Car mechanics "holding" your car?

fletch...

I had some work done on a car, it went in for one mechanical job and due to mechanics not having a clue Im expected to fork out an extra couple of hundred. My alarm/imobiliser had nothing to do with the work done but because they couldnt figure out how to restart the car after the work done they simply bypassed (disconnected the security system) and I have to pay for the privilage.

Since I wasnt expecting to pay for this "extra work" I showed up to pay and collect m,y car, I didnt have enough and was told I cant have my car back (basically told to F off)

I said Il be back in the morning to pay the rest but instead had some psychotic manager screaming down the fone at me :mad: but I really need the car for work.

Is this legal? can a mechanic legally "hold" your car?
Should I have to fork extra out because a so called car mechanic cant figure an alarm/imobilser system?

Gillo

As far as I remember if you did not authorise the work you do not have to pay for it, although you may have to give the mechanic the option to "undo" the work.

It should be covered by the Sales of Goods & supply of Services Act.

fletch...

Thanks Gillo, interesting read. been looking up a lot of other stuff too.
Im absolutly fuming about the past few days and treatment I got so I wont say anything until my temper calms down.

dh0661

fletch... wrote: »

Since I wasnt expecting to pay for this "extra work" I showed up to pay and collect m,y car, I didnt have enough and was told I cant have my car back (basically told to F off)

I said Il be back in the morning to pay the rest but instead had some psychotic manager screaming down the fone at me :mad: but I really need the car for work.

ooooohhhhh - I have suffered this sort of treatment before, the young blonde that hasn't a clue :mad:.

Over the phone will not work, when I brought my boyfriend (now my Hubby) along, A TOTALY different story, it was more like yes sir - three bags full sir.

Sad to say it, but if you are a poor defenceless female, bring a strong man with you, drag one off the street if you have to. Put that &ollox of a service manager in his place.

Now here's the best part, when you get your keys and all the work is up to standard, without any extra cost to you, turn on him like a vicious psychotic vixen, stay calm but forceful, ask for an apology for the way that you have been treated.

If the apology is not forthcoming, ask to speak to the boss / owner, I was within earshot of the owner, did not realise that at the time.

All that I can remember now was the reaction between them, manager realising that boss had heard what was going on, boss realising that there was trouble came to sort the situation, we agreed on on fill of petrol.

I return there every now and again to get the car serviced, and the reaction is, yes missus, whatever you say missus.

Sorry for going on a bit, but hope it is of some help.

Del2005

fletch... wrote: »

I had some work done on a car, it went in for one mechanical job and due to mechanics not having a clue Im expected to fork out an extra couple of hundred. My alarm/imobiliser had nothing to do with the work done but because they couldnt figure out how to restart the car after the work done they simply bypassed (disconnected the security system) and I have to pay for the privilage.

Since I wasnt expecting to pay for this "extra work" I showed up to pay and collect m,y car, I didnt have enough and was told I cant have my car back (basically told to F off)

I said Il be back in the morning to pay the rest but instead had some psychotic manager screaming down the fone at me :mad: but I really need the car for work.

Is this legal? can a mechanic legally "hold" your car?
Should I have to fork extra out because a so called car mechanic cant figure an alarm/imobilser system?

It's a bit of a gray area, they are allowed to keep your car if you don't pay. But there should have informed you 1st of the extra charge and if you where OK with it. Was it a franchise dealer or a back street place? Reason is it should be easier to deal with a dealer as they will be more worried about customer relations.

Get a break down of the invoice and any work they did that was a result of their incompetence you don't have to pay for. They should also get your security fixed free if they by passed it.

squibs

I always ask for an estimate first, and give the mechanic my card and warn him to call me before doing any work other than what was discussed.

pookie82

dh0661 wrote: »

ooooohhhhh - I have suffered this sort of treatment before, the young blonde that hasn't a clue :mad:.

Over the phone will not work, when I brought my boyfriend (now my Hubby) along, A TOTALY different story, it was more like yes sir - three bags full sir.

Sad to say it, but if you are a poor defenceless female, bring a strong man with you, drag one off the street if you have to. Put that &ollox of a service manager in his place.

Now here's the best part, when you get your keys and all the work is up to standard, without any extra cost to you, turn on him like a vicious psychotic vixen, stay calm but forceful, ask for an apology for the way that you have been treated.

If the apology is not forthcoming, ask to speak to the boss / owner, I was within earshot of the owner, did not realise that at the time.

All that I can remember now was the reaction between them, manager realising that boss had heard what was going on, boss realising that there was trouble came to sort the situation, we agreed on on fill of petrol.

I return there every now and again to get the car serviced, and the reaction is, yes missus, whatever you say missus.

Sorry for going on a bit, but hope it is of some help.

Yep, totally agree. it's sad to say in this day and age but when they see a young blonde coming through the door they take every inch of p*ss they can. It's pathetic that you would have to resort to this but my advice would also be to get a guy in to have a word and see how they react to that - preferably a guy who knows what he's talking about but a human with a penis in general should usually do the trick. I barely even bother dealing with car trouble now - I generally pass it onto my Dad or BF as there's simply no point in expecting to be fairly dealt with by the majority of mechanics out there if you're of the female variety.:mad:

seagull

Did they damage the security system, and then need to do extra work to fix it? If the extra cost was because their mechaninc caused damage, then the garage should be picking up the cost, with a large apology to you.

What exactly did they do to cause the extra charge, and why did they not contact you to get it authorised before they did it?

ejmaztec

It is possible for the situation to escalate. I worked for an accountancy firm in the UK, one of whose clients had a bit of a reputation for being completely unscrupulous. They carried out some work that wasn't requested, refusing to let a customer take his car unless the full bill was paid. He waited for an opportune moment, then drove his car out of the garage and went home. A couple of days later, he had parked his car on the high street to go shopping. When he returned to his car, all of the wheels had been removed and it was perched on bricks. A recovery truck from another garage (another client of my employer) had to be called to get the car off the street.

It then spent a month in a garage yard until the previous dispute had been settled, fortunately for the car-owner, in his favour. However, he did have to pay the second garage for the recovery.

Darragh29

Can you tell us the following:

(1) What exactly was the original problem with the car that required it to be in the garage in the first place?

(2) What problem existed at that time, or subsequently came into existance, that prevented your car from being started and driven out of the garage in the normal manner?

(3) What type of car is it, year, make, model, engine, etc?