Alpine Printing

RE: ID# [redacted] To whom it may concern: 9/08/This letter is being sent in response to ID# [redacted] The stated customer chose Gates Automotive to perform repairs to his MLbased on our relationship with Mercedes-BenzGates Automotive is [redacted] Certified in Collision repair through Mercedes-BenzCustomer stated vehicle was towed to our Henrietta location on 7/13/with a [redacted] repair estimateThis estimate was to repair minor right rear damage (estimate attached)All the damage was on exterior panels only with no signs of any interior damageRepairs were completed on 7/29/During delivery of repairs to the customer he immediately directed his attention to the front of his vehicle, opposite side of repaired areaHe stated his paint was peeling and was not prior to repairsWe walked around the vehicle with customer and identified peeling and faded paint on numerous areas of the vehicleAt that point the customer stated “I had a cheap paint job performed in Florida”We advised the customer that the improper paint repairs from the prior shop resulted in the paint peelingWe offered for the customer to leave the vehicle for us to contact [redacted] on his concernsAfter review [redacted] insurance denied repairing the peeling paint, they were also able to see the poor prior refinishGates Automotive made the decision to repair the peeling paint on the front fender as a courtesyWe felt that we could have done a better job explaining to the customer the consequence of the previous refinish job prior to our repairsOnce completed customer was called letting him know the vehicle was readyThe next day (8/2/16) the customer's mother and sister arrived to pick up the vehicleWhen walking out to vehicle they appeared to focus their attention to the rear lift gate operation, they proceeded opening and closing the gate several timesWhile operating the rear tailgate it intermittently would not fully openThe mother insisted that the lift gate never had any intermittent issues while openingWe explained that this had no damage and could not be loss relatedShe then called for her son to come out He arrived to Gates automotive about minutes later, he was very aggressive and threateningIn a very calm professional manner we explained that we would be happy to call [redacted] for them to reviewThe insurance adjuster was nearby and came right over to reviewThe insurance adjuster denied responsibility immediately explaining to the customer that this has no relation to lossDuring discussion the customer's mother did state “I only had this happen one other time before the accident”The customer was very outraged with the insurance adjuster’s response and proceeded to be aggressive and insult Gates Automotive and ProgressiveWe recommended that the customer bring his vehicle to the local dealership or another shop for a second opinionAfter spending additional time with the customer, they apologized for their irate manner agreeing to pay us to diagnose concernWe then proceeded to diagnose finding both hydraulic lift cylinders to be leaking These cylinders are located underneath the headlinerWe sent multiple pictures to the customer and [redacted] for the file This was listed as a pre-existing issue for Progressive, we made the customer aware and he also agreed that this was not from the lossWe priced the repair for the customer, he denied repairs at this timeGates automotive did not charge the customer for the diagnosisDuring repairs our technicians noticed each time starting the vehicle had a slow crankWe see this often during Collision repairs, poor batteries will tend to show weakness from lack of useAs a courtesy we charged the battery, battery was completely dead, will not hold chargeAt this point we found output was under specified limit, may have a draw, will need to start with a new batteryThe battery retailed for $300, to further assist customer we sold it at our costThe customer's mother picked up the vehicle thanking us for everything, she offered to tip us with a $dollar bill and I said “thank you but we can’t accept that”The following week the customer called complaining his battery was deadHe said the battery was a result of the accident and bad wiringWe reminded the customer of our previous conversation in regards to a possible draw, or other electrical issuesWe asked the customer to have it towed in AAA, we would be happy to take another lookWe informed [redacted] insurance about the customer’s new concern, they immediately denied paying for any diagnoses in relation to any electrical issuesGates Automotive then performed diagnosis on the drawOur lead technician spent multiple days in between other jobs pin testing multiple circuits and wiring harnesses in the vehicleHe narrowed the fault down to three circuitsThese three circuits have no relation to the insurance loss (SRS, SOS-phone, convenience module)We called the customer and let him know what we found at this point, we would need additional time (hours) to diagnosisThe customer agreed to pay Gates Automotive to further diagnosisAfter two additional days of diagnosis we found a control module underneath the front interior console of the vehicle causing the drawOur technician also noticed that the carpet around the module was cut with a razor blade, we photo’d this and attached this to the fileThe module is also very rusty due to being exposed to the elements over the yearsI called the customer and let him know what we foundWe asked for the customer to stop down for us to review our findingsThe customer said he didn’t need to see it and denied the repair costs at this time of replacing the moduleWe explained to the customer he will continue to have this draw causing his battery to drain until this is repairedWe also explained to the customer that there may be other issues, unfortunately there is no guarantee on electrical repairs until all circuits are repairedIt is very common for this older version model to have electrical issues, they have multiple circuits Gates Automotive has been in business for yearsWe strive every day to give our customers the best service possibleWe pride ourselves on quality, honesty and dedicationWe addressed all of this customer’s concerns and used all of our resources to resolve the issuesThe customer left our shop with the understanding of what was necessary to correct his issues, as listed aboveIf you have any questions in regards to this explanation feel free to contact us We have all documentation attached to the customer's fileGates Automotive went above and beyond to repair the vehicle and address all of the customer’s concerns Sincerely, Rob C [redacted] Assistant Collision manager