Suomenojan autohuolto Oy Wrecked my car- Deny responsibility

sammyhelsinki · Post by **sammyhelsinki** » Mon May 04, 2015 12:18 pm

Hi, Suomenojan autohuolto Oy wrecked my car and say the whole engine has to be replaced at my expense. I need some advice on what legal stand i have and the procedure to handle it. Here is what happened.

On 13th April car stopped after about a minute drive from home. I had it towed to Suomenojan autohuolto Oy after speaking to them and they promised to look in to. I got a call on 14th saying it would cost me some 100+ euros to look into problem and on 15th I got a call that some valve was stuck and it started after closing it. I went on 15th and seen the car working...

He then suggested to change Timing Belt as it was too old and also suggested Engine Flushing and Oil Change. I recently had engine oil changed so said to go with timing belt change. On 15th April morning he sent a SMS saying the car might be unrepairable as the cam shaft bolt broke when they were replacing timing belt. I went there in person and he said the engine needs to be replaced to make it work again and his insurance does not cover the damage as they used standard tools.

I told him they needs to fix it atleast to original working condition as they broke it without any such risk intimated to me. But they deny responsibility and don't want to fix it what they skillfully and unprofessionally scrapped a working car engine.

Does anyone had similar experiences ? How did you fix it ? And any advice from legal people will be a great help!!!

**Sponsor:**

Upphew · Post by **Upphew** » Mon May 04, 2015 12:31 pm

sammyhelsinki wrote:Hi, Suomenojan autohuolto Oy wrecked my car and say the whole engine has to be replaced at my expense. I need some advice on what legal stand i have and the procedure to handle it. Here is what happened.

On 13th April car stopped after about a minute drive from home. I had it towed to Suomenojan autohuolto Oy after speaking to them and they promised to look in to. I got a call on 14th saying it would cost me some 100+ euros to look into problem and on 15th I got a call that some valve was stuck and it started after closing it. I went on 15th and seen the car working...

He then suggested to change Timing Belt as it was too old and also suggested Engine Flushing and Oil Change. I recently had engine oil changed so said to go with timing belt change. On 15th April morning he sent a SMS saying the car might be unrepairable as the cam shaft bolt broke when they were replacing timing belt. I went there in person and he said the engine needs to be replaced to make it work again and his insurance does not cover the damage as they used standard tools.

I told him they needs to fix it atleast to original working condition as they broke it without any such risk intimated to me. But they deny responsibility and don't want to fix it what they skillfully and unprofessionally scrapped a working car engine.

Does anyone had similar experiences ? How did you fix it ? And any advice from legal people will be a great help!!!

http://www.kkv.fi/en/online-consumer-se ... er-advice/

sammyhelsinki · Post by **sammyhelsinki** » Mon May 04, 2015 12:56 pm

i filed a application following steps here.. thanks for referring...

rinso · Post by **rinso** » Mon May 04, 2015 3:37 pm

Make sure you document everything.
Try to write down the phone and other conversations verbally.
Demand that all the broken parts are kept and returned to you.
When you claim, you need prove.

The responsibility of the garage is not always 100 %. If your car has a hidden problem that services during maintenance, the damage might be due to the hidden problem, not due to faulty garage procedures. It's a can of worms and I think you need advice from a specialist.

tuttu · Post by **tuttu** » Mon May 04, 2015 9:55 pm

http://kuluttajaliitto.fi/briefly_in_english

AldenG · Post by **AldenG** » Mon May 04, 2015 11:25 pm

sammyhelsinki wrote:... and his insurance does not cover the damage as they used standard tools.

That's bizarre workman's insurance.

Even minimal insurance should pay for accidents they have when they do things right. It's when they do things wrong that they might end up paying the consequences themselves. Surely they can't carry only errors-and-omissions insurance that pays exclusively for mistakes they make. Among other things (including consulting the advocates that have been recommended) you should have someone you can trust talk directly to their insurance provider.

But the way you describe it, they used too much torque on a seized bolt. That's something a competent professional won't do. And they can't extract a broken bolt? Really?? Are these guys serious mechanics or just a routine-maintenance shop who got out of their depth and don't have the expertise needed to recover?

sammyhelsinki · Post by **sammyhelsinki** » Wed May 06, 2015 9:04 am

These guys are part of Fixus http://www.soah.fi/.
Yup, he says his insurance don't pay for it and they cannot extract the bolt. But they do sell you several services for a working car until to the point they wreck it. Disappointing workmenship and very unprofessional. Never go there...

