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Blue Whale News July 21 (Reporter Lu Pengpeng)Consumers were asked to pay an additional 30,000 yuan when picking up their cars?BMWAfter withdrawing from the price war, 4S stores in many parts of the country have begun to refuse to deliver cars on a large scale.

BMW 4S stores across the country refused to deliver cars and temporarily demanded a 30,000 yuan price increase

Recently, consumers in many parts of the country have revealed to Blue Whale reporters that they have encountered BMW's unfair terms. The BMW cars they had previously ordered were refused delivery by the 4S stores, and the salesperson temporarily demanded a price increase in order to pick up the car.

A consumer from Chongqing told the Blue Whale News reporter: "I signed a car purchase contract with Chongqing Baoyu Automobile Sales and Service (Group) Co., Ltd. on May 29. The model isBMW i3The price was 174,500 yuan, and a deposit was paid. At that time, the salesperson said that there was no problem in picking up the car, but when it was time to pick up the car, the defendant asked for an additional 30,000 yuan.

The consumer also said: "I negotiated with the 4S store many times, and then the other party said that I could pick up the car by paying more than 10,000 yuan. Later, the manager said that there were no cars and production had been stopped. During the many days of negotiation and communication, the 4S store gave different statements every day and the responses were erratic."

A consumer from Zhengzhou told the Blue Whale News reporter: "I ordered a BMW i3 car from Zhengzhou Baolianxiang Automobile Sales and Service Co., Ltd. at the end of June. The contract has been signed, the deposit has been paid, and the loan plan has been approved. At that time, the account manager said that it would be delivered in four or five days. But when it was almost time for delivery, I was told that the price of the car would be 20,000 yuan higher and that I would be required to switch to a three-year interest-free financial plan, otherwise I would not be allowed to pick up the car."

In recent days, consumers in Chongqing, Zhengzhou, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Dongguan and other places have revealed this matter to the Blue Whale News reporter. Based on the information disclosed by consumers, BMW 4S stores in many places across the country have refused to deliver on a large scale. The car models are mainly concentrated in the i3, ix3 and 3 Series. Most consumers ordered the car in late May and June, and most of them were asked to temporarily increase the price by 30,000 yuan when they picked up the car in July.

It is worth noting that although some people have picked up cars among these models, the process of picking up the car is very difficult. Even if all the contract procedures are completed, consumers can only pick up the car after urging many times.

The reasons for refusing to deliver vary. For some consumers who have signed contracts and paid deposits, the stores responded that the car has been discontinued or production has been reduced. For those who have only paid deposits but not signed contracts, the stores responded with reasons such as "the headquarters did not approve it".

However, in the eyes of consumers, the reason why BMW refused to deliver the car was very simple, that is, the price of the car had increased, and the 4S store was unwilling to sell it at the low price when the car was ordered, so it temporarily increased the price.

Many consumers expressed that they could not accept this kind of behavior. Being refused delivery or being asked to increase the price temporarily after the contract has been signed and the deposit has been paid is tantamount to unfair terms.

BMW withdraws from price war due to reduced production capacity and tight supply of cars

In recent years, under the siege of new domestic car-making forces, the traditional first-tier luxury car brands BBA have gradually declined. In the first half of 2024, BMW,BenzThe sales volume of BMW Group in China was 375,947 units (including BMW andMINIbrand), down 4% year-on-year.

In this context, Ma Bao was forced into a price-squeezing situation. At the end of May this year, BMW sent a letter to all dealers, saying that in view of the market background and the huge impact brought by domestic brands, it decided to offer BMW 4S stores a number of substantial subsidy reduction policies, aiming to help dealers cope with short-term difficulties and ease business pressure.

After the policy was introduced, the prices of many BMW models dropped sharply, mainly the pure electric series such as i3 and ix3. The former luxury brand can now be purchased for less than 200,000 yuan. BMW's price war has stimulated sales growth to a certain extent.

However, the good times did not last long. Starting from the end of June, BMW gradually withdrew from the price war. The official response from BMW China was that in the second half of the year, BMW will focus on business quality in the Chinese market and support dealers to make steady progress. Influenced by this, BMW dealers have reduced terminal price promotion efforts and raised the price of each vehicle.

It is undeniable that the price war has indeed brought considerable pressure to dealers. 4S stores have almost fallen into a vicious cycle of losing money on every car they sell. Not only that, price cuts also damage brand value. BMW, which once represented luxury, has gradually declined. Therefore, BMW can only abandon the market strategy of "cutting prices to maintain market share".

Blue Whale News reporter learned that BMW's production capacity began to shrink significantly after it withdrew from the price war. Several BMW salesmen confirmed this news to reporters. One salesman said: "In the second half of the year, BMW dealers across the country have had a large number of cars cancelled, and the manufacturer has recalled many cars, so the supply of cars in the second half of the year will be very tight. This is why 4S stores across the country have refused to deliver cars since the end of June, and have increased the price of cars."

The reporter learned that after BMW withdraws from the price war, the consumer order cancellation rate is expected to reach 30%. BMW will keep the cars until the second half of the year to strengthen high-quality sales.

Lawyer: 4S shop behavior is illegal, consumers have the right to refuse

BMW's strategic layout changes have made consumers pay for it. The contract signed at the beginning has now become a piece of waste paper. The unilateral breach of contract by the 4S store has caused great harm to consumers.

In this regard, the Blue Whale News reporter consulted relevant lawyers. Chen Jinbo, a lawyer from Beijing Yingke (Guangzhou) Law Firm, said that the behavior of the 4S store is illegal. Consumers buying cars from 4S stores is a sales contract relationship. Consumers have signed a contract with the 4S store and paid a deposit. The sales contract is established and effective. The 4S store's refusal to deliver the car and the temporary increase in price for picking up the car violated the contract agreement and the relevant provisions of the Consumer Rights Protection Law, the Price Law, and the Civil Code.

According to Article 577 of the Civil Code, "If a party fails to perform its contractual obligations or performs its contractual obligations inconsistent with the agreement, it shall bear the liability for breach of contract such as continuing to perform, taking remedial measures or compensating for losses."

Lawyer Chen Jinbo reminds consumers that when faced with unreasonable practices such as charging a higher price to pick up a car, consumers have the right to refuse and try to resolve the issue through negotiation. If negotiation fails, they can file a complaint to the brand manufacturer's customer service hotline or 12345 or 12315. If the complaint fails, they can sue the 4S store to require it to fulfill its delivery obligations in accordance with the contract and assume the breach of contract liability for late delivery as stipulated in the contract; or they can sue the 4S store to terminate the contract and demand double compensation for the deposit on the grounds of unilateral breach of contract; or they can sue the 4S store to require it to bear the breach of contract liability as stipulated in the contract; consumers who have been forced to pay a higher price to pick up the car due to the situation can still sue for a refund of the increased price.