Posts Tagged ‘Auto Mechanics’
How To Spot Auto Repair Fraud
Written by admin on April 19, 2010 in Automotive
Have you ever seen a person get suckered into paying more than they should have for an imaginary auto repair? Well, it happened to me. I won’t use the name of the place here. All I’m going to say is that I was taking my vehicle in for a standard oil change and left this particular place about $1,000 later. I had been led to believe that there was more wrong with my car than there really was. Truth be told, my car was brand new and there was nothing wrong with it. Shame on me, I guess- but shame on those people for trying (and successfully) fooling another customer.
It is not unusual for car owners to end up paying a lot of money to have repairs made on their vehicles. Cars require a lot of maintenance and if this maintenance is overlooked the resulting repairs can be an extreme drain on finances. While many expensive car charges are perfectly legitimate and expected there are a few auto mechanics that will attempt to take advantage of the fact that many consumers expect to spend a lot of money on car repairs. Each year car owners are over charged thousands of dollars for vehicle repairs. In order to avoid being taken advantage of there are a few tricks that consumers must be aware of.
Be wary of “specials” on oil changes, tune-ups, and other regular maintenance services. Many unscrupulous auto repair shops will use these advertised prices to attract new customers looking for a deal. Once the customer shows up to the shop the mechanic will try to separate the car owner from their vehicle and then later tell the car owner that there are many things wrong with the vehicle in order to charge more for repairs. Usually, when a scam is under way the auto repair shop will attempt to frighten the car owner into having the repairs done immediately by claiming that they will face dire consequences if they attempt to leave before having the repairs made. Don’t fall for this trap, however. If you are inexperienced when it comes to your knowledge of vehicles, don’t allow someone else to take advantage. Bring someone with you who knows a thing or two about cars, this way they catch the employee in a lie and/or give you advice. If you can’t bring someone, have your phone handy and simply tell the employee that you don’t feel comfortable with making a decision until you speak to someone more knowledgeable about car repairs.
Another way to spot repair fraud in the making is auto repair shops being unwilling to put estimates in writing. Most legitimate auto mechanics have no problem with providing written estimates prior to beginning the work. On the other hand, repair shops that are hoping to use fraud to get more money out of customer than necessary will only provide a verbal quote. This will allow the auto mechanic to complete any work they wish (or charge for parts and work not completed) without the customers consent. When this happens most customers have no choice but to pay for the repairs they did not want.
By: Brenda Williams
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How To Choose Between Auto Repair Quotes
Written by admin on February 20, 2010 in Automotive
Getting your car repaired stinks. It can be a frustrating ordeal before; during and especially after you’ve finished paying the difference for the repairs. A common mistake that a lot of people make is automatically assuming that by taking their vehicle to an authorized dealership that sells vehicles, they will be getting better quality service over an independent mechanic who doesn’t have all of the fancy bells and whistles. Have you ever heard that saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover”? Well, it’s true. An independent mechanic can do just as good as a job, if not better, than a big dealership. So, the next time you have an auto problem, don’t just jump up right away and head straight to that dealership.
The first thing any responsible car owner is going to do when forced to take their vehicle to a repair shop is begin getting quotes from local auto repair shops. This is done to avoid being surprised, or out right shocked, by repair costs while physically in the auto repair shop or being put in a situation where the price of repair is more than you can afford. Getting a quote before taking a car to be repaired will avoid uncomfortable or embarrassing situations, and it will also keep car owners from paying more than necessary for repairs.
There are usually three different types of quotes that auto mechanics working at repair shops will give someone calling to inquire. There are some shops that will absolutely refuse to give quotes over the phone usually giving the caller several confusing and contradicting reasons for why they can not give quotes over the phone. Other auto repair shops will give an extremely low price that is, in some cases, unrealistic, in hopes of getting you into their location so that they can attempt to over charge you for additional parts or labor. Sometimes shops providing inexpensive quotes will actually live up to their claims but will cut many corners are use inferior parts that will cost you more money over time since you will have to return to the shop at later dates to have the initial problem looked at again. Lastly, there are auto mechanics that will give extremely detailed, often expensive, quotes over the phone that cover ever situation and scenario that are usually extremely confusing and hard to follow.
In the end it is up to the consumer to make their choice based on their own experiences and situation. However, it is often in a car owner’s best interest to visit the auto mechanic that has given the highest and most detailed quote. This usually means that the auto repair shop is interested in educating customers by providing them with information that they would not have thought to inquire about and not attempting to hide and possible costs. Also, these shops have not attempted to lure in new customers by advertising a low price, they have chosen to risk losing a potential customer by stating a price that they often know is higher than that of their competitors.
By: Brenda Williams
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