[freakystyly]

Is that the price you have to pay for having a key in your pocket all the time? It sounds like a band-aid on a defective fob. Glad I've still got a "stupid" key fob that doesn't need replacing every 5 minutes.

[quick]

How i would have handled the situation...
Johnathan (random name), but the car's only a year old, should it not been covered under the warranty?

Johnathan: No sir, it's not?

Me: I am really surprised that I would be paying $8 every year for the battery

This way, I was able to kept my self respect/dignity yet got my point across that I wasn't happy.

I am sure SA would have paused and thought about it for a second and would have taken care of you

Losing your cool and arguing about $88 for what ever reason it was, doesn't show much class.

[Tambohamilton]

If they do work/fit parts on my car without my consent, anything above the total I was expecting to pay is a gift and I will not pay for it. The cashier doesn't randomly add items to your trolley/cart/basket at a supermarket, then expect you to pay for them.

OP, I think you were spot on to call them out, and remaining polite throughout ensures you never lost the moral high ground.

[thebmw]

Originally Posted by gosi

So what do you do?

Since you love silly medical analogies, your logic is similar to you having a pacemaker implanted only to wake up after the procedure and the doctor asking if you’d like a battery with it as well, since you didn’t specifically consent to it “Oh no problem sir, the battery is $5 but first you need to heal and then we’ll need to cut in you all over again”

All this fuss over a battery.

No, because it is on the consent form. I guessing you don't deal with consent forms and legal issues on a daily basis. Looks like you're not from the US so maybe you don't understand US laws?

[thebmw]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Had a similar issue with windshield wipers. They replaced them after I just replaced them a couple of months ago without even asking me first. They said they're already cracking. So I pulled the printed paper receipt from the glove box and handed it to the SA. The look on his face was priceless. I asked if he can get the old wipers and show.me the cracks and he said the tech had already thrown it out in the dumpster. He ended up removing the charges and I told him I would be writing to BMW about what had transpired

Exactly. Had the dealership required consent, the job would have never been done. Some members here, like these dealerships, don't understand the simple concept of consent!

[gatorfast]

Originally Posted by thebmw

Exactly. Had the dealership required consent, the job would have never been done. Some members here, like these dealerships, don't understand the simple concept of consent!

It's actually blowing my mind that some on here see nothing wrong with the situation and would happily fork over the money for fear of looking petty/cheap.

[ny325]

You did the right thing. I would use a different service advisor next time. He should of asked you first. That would really annoy me. So for all you know, he installed your original battery. He just created more work for himself.

[dmikhael619]

I'm kinda in between on this one. I'm a service writer at a benz dealer and its much the same thing key battery is not covered by the maintenance plan sometimes the techs just throw one in without asking and its your job to sell it. Its only 3$ at my dealer and I ask them even if I already put it in. If they say yes I leave the charge on there if they decline I still leave the battery on and comp it. Its much less work and builds your relationship with the customers ultimately you want them to come back and ask for you and its the litle things that count. Also as a customer you really want to get on your service writers good side. For certain clients of mine I will go out of my way to help them as much as I can they are the ones that control the pricing for all your repairs and can help you when you really need it. For example if your car is out of warranty and needs a major repair you didn't plan on i try and see if I can get it repaired under good will or I often give discounts without people asking. We get paid off how much profit we make so that key battery really means nothing but the fact that many of my clients will reschedule their appointment so they can work with me means all the difference.

[davidr3]

The fact that he tried charging you for it when you never asked is interesting to me. Usually my SA and dealership do a few cheap to them good will fixes to keep me happy & returning to them for bigger issues to keep more money in their pockets. You spent a lot of money on your car & they should be more worried about keeping you happy, screw what your SA thinks. Lots more dealerships out there.

[..Rush..]

I appreciated your viewpoint. I have a favorite SA / SW at a local Authorized Dealer/ Service who completely goes out of his way to help me, and find discounts where he can.

He also asked my consent on changing my fob batteries (which I accepted).

It's a two way relationship like anything in life.
Ultimately, both parties get what meets their own goals.

Originally Posted by dmikhael619

I'm kinda in between on this one. I'm a service writer at a benz dealer and its much the same thing key battery is not covered by the maintenance plan sometimes the techs just throw one in without asking and its your job to sell it. Its only 3$ at my dealer and I ask them even if I already put it in. If they say yes I leave the charge on there if they decline I still leave the battery on and comp it. Its much less work and builds your relationship with the customers ultimately you want them to come back and ask for you and its the litle things that count. Also as a customer you really want to get on your service writers good side. For certain clients of mine I will go out of my way to help them as much as I can they are the ones that control the pricing for all your repairs and can help you when you really need it. For example if your car is out of warranty and needs a major repair you didn't plan on i try and see if I can get it repaired under good will or I often give discounts without people asking. We get paid off how much profit we make so that key battery really means nothing but the fact that many of my clients will reschedule their appointment so they can work with me means all the difference.

