1:49 pm, December 21, 2022
Renault dealers have registered some customer cars that are still stuck in ports waiting to be delivered.
In a similar situation to Stellantis – exclusively revealed by Car Dealer last week – some Renault customer cars have been registered with no hand-over dates scheduled.
One Renault customer explained how their Megane E Tech arrived in Portbury at the end of November and has been registered by the dealer.
However, delivery dates for their car in December have continuously slipped with transportation and a shortage of drivers blamed as the cause.
Renault is also claimed to have told customers that delays fitting alarms and other extras are the cause of hold ups – even though ‘many customers haven’t even ordered extras’.
A Renault Megane E Tech page on Facebook reveals a number of customers across the UK have been hit with similar issues.
‘My vehicle was registered by Renault on Dec 9,’ said customer Anthony Murphy.
‘When I receive it on January 5, 2023, it will be one month old. This will have a significant impact on future value as I know the car I am part exchanging has lost circa £500 per month in value.
‘Renault apparently wants to show good figures for Megane E Tech and EV sales for 2022 so they are registering vehicles well before delivery to customers, in my case a month and my new car in Jan 2023 will be recorded as a 2022 vehicle.’
One Renault retailer told Car Dealer that they were experiencing ‘similar pressures’ as that seen with Stellantis last week.
Car Dealer revealed Stellantis was forcing its dealers to register cars stuck in ports with some customers then paying out for vehicles they wouldn’t see for months.
One customer had paid out three months’ worth of finance, insurance and tax on a car they hadn’t even taken delivery of.
Some fleet customers that refused to pay up in advance had their vehicles taken from them and handed to other customers.
Stellantis boss Paul Willcox blamed the moves on its attempt to secure more factory production next year.
One Renault dealer told Car Dealer: ‘We haven’t been pressured into registering customer cars early, like Stellantis, but there might be some cars being pushed into January for CAFE regulations reasons.
‘Lots of manufacturers are managing their targets on these emissions regulations by delaying deliveries until the new year and I suspect that’s what is happening here.
‘The transportation issues and lack of drivers is a well documented problem and an easy excuse for manufacturers to use.’
Renault told Car Dealer that since the pandemic ‘global logistics’ have been ‘significantly destabilised’ and it has experienced ‘major congestion at ports’.
A spokesperson said: ‘Today, Europe is faced with a lack of resources and drivers affecting the entire automotive industry.
‘Renault Group is doing everything possible to limit the impact on its activities, with dedicated task forces, daily monitoring, alternative solutions with suppliers and re-routing to less tense destinations.’
Renault said that since October it has been communicating with customers and dealers that the Megane E-Tech deliveries ‘should be expected in December’.
‘For the majority of cases, this has been maintained despite significant and unforeseen headwinds,’ added the spokesperson.
‘To date, over 600 Meganes have been delivered, with several hundred more planned for delivery before the end of the year.’
Renault said customers should contact its customer services team for help with specific cases.
Some 24 hours after this story was published, Renault came back to Car Dealer with a further comment which said of the 600 Meganes delivered it was aware of 13 retail cars that had been registered before arriving at dealers.
A spokesperson added: ‘Renault UK will be investigating each case accordingly.’
First Published: Dec 21, 13:49; Updated: Dec 23, 06:33
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