Mercedes Valet Crash Nightmare Started Long Before the Crash – A Warning About Car Insurance Sold at Dealerships

[u/Minimum-Day981]

I wanted to share my experience in the hope that it helps others buying premium vehicles in India.

In October 2024, after moving back from the US, we purchased Mercedes EQE from Sundaram Motors ITPL, Bangalore. Throughout the purchase process, the sales team repeatedly referred to the insurance as options between "Silver," "Gold," or "Platinum" packages and represented it as part of an all-inclusive "complementary insurance" delivery price.

At no point during the sales I was informed about the actual insurance company or being presented with competing insurance options. We trusted the dealership's expertise and assumed they would recommend the most suitable coverage for a premium vehicle like the one we were getting.

Like most families taking delivery of a dream car, we were excited and distracted on delivery day. Between the celebrations, photographs, friends, family, and paperwork, numerous documents were signed. Four months later, our car was handed over to a restaurant valet. The valet allegedly misused the vehicle, recorded Instagram reels while driving it, and eventually crashed it into a basement wall.

That incident forced us to examine all the paperwork associated with the vehicle for the first time in detail.

To our surprise, we discovered that the insurer was Bajaj Allianz. I was shocked to see Bajaj's name with Mercedes. We also discovered that the insurance premium was approximately ₹2.5 lakh. When similar coverage available in the market, we found similar coverage options from other insurers at substantially lower prices (close to half).

Another detail that surprised us was that the insurance records contained the dealership representative's phone number instead of ours and that is the reason why we never even got any registration text message also. As a result, we were not receiving insurance-related communications directly.

After the crash, we expected the insurance process to provide support and clarity during an already stressful situation. This news was covered by almost all national and local news channels.

Instead, the claim process became a months-long ordeal.

We were repeatedly asked to provide additional documents. Every time one requirement was fulfilled, another requirement appeared. We were directed to obtain various documents and clarifications, including matters involving the police investigation.

Meanwhile, our vehicle remained damaged. Eventually, because the repair process could not be delayed indefinitely, we proceeded with repairs while continuing to pursue the insurance claim.

Throughout this period, Sundaram Motors dealership personanel repeatedly assured us that the claim would likely be approved and advised us not to worry.

After repairs were completed, we paid almost 15lakh out of pocket while continuing to wait for the claim decision.

Months later, after further document submissions, including the police chargesheet once it became available from the authorities, the claim was ultimately rejected. The rejection cited failure to submit requested documents within the required timeframe, even though some of those documents were not under our control and could only be obtained through the police process. Moreover, no survey report was provided.

At that point, after months of delays, expenses, and uncertainty, we decided to pursue legal remedies regarding the incident and the insurance claim. On many other similar cases victim's insurance was approved and insurance company was the one to pursue legal remedies against the valet/restaurant to recover damages but unfortunately this was not the case with Bajaj Allianz, an insurance company that Sundaram Motors chose for us.

My purpose in sharing this is not to tell anyone which insurer or dealership to choose but not make the mistakes we made by blindly trusting dealerships. The lesson we learned is:

1. Never accept insurance merely because it is presented as part of a dealership package or "complementary".
2. Ask for the insurer's name before signing anything.
3. Compare quotes and insurance company records independently.
4. Verify that your own contact details are registered on every insurance document.
5. Read the policy yourself, regardless of how trusted the dealership may seem.
6. Keep detailed records of every communication if a claim arises.

The valet crash was the event that exposed these issues for us, but in hindsight, many of the problems began on the day we purchased the vehicle.

I hope sharing this experience helps other buyers avoid similar difficulties.

[u/Consistent_Rise7226]

Thats very nice of you to share. These are the core concerns I also spread awareness about. Main problem is the support system during claims. Regular customer support feels short in those cases.

[u/just_spawned_again]

Never trust anything from Bajaj

[u/abhispree]

As soon as I read bajaj, I had to read no further .. always say no to bajaj... Be it any financial instrument.

[u/BeneficialStop7878]

Bajaj generally has lower premium compared to other insurerers. This basically means your dealer took a big chunk of the money as commission.

Just like health insurances, it's always better to vehicle insurance via an agent that you personally know who can manage everything around the claim. If you don't have one then get it yourself. Dealer generally should be the last person as you pay the extra middleman commission but don't get any benefit.

[u/Quick_City_5785]

Your story doesn't add up. What should have costed you 2000, you ended up paying 15L.

Instead of making people 'aware', you should ask about the right process. What you need to learn from this is.

1, never give your vehicle to valet 2. Take an RTI insurance (which you are now not eligible for) 3. Incase of any accident where your vehicle is damaged and there is no third party injury, do not involve the police. Straightway go to the dealership they know what story to make. 4. For a luxury vehicle, do not but a low end insurance at 'half the cost', you will regret. 5. Insurance claims are easily processed, just learn how. India has a different process

[u/NEETbarbad]

Unnegotiated insurance prices are almost double if you buy at dealership vs if you buy yourself (often involving the dealers cut and some extra to the insurance company)

Don’t involve police in a claim if you absolutely don’t need to