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Original poster

To feel ripped off by Halfords Autocentres MOT

29 replies

NK493efc93X1277dd3d6d4 · 06/03/2014 10:35

Halfords Autocentres offer cheap MOTs as do many other places. Usually use Mr Clutch but thought I'd try here as bit closer and only 1.50 more expensive. Have now discovered that 1.50 is far from the end of it.

Collected car at Elmers End just before closing on day before yesterday and was informed that only had 24 hours for free retest if I took the car elsewhere.Got work done by 5pm but (stupidly) thought that as they would be closing by the time I got there I would wait until morning. Called up at 9am this morning to book retest and was asked to pay and couldnt retest until tomorrow.

It's a real Catch 22! They do not tell you this when you take the car in, only when you collect it. It is on their website but the booking was made by phone. So either you pay the 85 per hour labour charge and they do the work and retest for free, or you most likely end up paying for the retest. Complained to manager who simply said he doesn't care!

I know I should have asked! I realise that a free retest is not obligatory but AIBU to expect that a large company like this would offer similar terms to their competitors?

OP posts:
MsMarvel · 06/03/2014 11:07

I thought they did the free retest if they did the work? Because then they know exactly what has been done and it will take them a lot shorter time to do the retest? If you take it elsewhere for the work they need to recheck everything to make sure nothing that was fine before has been tampered with.

QwertyBird · 06/03/2014 11:03

Call vosa and ask where you stand legally?

Shonajoy · 06/03/2014 11:00

So they managed to eke out the work "needed" till 5pm therefore ensuring you'd have to have a retest?

I've heard that company referred to meant times as "Halfrauds", you should stick to independent garages, I was in a bind one time as my brake pads were done, and I needed the car for a journey the next day (they suddenly started making a horrendous scraping noise). This company replaced them, apparently put new brake fluid in but then forgot to reconnect the brakes meaning as I drove out of their garage with a 2 year old and a 3 year old in the car, I completely overshot the give way by about two metres.

They denied it was their fault. We could all have been badly injured. They also said they'd need an independent inspector to be the mediator but basically they totally scammed me, I needed the car, and had it towed to another garage as they wouldn't look at it despite having done the brakes an hour before. And we were skint at the time. And they treat their employees like crap.

sparechange · 06/03/2014 10:38

I think legally, you can only get a free retest if the car doesn't leave the test centre between the tests ie they do the work inhouse to rectify the problems you saw.

So you haven't been ripped off. You've just been using places before which have a liberal interpretation of the law

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