Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles UK Avis 

I am writing this to highlight the completely inefficient service from Volkswagen Head Office Customer Relations. My local dealer has been great, but Head Office has been an absolute nightmare. I have been waiting for a replacement electronic key fob since May. Yesterday, I was advised it won’t arrive until the end of September—and even that date isn't guaranteed.Throughout this process, VW Customer Relations has repeatedly provided inaccurate information about this outstanding component, missed promised callbacks, and repeatedly closed my case while the matter remained completely unresolved. The overall handling of my complaint has been dreadful.

First issue here is that this centre neither answers the phone or emails.
Then there is the actual service once you finally force them to make an appointment.
Last time I had a warranty issue with a previous van this horrendous centre demanded I bring the van in at 8.30 and kept me waiting and did nothing until 3.30. Then they advised it was only in to check the problem and would have to come in again🙄
Today, having delivered keys a week ago so they could collect my NEW van and deal with faulty warning systems on a date that suited them; they failed to take the keys and I had to remotely allow them to access my house to collect spare keys. This was so - as they put it - it could get dealt with today. Rang 2pm for up date. No answer. Rang 3pm - no answer from van centre again. Rang sales at 3.15 and they phoned and emailed van service centre and got no response so emailed them. Heard nothing by 4.45 so emailed them. No response. Rang 5.45 and no answer so again rang sales to be told they had all gone home leaving me without a vehicle.
Am now told they have no idea when I will get my vehicle back.
Absolutely a reason that despite liking the vehicles I would never buy VW again

I would prefer to rate VW at zero stars for the following reason.

This is being posted as a warning to people that the stress, misery and expense of owning a VW is appalling!

We purchased a new Caravelle in 2018; it was delivered late and had a serious fault with its rear passenger doors (they were difficult to close). VW refused to do anything about it until the van was out of warranty - can't say the repair has been that good either.

Sometime since its' 2022 service the dealership disappeared. VW did not bother to inform us where we were supposed to go to get any issues sorted etc. We located a team of VW trained engineers with VW equipment to do the work locally. It should be noted that we live in Plymouth, Devon, the largest town west of Bristol! It turns out our nearest VW repairer is in Exeter 36 miles away and during the summer season can often be over an hour's journey away.

On 19 September 2025 the engine went into failure mode. This happened after an intermittent warning light on the dashboard occasionally appeared. There was no loss of power or any indication there was a major problem. We took it to our local repairers who finally diagnosed the problem and set about rectifying it.

Now our problems really started. Quotes for the repair came in at over £20,000! The engine had done 66621 miles, and had been serviced in accordance with VWs schedules. We had done nothing wrong. It appears that our engine was known for the design faults it developed from 2018 and we stupidly bought the vehicle before it became common knowledge. The engine was apparently withdrawn in 2018.

VW have refused to communicate with our repairers - they only deal with their own dealerships. This we were not warned about. They also refuse to communicate with us. There are a great many points to raise concerning this approach...

VW did not put in place any mitigations to rectify the engine design faults and poor quality of engineering or recall the van.

Why did we not take the van to Exeter?

1. Would you drive for up to an hour to arrive to find the warning light had stopped flashing? After all VW would not rectify the badly functioning rear doors 'as they had not witnessed it happening' despite video evidence!
2. My husband was diagnosed, during this period with several life threatening conditions including having major spinal surgery. This required a long recovery period and for most of it he was not supposed to sit in a car for more than the time it takes to drive from our home to Derriford Hospital (15 minutes). How was he supposed to get the van to Exeter? He also has had major, costly to the NHS, treatments and his recovery has been very slow and difficult. The consensus is VW's behaviour is not helping him recover!

3. On top of the engine failure the van developed an electrical fault. Should have been easily fixed - joke. VW not once, but twice supplied our repairers with the wrong codes. This caused a major failure to the electrical systems. VW then had the gall to try and bully us into buy whole new units at a cost of £10,000!

