what to do with out-of-print cars when car companies go bankrupt
2024-09-13
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china economic weekly reporter niu chaoge | beijing report
recently, hiphi auto released an announcement that before the completion of pre-reorganization and reorganization, it authorized shanghai yueda intelligent driving automotive service co., ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of jiangsu yueda automobile group, to purchase hiphi auto parts and support hiphi auto after-sales service. this has made many owners of "delisted cars", "bankrupt cars" and "out-of-print cars" look at hiphi owners with envy.
china's new energy vehicle market is changing with each passing day. on the one hand, market competition is fierce and the elimination rate is accelerating; on the other hand, consumers are shopping around and are becoming more and more picky when choosing cars. in this process, many "tail" car companies have frequently withdrawn their models from the market or even gone bankrupt. behind this are car owners who are worried about after-sales maintenance and the car use problems they still need to solve.
car companies go bankrupt, trapping car owners
"i have been using wm motor's app to connect to the charging station and set it to charge at 9 p.m., but i accidentally uninstalled the app recently and can no longer download it back. now i can't change it to plug-and-play charging during the day." mr. li from nanjing complained to a reporter from china economic weekly.
when they bought the car, they were attracted by the "lifetime warranty service", but the car company went bankrupt. not to mention repairing the car, just "normal use" has trapped a group of car owners.
even if it can be used normally, it is inevitable that it will need maintenance, and at this time the supply of spare parts becomes the number one problem.
"it has rained in beijing in recent months, and i have been driving very carefully for fear of getting into a car accident. it's okay if the paint is scratched, but if it's hit, it's all over. i don't even know where to get the car repaired." mr. sun, a beijing weimar owner, recently shared his driving experience with a reporter from china economic weekly.
a hiphi owner in beijing told china economic weekly that after a rear-end collision in the middle of this year, his vehicle had been parked at the after-sales center due to a shortage of related parts. eager to use the car, he eventually purchased the related parts online and went to the store for repairs.
"the store can help you with the installation, but they said that because the parts are not original, there is no warranty for these parts. at that time, i was in a hurry to use the car, and i didn't know whether the warranty would still be valid in the future, so i asked the master to repair it directly." said the above car owner.
zhang xiang, a researcher at the automotive industry innovation research center of north china university of technology, told china economic weekly that after the supply of auto parts was cut off, the corresponding safety issues behind the cars should not be underestimated. on the one hand, it is difficult to maintain such cars, and unofficial parts have safety risks; on the other hand, the difficulty and cost of repairing such cars are getting higher and higher, and many car owners may have the idea of "keep driving if it can still run."
regarding the experience of the above-mentioned car owners, zhang hong, a member of the expert committee of the china automobile dealers association, told the reporter of china economic weekly that car owners can first try to contact 4s stores or car manufacturers to see if they can find parts suppliers to obtain the corresponding accessories. if that doesn't work, they can consider purchasing dismantled parts or aftermarket parts, or try to find inventory parts.
zhao zhanling, a lawyer at beijing jiawei law firm, analyzed to the reporter of china economic weekly that the three guarantees policy for automobiles includes automobile returns, exchanges and repairs, and is a legal responsibility assumed by automobile sellers for the quality of automobile products sold to consumers. whoever sells the car shall bear the three guarantees obligations. therefore, even if the automobile company goes bankrupt and liquidates, it does not mean that the three guarantees obligations of the automobile sellers are exempted.
many parties suggest that enterprises take the initiative to take responsibility
chen yinjiang, deputy secretary-general of the consumer rights protection law research institute of the chinese law society, told a reporter from china economic weekly that if car brands continue to go bankrupt and consumer rights cannot be protected, it will undoubtedly reduce consumers' trust in the auto industry and affect their consumer confidence, thus affecting the long-term development of the auto industry. in the future, it will be more difficult for some start-up auto brands to gain consumer recognition and survive in the market, which will inevitably affect the innovation and development of the entire auto industry.
throughout the history of automobile development, it is not without precedent that car owners still have after-sales services after car companies go bankrupt. for example, general motors took over the after-sales services of saab and opel after they withdrew from the chinese market; after acura withdrew from the chinese market, gac honda provided its follow-up services; after gac fiat chrysler automobiles delisted, its parent company stellantis group announced that it would provide after-sales maintenance services for gac fiat chrysler automobiles owners...
"in short, car companies should take the initiative to assume subsequent responsibilities." zhang hong said that if a car company is acquired or merged by other car companies after bankruptcy, the acquirer should continue to protect the rights and interests of consumers in accordance with the agreement. if a car company goes bankrupt and is not acquired, the bankrupt car company can cooperate through a third party to take over the after-sales business of the vehicle. if there is no third party involved to solve the after-sales business of the car owner after the car company goes bankrupt, consumers can carefully review the car purchase contract to confirm whether the contract stipulates relevant matters of the car company's bankruptcy. if there are relevant clauses, consumers can consult, report, complain, request mediation, or file a lawsuit with the local market supervision department and consumer association.
li min, senior partner and doctor of law at shanghai han sheng law firm, told a reporter from china economic weekly that after bankruptcy and reorganization, car companies still have after-sales service obligations to existing car owners.
"according to article 21 of the regulations on automobile sales management, suppliers should promptly announce to the public the models that are being discontinued or stopped selling, and guarantee the supply of parts and corresponding after-sales services for at least 10 years thereafter. this means that even if a car company delists, it needs to ensure that car owners can obtain necessary spare parts and maintenance services for at least 10 years from the date of delisting," said li min.
however, li min also said that in fact, car companies have been bankrupted and reorganized due to poor management, broken capital chain and other reasons. it is difficult to guarantee the supply of parts and after-sales service for the next 10 years. therefore, few car companies can fully comply with and implement this regulation.
"before exiting the market, car companies should proactively consider providing consumers with after-sales service programs, including spare parts, repair technicians and professional equipment, and should reserve funds in advance to protect the after-sales service rights of car owners." li min said.
zhang hong suggested that consumers should try to choose car brands with strong technical strength, guaranteed quality and high market share when purchasing cars.
zhang xiang suggested that consumers should pay attention to the number of cars in use when buying a car. for cars with a large number of cars in use, the production and supply of accessories behind them will also be larger in scale.
li min suggested that when a car company withdraws from the market or goes bankrupt, car owners should first keep all documents and records related to the vehicle, including the purchase contract, repair records, maintenance records, spare parts purchase vouchers, etc., so that they can be used as evidence in the process of defending their rights. at the same time, car owners can actively communicate and negotiate with car companies, dealers, maintenance service providers and relevant regulatory agencies to ensure that their rights and interests are properly handled. at the same time, car owners should also pay attention to the financial status and market dynamics of car companies so that they can take corresponding measures in a timely manner.
zhang hong also mentioned that consumers should make rational judgments based on their actual needs, and for lifetime warranties, they should leave a written contract to serve as a legal basis for future legal proceedings. in daily life, they should also pay attention to the latest trends of the brands they want to buy so that they can take timely measures to stop losses in the event of an unexpected event.
