Dubious Start

Things started to go wrong when we saw the signboard that the M40 was closed between Junction 11 and 12 in both directions due to an accident and the live updates looked like it would be for several hours so we took a “scenic route”. Next an engine management light flashed up followed by a message saying the stop start system wasn’t working! We stopped and studied the manual which said it was ok to continue and decided it wouldn’t be a problem as our vehicle is only 18 months old, under warrantee and has Fiat Camper Assist so it would be easy just to give them a call on arrival - THINK AGAIN!!! We started with calling the number in the Fiat information book and got the message number not recognised. We looked it up on the internet, same number, same message. The number was international so we tried different combination of plus signs instead of 00 etc but always got the same message. We then started looking for Fiat Professional garages on the Fiat website which also didn’t work very well. Next we logged into our Fiat profile and found 2 other numbers, first one - you guessed it number not recognised. Second number we got to speak to someone who preceded to tell us we weren’t covered on Fiat Assist then it sometimes takes a while for information to come through from Fiat, we pointed out we registered it in 2020 and even spoke to someone in Milan who confirmed we were covered for the first 3 years. The penny then dropped the call centre person hadn’t taken on board we were a motorhome not a car! So she tried to put us through to the camper department but it didn’t work. Loosing the will to live and imagining what this would have been like if we were in some foreign destination, with half the van ripped off due to an accident, I gave the number a try on my mobile and hallelujah we got through. A lovely lady called Laura found us on the system and is sending out someone to look at the van tomorrow morning. Tony has spent the last hour in “conversation” with Tesco mobile to see why his phone can’t call this number but not resolved. It is one of those days when you think “isn’t modern technology wonderful???”Read more