Am I being ripped-off ?

dublin_apache

About 2 months ago I had the use of a rental car (04 Astra H/B 1.4) for about a week and 1 night I went the flicks with the gf as we would normally do, but when I came out to the car after the film I saw the d/s mirror was damaged. The mirror was cracked and a part of the casing was gone :eek: , so when I brought the car back I told them what had happend, they had a look at the car and said "Ah it's nothing, don't worry about it. It should only cost €50 at the most" I said "mmmm ok , grand €50 that's not bad" they said "Yeah, sure it's only the mirror and the casing" I taught to my-self grand...

But before I brought it back I took photos of the damage (see below) because I know what these fcukers a like :mad: ...

And low and behold I got a lovely invoice this morning for €160.22c. :eek:

It reads on the invoice

"Supply right hand door mirror complete, Fitting and painting same - €58.29

Sub Total - 58.29
Paint/Sundrie - 30.00
Labour - 52.88


Sub Total - 141.17
VAT @ 13.5% - 19.05

TOTAL EURO - 160.22

So what are my options ?

Please don't say none ...

This is obviously a rip-off, if I did go and pay the €160.22 could I ask for the part(s) they replaced ? Because I reckon they just replaced the mirror and casing !!!

spongebob

dublin_apache wrote:

But before I brought it back I took photos of the damage (see below) because I know what these fcukers a like :mad: ...

And low and behold I got a lovely invoice this morning for €160.22c. :eek:

It reads on the invoice

"Supply right hand door mirror complete, Fitting and painting same - €58.29

Sub Total - 58.29
Paint/Sundrie - 30.00
Labour - 52.88


Sub Total - 141.17
VAT @ 13.5% - 19.05

TOTAL EURO - 160.22

So what are my options ?

Please don't say none ...

I reckon you are right and that no paiting was required. They also billed you for 2 hours work for a 15 -20 minute mirror refit.

Offer them the cost of the mirror + 1/6th of the labour (for 20 mins) +13.5% VAT and tell them you will see them in court , print the photos and send them to yourself in an envelope.

M

BrianD

I doubt if you'll get much joy and you should read your contract. You should have asked them to commit to the €50 and paid there and then. Unfortunately, what someboby guesstimates is not legally binding and only an indication of what the cost might be. Did you take out insurance?

Usually these mirrors are not repairable and its a case of replacing the entire unit. I would enquire what the €30 for paint and sundries is for though!

EKRIUQ

I got a side mirror broken off a couple of years on a fiat car, I brought it to a main dealer to get it fixed, It cost me £127 - €162 to get it replaced. I thought it was a ripoff then and I still think its a rip off but I suppose thats the going rate

John R

Not really a help in this situation but I reckon it is always a good idea to pay the little extra to remove the excess on hire car insurance.


If the mirrors are colour coded wouldn't the front piece need to be painted?

dublin_apache

Thanks for all the replys ppl ...

I've been trying to just put this pxy out of my head :rolleyes: , ah I'm going to give them hell over it on monday, i'm going to ask them for the parts that they had to take off to replace with the "new" parts... I was driving under my own insurance with the car, so i'll probably just end up sticking it on that :mad: ....

I think I'll buy a mountain bike..............

BrianD

Unfortunately, they are not obliged to give you the parts or even show them to you. You damaged their property and now you have to pay to rectify the damage. The old and new parts are their property.

However, it seems they have been pretty heavy on the cost of the repair and I would certainly challenge them on it however I would not go in all guns blazing! Remember you are ultimately in the wrong. A firm but courteous approach might lead to some negotiation that might get the price to a pont between €50 and €160.

I recall damaging a wing mirror on an Isuzu Trooper a few years ago. It was just the lense that was damaged. Not only did I have to buy the entire mirror assembly but they only sold the wing mirror as a pair!! Lucky the job were paying for it!