What grounds do I have to argue the cost of work on my car?
Posted by Sherbs__@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 34 comments
I put my car in for a full respray (no damage, just an old car) with a quote of £2800 with an estimated work time of 2-3 weeks. This was on the 9th of January and I still do not have my car back. There hasn't been any issues with my car to cause a delay, they themselves have said other big jobs have come in at various times that they decided to do ahead of mine. They finally finished and put it back together on Friday (April 10th) but the car would no longer start. The car never had any issues starting, would start first time every time and even admitted as such whilst they've had it. They have put it down to an immobilizer fault which they are having to hire an auto electrician to fix, which they have stated I will be charged for.
This is my only vehicle and has cost me to travel by other means. I don't think I should be paying the full amount due to this massive delay. I also would argue I shouldn't have to pay for this auto electrician, if it was during the quoted time frame then fair enough, but this issue has happened on their watch and wouldn't have if the work was done on time.
TheClnl@reddit
Unless you have a completion date in a contract you don't really have grounds. you say yourself in your post 2 or 3 weeks, which is a fairly wide estimate for a small piece of work. Trouble is these guys will always prioritise insurance jobs where they can make a bit more money so in future I'd probably add a bit more to the estimate they give you!
As for the not starting, you can't really say that the issue wouldn't have raised its head anyway so it's difficult to argue it's their fault. You could ask nicely to go halves on the spark based on the delay to the work and them not turning the car over but I wouldn't expect anything from them.
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
In the discussion he's also said "That’s just normally a rough cost if there’s broken wires involved" which to me sounds like he's slipped up. Doesn't sound like a "fault". I'm no mechanic but I don't think a wire just brakes whilst sat stationary
TheClnl@reddit
No, I can't understand why any panels would need removing for a full respray either.
Can you get your own auto electrician to have a look?
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
He said I could but I'd have to pay up and collect it. Which I think would then be harder to get reimbursed from him and also cost me to transport it
TheClnl@reddit
Yeah definitely, not an expert but aren't auto electricians generally mobile? Bit sus if he doesn't want someone in to inspect it at his unit.
What was he saying during the 8 weeks after the initial 2-3? Just that he was busy? Did you ask to take the car back at any point?
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
It was always "Sorry just been busy with a big job that's come in, it'll be done this/next week", then I'd have to chase him again when that date would pass. The car was sanded down and taken apart at this point, work had started. Just took forever to continue between stages
TheClnl@reddit
That sucks.
I hope you've gotten some decent advice on here and legal advice but I suppose you should prepare for eating the cost and reviewing them with extreme prejudice whenever anyone asks for recommendations!
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
Have discovered the Consumer Rights Act 2015 because of posting on here which I've looked into, which specifically states car repairs. According to this, in regards to a paid service, consumers have a right to a price reduction if the service has not been performed within a reasonable time. I'd consider nearly 14 weeks for a 2-3 week quoted job to be unreasonable 🤣
Final_Flounder9849@reddit
2 or 3 weeks is materially different to the three months it’s taken.
TheClnl@reddit
Yeah fair enough I didn't comprehend that part for whatever reason. That's a piss take I can't understand why OP wouldn't have just taken the vehicle back.
CooStick@reddit
Was the fault a flat battery because they left it in the cold with no occasional running?
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
They told me that it's ran and started fine when they've moved cars around so, and they they put it on charge Friday night to be sure. However when I went round the following morning the battery was still in place and not on charge
CooStick@reddit
It can be charged in the car.
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
He's today said "That’s just normally a rough cost if there’s broken wires involved" which to me sounds like he's slipped up. Doesn't sound like a "fault". I'm no mechanic but I don't think a wire just brakes whilst sat stationary
Final_Flounder9849@reddit
Do not pay anything before challenging the garage.
Do you have the original quote in writing and do you have any email or similar where they’ve said that they prioritised other more profitable jobs over yours? Not that it is an issue if you don’t but it’s useful if you do.
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
It was all in person or over the phone unfortunately
Willeth@reddit
Send them an email outlining what has been said, in a way that isn't confrontational. Your goal is to get a response that doesn't refute what you said, which will count as evidence against them.
Something innocent like "hey, I can't call at the moment, so I'm hoping I can get you here, wanted to check on the timeline on getting the car back. You mentioned that during the job it would sometimes get pushed back for other jobs - is that also the case with the immobiliser repair? I know it's tricky to give an exact estimate but a ballpark is fine."
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
Tried this, the response "Fingers crossed auto electrician should find something wrong today and we should have it running, not an exact date but no longer than this week hopefully". I've had repeated estimates of "this week" or "next week" which is never met, which isn't conveyed with me until I chase them up
Willeth@reddit
That's great! What this now means is that if you need to pursue this in court you have a paper trail that includes the fact that they prioritised other jobs and are aware of the fault.
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
In the discussion he's also said "That’s just normally a rough cost if there’s broken wires involved" which to me sounds like he's slipped up. Doesn't sound like a "fault". I'm no mechanic but I don't think a wire just brakes whilst sat stationary
adreddit298@reddit
Dates and times are useful too, as they show you have an accurate timeline of events.
I once had a landlord try to keep all of our deposit when we moved out, for various issues which had arisen. When I responded by email with days and times of all the conversations we'd had about the various issues, he just dropped it. Just laying out facts demonstrates they're going to have issues refuting what you say.
Willeth@reddit
I think the moment it looks like evidence gathering it becomes a very different conversation, and they still have OP's car.
adreddit298@reddit
Fair point, softly softly can sometimes be the best approach.
Final_Flounder9849@reddit
Document it. Write down a timeline of who said what to you when. If that’s what you can put together then it’s better than nothing.
Sea-Payment-8989@reddit
Contact Citizens Advice, who give free impartial advice and options you can take to seek redress. Information about offices near to you and ways to contact them to make appointments can be found on www.citizensadvice.co.uk.
CH4RL13WH1T3@reddit
For anyone unfamiliar or considering similar work £2800 for a full respray is very cheap. I'm not excusing the customer experience, you'd just be lucky if customer care is the only thing lacking.
PuzzleheadedFold503@reddit
Full respray for £2800?
That says it all.
Seems like they underquoted, now trying to make money back.
yolo_snail@reddit
We took our car in for some front suspension works and whilst it was there the shoe for the handbrake snapped and it stopped working.
Not once did I consider blaming the garage for braking it. It's just older car things.
Also, is it perhaps an older BMW that like to grenade the immobiliser if the battery runs flat when the ignition is on?
Final_Flounder9849@reddit
There are a couple of issues with OP’s case though. Consumer Rights Act 2015 means that the garage can’t bump his car for other more profitable jobs, it also has to return the vehicle in the same working condition that it was left with them in other than the agreed upon respray.
He has grounds to claim because of the delay, because of the fault that has arisen whilst it’s been in their care and also for additionally incurred travel costs.
That you didn’t claim when the garage broke something on your car doesn’t mean he has no case.
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
1999 Golf, it's more the stretched out time it's taken. Again not because of any issues of the car, they've just prioritised other jobs. The auto electrician is just cherry on the cake
Terrible-Amount-6550@reddit
So they gave you a quote and you presumably accepted it, am I missing something?
It’s taken longer than expected, ask for a reduction. If you’ve already paid in full then you probably don’t have many cards to play
cheandbis@reddit
I'd probably ask this in a legal sub rather than here to be honest.
Sherbs__@reddit (OP)
Will do, thank you
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