A company bought 3m's wrapping products, but apparently they don't a clue how to apply them, in what respect is this 3m's fault or responsibility.

Your beef (contract) is with the people who did the job, not the supplier of the product.

As above, sue them.

Somewhat unfair, OTT responses.

The OP found the "approved" installer through 3M so it is reasonable to think 3M would at least try to help to resolve it even it it is not strictly its liability.

I would certainly have gone that route, if I could not resolve it amicably with the supplier in the first instance (difficult if they are incompetent).

Thanks OP I sure will avoid wrapping my car.

Unless I happen to become a 'doughnut' or 'premiership footballer with a very tiny brain' with an urgent need to decorate my 2014 Aston Martin Vanish with Chandeliers and a Cathedral Stained Glass Window motif then yep wrapping is one to avoid. Along with Rapping and associated criminal activites.

Meanwhile back on planet Earth, wrapping is a boon for tradesmen as it allows a van's paintowrk to be protected from day-to-day damage, and allows for far more detailed/sophisticated graphics in this age of everything needing to be 'eye-catching'.

Meanwhile back on planet Earth, wrapping is a boon for tradesmen as it allows a van's paintowrk to be protected

However the OP refers to a car in the post not an Earth bound van.

If we're playing pedant, I maintain that car paint is then just as susceptible to damage as van paint - if not from building site detritus then bird droppings, scratches, UV, car washes, etc. - and can be removed afterwards for resale leaving blemish-free paint underneath.

Edited by mss1tw on 06/10/2014 at 18:53

Some companies take some responsibility for their "channel' or distribution network. I once had a car remapped by an "approved installer" of XXXX chips. They bodged it and locked out the ECU, flippin nightmare. The designers of the remap took full responsibility for the job, paid for a hire car, trailered my car 200 miles to their premises, did a custom remap over the weekend and the technician drove it back and handed it over. All my money was refunded.