Car Repair Shop and the Scam They Pulled
If you were handed an estimate to replace a water pump on your car, would you know if the price was fair? Could you trust the price? What about for a tie rod end, mass air flow sensor, or an evaporative emissions sensor?
Most of us do not know what these are, never mind the cost. Yet it is elements like these that are frequently used to over charge you, the vehicle fix customer.
We no longer live in an age of trust, so how will we make sure that our car repair costs are legitimate.
How many times have you had a suspicion that you paid too much, but could not prove it? How many times did the price seem exorbitant for even simple repairs?
To illustrate just how “At Risk” the common-or-garden automobile repair consumer is to excessive car repair costs, here is a recent real life example from a “reputable?” dealer.
A customer brought her Audi to an authorized Audi dealership for a standard timing belt upkeep service.
The price for this service averages $1575 at the dealership level, (including pulleys, water pumpetc) and about $1275 at the independent correct shop level.
Yet the girl left the dealer with a bill for $2025.68.
What happened?
According to the repair order, there were no aberrant circumstances, no issues spotted by the technician like rust or any other extenuating circumstances that would have perhaps increased the labor, or added extra parts.
In short, it definitely was a straight forward service, but the bill was $450.68 higher than it should have been. There is simply no legitimate reason to have “that much” discrepancy.
How’d they get away with it?
The answer is extremely simple, and it’s a point that I don’t want anyone to miss:
They get away with it because they can!
Think about it. The average person does not know how much auto parts cost. And who knows how much labor time a repair should take? To what sources does one turn to find out this information? Who even has the time to investigate!
Upon examination of this lady’s fix order, it was found that she was charged a full four hours “more” than the standard work time. At $100 per hour, this added an extra $400. The leftover $50.68 came from the parts, which were billed higher than MSRP.
She was quoted $2,025 for a fix that tops out at $1575. The woman didn’t know. She just paid the bill and left.
How many times do people just settle up and leave? Just about that is all one can do given that there’s no accessible information for the car repair customer to adequately query a correct bill. Additionally , extremely few even know what inquiries to ask!
The car repair industry has been over-charging for decades-sometimes subtly, sometimes confidently, definitely often. The evidence for this is overpowering ; yet, there are no easy solutions available for the auto fix customer.
Government agencies can’t help. The Better Business Bureau can’t do anything. Even supposed “car fix gurus or advocates” lack the appreciation of the breadth and insidiousness of the car repair business at all its levels.
A dealership operates differently than an independent correct shop, and a franchise, like Midas, is completely unique. Who truly knows what goes on in the underground of such a various and complicated industry?
The Solution?
First and foremost, auto correct patrons need access to information on automobile correct costs. Without this, they’ve got nothing discernible in which to figure out fair charges. They also have to be in a position to navigate the maze of parts and work charges for car repairs and maintenance.
Like the rest, information is the key to guarantee fair treatment. Without it, the car repair customer will continue to “swim with the sharks” without any protection.
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