Behind the Wheel with Phil Lebeau

Give Back Your Loaner Car — Or Else!

This is a story you’ll think about the next time you get a loaner car from a dealership.

Helicopter
Tom Carter | Photolibrary | Getty Images

According to Autoblog News and IOL Motoring, BMW Dealers in Durban, South Africa hired an armed team of professional repo men to retrieve a BMW 325 loaner car.

And just to make sure the message was clear, the repo team had a chopper hovering overhead as they went to the customer’s office guns drawn.

Not surprisingly, the customer turned over the keys.

Seem extreme? Just a bit \(note the sarcasm\).

IOL motoring says the customer did not want to turn over his loaner because he was waiting to see if the dealership would replace or fix his 325. Apparently, the car's air conditioning was not working.

Not surprisingly, this has wound up in court. A judge has ordered the dealership to give the loaner back to the customer. Now the customer and the dealership have a month to plead their case in court.

Personally, I can’t wait to see how this story ends. Either way, can you imagine how awkward it will be the next time this customer brings his car, or loaner, or future car to the dealership?


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