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Original poster

How to deal with Garage being unreasonable??

17 replies

classyinpink · 13/06/2012 19:46

I took my car in for MOT and miserably failed. They said "ooh, the engine doesn't look good at all you probably have serious problems with that car". I took into my normal garage and told them to have a look. They said that it was the catalytic converter so I let them do the work, then the garage called and said that it's not just one catalytic converter but two of them. So I shelled out just under £500 for labour and materials. They call to say that it's done so I pick it up and took it back for MOT. When I drove in with the car the MOT people said that they can tell by smell it's not fixed. But they put it under computer and of course it failed again. I took it back to the garage furious and left it there and told them to let me know what is the matter with the car. Now they have called me to say that car needs a lot of work and it would be much more than the car's worth.

I feel that I paid £500 needlessly if I wasn't going to have my car back to begin with. I feel as though they have taken advantage of me and did not check the car thoroughly and properly to begin with. I don't want to go in there like mad woman but want to go in and be reasonable. Basically I want my £500 back from them but maybe I'm bing unreasonable. Any advice would be appreciated.

OP posts:

PurplePidjin · 13/06/2012 20:19

What points has the car actually failed on, and has the garage doing the work addressed them?

I'm surprised the MOT place didn't make suggestions, most places i know can do the work as well as the test or they'd never make any money!

Original poster

classyinpink · 13/06/2012 20:25

well MOT place I went is called JustMOT. They do exactly that. I paid with my credit card so I wonder what kind of rights I have

OP posts:

Original poster

classyinpink · 13/06/2012 20:55

The car failed on emissions test. Garage was going to have a look and see what was causing that and said it was the catalytic converter. Now it seems it is the engine itself. I don't know in detail but they basically said they cannot fix the car as it would cost more than what the car is worth.

OP posts:

PurplePidjin · 13/06/2012 20:56

I have no idea having got myself into trouble with credit cards as a student :o

Get the garage to do you an itemised quote, dealing with each point listed on the MOT.

Remove car, analyse what you can do for yourself - bulbs, wiper blades etc. Get detailed quotes from at least one other independant garage. If you don't know anyone in the area who can recommend someone (you'd have to be pretty isolated not to, everyone's got an opinion on stuff like this!!), try checkatrade or somewhere you can get a review.

Your car is now not road legal.

SORN the car until you get it fixed, you might get a refund of your tax if there's more than a couple of months left on it. As long as there's an insurance policy in place, you're covered to take it from a "place of repair" to a pre-booked MOT at a recognised testing station. It's a grey area whether you can drive it to and from home - the car may not be safe to drive. Make sure the car is stored off the public road!

PurplePidjin · 13/06/2012 20:58

X post. Dp (the car fanatic) needs to know what kind of car it is, age, petrol/diesel and whether it was a full cat replacement or just pipes and sundries :)

Original poster

classyinpink · 13/06/2012 21:12

it was full cat replacement. volkswagen Golf, 1.6litre, made in year 2000, petrol.

Do you think I can get the money back from the garage? Thanks for all the info on SORN and all that. I was supposed to get it taxed hence the MOT. MOT boys just laughted at me as I dragged in the supposed "fixed' car.....:(

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Original poster

classyinpink · 13/06/2012 21:19

insurance runs out end of this month..Do you mean I can ask insurance to pay for the repair?? It was about £495 in total. I just wrote to trading standards complaining so they might give me some advice. Garage apparently told DH today that they would need to take out the whole engine to have a look and that would cost more than the car is worth...

OP posts:

PurplePidjin · 13/06/2012 21:27

Garage is most likely right, and you got a fair price for that amount of work, so I'd bin that letter to trading standards along with the car tbh.

Insurance doesnt cover wear and tear

Original poster

classyinpink · 13/06/2012 23:29

Can you explain why garage is right? i don't understand. it's like taking a broken stereo, then they just fix bits of it and gives it back and says sorry, you have to pay for that bit that we tried to fix but it's completely useless.

