FG Barnes Group Reviews 

I bought a used but relatively new car from this dealership. The sale was efficient, even pleasant right up to the point where my car later developed a fault. The service side is appalling... not the work that seems fine but actually answering the phone seems to tax them and promised callbacks rarely occur. If you go in person, they avoid eye contact or speaking to customers at the desk... lots of "busy man" lights and body language, but there is no system for queuing or keeping to appointments, you feel completely ignored.

My car developed a fan fault and was diagnosed as needing a new motor... that was replaced under warantee but the fan still didn't work. The fault was now attributed to a faulty resistor module and this verified by swapping with a good one temporarily. However they needed to order one for me.... 2, 3 months passed... frequent enquiries always the same answer... part not available. I searched online and it was avble from many sources including vauxhall themselves! I even sent the link... no response. Eventually I bought one and swapped it myself and this fixed the fault but at 73 yrs old I didn't expect to be crouching down to fix a nearly new car covered by warrantee!

Now I have an oil pressure fault... intermittent loss of pressure but once more no answer from the garage... round and round the answerphone circuit (options 1 and 2 if you want to save time) but no human response at all. I'm frightened to drive the car, stuck and unsure what to do and this garage are effectively no help.

Can they not at least hire a receptionist?

I have now spent more time without my brand-new Jaecoo than actually driving it.

The vehicle was delivered on 6 January 2026 and suffered a complete high-voltage battery/BMS failure on 30 March 2026, after less than three months of use.

Today, it has been off the road for longer than it was ever available to me. I have literally spent more time waiting for repairs than enjoying the vehicle I am paying for.

My vehicle was recovered to FG Barnes Guildford, where it has remained for almost three months.

I understand that complex technical faults can occur and that some repairs require approval from the manufacturer. However, what I cannot accept is the complete lack of communication and ownership throughout this process.

During these months:

Very few updates were provided proactively.
Numerous emails requesting information went unanswered.
I was constantly forced to chase for news.
No realistic repair completion date was ever provided.
I was repeatedly told that the dealership was still waiting for instructions from Jaecoo's engineering team before any repair could proceed.

Ironically, almost every meaningful update I received came from Octopus Electric Vehicles, who were themselves chasing both the dealership and Jaecoo. Had I relied solely on FG Barnes, I would have had virtually no information about what was happening with my vehicle.

While I appreciate that some technical decisions depended on Jaecoo, communication with customers does not. A simple phone call or email every week explaining the current status would have made a huge difference.

Instead, I have been left paying for a vehicle that I have now been unable to use for longer than I was ever able to drive it.

Buying a new car should be an exciting experience. Unfortunately, this has been one of the most frustrating customer service experiences I have ever had.

I sincerely hope FG Barnes improves both its communication and customer care, because no customer should be left in this situation with a brand-new vehicle.

Had a test drive in the Omoda 5 hybrid with Nick from the Guildford branch and was very happy with the service I received. The test drive was arranged the previous day and Nick sent a short video of the Omoda 5 from the showroom to show the type of car I would be testing. On the day I was able to have a good look around the car in the showroom and then went out on the test drive around the local streets which I chose as the type of test drive I wanted. Nick was fully knowledgeable of the car and was able to demonstrate a lot of its functions and tech during the drive. I advised him that I was looking at leasing a car so while we were out, his colleague Ollie worked on a quote which I was given shortly after we got back. This was all very helpful and I wouldn’t hesitate to go back to them again, thanks Nick.

Bought a car from this garage 21 months ago and it has broken down for the 3rd time for the exact same reason everytime. The first time it went back here, they fixed it, I got it back and within months it went again. Had this fixed at my local garage as I couldn't get to Guildford. Months later its gone again. My garage wouldn't take it back as it is an recurring issue so it went back to this garage. Made a complaint with Vauxhall as,online, I have seen several people with this car with the same issue, and now neither vauxhaull or the garage seem to be talking to each other so I am paying for a car I dont have and that doesn't drive and is being held hostage at FG Barnes. The first time this happened, I got a lecture on how to drive the car from the salesman that sold it to me as he said 'It was my style of driving' that caused the issue with it. The rudeness was insane! The only person that seems to want to help, but still hasn't called me back, is Merv. 3 weeks and Im still waiting for an answer. Never again will I buy Vauxhall.

After a breakdown my car was taken to F G Barnes for repair. Although under warrenty my car company (Nissan) were absolutely useless when dealing with the problem. The staff at F G Barnes, particularly Henry, were outstanding. He arranged a hire car, dealt with Nissan and kept me informed. I cannot thank him enough for his support - a truly dedicated member of staff.

Had my car booked for MOT got plenty of notifications, booked online.
Arrived at FG Barnes, friendly staff, contacted when it was ready to collect.
Nice area to wait with free coffee facility.
Had the car washes as well which was a pleasant surprise.
Very good experience.

Just purchased a new Jaecoo 7, excellent service from the sales man Mr Ali Hussnam, we explained what we were looking for, he arranged test drive and valuation on our car. Exceeded our expectation

Awful service when dealing with an issue with a car bought from them that was less than 2 years old. We’ve received our car back today after they’ve had it for 7 weeks plus another 2 weeks in February where they failed to even find the fault and so sent us back out in a faulty car that unsurprisingly completely died again leaving me stranded with my children waiting for the RAC for a third time with the same problem. The staff are very apologetic and polite on the phone or in person but never call back when they say (lost count of how many time we’ve had to call and chase them up) and I have no trust in their ability to repair the problem so only time will tell if they managed it this time. An utter disappointment all round.

