MOT con uneccessary work!

[haveagoade]

I thought I'd try BETS in Llantrisant for a cheap MOT £19.99, seemed too good to miss. I've had my 1.3 Escort Estate N reg 33,000miles since new and is immaculate,and I regularly service it myself!

Firstly the MOT chapie really annoys me by having the car idling THROUGHOUT the WHOLE MOT! (1/2 hour), is this really necessary? I dont think so, and what an unacceptable pollution if it is!

Anyway , the inspector dissappears after the test then comes back with the BOSS, who says "The cars a MINTER, but yer DISCS are F****ed!"
Funny I think how do he know he was never under the car to tell!
Then he says "We can do the work for £80"
"No Thanks" I say "I'll do it myself"
Massive look of dissapointment on the bosses face!
"You gotta be back by close of tommorow or else we'll carge you another fee!", he says
"No problem. I'll be back tommorow!" I say!

Anyway I do the work, and guess what............There is nothing wrong with the disc's, the pads are only 1/2 worn and the discs are far from "WORN TO EXCESS" As stated on the fail certificate!

A DEFINATE CASE OF A GARAGE FORCING UNECESSARY WORK!

I return next day at 11am and get my retest and PASS CERTIFICATE! and tell him what I think of his garage.

I also visit the local VOSA OFFICE to see the Inspector of MOT Inspectors, and guess what ................YES he AGREES the disc are NOT worn to excess and they SHOULD HAVE PASSED, as thats what he would have done PASSD THEM.

BETS have garages in Llantrisant and Barry ....and a few other unsuspecting places as well..........SO BEWARE!

Cheap MOT's can be a false economy!

[mr_accountant]

well done glad to see this con artist has lost this time, what did VOSA say? its time they stopped theies gangsters once and for all.

[haveagoade]

Claiming for damages due the sale of goods act etc etc etc, just done letter to be delivered by recorded asking for £46 the cost of uneeded work. VOSA said he'll disipline them, but I'll do more than that the thieving robbing..........stop it now calm down I'm getting carried away here....lol

[fuzzgun19]

Good on you!

[MrSmartprice]

Have a word with your local Trading Standards Department. If they have anything about them they will, from time to time, submit test vehicles for MOTs to see if they are touting for unnecessary work. They usually act on places complained about, rather than just at random. Your garage could be in for a nasty shock.

[santana-mx3]

Thanks for the info. I'll make sure I never go there!

Had a look at their website http://www.betsservicecentres.co.uk

"We provide a comprehensive range of brakes for all vehicles, including Brake Pads, Shoes, Discs, Calipers and Brake Cables.". They forgot to mention that they try to con you into paying for this stuff when you don't actually need it!

They also mention they are "a member of the Fair trading Charter for the Motor Trade, in partnership with Rhondda Cynon Taff County Borough Council, Tading Standards Division" (their typo, not mine) - for what that's worth. You may like to take this up with them too.

[haveagoade]

yeah I know........suspicious aint they?

[ohreally]

Pity you repaired the alleged defects rather than go to dispute over this.

[haveagoade]

The defect has not been repaired the discs are still available for insperction, the repair has not changed the condition of the so called defect.

[starstruck1]

I have used the BETS in Cardiff, Thornhill Road, for several years now.
Speak as you find, they have never tried it on with me. Perhaps it's down to the local manager ????????

[MarkyMarkD]

Claiming for damages due the sale of goods act etc etc etc, just done letter to be delivered by recorded asking for £46 the cost of uneeded work. VOSA said he'll disipline them, but I'll do more than that the thieving robbing..........stop it now calm down I'm getting carried away here....lolYou didn't get the work done by them - how can you possibly claim £46 for un-needed work?

[haveagoade]

I bought the discs myself and done it myself.......had to! to get the work done by the 24 hr retest!.....or theyed have charged me for another mot the robbing b'stards, you can try and defend them if you like but I'm gonna get em!

[haveagoade]

As for not being ripped off by BETS in Cardiff..............how do you know?, they gotta make some money for the cheap mot's sometime!

[ohreally]

The defect has not been repaired the discs are still available for insperction, the repair has not changed the condition of the so called defect.

While i don't doubt you for a moment,the garage could claim that the discs you present as evidence are in good condition so obviously are not the discs fitted when the car was presented for test.

[jjames]

Absolutely.

There is also the issue of slander here. As you're posting this before VOSA have had time to make their decision you run the risk of the garage chasing you and the site over this post. Just a note of caution.

It's a difficult one. The garage can claim what they like, even if you'd left the discs in place. I've had my suspicions about certain "fast-fit" chains for a long time.

[haveagoade]

ow for gods sake grow up I got better things to do than make all this up and get some disc to look ok as ringers.............and vosa have made a decsion READ MY POST! my claim is for the poor "service " supplied there was a lack of due care in providing the service of the MOT............I cant be bothered arguing the case here to people who wanna defend the garage ......I'll let you know how I get on eventually!

