Me and my husband took our two kids on a trip to Disnelyland Paris on the 3rd July as a surprise for our daughters 15th birthday. After driving all the way to paris from London, we were about to enter the hotel car park when we were shunted from behind. There was very minor damage to the rear bumper but the engine would not idle and kept cutting out. The police attended and an ambulance was called for our daughter who had received whiplash. We called the RAC to see if they could send a mechanic to check if the car could fixed. My husband went to the hospital with my daughter and I waited for a mechanic to arrive. While my husband was still at the hospital, I received a text message from the RAC giving me the name and address of a garage, and then a breakdown lorry arrived and took our car away. Still being in shock, I assumed the car had been taken to be repaired. My husband returned with our daughter and we called the garage to check on the car. We had to use an interpreter from the hotel as our french is limited, and nobody at the garage could speak english. The garage seemed a little miffed because they told us that they had informed the RAC before the pickup that they were unable to look at our car because of their heavy workload, but said that the RAC had insisted that the car be sent there regardless. We asked again if there was any way they could check the car but werre told in no uncertain terms that there was no chance at all. We were due to return to the UK on the saturday morning and were told by our travel insurance that we were only covered for travel if our daughter had been seriously injured, and our motor insurance (please feel free to ask for name!) would only provide a courtesy car on return to the UK. We then had to pay for the only seats on the eurostar (first class for £600!) which were not available until sunday evening. The RAC paid for an extra night at the hotel for us. The RAC offered us a courtesy car in paris, but with no baby seat for our 3 year old, we could not use it.
Our car insurance then sent someone to assess the car on the monday after our return. We were told the bumper would need replacing but that was it. We asked what was wrong with the engine and was told by the garage the guy did not even ask for the keys and did not start it. The insurance then decided to write the car off as an uneconomical repair, and that the car would be given to the garage for 'disposal'. We called the garage again, and was then told the car had been repaired. When we asked what they meant they told us the fuel safety cut off had been triggered by the shunt and they had reset it and the car was perfectly driveable.
Our car insurance would not repatriate the car because of the value and said we could have the car back if we accepted the settlement and agreed to repair the car. We contacted the RAC and asked why they never sent a mechanic to the roadside to look at the car as we requested and they told us it was standard practise to send it to a garage. When we informed them that it was the only the fuel cut off they werent interested and then all we got were the excuses as to why we werent assisted at the roadside. We then asked why they insisted on sending the car to a a garage that had told them it was too busy and was told again that they had done nothing wrong!
We looked at prices for us to return to paris to recover the car ourselves, but after paying back the money we had to borrow to return to the UK we could not afford it. We asked the RAC if they woud help us to recover the car, or help us towards the cost of travelling to paris but again they said it was not their concern and had done everytrhing they could to help us.
The attitude of the "Customer Care" (I use this term very loosely) was absolutely disgusting, and I have never been made to feel so small in all my life. All we were asking for was assitance to get our family car back from a garage it should never have been sent to in the first place, but were met with nothing but negativity.
We then asked for details of the Ombudsman and I was first told that I was wasting my time as the Ombudsman "Always" took the side of the RAC (please check the phone call recordings RAC!) and then when I insisted on them giving me the details they then refused point blank to give them to me!
We are absolutely sickened that our car was quite literally given away because the RAC would not inspect it and gave it to a garage that could not do the work anyway.
We are still waiting for an official response from the RAC about this, and cant wait to to take this matter further.
Disgusting service, disgarceful attitude and shameless arrogance. We are telling everyone we know what has happened as we would hate for anyone else to be left abroad with nothing except P**s-poor excuses.
Our car insurance then sent someone to assess the car on the monday after our return. We were told the bumper would need replacing but that was it. We asked what was wrong with the engine and was told by the garage the guy did not even ask for the keys and did not start it. The insurance then decided to write the car off as an uneconomical repair, and that the car would be given to the garage for 'disposal'. We called the garage again, and was then told the car had been repaired. When we asked what they meant they told us the fuel safety cut off had been triggered by the shunt and they had reset it and the car was perfectly driveable.
Our car insurance would not repatriate the car because of the value and said we could have the car back if we accepted the settlement and agreed to repair the car. We contacted the RAC and asked why they never sent a mechanic to the roadside to look at the car as we requested and they told us it was standard practise to send it to a garage. When we informed them that it was the only the fuel cut off they werent interested and then all we got were the excuses as to why we werent assisted at the roadside. We then asked why they insisted on sending the car to a a garage that had told them it was too busy and was told again that they had done nothing wrong!
We looked at prices for us to return to paris to recover the car ourselves, but after paying back the money we had to borrow to return to the UK we could not afford it. We asked the RAC if they woud help us to recover the car, or help us towards the cost of travelling to paris but again they said it was not their concern and had done everytrhing they could to help us.
The attitude of the "Customer Care" (I use this term very loosely) was absolutely disgusting, and I have never been made to feel so small in all my life. All we were asking for was assitance to get our family car back from a garage it should never have been sent to in the first place, but were met with nothing but negativity.
We then asked for details of the Ombudsman and I was first told that I was wasting my time as the Ombudsman "Always" took the side of the RAC (please check the phone call recordings RAC!) and then when I insisted on them giving me the details they then refused point blank to give them to me!
We are absolutely sickened that our car was quite literally given away because the RAC would not inspect it and gave it to a garage that could not do the work anyway.
We are still waiting for an official response from the RAC about this, and cant wait to to take this matter further.
Disgusting service, disgarceful attitude and shameless arrogance. We are telling everyone we know what has happened as we would hate for anyone else to be left abroad with nothing except P**s-poor excuses.