FinnGuyHelsinki · Post by **FinnGuyHelsinki** » Wed May 06, 2015 12:34 pm

I'd suggest never to take one's car anywhere but a service dedicated for that particular make, unless for some basic and general jobs (or in an absolute emergency); changing fluids and filters, refilling the air conditioning, reading OBD diagnostic codes (for information only, do not let them start/try to fix anything!), tire alignment,.... Even so, the car is always in better hands with people who have done the same for similar cars countless times.

vitaliysh · Post by **vitaliysh** » Wed May 06, 2015 10:17 pm

sammyhelsinki wrote:These guys are part of Fixus http://www.soah.fi/.
Yup, he says his insurance don't pay for it and they cannot extract the bolt. But they do sell you several services for a working car until to the point they wreck it. Disappointing workmenship and very unprofessional. Never go there...

I wonder if there are any insurance bonuses in industry, similar to accident free bonuses on car insurance? Maybe the guy is hoping that since you are a foreigner you'll just walk away.

FinnGuyHelsinki · Post by **FinnGuyHelsinki** » Thu May 07, 2015 7:33 am

vitaliysh wrote:Maybe the guy is hoping that since you are a foreigner you'll just walk away.

Likely has nothing to do with the customer being a foreigner, by default they deny, deny, deny... in an attempt to avoid paying anything until they must. Back in the day when I bought a car (new, albeit it was imported by the seller - a car sales business - from another country, instead of directly from the manufacturer), its rear shock absorbers failed towards the end of the warranty period. The thing was, the car had already been registered earlier in the country it was originally imported to, meaning its warranty period - as reflected in the manufacturer data - had already started, whereas I was sold the car with full new car warranty. When I contacted the seller, their first response - from their CEO, no less - was to question whether I had changed the sales date on the paperwork. For a while it went back and forth (sometimes with completely unrelated nonsense, "Who sold you the car? Oh yeah, he doesn't work here anymore."), they wanted me to send them copies of the sales documents (which they surely had on file themselves, probably just wished I'd lost mine), until they finally ran out of excuses and ended up paying for the new shocks.

sammyhelsinki · Post by **sammyhelsinki** » Thu May 07, 2015 4:19 pm

You both may be right, he may be expecting me walk away or to avoid loosing insurance bonus or so. My usual finnish garage guy strongly says he has to fix it as he broke it.. I filed a complaint in Consumer Ombudsman on legal side. Just wondering if Finnish consumer policies are that loose so guys like these get away from their bad deeds...

FinnGuyHelsinki · Post by **FinnGuyHelsinki** » Thu May 07, 2015 6:22 pm

sammyhelsinki wrote:Just wondering if Finnish consumer policies are that loose so guys like these get away from their bad deeds...

There's no penalty for trying, the worst case for them is that ultimately they will have to pay and the story spreads like wildfire in the media, usually the Internet.

tuttu · Post by **tuttu** » Fri May 08, 2015 10:46 am

FinnGuyHelsinki wrote:Likely has nothing to do with the customer being a foreigner, by default they deny, deny, deny... in an attempt to avoid paying anything until they must.

this.
showing them that you're serious about it and won't just take it, that just might be enough.
but, i never had success simply saying that i would go to a lawyer, but once or twice i went to a lawyer (again i suggest kuluttajaliitto - you have a right to this and shouldn't need to pay it all yourself) and simply sending that first letter (asking them in polite, but definite terms to fix the damage they made - but this time from a lawyer) was enough. you don't have to take it all the way to court, no.

sammyhelsinki wrote:These guys are part of Fixus http://www.soah.fi/.

i don't think that being subcontractor of some larger company makes them more trustworthy... but i looked at their address, didn't that make you think twice already?

foca · Post by **foca** » Sun May 10, 2015 11:55 pm

Since they say that the engine is irreparable ( which is most probably untrue - usually it is the price of fixing it just is too high, but it still can be fixed) - they have broken one of the bolts that connect camshaft to the valve cap. What is strange is that they tried to remove the camshaft- changing timing belt usually does not require that - it is a relatively simple job that definitely does not require access under the protective cover over the camshaft......

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Mon May 11, 2015 1:01 pm

Hum, stuck valve, broken camshaft bolt... Sounds like there was something going on there.

Old engines, yes you could fix anything, the modern ones you just get a replacement...

I also wonder WTF they need to diddle with the camshaft if they change the timing belt? Which bolt they cracked? The timing wheel ones?

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