8:28 am, January 17, 2025
A car dealership has been forced to apologise after a staff member was caught on camera relieving himself on a customer’s car.
Mercedes-Benz of Shrewsbury says it is ‘deeply sorry’ after the contractor was captured urinating onto a £30,000 A35, which was in for its annual service.
The dealership, ran by Lookers, has offered peed off owner Michael Hinsley £250 in compensation and promised that the unnamed urinator will not work at the site again.
However, Hinsley says the firm’s response ‘doesn’t go far enough’ adding that he was ‘disgusted’ by the situation.
In quotes reported by the Metro, the furious customer said: ‘I was absolutely horrified to see what the guy had done, to urinate on my car – I simply couldn’t believe it.
‘I came across this clip of a guy putting my car through a car wash. I was horrified as they were using a car wash rather than a mechanical-type wash but what happened next was way more shocking.
‘All of a sudden, I could see what he was doing, and I was absolutely horrified.
‘I just couldn’t believe someone could do this.’
Hinsley, from Broseley in Shropshire, pays the dealership £41 per month for an aftercare package, including an annual service.
At first, he said he was pleased with the quality of the work but he was left ‘horrified’ by what he found when he reviewed the car’s dashcam.
The footage showed a member of staff beginning to clean the car before briefly disappearing out of shot. He then returned, pulled down his trousers and began to urinate onto the car.
The customer immediately complained to the dealership, which launched an investigation. Inquiries revealed that the perpetrator worked for a third party valeting service and was not directly employed by Mercedes of Shrewsbury.
The valeter in question no longer works at the dealership but the whole affair has left Hinsley furious.
‘I was absolutely horrified to see what the guy had done, to urinate on my car – I simply couldn’t believe it,’ he continued.
‘I came across this clip of a guy putting my car through a car wash. I was horrified as they were using a car wash rather than a mechanical-type wash but what happened next was way more shocking.
‘All of a sudden, I could see what he was doing, and I was absolutely horrified.
‘I just couldn’t believe someone could do this.’
He added: ‘They [the dealership] told me they had identified the employee responsible and that he was no longer working there – they said all they could do was apologise.
‘I’m disgusted with how they’re treating me and the whole situation.
‘The valeting area is on their premises and gated-they are still responsible for what happens there.
‘[My car is] a big investment, and I trusted them with it.’
Last month Car Dealer was told by employees that Lookers had switched to a ‘cheaper’ car cleaning company, which was said to be leading to vehicles not being prepped properly.
In response to the latest incident, which took place last month, retailer said it had ‘implemented measures to ensure such behaviour will not occur again’.
The Lookers reinforced its apology and insisted that its ‘priority is to maintain the highest standards of professionalism and respect’.
A spokesman for the firm said: ‘Mercedes-Benz of Shrewsbury have taken this matter extremely seriously and are deeply sorry for the distress caused to the customer.
‘The individual involved was a contractor, not a direct employee of the dealership.
‘As soon as the incident was brought to our attention, the contractor was immediately dismissed, and we implemented measures to ensure such behaviour will not occur again.
‘Our priority is to maintain the highest standards of professionalism and respect, and we are reviewing our policies with all contractors and staff to reinforce this commitment.’
