Area customers air grievances after Club Car Wash earns ‘F’ rating with BBB
Erika McGuire
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Club Car Wash, a Columbia-based company was given a “F” rating from the Better Business Bureau after the company received more than 240 complaints over that past 36 months, the BBB said in a press release Tuesday.
The BBB says the complaints stem from alleged vehicle damage, billing issues, and poor customer service. The company also received 73 customer reviews, the majority of those being negative, according to the BBB.
The “F” rating is the lowest on its scale, the BBB claimed in a release on its website it is due to a pattern of unresolved and unanswered complaints.
Customers claim Club Car Wash failed to pay for damage allegedly caused during automatic washes. Others claim they were unable to cancel the company’s $22-a-month subscription or get refunds.
Club Car Wash has said that many complaints involve preexisting vehicle damage, the release from the BB says.
In July in St. Charles County, Club Car Wash was ordered to pay $3,200 to a man whose 2019 Ford F-250 was damaged in April 2024, when a loose cord from another vehicle struck several parts of his truck, according to court documents. The damage included a broken windshield, and damage to the grille, headlight, hood and fender.
In Boone County in 2023, a woman filed a small claims lawsuit after alleging her 2013 Mazda’s rear top bumper was damaged after going through Club Car Wash automatic wash. Court documents say the woman filed a claim with employees. The petition says her claim was denied a month later because her vehicle was considered too old.
Court documents show Club Carwash settled with the vehicle’s owner, Uvirkaa Akumaga, for $1,163 on Jan. 9, 2024.
A Club Car Wash location in Columbia has a sign listing disclaimers and terms, which state the company is not responsible for damage to:
Vehicles seven ears or older;
Any Kia Trim;
Bug shields or rain guards of any kind;
Any style antenna;
Aftermarket wheels or extended valve stems;
Power running board in down position;
Windshields with prior chips or cracks in non-factory installed parts and accessories;
All externally attached items;
Preexisting paint imperfections;
Any prior vehicle damage; and
Accidents due to driver negligence.
The release from the BBB says it it received a complaint from a woman in Cape Girardeau who reported that a piece of her vehicle’s molding was torn off during a wash, with repairs estimated at $558. According to the BBB, Club Car Wash did not respond to the complaint.
Another case, in Arnold, Missouri, a woman claimed her son’s vehicle sustained damaged to a window, which caused $600 in damage. The BBB claims the company denied responsibility and did not respond to the complaint.
Former Club Car Wash customer Mindy Schmelz said the passenger-side door of her Grand Traverse SUV was scratched during a wash at a location in the St. Louis area. Schmelz, who says her vehicle had low mileage and no visible damage beforehand.
“I got out of the car, I just happened to look down for whatever reason and I noticed these like three patterns of scratches that were just like very uniform at the same level,” Schmelz said. “I knew the damage wasn’t there so we immediately went back up to the car wash and reported it,”
Schmelz says she reported the damage to an employee who then filed a claim. But a few days later, Schmelz says she was told the company would not take responsibility.
“We were told, ‘Oh sorry we can’t verify that we actually did the damage so we’re not going to cover it,'” she said.
Schmelz said she urged the company to review security footage from before the wash to confirm the scratches weren’t there.
“They’re like because of the glare and the metallic paint that you have, we couldn’t determine the damage wasn’t there prior,” Schmelz said. “We can’t determine that we actually did the damage, so we’re not going to cover it.”
After being denied payment for damage, Schmelz said felt she didn’t have much resource.
“We canceled our memberships,” Schmelz said. “I ended up just leaving a bad Google review for it because I’m like there’s no reason other people need to be subjected to having their new vehicles damaged or their vehicles in general damaged, people pay a lot of money for their cars and they want them to be kept nice,”
When Schmelz learned the BBB gave the company a “F” rating, she wasn’t surprised.
“I’m not surprised, to be honest with you because like, event two years ago when I wrote my Google review on it, and just even our local one on their Facebook reviews, which they’ve since taken away the ability to, There was so many people that were like my car has been damaged,” Schmelz said.
“You know their response was, we didn’t do it, I’m sorry you’re not happy with the response but we can’t verify that we did the damage or anything like that so I wasn’t surprised that they got that review,” she said.
Schmelz said she has not repaired her vehicle.
A Club Car Wash executive previously responded when BBB brought complaint pattern concerns to its attention, stating: “We have video and photo proof that these cars come in with the damage, but they feel the need to still make a complaint. The other thing is 228 complaints thankfully are minimal to the 50 million cars we have washed in that time frame so it’s obvious we don’t damage vehicles.”
The BBB recommends several tips when using car wash services:
Research the business before paying at BBB.org
Review terms and disclaimers posted at the facility or on the company’s website
Understand subscription plans and how to cancel them. Monitor your billing statements
Pay by credit card when possible to retain the ability to dispute charges
File complaints with BBB and your state attorney general’s office if you feel wronged
Club Car Wash operates more than 200 locations across 11 states, with six locations in Columbia.
ABC 17 News reached out to Club Car Wash and the Better Business Bureau.