In my last blog i detailed the problems i was having with my car and how my local dealer had been helping me sort them out.

There's lessons to be learned here, because i'm not very happy with the service i received and i won't be going there for servicing again.

I had my car towed to the dealership on Saturday and was told that it would be serviced when there was an opening in bookings, or Monday when i had originally booked it in for a service.

They contacted me on the Monday to tell me the problems with the car and told me the work would be carried out the next day.

They then phoned me up the next day to tell me the parts they needed weren't available and the bulk of the work wouldn't be carried out under manufacturer warranty because it didn't cover "water ingress". Apparently a cracked fog light (which i didn't even know was cracked) had let water in, which had then fried my battery and vehicle computer gubbins.

I was told the parts would be available at the end of the day and i could pick up the car later. I phoned them later on to see what was going on and they said the parts were still not available. I then specifically told them to ring me either way, so i would be updated with the situation.

No phone call came and i was left without knowing what was going on for another two days.

An email would have been sufficient, but the service receptionist told me she didn't have access to the internet. It's little things like these that really annoy customers. If they had kept me informed of progress, even if there wasn't any, it would have been fine. But i was left feeling as though my queries had been neglected.

I finally went to pick up my car and went to pay. I was presented with the bill and the same service reception that told me it wasn't going to be fixed under warranty now told me it would be.

Then she had a chat with someone behind a closed door (what about me? HELLO! I WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON, DON'T LEAVE ME OUT) she then came back and said that it wouldn't be fixed under warranty.

I pay the bill, go back to the car and although the work was supposed to be done in one day, it has stayed with the dealership for five and they hadn't cleaned it.

Now, i know it's a Ford Focus, but it's things like this that make all the difference. I don't care how much time/effort/money it would have cost to run a rag over the interior of my car, they would have made it back by my return custom.

But as a result of the poor communication from the service receptionist and the confusion with my bill, poor explanations for why some of the work was carried out and an unvaleted car, i will not be going back.