BEWARE of Santa Monica Dealership. They wont let you charge

[mwalsh]

It does however seem that Santa Monica Nissan is the dealership Paul Scott works at, as TEG pointed out, so in light of Paul's good works, probably contact Paul about this first and give him the name of the fellow who hassled you. Paul should have some good ideas about how to handle the situation.

I think giving this chap a good bitch slapping is an excellent way to handle the situation, Paul.

Though the OP certainly didn't help matters by just going and helping himself without checking-in and getting permission first.

 

[Brightonuk]

One should always ask it is common courtesy and this is a great point

For those that think for one second that grabbing a charge without asking is not stealing then just try that at a gas pump and see what happen

If the dealer refuses to allow you to plug in ask why? You may find the dealer has a legit reason.
I think that this will become a bigger issue as more EV's hit the roads, if we do not abuse the charging stations at dealerships and politely request that we be allowed to plug in we will build a better relationship with those folks.

The day you have 6 miles left and the nearest charging station is 7 miles you are gonna need all the friendly dealerships you can find.

 

[walterbays]

if we do not abuse the charging stations at dealerships and politely request that we be allowed to plug in we will build a better relationship with those folks.

Very true.

But the OP didn't say he found a sign posted: "Welcome to Santa Monica Nissan. Please check in at reception desk before charging." Nor a sign that said "Please stay with your car or leave your keys with reception." Nor a sign that said "$1 per hour. Deposit here." Nor was he confronted by a salesman who said, "I'm sorry, we only allow charging with advance arrangement or in case of emergency." Nor one who said "I'm sorry, we have a truck load of cars coming this morning that we have to get charged for delivery so our chargers won't be available until this afternoon." Nor a salesman who said, "Are you sure you want to charge here? There's a mall two miles down the road with lots of cafes and shopping where you'd probably be more comfortable waiting."

No, the OP was confronted by a salesman who proclaimed that 'he hates these “Green People”' and refused to let him charge. I do hope we'll hear the other side of the story from Paul Scott. But almost all of the abuses of dealer charging could be taken care of by any of the above examples of what Santa Monica Nissan did not do. In particular, for people who habitually camp out at chargers for free electricity they could post that they *may* charge $5 per hour, and then only enforce that rule on people they see coming over and over.

 

[EVDRIVER]

I don't believe Paul Scott is the GM or manager of the dealership so I doubt it's his responsibility to deal with such issues. The GM is the person at a dealership to speak with when you have an issue and you want possible results. I recently had and issue with a dealership that went on for weeks, one call to the GM and the person I had the issue with was calling me back in minutes with the issue resolved. I don't think people should rely on dealers to charge and I don't get how people are often needing emergency charging, I have about 80K EV miles and I have not had to do this. If you are going to go to the extreme limits of your car planning in advance is a good idea, it's not that difficult unless you leave you car on when parked :shock:

 

[haykinson]

If Nissan put dealers on the map randomly then they need to get them off and those dealers also need to call and get off if they don't want to be on there.

I've emailed folks at Nissan corporate to ask for help in dealing with this issue. I think it does not help either the dealers who are being bothered, nor the drivers who are mis-guided, nor Nissan North America whose brand is being hurt. Hopefully I'll get a response.

For what it's worth, the folks at Nissan North America said they'll try to look into the general issue of dealers who won't allow people to charge hurting the brand. If anything comes of it I'll post an update here.

 

[haykinson]

If you are going to go to the extreme limits of your car planning in advance is a good idea, it's not that difficult unless you leave you car on when parked :shock:

As the EV community expands from thoughtful early adopters onto the more general population, we need to consider a very different approach to solving problems. EV charging protocols, politeness, expecting good behavior -- all of that works well when close to 100% of the community keeps in close touch via forums, blogs, etc. When only 1% of the community keeps in touch, there's really no way to enforce these kinds of norms, or even inform people of them.

So solutions have to be systematic. In this case, if a charging site is not a public charging site, it should not be on a public charging map. Sure, add it to plugshare along with random people's houses, but leave it as that -- a theoretically available charger available conditionally only after a phone call.

 

[RobertJay]

call nissan today and let them know your feelings 1 877 664 2738

Reality is some dealers dont want to give away free electric
This dealership must get too many customers ( he didnt sell car to)
wanting to use his charger

I saw other replies to my post that this is their MO. They do this a lot
They disable the charger saying it is broken

I thought having at least 2 stations available at every dealership was a deal made with Nissan in order to sell the leaf
expand the grid and get out good PR

I would be happy to pay to have the car charged
But if I see a charging station on car wings I assume they opted in or allow customers to get a quick charge. I asked for 1 hour ( sorry I begged) but he flipped out when I asked for his card then wanted to take his photo

Call Nissan and tell them about all your good experiences and if you run across a dealer that is hurting their reputation

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

Whenever I go to the grocery store I like to set up a grill and a table in the parking lot so I can cook the food and eat it right there.

 

[Stoaty]

Whenever I go to the grocery store I like to set up a grill and a table in the parking lot so I can cook the food and eat it right there.

I didn't realize the Nav on the Leaf will direct you to grocery stores that offer that service. Glad to know about an additional capability of the Leaf.

 

[davewill]

I don't believe Paul Scott is the GM or manager of the dealership so I doubt it's his responsibility to deal with such issues.

