In the event you were handed an estimate to change a water pump on your car, would you know if the cost was fair? Could you trust the price? How about for a tie rod end, mass air flow sensor, or an evaporative emissions sensor?
Most of us do not know what these are, never mind the cost. But it's components such as these that are generally used to over charge you, the car repair client.
We no longer live in an age of trust, so how do we make sure that our auto repair costs are legit.
How many times have you alleged that you paid too much, yet could not prove it? How many times did the price seem excessively high for even easy repairs?
To illustrate just how "At Risk" the everyday car repair client is to excessive car repair costs, here's a recent real life example from a "reputable...?" dealer.
A client brought her Audi to an authorized Audi dealership for a standard timing belt maintenance service.
The price for this service averages $1575 at the dealership level, (including pulleys, water pump...etc) and about $1275 at the independent repair shop level.
Yet the woman left the dealer with a bill for $2025.68.
What happened?
According to the repair order, there were no unusual circumstances, no problems observed by the technician like rust or other extenuating circumstances that would have maybe elevated the labor, or added additional parts.
In short, it was a straight forward service, but the bill was $450.68 higher than it should have been. There's merely no legitimate reason to have "that much" disparity.
How'd they get away with it?
The answer is really simple, and it's a point that I do not want anybody to miss:
They get away with it because they can!
Think about it. The typical person does not know how much auto parts cost. And who knows how much labor time a repair ought to take? To what sources does one turn to find out this information? Who even has the time to investigate!
Upon examination of this woman's repair order, it was found that she was charged a full 4 hours "more" than the standard labor time. At $100 each hour, this added an additional $400. The remaining $50.68 came from the parts, which were billed higher than MSRP.
She was quoted $2,025 for a repair that tops out at $1575. The woman didn't know. She just paid the bill and left.
How many times do folks just pay the bill and leave? Pretty much that's all one can do given that there is no accessible info for the car repair client to adequately question a repair bill. Moreover, very few even know what questions to ask!
The auto repair industry has been over-charging for decades-sometimes quietly, occasionally boldly, certainly frequently. The evidence for this is overwhelming; but, you will find no easy solutions available for the car repair customer.
Government agencies can't help. The Better Business Bureau can't do anything whatsoever. Even supposed "car repair specialists or advocates" lack the understanding of the breadth and insidiousness of the car repair business at all its levels.
A dealership operates differently than an independent repair shop, and a franchise, like Midas, is completely unique. Who really knows what goes on within the underground of such a diverse and complicated industry?
The Answer?
First and foremost, automobile repair customers need access to info on car repair prices. Without this, they've got nothing concrete in which to determine fair charges. They also need to be able to navigate the maze of parts and labor charges for car repairs and maintenance.
Like everything else, information is the key to make sure fair treatment. Without it, the car repair customer will continue to "swim with the sharks" without any protection.
Most of us do not know what these are, never mind the cost. But it's components such as these that are generally used to over charge you, the car repair client.
We no longer live in an age of trust, so how do we make sure that our auto repair costs are legit.
How many times have you alleged that you paid too much, yet could not prove it? How many times did the price seem excessively high for even easy repairs?
To illustrate just how "At Risk" the everyday car repair client is to excessive car repair costs, here's a recent real life example from a "reputable...?" dealer.
A client brought her Audi to an authorized Audi dealership for a standard timing belt maintenance service.
The price for this service averages $1575 at the dealership level, (including pulleys, water pump...etc) and about $1275 at the independent repair shop level.
Yet the woman left the dealer with a bill for $2025.68.
What happened?
According to the repair order, there were no unusual circumstances, no problems observed by the technician like rust or other extenuating circumstances that would have maybe elevated the labor, or added additional parts.
In short, it was a straight forward service, but the bill was $450.68 higher than it should have been. There's merely no legitimate reason to have "that much" disparity.
How'd they get away with it?
The answer is really simple, and it's a point that I do not want anybody to miss:
They get away with it because they can!
Think about it. The typical person does not know how much auto parts cost. And who knows how much labor time a repair ought to take? To what sources does one turn to find out this information? Who even has the time to investigate!
Upon examination of this woman's repair order, it was found that she was charged a full 4 hours "more" than the standard labor time. At $100 each hour, this added an additional $400. The remaining $50.68 came from the parts, which were billed higher than MSRP.
She was quoted $2,025 for a repair that tops out at $1575. The woman didn't know. She just paid the bill and left.
How many times do folks just pay the bill and leave? Pretty much that's all one can do given that there is no accessible info for the car repair client to adequately question a repair bill. Moreover, very few even know what questions to ask!
The auto repair industry has been over-charging for decades-sometimes quietly, occasionally boldly, certainly frequently. The evidence for this is overwhelming; but, you will find no easy solutions available for the car repair customer.
Government agencies can't help. The Better Business Bureau can't do anything whatsoever. Even supposed "car repair specialists or advocates" lack the understanding of the breadth and insidiousness of the car repair business at all its levels.
A dealership operates differently than an independent repair shop, and a franchise, like Midas, is completely unique. Who really knows what goes on within the underground of such a diverse and complicated industry?
The Answer?
First and foremost, automobile repair customers need access to info on car repair prices. Without this, they've got nothing concrete in which to determine fair charges. They also need to be able to navigate the maze of parts and labor charges for car repairs and maintenance.
Like everything else, information is the key to make sure fair treatment. Without it, the car repair customer will continue to "swim with the sharks" without any protection.
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