We stupidly believed the publicity that VW made good quality, reliable, strong cars and that it was a company to rely on. Our engine was supposed to last between 200,000-300,000 miles not the pathetic 66621. The van is more unreliable than our first joint new car a 1977 Austin Allegro. We all know what happened to the Austin group.

As of 9 July 2026 we still do not have an operational vehicle. We do not trust VW or its representatives but do trust our repairers. The feeling is that VW is trying to force small, independent repairs out of business.
I am 73 years old and my husband is nearly 77. Bullying a couple of old people is such a good business plan!

Purchased a new California Beach in December 2025, and at the time told the sales guy I needed a towbar - Not a problem I was told. Unfortunately it’s now 6 months on and VW UK can’t sort a towbar ! VW made me pay for it at the dealer as they won’t let you order parts even when they can’t give an ETA unless paid for in full, I said I was comfortable paying a deposit but not in full as it didn’t give them much incentive to actually supply it if they’ve already been paid in full - Bad service all round. The van itself is great to be fair, but if you need a camper with a towbar I’d hold fire for a while, or go for an alternative.

UPDATE:

I recently purchased a near-new Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles demonstrator vehicle through Marshall Volkswagen and unfortunately my experience after delivery has become extremely disappointing.

Shortly after taking delivery I identified visible cosmetic rectification to the driver-side front panel and door area, including orange peel and overspray inconsistent with factory finish standards.

To be absolutely clear:

* I am NOT alleging accident damage or structural repair.
* My concern relates specifically to undisclosed prior cosmetic rectification together with the complete lack of repair provenance or traceability.

Following discussions with the dealership, I was informed there is supposedly no record of accident damage. However, the explanation later provided was that the cosmetic work may relate to previous sign writing removal during the vehicle’s time within the Volkswagen demonstrator programme.

The issue I now face is that nobody appears able to clearly explain:

* who carried out the work,
* when it was completed,
* under whose authority it was approved,
* whether any workmanship warranty exists,
* or whether any repair/job documentation is available.

What concerns me further is that dealership management’s current position appears to be that if a third-party bodyshop carried out unauthorised rectification work, this is somehow not Marshall’s responsibility. From my perspective this is extremely difficult to accept given the vehicle remained within the dealer/manufacturer demo chain before being sold to me.

I also feel it is important to mention the wider purchase experience.

After signing the order documentation, I was later informed that the vehicle could not be delivered for almost a month longer than originally discussed due to demo programme restrictions. During that period I had already arranged insurance and associated preparations.

In addition:

* I repeatedly requested to pay the delivery charge separately in cash, however it was instead added into the finance agreement;
* I was specifically advised the vehicle would be transported via flatbed delivery;
* yet when delivery eventually took place, the vehicle was not delivered on a flatbed as promised.

I have since been advised that I could cancel the sale if I wish, however I would still remain financially disadvantaged through delivery charges and associated costs already incurred.

The matter has now been escalated to Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles UK Executive Office.

The current proposed “resolution” appears limited to either:

1. Marshall arranging further cosmetic repair work, or
2. accepting a £500 goodwill gesture and effectively walking away from the issue.

I previously proposed a pragmatic settlement figure of approximately £2,000. This was intended to allow me to independently arrange corrective work through a Volkswagen-approved bodyshop local to me, at a time convenient to me, while also reflecting the potential market value impact associated with cosmetic rectification having been carried out to a 2025 Volkswagen e-Transporter.

From my perspective, simply correcting poor workmanship does not resolve the underlying concern, which is that I now appear to own a vehicle with prior cosmetic repair history for which there is little or no clear provenance or documentation, despite the vehicle being represented and sold as a low-mileage demonstrator vehicle.

I have remained calm and constructive throughout and initially attempted to resolve matters directly with dealership management before escalating to Volkswagen UK.

At the time of writing I am still awaiting proper clarity regarding:

* repair provenance,
* bodyshop documentation,
* chain of custody during the demo programme,
* and whether the matter is receiving review beyond dealership level.

I will update this review once the matter reaches a final conclusion.

