Google restricts reviews to about 4,000 characters, so my review there is condensed. Here's the…read morefull story.
Summary: I came for a written estimate and left $600 poorer with new paint damage. Their PDR contractor worked on several spots with no estimate or repair order, the estimator denied causing any damage, and I couldn't have my vehicle back until I paid. The estimate I came for took 12 days of reminders. Then every manager shut me out.
Details: I sent photos of a dented side panel on my Mercedes RV, then had to call a week later to chase it. The estimator wanted their PDR contractor to see it in person, so I booked a visit for a conventional repair estimate, having told him a PDR tech with 30 years of experience advised against PDR on this panel.
The contractor took one look and said "give me your keys." I objected and asked again for a conventional repair quote, but whatever I said, his answer was "give me your keys." I said we needed a backup plan in case paint came off. The estimator said it was a non-issue. I asked what happens if they're wrong. He said Mander would get me in right away and repaint the whole panel. The pressure didn't let up until I reluctantly handed over my keys. As the contractor started, I asked if this would cost more than a couple hundred dollars and was told no.
The dent is flatter, but the metal is still somewhat distorted, the discoloration remains, and there are now three chips in paint that had been intact. I pointed them out right away and politely asked what to do.
The contractor also worked on a few tiny dings he and I spotted on my door and fender. Each time I asked the price, he just studied the spot and started working, so I assumed these quick touch-ups were a courtesy, given how the first panel went.
I kept asking about the chips. The estimator couldn't compound them out (and conveniently, his buff and polish guy had left for the day). I watched him and the contractor search their check-in photos for them. They found nothing, yet the estimator, visibly flustered, insisted they were there when I arrived.
In the office, he handed me an estimate with another customer's name and cell number on it, then walked out. When the receptionist asked me to pay, I learned the door and fender cost $400 on top of the side panel. When he came back and I objected, he said the price was between me and the contractor. I offered to pay the contractor directly and was told I couldn't leave until I paid. Only then did he mention the contractor charges $200 per panel. If I'd known, I never would have agreed. He took $25 off.
Before paying, I asked for their check-in photos. He emailed me a heavily compressed PDF, said he had no time to send the originals, and wouldn't show the location manager the chips in the full-res photos either. Instead of checking, the manager told me I was "impugning the reputation of the shop." The estimator promised my estimate first thing Monday morning. It was 5:30pm on a Friday, so I paid and left. That evening I saw Mercedes-Benz Vans no longer listed Mander as certified. Their BBB listing: over 40 complaints in 3 years, reviews averaging about 2.5 of 5.
Monday brought no estimate, just an automated email: "We enjoyed working with you." When I asked for digital copies of my bills, the location manager sent an "Estimate of Record" for the door and fender, written three days after I'd paid. The bill I paid said "Left front door $225, Left fender $175." The new version billed each as "PDR 5 quarter" for $125 plus a $75 "Oversized Dent" charge, for dings smaller than a dime. Same $400 total. Wisconsin law (ATCP 132) requires a written repair order before work over $50. I never received or signed one.
The estimate I'd come for finally arrived 12 days after my visit. It was dated 8 days before my visit, so they'd had it all along. When I called, the estimator said he'd done me a service and was done helping me until my van was back in his shop, then hung up. I asked the location manager for a quick call. He replied that I'd been provided an estimate, and "This concludes our involvement in this situation."
The PDR tech who saw my van two weeks before my visit confirmed in writing: I had a dent, but no paint damage, and these chips were caused by glue pulling. Mander promised to repaint the panel if anything went wrong. Something did. Their answer was to claim the chips were already there.
The main branch manager twice said he'd pass my concerns up the chain and copy me. He never did. The regional manager answered my first email within an hour, then went silent once I asked for my money back plus compensation. So I filed a BBB complaint against Mander's parent company, CollisionRight. On October 7, their reply said someone would contact me. Thirteen days later, nobody has. I'd still welcome that call.
Want skill or integrity? Meander away from Mander.