He's their face here, and a logical person for us to contact. What's your beef anyway? The treatment described was intolerably rude, and nothing the OP did excuses it. I want to hear the other side of the story, but this isn't the first time we've had this complaint about Santa Monica. I see nothing wrong with making it known to other LEAF owners so they can steer clear of the place. It just stands to reason that we wouldn't recommend them for LEAF sales, either.

Anyway, Nissan caused the problem by advertising the dealers as charging points without making sure that the service would actually be available. They both listed them in Carwings and in just about every sales pitch I saw for LEAF they made sure to mention that all LEAF dealers had charging stations...Corporate probably never considered that their dealers would act like this.

 

[TomT]

The reality is that most of the EV drivers who need to charge at any dealership are NOT going to be their customers. Their actual customers are likely to live relatively close by and thus rarely need to charge there. It is the EV drivers who are away from home (and thus likely someone else's customer) that are going to need the charge.

Thus, if Nissan dealers only plan to let their own customers use their chargers, they might as well rip them all out now as there will be little need or demand for them. What they SHOULD be doing is building up goodwill by letting anyone charge at their dealership so that the person who is NOT their current customer might become one in the future or mention their dealership to someone who IS in their area and interested. This is just basic marketing and customer management 101, a concept that most car dealers just do not seem to grasp!

 

[mossyleaf]

Really suprising. Might just be the one Manager... :roll:

 

[davewill]

...What they SHOULD be doing is building up goodwill by letting anyone charge at their dealership so that the person who is NOT their current customer might become one in the future or mention their dealership to someone who IS in their area and interested. ...

Not to mention that they might like to have their customers treated well when they need to charge at some other dealer.

 

[haykinson]

call nissan today and let them know your feelings 1 877 664 2738

I'd hold off on having a call-in campaign. I was encouraged by an immediate response (I emailed the VP of Marketing for Nissan North America, and he replied immediately), and I would like to give them some time to think about appropriate solutions before we organize a grassroots campaign aimed at the wrong place.

but he flipped out when I asked for his card then wanted to take his photo

I think that a request to have one's picture taken crosses the line, and I am not surprised to hear you got refused. I certainly would not let a customer take my picture -- and especially not a somewhat upset customer. I also think that however uncouth it is, it's the guy's right to refuse to give his card.

I'm not offering an excuse for bad attitude, but I would like for us to have a simpler approach to bad charging locations: exclude and ignore, not engage and enrage.

 

[haykinson]

...What they SHOULD be doing is building up goodwill by letting anyone charge at their dealership so that the person who is NOT their current customer might become one in the future or mention their dealership to someone who IS in their area and interested. ...

Not to mention that they might like to have their customers treated well when they need to charge at some other dealer.

I'm actually somewhat in a conflicted place. I had a bad experience charging at that dealer, yet they're my local dealer (I live literally 3 blocks away from them) and I would want to use them for service. My gut feeling is that I shouldn't be giving my business to someone who's so bad at customer service. On the other hand, the service organization is separate from the sales organization. *sigh*.

 

[TomT]

I would tell the Owner, GM and the Service Manager why you might be taking your service needs elsewhere, even though you live next door to them, and see what they do... Personally, I would not reward such a dealer with any business of mine.

I'm actually somewhat in a conflicted place. I had a bad experience charging at that dealer, yet they're my local dealer (I live literally 3 blocks away from them) and I would want to use them for service. My gut feeling is that I shouldn't be giving my business to someone who's so bad at customer service. On the other hand, the service organization is separate from the sales organization. *sigh*.

 

[wsbca]

Not to mention that they might like to have their customers treated well when they need to charge at some other dealer.

Hang on a minute there, dw... are you suggesting that people should actually live by the Golden Rule, and that there might be some benefits to doing so?? Your ancient notions of civility and mutual respect are adorable, but come on...this is 21st century America we're talking about here.


More seriously, here's a nice Slaid Cleaves ditty on the subject:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igVW4bBpiN0

 

[malloryk]

I'd be really interested in hearing how this all pans out. I'm supposed to bring my car in to them this Sat. for service but if they're gonna start being d*cks to people for charging, I'd prefer to give someone else my business.

 

[garygid]

You might not want to give them a chance to Do unto You what they have Done unto Others?

 

[RobertJay]

Is this an isolated problem or are there many other dealers that have turned away so many Leaf owners? I have never had problem getting a quick charge anywhere else. I was caught sooooo off guard. Other dealers have gone out of their way ( really with a smile and chatting up how I liked the car etc) to give a quick charge when I needed it

I see in this thread several Leaf Owners reporting the same problem with this Santa Monica Nissan Dealer. When I called Nissan I received a robotic answer " Sorry sir each dealer is independantly owned and operated, we cant tell them what to do"

Take 5 minutes and call nissan today 1 877 664 2738

I wasnt able to get an answer if dealers can take themselves off of Car Wings, if they dont want to support charging. Clearly from all the bad experiences other have reported from this dealer, Santa Monica Nissan doesn't want Leaf Owners charging there

Maybe there should have a system that allows customers to pay for using the chargers
I would be happy to pay to have my car charged
If I see a charging station on car wings I assume they opted in or allow customers to get a quick charge.

Call Nissan and tell them about all your good experiences and if you run across a dealer that is hurting their reputation tell them about that also