Purchased a 2023 ID. Buzz Cargo from Citygate, for which the salesperson provided outstanding service that could not be faulted, and neither can the van. After a year and a half of ownership, I was left stranded on the side of the road due to a battery management system failure. Roadside assistance sent the AA to transport the van to the nearest VW garage, which was Alan Day Finchley Road. The van sat untouched for over a month because VW Commercial Vehicles have very few 'battery care centres' that were capable of even touching the van. Upon transfer of the van to another centre, it was left untouched for 10 days until I called to check why. It was a further three weeks until I was able to collect it. I received it covered in bird poo and with a damaged bumper, which disabled the parking sensors, safety features and cruise control. Citygate initially denied damaging the bumper until I sent a video of the van from the handover. It took them reviewing their own video of the van as well to admit fault. They asked for it to be returned a few days later - at dropoff, they sent me away claiming that it needed to be sent to a body shop instead, to be brought back the next week. When I did, they said to collect it in two days. When collection day came, nobody had called to let me know it was ready, and when I asked, I was told it would be ready the next day. The following day, nobody had called me to let me know it was ready so I came in person to see what was going on. They told me it was not ready again and that it would be delivered to my home the next day, which to their credit it was.

On the whole, my experience with VWCV and VW service centres was abhorrent. I was treated like a beggar after spending over £55,000 on a brand new van that failed me within a year and a half. The receptionists for their service centres are rude and inconsiderate, thinking that just because they are busy means nobody else is. I asked for a courtesy van from day 1, and it took almost 40 days and numerous complaints until I was provided a van to continue working.

VWCV consistently treat buyers as if they are large fleet managers, forgetting the thousands of small businesses and sole traders that have placed their trust in VW to sell them one van that will be reliable. They have forgotten that these businesses cannot afford to be without a van to earn the livelihood that enabled them to purchase it in the first place.

After my ordeal I requested compensation for my loss of time, as it took cumulatively two months to restore my van to its original, functional state. All they came up with was a £200 voucher to spend at a service centre, as if they assumed the van would fail again, which I refused.

VWCV customer service kept calling me to see how things were going, but it felt extremely performative - simply to pretend to care, with no intention of taking action.

I highly suggest you think twice before purchasing a vehicle directly from VW, as they will forget about you when you need them most.

Really happy with my experience.
First service for my VW transporter campervan.
Friendly reception staff at Northampton Volkswagen commercial, Vindis. They went out of their way to get my van serviced in the morning, on an all day booking. Fabulous job of cleaning my van, I can't get it looking that good. Really happy I have signed up for a service contract with them. Thank you.

We bought 8 Volkswagen Transporters and 2 VW ID. Buzz vans for our business specifically to improve reliability and reduce downtime. At the point of sale we were reassured these vehicles “don’t break down”. Unfortunately, that has proven completely untrue.

We have experienced problems with every single vehicle in the fleet, including issues such as central locking faults, window faults, key failures, wiper motor faults, brake issues, and suspected gearbox/clutch failure. We have also been told by the dealer that squeaking/whining brakes are “normal” on the ID. Buzz, despite the noise being significant.

The operational disruption has been extreme. Engineers have been left stranded for hours waiting for support, including one occasion where an engineer was left at the roadside until around 3am awaiting recovery, only for recovery arrangements to be mishandled and ultimately cancelled or changed multiple times. This has caused missed jobs, wasted labour, re-bookings, subcontractor disruption, and reputational damage with clients. It has also resulted in clear financial loss to our business.

Communication and accountability have been equally poor. It often feels impossible to get a clear answer from the branch. Calls and emails regularly go unanswered, people pass responsibility between VW and the dealer, and commitments to call back or provide updates are frequently missed. You are left chasing repeatedly just to get basic information.

To make matters worse, we had two further vans on order (ordered before the full scale of issues became clear) which we have since cancelled due to the ongoing failures and lack of support. We are still waiting on the deposit refund, despite chasing.

We have also had one of our vans held for an unreasonable length of time. We were without a vehicle for months in relation to what should have been a straightforward repair, which is simply unacceptable for a business fleet.