OP posts:

PurplePidjin · 14/06/2012 08:39

Well, the obvious cause of the problem is the Cat. That costs X amount of money for the parts plus Y amount of money for the time it takes. 9/10 times, that fixes the problem and the customer gets their MOT for another year.

So, the garage has spent £500 of cash and labour trying to fix your car. Unless what they've done is faulty, or they're lying and haven't done it at all, then they've done what they told you they would.

You appear to be in the 1/10 who's emissions problem hasn't been caused by the Cat, therefore more investigation is needed. The garage have told you that further work will be pointless due to the cost - if they were trying to rip you off, they'd just do the work and take your money, they're actually doing themselves out of business telling you this!

A car is an immensely complex piece of machinery, and each different model within each brand works slightly differently. It's more like a Dr diagnosing a person than a bit of soldering on a stereo, if you want an analogy. Mostly they get it right first time. Sometimes it just ain't that easy.

Sneezecakesmama · 15/06/2012 13:55

Frankly a 12 year old is probably not worth much more than scrap value anyway, and putting an expensive cat on not worth it in the first place. However I think (not sure) that you have a contract with the garage to fix the problem of emissions failure, and if they said a cat would fix it and it didn't then they have not fulfilled their side of the contract....they should have picked up on the worn engine (12 year old ffs). If they won't refund the money, taking the cat off in the process, you may need to take them to a small claims court.

Garages are notoriously horrid places for women...see a skirt and double the price in my experience.

Sneezecakesmama · 15/06/2012 13:59

Purple. I am assuming the OP did not ask the garage for a new cat just explained it failed on emissions. In which case she was asking them to highlight where the problem was, hence it is the garages responsibility if they incorrectly diagnosed.

PurplePidjin · 15/06/2012 14:11

Sneezecake, that's the complete opposite of my experience - and for the lsst 2 years I've been driving a tax exempt air cooled Beetle which is guaranteed to bring out people's innate sexism (dp takes great pleasure in directing all enquiries to me when we're out!)

I have dealt with half a dozen garages locally, plus countless amateurs at car shows, and have never been treated with anything but respect.

Obviously if i went in and gave the impression i was a brainless bimbo things might be different, but i stick to courtesy and make sure i know exactly whats happening before they start work. It has been unfailingly reflected.

Just because one car mechanic was on the TV 15 years ago for ripping off women doesn't make it standard practice. I have met far more people (male and female) who simply walk in and expect their car fixed in 5 minutes for 12p.

Sneezecakesmama · 15/06/2012 14:17

I must look like an ancient bimbo then

I have found one good mechanic though and I would trust him.

I went to a garage once to ask someone to check my tires for wear, and he just put 2 new tyres on almost before I stopped speaking.

PurplePidjin · 15/06/2012 14:25

And I'm 30 and have only ever owned bangers plus now my beloved Bug!

I still think that if you wave your hand and tell them to fix your car, you'll get a nasty shock. If you ask questions about what needs doing, you can make an informed decision - the bill will probably still be the same but at least you're prepared :o

But the same applies to anything you have to get another person to do. I expect the Dr to explain medication to me, the plumber to tell me why i need a new part for my boiler etc...

savoycabbage · 15/06/2012 14:33

You can still have it repaired to pass the MOT though. Even if it costs more than the car is worth as you will have a car then.

Original poster

classyinpink · 15/06/2012 15:03

hi purple I did ask them what needs doing. And They told me that it was the Catalytic converter then told me the price for it. THen we got a call saying actually it's two instead of 1 catalytic converter. Then now they have called back and said it would cost just under £800 to fix the engine valve.

I am furious and feel ripped off as the car itself is worth about £900 and I spent £500 on a dead car. In reality I feel I need to spend that £800 as maybe it will run for another 4 years without a problem and also because I have already spent £500 on it.

If they diagnosed it properly to start with then maybe I would have tried to have get rid of car as tax and insurance just expired anyway. And also I would have gotten a another used car with less mileage.

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