We had a fantastic experience with Ian and FG Barnes in Guildford, from the initial enquiries to the test driving through to purchasing the car. We told Ian we were nervous at test driving as we were getting a bigger car than we were used to, and he put us at ease. We didn’t feel rushed and he was relaxed and supportive throughout the test drive. He was professional and friendly without any of the negative connotations you can get when you think of a ‘car sales person’! The negotiating process was also easy, and we felt Calum, the sales manager was flexible and responsive to ensuring he met our needs, responding quickly and being open to negotiation. The day of collection Calum came over to introduce himself, and the car was wrapped under a sheet indoors with our name on; these things added a level above what we are used to and was a pleasant change and most unexpected! We would definitely buy from FG Barnes again; in fact, going to them first based purely on the service we received.

I went into F G Barnes at Guildford wanting to know what options I had to buy a Vauxhall car from the company. The service I received from Alex Bax was exceptional. He described all of my options, took me on 3 test drives and answered all of my questions. A very pleasant experience. Thank you!

Used them last year definitely recommend very good friendly service nothing too much trouble thanks Natalie

Appalling service, excuse after excuse.
Mananger unable to answer basic questions.
1. Why was the pre purchase condition report only given six weeks after purchase?
2, if I had been given pre purchase inspection report, I would not have bought this car.
3. Pre purchase inspection report, highlighted,
Front pads worn 85%!
Discs and front worn!
Wet belt cracked,!
This information should have been produced at point of purchase, not six weeks after,! Just as requested complaints procedure , over six weeks ago! Fobbed of with petty excuses.
I wanted a car for my son, that would be safe, hence going to a main dealer, however now knowing the facts of report, I feel this car is not safe for my son.
Waiting for senior management to reply, as manager incapable or unable to answer basic questions.

UPDATE: Impossible to get through - nobody answers phone. AI bot arranges callbacks that never happen. Two weeks of deliberate avoidance. Being forced to visit in person as only option. Appalling service. Avoid.
Damage during warranty repair 14-15 Jan. Called twice - transferred to service dept, no callback. Promised email to send photos - never received. Contacted via WhatsApp, promised callback - nothing. Multiple enquiries ignored. Two weeks without resolution. They're deliberately avoiding responsibility. Avoid

Called in the morning to confirm that a car advertised on autotrader & their website was in stock. Put on hold for a few mins whilst it was confirmed as in stock and I paid a decent deposit over the phone. Despite confirming I was buying the car outright, I had to go over the finance terms and conditions for 20 min as part of their policy . Confirmed a collection date in 5 days and job done . However received a call several hours later saying they sold the car to a dealer . Complete waste of everyone’s time and basic record keeping would have prevented this.

DONT USE THIS DEALERSHIP. I bought a Jaecoo7 from them, their garage had each tire blown up to 40PSI (without me realising this wasn't standard), and within 3 days I had a puncture. I went into the dealership to ask someone to look at it, as that's a crazy PSI...

I called and a rep called "Kenny" who I personally think was lying about his name, mouthed off down the phone saying that I should go somewhere else to fix it. When I said I'd come down to the dealership and warn people how bad the customer service was, he invited me to. I'll now make it my mission to make sure people don't use this specific dealership. I would not want anyone else to deal with complete inability to sort an issue that is caused by the poor capability of a dealerships attached garage.

Also, if Kenny actually is an employee, their phone system says that they record their calls. I'd suggest going through his calls because he's disgustingly disrespectful to customers.

Again, DO NOT USE. They're incapable; over saturated with sales and unresponsive the minute you walk out the door with the car

I took my Nissan Qashqai to the Guildford branch and spoke to Frazer in service dept. I cant express how helpful and pleasant he was to deal with. I would definitely intend to use them again and would recommend them for Service/Assistance as needed.

I took my Nissan Qashqai in today for a vehicle safety recall repair. The customer service from Fraser was excellent, making sure I had an office to work from whilst the work was being done. Slightly frustrating that a repair that was advertised to take an hour / 1.5 hours to be completed ended up taking 3 hours - but no drama, as I had what I needed to work in peace and quiet.

Dreadful administrative and customer support. My elderly mum leased an GWM Ora through them in 2024 - they didn't complete the paperwork properly so she is now being charged for substantial mileage that was on the car when she got it. To compound this original error (which the lease company confirms was down to them) they have refused to take responsibility or help correct their failure.

We purchased a Jaecoo from FG Barnes Guildford. Sadly i had small accident in the car and needed it to be inspected urgently. Fraser in the customer service department was excellent in making arrangements for the car to be looked at quickly and advising us on what step to take. Thanks for great prompt service Fraser and to your colleague in the servicing department. Fraser also took the time to answer some other questions we had about the car generally which was really helpful.

I purchased a distance sales car, and the customer service for purchasing the car was outstanding.
I can imagine in person they are just as amazing.
Thak you for a fantastic experience, and a good priced second hand car.