[michaels]

You were lucky to get the free retest - if they fail the car on the brakes they do not need to offer a free retest within the 24hr period (acording to dvla/vosa website)

I recently had my car failed on brake pads fully worn - and a quote for 400+ quid to replace discs and pads. Got the parts from internet and mobile mechanic to change them (130 quid all in) - he showed me the disks that had several mil of wear left (had not even reached brake warning sensor) and stated that discs whilst slightly scoured were servicable. He also questioned whether this should have been an mot failure at all even if the disks were worn as breaking efficiency was not reduced?

[chrisw]

The Peugeot garage said mine needed new brake pads for it's MOT which would be about £100. I questioned whether the pads were part of the MOT and they agreed they weren't as long as the car met the braking test, which it did so I got the MOT.

The pads were indeed worn, so I replaced them myself for about £20.

[ohreally]

He also questioned whether this should have been an mot failure at all even if the disks were worn as breaking efficiency was not reduced?


And he could tell this just by looking...makes one wonder why garages go to the expense of having a rolling road brake tester? ;)

[haveagoade]

Hello "oh really"............you are not keeping up with the plot. Michaels mechanic did'nt have to test or look the test fail certificate would have said braking efficiency ok, the car in question which you try to undermine had passed the efficiency test as did mine!.............dubious statements about the brake pads/discs wear, are the garages way to CON us!

MOTTO.............EVERYONE make sure you see the so called worn pads /disc's when they come off.............this will PUT A stop this CON.

[mr_accountant]

Im with haveagoade on this, many garages are simply out to make money and don’t give a damn about truth. Im heard of horror stories of rip-off garages (call it what you will) from main dealers to backstreet types.

Most people don’t know the first thing about cars so will trust the garage and this is where the rip off types can cash in. the classic one is 'brakes need replacing' which of course are relatively easy to fit and easy to mark up on cost price, the perfect combination for the dodgy garage.

Personally this voluntary code of nonsense in the motor trade is like asking a politician to tell the truth. The sooner these cowboys are brought under strict codes of conduct the better for all motorists.

Re MOT’S this case shows yet again IMO that council mot test stations are on the whole the most reliable.

[starstruck1]

As for not being ripped off by BETS in Cardiff..............how do you know?, they gotta make some money for the cheap mot's sometime!

I don't know about all the MOT's done at the Cardiff branch. As I said "speak as you find"
The six MOT's I have had there have, in my opinion, been carried out by the book, no iffy failures and no long list of "advised" either.

I'm not sticking up for BETS in general, just expressing my opinions of my local branch.

[Poppy9]

Try being a woman going for an MOT; the pound signs are clearly visable in the garages eyes!!

In the past I made a complaint to VOSA over a car I bought from a dealer that had a new MOT. Couple of days after driving it I nearly crashed the car due to it having no brakes. Had it reinspected and it was a complete MOT failure and would never have passed earlier in the week according to VOSA. The problem was they said proving it as the garage would say that I had deliberately put defective parts on the car after the MOT. I think they just had a black mark against them but carried on testing.

The current system while left upto private garages that carry out repairs is always going to be open to abuse. MOT testing should be truely independent.

[haveagoade]

I don't know about all the MOT's done at the Cardiff branch. As I said "speak as you find"
The six MOT's I have had there have, in my opinion, been carried out by the book, no iffy failures and no long list of "advised" either.

I'm not sticking up for BETS in general, just expressing my opinions of my local branch.


Well there you have it, you are a regular customer and there is a degree of "TRUST" between you, but what about first timers to the garage like me or others the garage see as an easy touch!.........they will try it on, as proved in my case, it depends on whether the MOT tester is feeling lucky and wants to try it on, or in my case going on holiday the next week........I kid you NOT!

[haveagoade]

The answer is to use Council MOT centre's .......I will in future!

[Fraserca]

I put my old Mondeo in to the local garage for an MOT in August as I wanted to sell it. I was told it failed due to need new front disks. I told them the disks were changed only 3 years ago but they said braking was uneven. They also said the back brakes needed adjusted but may need more work than that as they didn't dismantle them to see what was the problem.

I took it home as I wasn't wanting to spend much money an old car only worth £500.

After a couple of weeks thought I decided to go ahead and get it fixed so I could sell the car. I had a bad feeling about the first garage - I really felt that what they said wasn't true as there was no problem with the brakes when driving the car.

I went to another garage this time for an MOT so I could get a list of work to do and to my surprise it passed. The mechanic said how impressed he was in its condition in spite of its age !!

£44 wasted being given what was d***ed lies at the first garage.

There seems to be no proper standardisation or quality control in the MOT. On the whim of a mechanic who is under pressure to create work for the garage the poor customer may have a bill for hundreds of pounds for unnecessary work.

[devoncat]

I had similar problems with Budget Tyres in Paisley. My little "Bonnie" failed on 1. back wheel bearings 2. front lights not aligned 3. tyre (knew this one) 4. my turn signal lights were white and needed to be yellow 5. My brake light was out. They quoted me 260 plus the tire, but for me, they would do it at 220. I thought the lights were funny as I just replaced the brake light, but I just assumed it was a short. I stated I would replace the bulbs myself, but they discouraged me and when I think about it they were quite weird about it.