This has been one of the most frustrating experiences we have had with any supplier. If you are a business considering VW Commercial Vehicles, I strongly recommend asking very direct questions about aftersales support, recovery procedures, parts lead times, communication, and how downtime will be handled. Our experience has been the opposite of what was promised.

Ravi was an absolute pleasure to be dealing with when dropping the van of and collecting my work van up she made it an easy and enjoyable experience

No effort made. Just a statement that the van is out warranty. Poor service

Technician didn't do a combustion test and it's highly likely that caused £8200 worth of damage. Also didn't even bother to inspect the fuel pump . Manager said using easy start proved there wasn't a problem with the engine. Then later said there was problems with the cylinders and piston head . ZERO TRUST IN THE COMPETENCE OF THE TECHNICIANS . ZERO TRUST IN THE INTEGRITY OF THE MANAGEMENT

Have purchased 3 VW vans from Norwich Group 1 Van centre for my business
Disappointed at the lack of help and support when one 21 plate van out of warranty 40.000 miles has dual mass flywheel and clutch issues
They want to charge 120 pounds just to look and no help from the service desk, shall be going elsewhere for my new van replacements

Bought a brand new VW California Ocean in July 2022 and had numerous issues over 2+ years ownership of the van from dropping roof, rear heater controls (twice replaced), faulty blind, faulty front active and faulty start stop. VW quality has fallen so far down vs past. A big disappointment.

Amazing service
Absolute pleasure to do business with you hope to be with you for many years to come
Well done Andy Smith
Proper professional and such an easy transaction

Darren Squire 'VW Commercial' Wrexham branch. Went above and beyond to locate, track and deliver a part for my vehicle..Good service with efficiency and a smile.
Very impressed.
Gary B

Incredibly disappointing service. One week within the 3 year manufacturer warranty, I managed to book in my T6.1 with an error
Stop/start issue only to find out, after several weeks of back and forth and having to drive it in limp mode that the underlying problem is the DPF. It’s been in the garage waiting for this now for nearly 3 months. On back order, they have no idea when it’s coming. They won’t entertain a replacement, any responsibility and were lazy and lacked care on calls.

I understand these things happen but the way the aftercare has been handled really is appalling and we absolutely wouldn’t ever entertain the thought of buying VW again after this experience.

I had a leaking sunroof on my Transporter. After taking it to the Breeze Van Centre in Portsmouth, they did nothing with it for weeks and I had to keep chasing them up. When it finally was seen to, the guy on the service desk quoted me for a whole new sunroof and surround, many hundreds of pounds. I had meanwhile researched the problem online and asked if they had checked the drainage pipes. They hadn't and when I insisted they did, it turned out one was kinked and not draining properly. £20 worth of parts so a lot less than the whole new sunroof they were attempting to coax me into. It was absolutely clear to me that they are focused on selling and installing components that are not necessary rather than fixing things. This was in February 2022 (billed on the 16th). Avoid!

Booked my van in for oil service four weeks ago.They rang and checked I was coming the day before .Arrived there today at 8am only to be told VW leasing probley won't authorise this as it's a Saturday.I don't no if the one booking me in was new to this job but I'm sure you would pre book this with VW leasing if you already new they didn't work on a Saturday.He then said book it in for the following Saturday and I will get it pre authorised.So he is either stupid or forgot how to do his job .So now my van still needs a oil change service and got to go through this all again.Just will not be with this useless garage.Been coming here for yours they used to have descent staff on service but maybe they have left now.Warning stay away unless you want to be disappointed.

Even though I have reported an issue with my van whilst the van is still in warranty, VW refuse to honour that warranty as I can't find a centre that can book it in for diagnosis until after the warranty expires on the 17th January. Frankly, this is a disgrace and may not even be legal. I am checking.

Bought a Vw crafter nothing but hassle paid 22000 don’t expect it to be in garage for repairs and waiting 2 months for repair which wasn’t fixed after 1000 miles engine light on again can’t get it mot’d. As light on so basically left without van until they can see it after Xmas