[gatorfast]

Originally Posted by dmikhael619

I'm kinda in between on this one. I'm a service writer at a benz dealer and its much the same thing key battery is not covered by the maintenance plan sometimes the techs just throw one in without asking and its your job to sell it. Its only 3$ at my dealer and I ask them even if I already put it in. If they say yes I leave the charge on there if they decline I still leave the battery on and comp it. Its much less work and builds your relationship with the customers ultimately you want them to come back and ask for you and its the litle things that count. Also as a customer you really want to get on your service writers good side. For certain clients of mine I will go out of my way to help them as much as I can they are the ones that control the pricing for all your repairs and can help you when you really need it. For example if your car is out of warranty and needs a major repair you didn't plan on i try and see if I can get it repaired under good will or I often give discounts without people asking. We get paid off how much profit we make so that key battery really means nothing but the fact that many of my clients will reschedule their appointment so they can work with me means all the difference.

If you are going to leave the battery in no matter what why wouldn't you then just comp it for everyone? While some may be willing to pay the small fee I'm sure they would appreciate it being on the house much more.

[juld0zer]

Several things here:
- Warranty is different to a service inclusive package. Does your car have a service pack or do you normally pay for your oil services?
- It is a service requirement to replace the key batteries. It is on the check sheet. An oil service is not just changing the motor oil and filter. Every service includes a standard scope, which includes checking your sunroof drains for example. Present both keys and you get both batteries changed. Open up the compartment and if it has a Panasonic battery then that is the factory battery. Our genuine replacements are Vartas. They may be different in your region.
- A fault can be logged for a weak key battery. It doesn't identify which key has the weak battery. If you changed only one because you never/seldom use the second key (common scenario) then this can lead to the same situation. Since you have changed it before, you know the system doesn't lie when the message eventually pops up on your instrument cluster within 2yrs depending on how often you use the car. Any BMW with that pointy style key or a late model Mini with the fat key has the same key battery change interval. On cars with display keys, they can log the same fault to further add to the confusion. They just need to be recharged instead.
- To get rid of the warning message, you have to erase the fault from the control unit and then update the key's service data either manually or by driving the car up to 40km/h. I am unsure how long it takes to clear if you don't have the means to erase faults. In the workshop that is how I clear it. Mashing the buttons doesn't work.

It may be different in your region but here the key batteries are free if you have BSI.
If they are not or if you don't have a service pack then absolutely, I believe you should have been consulted prior to any upsell.

[dmikhael619]

Originally Posted by gatorfast

If you are going to leave the battery in no matter what why wouldn't you then just comp it for everyone? While some may be willing to pay the small fee I'm sure they would appreciate it being on the house much more.

I'm limited to certain $ amount I can comp and its usually just a few per month anyways. Also clients who happily pay the dealer $400 for an oil change usually don't care about a 3 dollar battery. Its just the price you pay to service a luxury car at a dealer.

[thebmw]

Originally Posted by dmikhael619

Also clients who happily pay the dealer $400 for an oil change usually don't care about a 3 dollar battery. Its just the price you pay to service a luxury car at a dealer.

And there you have it folks, the truth comes out. Dealerships feel that they can lie, cheat and steal if you have money. They don't believe in consent either. This is not directed to you dmikhael, just the whole business in general.

So going back to my medical example, it's like saying "if you can afford Botox, I'll just replace your knee while we're at it even though you don't need it and you haven't consented to it". Complete BS. Just because someone has money, that doesn't give you the right to swindle them, regardless of price. People can we have some morals and ethics here?!

[///MCollection]

Is the battery not just the same as the micro filter, not traditionally part of an oil service but necessary due to progress. I open the vents on my old land rover I get flies in my teeth! And the key and lock thing when it's raining is a ball ache specially with a 50 year old key.

My batteries are covered by the service pack but if they weren't I wouldn't mind them doing it every service or 2 years and if I've changed it recently and forgot to tell them so be it, there not psychic and I'm not getting the damn bing and getting stuck in the rain. I know £9 for a £3 battery is a big markup but then so is a genuine filter made by Mann etc.

£9 every 2 years is 1.23 pence a day and seeing as it rains everyday in the uk I have had worse value for money.

Thinking about it when the crappy weak plastic tangs break on the battery cover if they break them surely the key wouldn't be returned with stick tape holding its guts in as they damaged it?

[heavyD^2]

Originally Posted by gatorfast

It's actually blowing my mind that some on here see nothing wrong with the situation and would happily fork over the money for fear of looking petty/cheap.

