Owners left waiting for many months to get their cars back
PETALING JAYA: For more than three months, businessman SJ Wee was left almost immobilised as his car lay cold in a workshop waiting for a replacement engine harness.
The 38-year-old was involved in an accident in May and car repairs were taking longer than expected.
To help him get around to meet clients, the Kuala Lumpur-based Wee had to fork out a steep sum for a rented car, as well as using ehailing services.
He said he first sent his car for repairs on May 15 and was told on July 9 that the work was almost complete, except for the harness, with no confirmed arrival date.
What followed were weeks of repeated follow-ups, with the same answer: the estimated arrival time was unknown.
Wee was later told that the part had arrived, only to learn on Aug 22 that the workshop had received the wrong harness twice and was still waiting for the correct one.
“I cannot use my car, so I have to find alternatives. Grab, rental cars and all of that cost money. Who is going to compensate me?” he said.
His experience has also left him questioning whether consumers should have greater protection when vehicle repairs drag on indefinitely.
“Can we have a maximum period for carmakers to complete repairs? If they cannot meet the deadline, shouldn’t they compensate consumers? It is very difficult for us,” he said.
Automotive industry analyst Hezeri Samsuri said such cases were not uncommon, with some owners waiting for months for warranty processes and parts to be completed.
The prolonged wait, he said, was particularly difficult because owners continued paying their car loans while having to find alternative means of transport.
Malaysia needed clearer consumer protection specifically for automotive warranty repairs, including a maximum timeframe beyond which carmakers would have to provide a remedy, he added.
“There should be a law stating that if an owner has to wait beyond a certain period due to processes that are beyond the owner’s control, the company should compensate the owner,” he said.
He suggested three months as a possible trigger for a major warranty repair, after which consumers should be offered a remedy such as compensation, a replacement vehicle or a vehicle exchange.
Hezeri said such a system would also make manufacturers more accountable for delays caused by overseas warranty approvals or parts supply, rather than leaving consumers to bear the consequences.
Automotive expert Law Teik Hua said courtesy cars in Malaysia remained a matter of company policy rather than a consumer right.
He said mobility support was justified because “financing expenses continue” even when a warranty fault sidelines a vehicle through no fault of the owner.
Rather than imposing a rigid repair deadline, Law proposed a system of milestones, where dealers diagnose faults early, provide regular updates on parts back-orders and offer a courtesy vehicle when repairs drag on.
Malaysia, he said, would be better served by a reasonable-time standard backed by guaranteed mobility support for affected owners.
