Approved body repairers

Hi guys i am new to the register and i wonder if any of you out there can help me. Whilst my car was parked a 4x4 driver decided his tow bar would look great embedded in the front of my c4 cab. This seemingly was my fault for buying such a low car that he couldn't see it, but thats another story. Obviously he was at fault and an insurance claim was to follow. I live in the Surrey area and Porsche Guildford recommended me to a well known " Porsche approved body repair centre " in Slough. They replaced the front bumper section and resprayed it, but here's where the problem lies. My car is Zenith Blue and is now 5 years old. They sprayed the bumper Zenith Blue but the colour match was atrocious.They told me that colour matching is very difficult on Zenith blue, but i would have thought the very least they could do was try, after all they are supposed to be Porsche approved and are by far the most expensive in the area. I have a bright blue bumper and the rest of the car is not. I returned the car to them on the 31st Aug to show them this and after waiting an hour they agreed it needed to be "blended in" ( why was this not done in the first place, would they dare return it to Porsche Guildford or Reading in that condition ?) Anyway they promised to call me back that afternoon with an answer. Here we are on the 9th of Sept and i am still waiting for a reply from them. I have phoned them twice since and each time i am told "we will look into this and come back to you." The silence is deafening Has anyone else out there had a similar problem with these poeple , or could someone please offer me some advice as to what to do next. I have already wasted two days holiday going to see them to try and sort this out.

I had my car hit when only 8 weeks old. It went to your same repairer. When it came back all looked Ok until I saw the car at night. The bonnet looked very cloudy ( the car is Meridian Silver). It had to go back and be painted again. When it was returned it was still not perfect the cloudy look had gone but there were some extremely tiny bumps in the top coat. I left this as I could not be bothered with all the hassle at the time. When the car was in for a service the Body Technics guy was at AFN who saw the bumps and said he would contact me re getting it soreted. I have not since heard a thing. I have not yet chased as I am soon to sell the car for a 997 due December and am about to make noises. When it is re-painted again the couple of stone chips I have gathered will get fixed FOC. I must say in both instances their customer servicecontact skills have been appalling and I have always done all of the chasing with them never returning calls. Interestingly I was speaking to a service guy at another OPC and the cars that need cosmetic repairs for resale do not go to their Porsche approved repairer but to a local independant spray shop!

Bit surprised. I picked up my new 996 from Guildford AFN (as it was then) and was hit from behind on Ladymead (the road in front of the garage!). Not serious, but enough to warrant a new bumper. Bodytechnics did a superb job, absolutely indistinguishable. Trailered the car there and back. Left a decent courtesy car, and kept me informed. Suggest going to the top at Bodytechnics, they're keen to promote their association with Porsche, and regularly mail me with a newsletter, so poor customer service should be of concern to the MD. I know it would if it was my company. Peter

Why do we always have these ridiculous situations with anyone involved with the motor trade! Take your car to another reputable crash repairer (like a Mercedes, Ferrari or Aston approved one) and get them to tell you what these clowns did wrong (because they love it when a competitor drops a b*ll*ck). Then report this back to your insurers and the fact it is costing you time and money to get it sorted. They have legal types who like to throw their weight about. The point is, 'IT IS NOT YOUR PROBLEM'. That is what insurance is for. Also, as your local OPC 'recommended' your 'Approved' repairer, take the car back to them, and see what they have to say. Next time (god forbid), let the OPC deal with it for you (after all, it is not your money). That is, become a customer of the OPC, not the repairer. They will be much more worried about their reputation and your business, as you may never need a crash repair again (we can all dream), but you WILL need servicing, repairs or another car! In fact, take it up with the OPC anyway. They are the 'face' of Porsche Cars GB, that's why they are allowed to put a great big sign up! Oh, and GOOD LUCK!