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Original poster

Is this normal for a garage? Awful communication

33 replies

avata · 16/05/2024 08:32

My car is in the garage for an MOT and because it was leaking oil.

I took it in at 9am on Monday, they messaged me at 5pm the same day to say it had failed (I knew it would) and that they would cost it all up including the oil leak. Ok.

By 3pm the next day I hadn't heard anything at all, so I contacted them to ask for an update.

They didn't get back to me for 24 hours, and then messaged to say they had found the source of the oil leak but were still figuring out some other bits, then again said that they would cost it up for me. This was at 4pm yesterday, and I now haven't heard anything again.

It's now Thursday and I have no idea of cost, timeline, or anything.

I'm a fairly new driver, so I'm unsure whether this is normal for a garage?

I really need my car for my commute for work, and I totally understand the repairs will take as long as they take, but it would have been nice to be given an idea of what is going on so that I could make arrangements?

OP posts:
Cotswoldbee · 16/05/2024 19:36

avata · 16/05/2024 19:29

Update:

He finally got back to me. Says he needs to order some parts from Mercedes. I asked if he has costed it up, he said he will do it tomorrow!

Is it unreasonable to expect him to have already ordered the parts, considering it failed it's MOT on Monday?

They would not order the parts until they have confirmation from you that you accept the costs and to do that, they need to prepare an accurate quote.

It is an old story where the customer has said "just go ahead and do what is necessary" but when presented with a hefty bill they get all argumentative about not expecting it to be "that much!".

Shade17 · 16/05/2024 19:44

They sound like a waste of space

AliceCallous · 16/05/2024 19:48

avata · 16/05/2024 19:29

Update:

He finally got back to me. Says he needs to order some parts from Mercedes. I asked if he has costed it up, he said he will do it tomorrow!

Is it unreasonable to expect him to have already ordered the parts, considering it failed it's MOT on Monday?

He can't order the parts until you authorise that you'll pay for them. So alas, he can't save time there.

He may also need to source the parts, depending on what they are, which he may not have time to do immediately.

I've dealt with garages a lot for work, so I'm very familiar with this. Yes, what you're experiencing is quite normal. They don't typically call every customer to update them daily. Some people don't want to hear anything until they have completed X thing.

It's really hard for a garage to plan a repair, because it can take any amount of time. When they have a bunch of vehicles in, all needing different things, they can get quite busy and also need to push things on to the following day.

In my professional opinion of what you've described, it sounds very usual. I wouldn't be too stressed in your position.

What I'd recommend when you have your own car in a garage is call for your own updates when you need one. It's a normal thing to do and no one should be getting grumpy with you on the phone about it.

Try around 2 - 4pm to call for an update, as they normally know what they're doing for the day by then. Literally just say, I'm calling for an update on the blue Ford, or whatever, and they'll let you know where they're up to.

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EBearhug · 17/05/2024 01:03

He can't order the parts until you authorise that you'll pay for them. So alas, he can't save time there.

What he can do is get quotes. Most people are not going to authorise it unless they know what it costs. £50 or £500? 1hr or 5hrs labour? I wouldn't say go ahead until I have an estimate and most other people wouldn't, either. My garage has always been able to tell me the likely cost when telling me I need X or Y doing, which means I can authorise it then and there. They also tell me if they have to order it in, and whether they're likely to get it that day or the next. They're a fairly cheap independent place, but they've always let me know what's going on, and what the costs and times are likely to be, which is what I'd expect from any garage.

Bestyearever2024 · 17/05/2024 01:07

He can't order the parts until he has costed the job, given you the quote and got your authorisation to do the work

The man is a twat

Go elsewhere

rwalker · 17/05/2024 07:41

The problem with faults is it’s how long is a piece of string
it could take 3 minutes or 3 hours to find the fault and the same to repair

whilst they will of given themselves time they can’t put hours aside on the off chance it a big fault
it could of been something like a loose sump plug that would take minutes to find and minutes to fix you’ll of had the car back same day

as others pointed out authorising and ordering takes time

Nitgel · 17/05/2024 15:13

it's such a crap way to do business though. I do pay more for MOT with a dealer but they send a video health check then send a list of what needs doing plus prices which you click and authorise or not, they do it straight away and let you know how long it will be before authorising. small garages need to do similar.

Shade17 · 17/05/2024 18:33

Nitgel · 17/05/2024 15:13

it's such a crap way to do business though. I do pay more for MOT with a dealer but they send a video health check then send a list of what needs doing plus prices which you click and authorise or not, they do it straight away and let you know how long it will be before authorising. small garages need to do similar.

The test itself should be the same price (although some garages do charge less) it’s the parts and labour for any repairs that you’ll be getting shafted on.

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