As you know I am disputing the charges for service on my 2005 Ford, dated 11-13 by Veteran's Ford. They over-charged me approximately $756.00.
My son took the car to Veteran's Ford in Metairie, LA for an oil change because the indicator on the dash said the car needed such. He requested at that point, only an oil change. Later he received a call from Veteran's and was told the car needed a 30,000 mile service. That was odd because the car had 40,000 miles and really only needed a 5,000 interval service at most. At that time he asked that the wind-shield wipers be replaced. When he went to get the car, the bill was $860.44. He asked why the bill was so high, and was informed that labor is high these days.
Anyone who has ever owned an automobile knows that an oil change and wipers does not cost anywhere close to $860.00. My son Christopher was in no position to argue with the Veteran's service department about the details of the bill, because he had no way to get home without the car.
The attached bill shows many service items, which were not requested (or mentioned by the Veteran's Ford service attendant) nor required. Also, the company added various non-Ford products, which were not requested and certainly not required.in particular:
1. The coolant was flushed and replaced, and expensive non-factory additives were billed for as well as supposedly' installed. It so happens that this particular automobile has a Ford Gold coolant. Gold coolant is not supposed to be changed until 100,000 miles. It should not have been replaced. Every Ford dealer in the United States knows this.
2. There was a fuel induction service' charge. There was absolutely no request for such a service. This particular service would never have to be done on a car with such low mileage. Especially since it was not requested and never mentioned.in fact this test is quite rare on a car with less than 100,000 miles.
3. Veteran's performed a battery service'. There was no request for any kind of battery service. There was no electrical problem in the car.
4. Veteran's charged $99.00 for an oil filter. There is not an oil filter in the United States that costs $99.00, except this particular one at Veteran's.in fact, the normal charge for this oil filter is approximately $5.00.
5. There were $98.00 in charges for non-Ford products.
Ford recommends service on this car every 5,000 miles. The normal charge for a 40,000 mile check-up, which would include an oil change and tire rotation (which was not done), is approximately $57.00. Adding wipers to the car (2 front and one in the back) would be an additional $47.00.in fact, there was no request for a rear wiper replacement. The total for the job requested would be $104.00. This price includes labor and (according to Ford Motor Company) would be fairly uniform nation-wide.
Since the car had 40,000 miles on it, the question is, why was a 30,000 mile service even suggested? The reason of course is that a 30,000 mile service generally has a substantially higher charge about $100.00 more than a 40,000 mile service. There was no basis for Veteran's to perform a 30,000 mile service, because a 30,000 mile service had been performed on the car sometime ago. After all, the car had 40,000 miles on it, and whoever heard of servicing a car by past mileage.
Clearly, there would be no way that my son's request for an oil change and wipers could even remotely cost near the $860.44 charges.
Before I had a chance to fully research the Veteran's Ford bill, I wrote the President of the dealership, Robert Weinmann, and requested the bill be adjusted. I received a call from the service department of Veteran's Ford after I wrote Mr. Weinmann. I was informed by the individual with whom I spoke, who identified himself as a service manager, that my son authorized' these extensive services. That is an out and out lie. I told this person, that I would like to settle this matter for the price of the requested service. I state again, the only service requested was an oil change and the replacement of the front wind-shield wipers. Specifically, the cost should have been $104.00. I expect a credit on my account for the balance of $756.44.
My Ford Freestyle, has New Mexico plates on it. I think that New Orleans/Metairie, LA is a very active tourist area. The dealership clearly thought that my car being registered in New Mexico, gave them a license to steal and that I was too far away to do anything about it We'll see.
I would appreciate the cooperation of American Express in this matter, as I intend to pursue this fraud to the fullest extent.
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