Mercedes suspends franchise in China after customer complaint goes viral

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Mercedes executives decided on filing a suspension of a local sales franchise for the brand in China, following a customer complaint about service. The video of the female owner sitting on the hood of a Benz went viral.

In a statement released this week, Daimler reports that the dealership in Xi’an city, located in the Shaanxi province, has reached an agreement with the customer. An investigation of the company’s customer service and business operations is set to shed light on the dispute. Meanwhile, the franchise is suspended.

The decision follows a video that has gone viral on social media. The film shows a furious female customer showing her discontent. The event immediately attract Daimler’s attention.

The customer refers to a car recently bought, having problems such as an oil leak. She complains about the treatment of the dealer, as well as of the poor consumer rights in the world’s second largest economy. She also reveals having paid a “financial service fee” of 15,000 yuan (approximately 2.240 US Dollars) to an employee of the dealership when the car was handed over to her.

The scandal has led to China’s banking and insurance regulator asking Mercedes-Benz to further investigate the operations of its dealership and take measures in order to solve the dispute.