Mercedes-Benz of Brooklyn

Mercedes-Benz of Brooklyn responded

Dr. Anica, I am the Service Manager here at Mercedes-Benz of Brooklyn and I am very sorry to hear that you had an unpleasant experience with our Service Department. I see you that you mentioned that Management wasn't helpful in handling this matter, but I was unaware of the situation. My office door is always open and I would gladly assist whenever a customer is in need, especially if they feel they were treated unfairly. Here at Mercedes-Benz of Brooklyn we value all of our customers and discrimination is not something that is tolerated in our Company. Again, I apologize that you felt that way when you visited. To touch upon the key ordering process (which can be a challenging one) there must be certain documents provided before we can order one. These rules are not set by the Dealership and when there is uncertainty in the documents provided by the customer the Service Advisor will seek assistance from our Parts Department who are the most well-versed in this process since that is the Department that physically places the order. Lastly, I confirmed with our Parts Manager that a temporary registration will not suffice in the ordering of a new key. If you have any further questions or concerns I can be reached directly at 718-535-0690. Thank you.

Dr. Anica responded

Hi, Thank you for your response. I received a call from someone from your office last week when I reached out directly to your dealership via messaging to make my complaint, and was told that you would be informed about my poor experience and there would be follow up. There was none. Hence, I'm confused as to why you report being unaware of my negative experience there. I appreciate the apology, though I take issue with a few things you've stated here. When I requested that the key be ordered, the response from your agent was not that you had a policy that did not allow for temporary registrations to be used (as you seem to imply here) but that he accepted it, and viewed it with undue suspicion, then he wanted to see a bill of sale as he seemed to think the card and driver's license were not enough proof of my ownership. The person I spoke to on the phone, also did not echo your claims of a temporary registration card being insufficient and unusable, but spoke about the temporary registration being "a piece of paper" that could be doctored on photoshopped. Let's put aside the inconsistencies in your dealership messaging for a moment, and consider this. As a dealership, you sell cars and give newly purchased car owners a temporary registration card, identical to the one I received from my dealership. If this "piece of paper" is worthless, why give it at all? Secondly, as a dealership, it should be quite easy for you to discern a fake card from an authentic one given that you literally have access to copies of official temporary cards to which you can make comparisons. Thirdly, if the temporary card is only "a piece of paper" that can be falsified, why wouldn't the bill of sale he asked for also be " a piece of paper" that could be falsified? Fourthly, you stated "When there is uncertainty in the documents provided by the customer the service advisor will seek assistance." Why was there uncertainty about my documents? They were provided by a legal and official dealership, and had only been removed from the envelope I received it in that day when I took it out to hand to your agent. There was not even a bend on the edge of the paper, much less anything on it that would create "uncertainty." Lastly, if the policy about temporary registration cards are not dealership specific (as you also seem to imply here) but company wide, how is it possible that I could have taken the same paperwork and identification to another official MB dealership and not have the same hardship that I had at your place? I highly doubt it's because this other dealership chose to ignore policy, but perhaps there is no such company wide policy, and this problem is specific to your dealership and/or the agent. My point is this: At some point he would have had to trust that the documents I provided were legitimate because they're all "pieces of paper." What was it about me, because it's not the paperwork, that would make him "uncertain" of what I was stating or showing? There is nothing about my manner, dress, or speech that could possibly indicate that I or what I gave would warrant suspicion. Unless of course, you assume that my dark skin is evidence of my culpability, then I'm automatically held accountable for something beyond me. The difference between my experience and that of others is that the trust would have been given much sooner to someone with lighter skin while it was withheld from me. Please do not misunderstand or attempt to make this into a security issue. Like any reasonable person, I did not expect to simply walk off the street, hand over a pair of keys to an expense car, and then ask to have keys made without appropriate proof of ownership. What I object to, and will continue to object to is the unnecessary burden of proof that was imposed upon me to verify ownership after I had already given legal, satisfactory, and legitimate documentation to prove ownership. If the agent had stated to me, "I'm sorry, due to company policy we do not make keys when there is a temporary registration card, only the permanent cards are accepted here. I understand you just bought the car, but feel free to come back when you receive the permanent card," that I would have respected and accepted. But that is not what happened, nor is it the policy, as even your comments regarding "uncertainty in the documents provided by the customer" prove. Your comments, those of the person on the phone from your dealership, and the actions of the agent all communicate that the acceptance or rejection of the paperwork is at the discretion of the agent not the company policy. Mr. Chen chose to view my paperwork with "uncertainty" despite having proof that there was nothing suspicious or nefarious occurring. His discretion was based on race not paperwork, not speech, not manner, not appearance. That is offensive. I tried very hard to speak to management and did not wish to make my feelings public, but as I stated earlier, the lack of follow up from your dealership, and the fact that the promise from the person on the phone to speak to management was clearly a lie as per your own confession that you were unaware of it, left me no choice. I would have no problem speaking to you by phone, and will reach out you at the number you provided after the holiday. Thank you.