Bloomington Kia Covers Fixes on Stolen Car

This summer, Lauri Ludeman’s 2015 Kia Soul was stolen out of her parking lot. The police located it after five hours, just 15 minutes away from Ludeman’s house but significant damage was done. She brought it to a body shop she had been to previously, which quoted her $2,000 to fix just the damage. 

Ludeman didn’t have the means to get the damage fixed and looked at every possible option, including taking out a loan and credit card. She called Adam Bistodeau, the Service Manager at Bloomington Kia, and explained her situation, looking for a solution. “I told her to bring the car in to do the bare minimum to help her out to start,” said Bistodeau. “We got the broken window covered immediately.”

Bistodeau talked with Parts Manager Chad Huffman, and he agreed to split the costs to fix the damages between Service and Parts. The next day, Service Advisor Oscar Diaz called Ludeman to let her know Bloomington Kia would be covering all the repairs. “I was overwhelmed with joy and gratitude!” said Ludeman. “In my time of great need, there were people who were willing to not only help me but go above and beyond.”

Kia took it one step further during a dealership visit. Bistodeau explained the situation, and Kia agreed to cover the cost of fixing the damage if Service and Parts covered the cost of any other maintenance she needed. Kia put on new tires, brakes, and filters and completed an alignment. They took care of the locking lug nuts and airbag lights and put in new spark plugs and bulbs. The total repairs cost about $2,600, the damage being $1,500 of that.

Ludeman relied on her car and could never bring it in for more than a few hours, so repairs took over two months to complete. Ludeman waited in the waiting area each visit and got to know the staff quite well. She has taken on new leadership responsibilities at her job and talked with Bistodeau about how to build her leadership skills. Bistodeau, being a former Leadership Academy grad, recommended 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which he read during his year in Leadership Academy, and Unreasonable Hospitality, which has been used in many leadership trainings in the last year. “I feel like they are my family, and I will be a customer for life. I have not had a better customer service experience!” said Ludeman. “Thank you, Adam and Oscar, for being such wonderful human beings. I will never forget your kindness.”