s an ICBC claim, take it to the dealership.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $600.00