Voluntary Product Recall

Cervelo

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Just wondering if somebody out there would have experience in a voluntary product recall and what my rights are and the obligations of the manufacture.

Last September I purchased two BMC teammachine bikes from a dealer in Germany, which I brought with me to Spain in Late October for six months.
After 10 days in Spain I noticed on a cycling website that BMC had issued a voluntary product recall for my bikes and advised owners not to use the bikes for safety reasons and to bring the bikes to a dealer for inspection and repair.
Luckily only one of my bikes is affected by the recall and my trip to Spain isn't a total write-off.
I contacted BMC in Switzerland to enquire as to how long it is going to take to fix my bicycle and they replied that the earliest date for me would be sometime in March 2020.

So I'm wondering
1: I know my contract of sale is with the German shop but do BMC have an obligation/responsibility to deal with me directly??
2: How much time or running around do I have to do to get this sorted and how long should it take??
3: Am I entitled to any sort of compensation for not been able to use the bike or the time it takes to rectify the problem??

I understand that product recalls do take time to rectify but I feel that four plus months is stretching it a little but my biggest fear is the bike wont get fixed in Spain, where I'm relatively close to a BMC dealer but rather that I will return home to Dublin and start the whole process again where the nearest BMC dealer is in Cork or Northern Ireland
 
bring the bikes to a dealer for inspection and repair

Have you a local BMC dealer where you are now? If so, then print out the "recall issue" with the bike, call into the local BMC shop where you are and ask them to rectify the issue.
 
Have you a local BMC dealer where you are now? If so, then print out the "recall issue" with the bike, call into the local BMC shop where you are and ask them to rectify the issue.
Yes, the local dealer in Spain is handling the recall for me but after 3 weeks I called into the shop to see whether they had any news for me.
And the response was "No", I asked could they find out how long it's going to take and they responded "No, it will take as long as it takes".
As I'm not actually a customer of this shop I feel that they are helping me out with this issue and it would be wrong of me to force the issue
It was then that I contacted BMC directly and initially they said they had no record of my claim but then just before Christmas they came back
with the "Sometime in March" date
 
They aren't "helping you out" so to speak - they are fixing one of their products which has had a mandatory recall. You are a customer of BMC and thus a customer of theirs in-directly.

Personally, I would push it on both fronts - keep in contact with BMC directly (via email), detailing that shop that you have the bike at, when it was dropped in etc. Also, ask them why it will be 4 months to resolve such as issue. Detail to them that you will be traveling and need it resolved before that time.
I'd also call into the shop directly and detail the same. Getting the point of contact in the shop each time & detailing the response / date / time etc. Not too sure how the consumer act (if any) is in Spain.

Do you think that the resolution of the issue is a big job? Do you know what needs to be fixed? Could it be that the bike has to be sent off to be reparied, rather than a "local agent fix"?
 
Thanks Jazz01 for taking the time to reply
Yes I'm pushing from both fronts but mainly the BMC front and have informed them of my traveling plans
My contract of sale is with the German shop and according to the ECC they are the only people I should be dealing with
I agree the shop in Spain as an agent for BMC should be doing a bit more than they are
I don't know if you've had any "dealings" in Spain but for somethings the Spanish can be very lackadaisical, the phrase "Manana" springs to mind
As far as the Spanish shop is concerned they have done all they are required to do, now its in the hands of BMC to issue them with a replacement fork

The recall is due to a manufacturing fault in the forks and they need to be replaced, In my opinion its not a big or complicated job to do and will be done in the shop when the replacement fork is available, a good mechanic would take less than an hour to do it
If push comes to shove I could do it myself but there probably is a legal requirement for BMC to oversee the recall process
 
Have you contacted the shop in Germany that you purchased it from? They might be able to help out - perhaps a request to them to send the part to the local BMC in Spain, after you have explained the issue ? Or it might be just complicating matters perhaps?

Best of luck with things - hopefully it's resolved a LOT sooner than the few months they detailed. On the flip side, Cork isn't a bad place to visit :D if you need to come down here to get it sorted once you back in Ireland!
 
If you're in Andalucía you couldn't have picked a worse time to have the fork of your bike replaced. From Christmas Eve to the Epiphany on January 6th Spain is almost at a standstill and even more so from east of Málaga for 150 miles. The evening of 5th January and all of the Epiphany is the main Christmas feasting period in Spain. Like us, the Spaniards use the whole Christmas period as a time for family visiting. Even some local bus journeys don't get completed, the driver favouring spur-of-the-moment quality time with his/her family.

In the interim enjoy the Festival of the Kings. On the Epiphany the Spaniards exchange gifts (like our Christmas Day).

It's the 7th January and everything will be normal - Not a chance! - The Spaniards are behind in their work and although the Christmas/NewYear lasts only a fortnight they are at least five weeks behind. It might take them another two months to make up that five week shortfall. They're wondering the Tour de France is months away and the Tour of Spain (La Vuelta to them) is further away still. Suddenly, the true meaning of manana kicks in. Cork might not be a bad alternative.

If you're stuck for a bike and anywhere near Mojacar Playa give me a shout and you can borrow mine (not a bad day-to-day one and has a fork that's sound). Drop in to Bella Vista restaurant and enjoy a magnificent meal for about €14.00. You might think I'm joking, but I'm not.
 
Thanks Lep for the offer, fortunately only one of my bikes is affected by the recall so I still have one good one that is getting more use then I was expecting and hopefully doesn't give me any trouble until the other one is fixed.
You know it's funny I never realized until I spent a bit of time here how the Spanish take a different view to life, family and work compared to back home, the one I particularly like is say when a public/bank holiday falls on say a Tuesday it is expected or quite normal for the majority of people to take the Monday off work as well
 
Cervelo is right. The Spaniards are far more relaxed than us in English speaking Europe. From 24th December - 31st January they are so relaxed that they are almost horizontal. I'm not complaining, I wish we took a page from their book. When we are in Andalucía we take the siesta and sleep between 2pm to 5pm, especially in the heat of summer. They have their bank holidays (usually a Tuesday) and it's likely they'll throw in their Saint's Day on the Monday or just take the Monday off anyway. The Spaniards are not lazy; don't be fooled. They get whatever they've got to do done and in their own time.

Another Boring addendum:- While Mrs Lep and I were cycling in Spain a few years ago (her in her girly city bike complete with awful looking front basket and rear carrier) encountered the entire Dutch Cycling team while they were training. One of their bikes was punctured and between them they hadn't a bicycle pump. Mrs Lep wouldn't leave the apartment cycling without a pump, cycle-repair-kit and was able to help the Dutchmen. Mrs Lep tried to communicate with the Netherlands Team as Gaeilge (not for the first time using Irish in Spain).

The Dutch won cycling medals in the following Olympics and Mrs Lep claims she played her part in their success.
 
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