Advice on resolving a car dispute with ones employers

I am currently in the employ of a blue-chip motor company in the UK
who kindly offer a car-scheme to its employees. The scheme operates
like this:

Employee takes care of a new vehicle (service mileage only) and c£200
pm is deducted from salary (which includes insurance). After six
months or £8000 miles, the vehicle is returned at which time an
inspection is carried out and any damage/blemishes are noted in
paperwork and signed of by both parties.

My last car arrived with damage already done to the o/s door which I
made sure was noted in the paperwork.

I decided to leave the scheme and handed back my last car about six
months ago. This week I received a bill for close to £375 - this
included the damage that was clearly identified as pre-dating my care
- which I pointed out and had removed from the bill, reducing it to
£250.

Minor blemishes and stone chips, i.e. normal wear and tear for a
vehicle which must travel on a highway (sometimes only visible under a
UV light) are reported immediately to the insurers (Norwich Union) and
a claim number is recorded.

Here's the sting. Some blemishes weren't identified or recorded at
the time of the handover. Each and every blemish is treated as a
separate insurance claim and subject to £250 excess. So five minor
stone chips can set you back a grand.

My question is: Given the length of time between handover and the
bill for damages (on average half a year), having items included on
the bill which aren't identified at handover (i.e. could've occurred
after), and the treating of each chip as a separate item subject to
£250... Would it be worth my time investigating how I could dispute
this with my employers, for e.g. the insurance arm of the financial
ombudsman or her majesties court's process for dealing with small
claims, etc. Should I proceed with a solicitor or seek advice from
the Citizens Advice Bureau?

Many thanks,

Duncan

.

Relevant Pages