I don't know. It's actually blowing my mind this thread made it to three pages. It's an $8 battery for crying out loud. Who cares?

[Tacoma]

Originally Posted by thebmw

Yes, lots of time on my hands now that I'm working from home! Obviously, you don't know what consent means either. OP never consented to having his battery replaced! So I guess if you're going to the OR for an injection we can do a knee replacement since you've already consented to going back to the OR?! Your arguments make no sense but you be you!

Originally Posted by gosi

So what do you do?

Since you love silly medical analogies, your logic is similar to you having a pacemaker implanted only to wake up after the procedure and the doctor asking if you’d like a battery with it as well, since you didn’t specifically consent to it “Oh no problem sir, the battery is $5 but first you need to heal and then we’ll need to cut in you all over again”

All this fuss over a battery.

Bad analogy because, unlike an oil change and key fob battery, which are 2 different things, a battery-less pacemaker doesn't work, you can't have one without the other.

A better medical analogy would be while you were under anesthesia for pacemaker implant they, without your consent, decided to give you hair implants as well because they decided it's needed - and then charged you for it.

I agree with the majority that (at least here in North America), you should not be charged for a service without prior consent, regardless of cost.

[CTSean]

Originally Posted by heavyD^2

I don't know. It's actually blowing my mind this thread made it to three pages. It's an $8 battery for crying out loud. Who cares?

At what dollar amount does the cost of an unrequested service become worthy of caring?

From my perspective, yeah it's only 8.00 who cares but at the same time it's telling the dealer they can charge you for unrequested services and you'll just hand over your credit card no questions asked.

Let's not pretend the dealership did OP any favors. They charged (attempted to anyway) full price for a service that wasn't requested.

[gosi]

The point where things change is different for each person, but for me personally I would say somewhere around 50 dollars (or euros). And before someone jumps and misinterprets this, I’m refering to the dealership fixing something that they found was broken and I was unaware of, without me giving my approval. EDIT: my specific approval. EDIT2: again, in general, I’m expecting them to service and fix my car. If you like driving around in a broken car, then that’s your deal

The thing that I find stupid here is that people are acting as if the dealership is somehow making money out of this and is intentionally doing this to make a quick buck. People like that are either stupid and never graduated from selling lemonade and think that selling batteries is a legitimate way to make money or really should find something better to do.

Everything else I agree with or at least understand, fine if you’re anal enough to want people calling you for your permission to change a damn battery, just be aware no one has yet gotten rich from doing it

[thebmw]

Originally Posted by gosi

The point where things change is different for each person, but for me personally I would say somewhere around 50 dollars (or euros). And before someone jumps and misinterprets this, I’m refering to the dealership fixing something that they found was broken and I was unaware of, without me giving my approval. EDIT: my specific approval. EDIT2: again, in general, I’m expecting them to service and fix my car. If you like driving around in a broken car, then that’s your deal

The thing that I find stupid here is that people are acting as if the dealership is somehow making money out of this and is intentionally doing this to make a quick buck. People like that are either stupid and never graduated from selling lemonade and think that selling batteries is a legitimate way to make money or really should find something better to do.

Everything else I agree with or at least understand, fine if you’re anal enough to want people calling you for your permission to change a damn battery, just be aware no one has yet gotten rich from doing it

Actually, we have graduated...some of us with multiple degrees and doctorates. And you know what we learned in school and from our parents? CONSENT!

Here is another example. Do we need consent to touch a woman? Touching is free...even less than an $8 battery! "It's just a simple touch...what's the big deal?" In a lot of countries, the answer is no, the man does not require consent and it is considered no big deal. Again, maybe in your country the laws and ethics are different. In the US, no consent = no good (maybe even illegal).

[gosi]

Originally Posted by thebmw

Actually, we have graduated...some of us with multiple degrees and doctorates. And you know what we learned in school and from our parents? CONSENT!

Here is another example. Do we need consent to touch a woman? Touching is free...even less than an $8 battery! "It's just a simple touch...what's the big deal?" In a lot of countries, the answer is no, the man does not require consent and it is considered no big deal. Again, maybe in your country the laws and ethics are different. In the US, no consent = no good (maybe even illegal).

Well it appears all of your degrees have not blessed you with common sense

Again, your example applied to your logic would mean you would only have relations with a woman for a predetermined amount of time, which I think is known all over the world as prostitution, and we all know that there are other forms of consent that are much more pleasant to both parties, and not time limited

[Tambohamilton]

Over here it's exchanging money for relations which defines prostitution, nothing to do with the time involved.

Your arguments are ridiculous, and go against evidence to the contrary.