I started looking for a used hybrid on Friday 8/11/23. I ran across driveway.com and quickly found a vehicle I liked. I sent in my order for the car.
Joseph contacted me right away and we started the process. I let Joseph know I was needing to get in a vehicle ASAP. The first car I wanted was coming from California and Joseph was proactive on letting me know that vehicles coming from California do not come with temporary tags or plates, so I could possibly wait up to 30 days before I could drive my car. I quickly found another vehicle, which happened to be local, so there were no shipping charges.
I had my own financing through Navy Federal, so all I had to do was pay a refundable $500 deposit and show proof of insurance. This is where I started to encounter poor customer service. The communication was superb up until I secured the deal. I noticed the vehicle was still showing available online, so I asked Joseph why it didn’t show as pending like the first vehicle I was going to get.
My intuition started getting a bad feeling so I looked up reviews. I saw several reviews from people saying they started the process only to find out the vehicle they wanted was sold. He responded the next day and told me not to worry that I was the first person to get to this car and it was reserved for me. I asked him how long before it could be delivered. I didn’t get an answer, so I decided to call the dealership myself. The dealership informed me they had just received the car the day before I ordered it, and it could take up to two weeks depending on what needed to be done on the car.
I texted Joseph and told him I wasn’t aware that it would be up to two weeks before I could get the car. He told me he was not aware, which was a lie because the dealership told me he was very much aware. I secured the deal on a Friday and the service tech that was going to be getting my vehicle ready, does not work on weekends. I called the dealership on Monday and the service guy left at 4 PM, but he had not had a chance to look at my vehicle to see when I could possibly get it. I reached out to Joseph and told him I wanted to find another vehicle that is ready to be shipped and sent him to other vehicles that I was interested in. I didn’t get a response until almost 24 hours later. He said he sent a message to both dealerships and would get back with me.
I decided to contact both of the dealerships myself. I found out one of them was already sold, and the other was available and ready to be shipped. At this point, I was very frustrated with Joseph and the entire process. I didn’t feel comfortable going forward with a new vehicle or the vehicle that I had already ordered. I asked Joseph to cancel the order and he tried talking me into finding another vehicle.
I ended up calling customer service and canceling the sale on Wednesday afternoon. About 30 minutes after I canceled the sale, the service guy called me and told me my vehicle would really be ready no later than Saturday. I contacted a sales rep at the dealership and am now purchasing directly through the dealership. I wasn’t happy with the way Joseph handled this. I think it worked out exactly how it should have because there’s no telling how long I would’ve had to wait for my plates to come in. I am purchasing this vehicle so I can start driving Uber, which I cannot do until I have permanent plates. The number one complaint I see is people waiting months for their plates.