Skoda India — aggrieved customer complaint - skoda rapid edition x (petrol) purchased from grand auto capital, pitampura, new delhi

Address:

New Delhi, Delhi

To : Mr. Gurpratap Boparai, Managing Director, Skoda Auto Pvt Ltd.
Mr. Abhinav Rishi, Managing Director, Grand Auto Capital, New Delhi
Skoda Customer support worldwide

Cc : Mr. Bernhard Maier. CEO, Skoda Auto


Sir,

It is with a great deal of disappointment that we write to you, to report how we, as first time customers of Skoda, have been cheated and duped by Skoda Grand Auto Capital, Pitampura, New Delhi.

My daughter in law Dr Aprajita Sinha purchased a Skoda Rapid Edition X (Petrol) from Grand Auto Capital, Pitampura in November 2017, through Mr. Neeraj Paharia, their Sales team leader. Mr. Neeraj initially collected a booking amount of Rs 51, 000 (by cheque), followed by a sum of Rs 1, 56, 000 in cash, and Rs 6, 00, 000 and Rs 4, 91, 000 by two cheques. These were collected from our residence on 22/11/17. He did not provide us a receipt for the cash amount, but instead gave us his official Skoda business card with his signature and the amount received on the back of the card, as an acknowledgement of receiving the registration amount in cash (copy attached). The car was delivered on 29/11/17 with a temporary registration number (DL 08 TC WP 042), with an understanding that a permanent registration number would soon be provided.

Mr Neeraj Paharia was unreachable by phone shortly thereafter. On enquiring from Grand Auto Capital, we were told by Mr. Amit, the assistant manager at Grand Auto Capital, that Mr. Neeraj Paharia was involved in fraud with the company and is no longer associated with them. He told us that there was a case filed against Mr. Neeraj for fraud and he would get back to us regarding permanent registration of the care once the matter was sorted, which he never did. Furthermore, he stopped attending to our calls. On contacting the showroom thereafter, we were told that we wouldn’t be provided permanent registration for the car, as the company hadn’t received payment for the same.

We spoke to Mrs. Shilpi (Customer Relations) and Mr. Madan (Accounts), who told us that we have to pay a further sum of Rs 1, 40, 000 to get permanent registration, as according to them, the cash amount of Rs 1, 56, 000 was not received by the company. Furthermore, when we showed them proof of this cash payment to Mr Neeraj (his acknowledgement with his signature on his business card), Mr. Madan offered to settle the matter if we agreed to bear 50% of the cost, which was refused.

My daughter in law and son are both doctors and resident surgeons working at Venu Eye Institute and Safdarjung Hospital in New Delhi respectively. With their busy schedules, it has been extremely stressful and frustrating for them to repeatedly contact and seek a solution from Grand Auto Capital, who have been stubborn and indifferent to our problem. It is extremely obvious that the company was cheated by Mr. Neeraj Paharia, and an ordinary customer is being made a victim. It is evident that the onus of accounting for the lost money lies with the company and not on us, who were delivered the car only after full payment.

We decided to go with Skoda for its reputation and quality with professional and trustworthy sales teams. However, we are being harassed by withholding the permanent registration of the new car in order to force us to pay, and recover losses incurred from your own employees. You will appreciate that such incidents reflect extremely poorly on a reputed company as yours.

My daughter in law is constrained to seek alternative modes of communication for her daily professional commute to hospital in the absence of registration of her new car. Please be aware that we shall escalate this issue manifold in the absence of a speedy and satisfactory response from you.

We trust that Skoda will stand up for professionalism, integrity, honesty and fair play.

Regards,

Dr. Anil Sharma
MS, FICS, FRCS (Edin), FRCS (Eng)

President- Asia Pacific Hernia Society (APHS), 2015- 17
Convener, Hernia Essentials training program of APHS
Examiner and Clinical Tutor - Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCS Ed)
Editor - Journal of Minimal Access Surgery (JMAS)
Associate Editor - Indian Journal of Surgery (IJS)
International Advisory Board, Hernia journal.

Director, Endohernia Surgery
Max Institute of Minimal Access, Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery
Max Healthcare, Saket, New Delhi
Tel.: +[protected], Fax: +[protected]
e-mail: [protected]@yahoo.in