A few weeks after leasing my 2025 XC60 I discovered, when - A $49 Breakup
A few weeks after leasing my 2025 XC60 I discovered, when my registration arrived, that Riley failed to install the front license plate bracket which is essential for mounting the plate. When I called, they told to me to bring the car back. I told them I was 30 miles away, in NY, and that my local local Volvo dealer was just a two mile drive. They said I could go there.
The NY dealer charged me $49 for the bracket. Naturally,I expected Riley would reimburse me and called my salesman. He demurred, saying Riley would have done it for free.
Incredulous that there was any pushback, I responded that this was RILEY’S MISTAKE, and that I was a mere 2 miles from the NY dealer and shouldn’t have been further inconvenienced by having to go 60 miles round trip to Riley for Riley’s benefit. I also explained that driving in NY without a front plate is ILLEGAL and would have exposed me to a moving violation (Section 402 NY Vehicle and Traffic Law). (I no longer had the temporary “plate”.)
I then asked my salesman for assurances that Riley would take care of it. He said his managers had gone for the day, he couldn’t very well pay out of his own pocket, and that he didn’t have the authority to agree to reimburse me the $49.
REALLY? A seasoned salesman didn’t have the discretion —or common sense —to reassure his customer that his dealership would pay for their error and reimburse their customer $49 for an integral part of the car they failed to install?
This was bad enough, but it got even worse. The next day, even the General Manager refused.
Riley’s solution to a problem they caused was entirely self serving, requiring the customer who was wronged to drive 60 miles round trip to them so they could avoid having to absorb a $49 expense, completely indifferent to the fact that their customer would not only be massively inconvenienced, but risk being fined for a moving violation.
INEXPLICABLE that Riley would choose to alienate a new customer who leased her 5th Volvo over a measly $49.
INEXPLICABLE that Riley dug their heels in. They had an opportunity to rectify their mistake and protect their relationship with a new customer (as well as their reputation) by reimbursing me for a $49 part THEY FAILED to install on a brand new $52K car and arbitrarily refused to do so.
THERE IS NO JUSTIFICATION FOR THIS POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE.
Common themes of negative reviews on this and other sites include reports of unprofessional behavior and unresponsiveneas of staff, including management, mostly in recent years. Riley may once have been a reputable “family” business, yet it appears from the litany of complaints that the Riley of today would prefer to give stock responses to negative feedback after the fact than be proactive and do the right thing by their customers in the first place.
Don’t fall, like I did, for the empty promise on their website that “Unlike corporate dealerships… a "Riley" is always eager to . . . help however necessary,” which is clearly a vestige of an earlier time. The “help” needed in my situation had to have been among the simplest Riley had to render. It was a such an easy ask. And yet….
There are many Volvo dealers in the Tristate area who would love to serve you. Ask yourself if the Riley of today, based on these customer experiences, deserves your money and your trust. Or if it is better avoided.
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