I am a student and dont have that kind of money, so I decided to just park her until I had money, and to fix what I could myself.

I replaced the tyre from one at a car breakers. While I was picking up the tyre, I just stood looking at my car when it hit me. Those white lights the mechanic said were turn signals and needed yellow bulbs were really position lights and the turn signals were already yellow lensed. I was furious. I admit, I dont know much about cars, but to lie about the lights...no wonder they were weird when I wanted to change the bulbs myself! I then had the car breaker man to look at my tail lights when I applied the brakes-of course my break lights worked-as I said I had just replaced them!

That got me thinking about the back wheel bearings...so I went to my friends mechanic Sprint Tyre in East Kilbride. I got my wheel bearings checked, they only needed to be cleaned, not replaced and the lights were all fine and aligned correct. I had the bearings cleaned and got new MOT as well--total price 75 pounds. Of that only 35 pounds was repairs and the other 40 was for the new MOT.

I now am going to write a letter to Budget Tyres and point out the lies they told me and request the price of the MOT be refunded as it was basically fraud. Three of the five failures were lies and 1 failure needed a much less costly repair. All I have to do is take a picture of the front of my car and the light configuration to prove they were telling porkies about the lights. I hate it when I feel that I am being taken advantage of. Does anyone know if Budget Tyre-Plus Autoservice is a chain with a headquarters? They have branches throughout scotland, but cannot find a hq to complain to? Who else can I report them to?

[mr_accountant]

I had similar problems with Budget Tyres in Paisley. My little "Bonnie" failed on 1. back wheel bearings 2. front lights not aligned 3. tyre (knew this one) 4. my turn signal lights were white and needed to be yellow 5. My brake light was out. They quoted me 260 plus the tire, but for me, they would do it at 220. I thought the lights were funny as I just replaced the brake light, but I just assumed it was a short. I stated I would replace the bulbs myself, but they discouraged me and when I think about it they were quite weird about it.

I am a student and dont have that kind of money, so I decided to just park her until I had money, and to fix what I could myself.

I replaced the tyre from one at a car breakers. While I was picking up the tyre, I just stood looking at my car when it hit me. Those white lights the mechanic said were turn signals and needed yellow bulbs were really position lights and the turn signals were already yellow lensed. I was furious. I admit, I dont know much about cars, but to lie about the lights...no wonder they were weird when I wanted to change the bulbs myself! I then had the car breaker man to look at my tail lights when I applied the brakes-of course my break lights worked-as I said I had just replaced them!

That got me thinking about the back wheel bearings...so I went to my friends mechanic Sprint Tyre in East Kilbride. I got my wheel bearings checked, they only needed to be cleaned, not replaced and the lights were all fine and aligned correct. I had the bearings cleaned and got new MOT as well--total price 75 pounds. Of that only 35 pounds was repairs and the other 40 was for the new MOT.

I now am going to write a letter to Budget Tyres and point out the lies they told me and request the price of the MOT be refunded as it was basically fraud. Three of the five failures were lies and 1 failure needed a much less costly repair. All I have to do is take a picture of the front of my car and the light configuration to prove they were telling porkies about the lights. I hate it when I feel that I am being taken advantage of. Does anyone know if Budget Tyre-Plus Autoservice is a chain with a headquarters? They have branches throughout scotland, but cannot find a hq to complain to? Who else can I report them to?

i would have thought VOSA would be intrested, also trading standards too

[matty_c608]

haven't read through all of the thread, but I heard that going to your local council car centre or something will give you best results. They are not out to rip you off, only to tell the truth.

Well might not make a lot of sense, didnt exactly understand it all myself, however I'm sure someone can shed some light on it!

[ohreally]

I had similar problems with Budget Tyres in Paisley.

devocat,if it helps you i can recommend a garage in Wishaw.I realise this is a little out your way however i personally worked with the garage owner for 14 years and his integrity is without question.As a point of interest for others his trade background is in comercials and diesels but nowadays his 'bread and butter' is cars and class 1V MOT testing and servicing...in fact he has a couple of customers regularly come to him from your town for servicing (car servicing that is :) ).

[haveagoade]

I have just had a written reply from BETS Llantrisant, a Mr N Lang the company secretary.

Whilst still maintaining the discs were "WORN to EXCESS as Presented", Mr Lang has offered me the amount I calaimed for the unnecessary work ,ie the cost of te disc's, as a gesture of GOODWILL.

I've accepted, as all I'm concerned about is the unecessary cost's, they can try to deny they were worn if they want.

I've still been greatly inconvenienced, having done the work myself, for which I did not claim, only the cost of parts was claimed.

But hey!.......perhaps BETS will have learned a lesson and be a bit more carefull in future!

[jamesmottester]

speaking as an MOT tester, it can be dificult deciding if a component has failed or not. VOSA only give broad wooly guid lines for most things, and it is left to the tester to decide.
i know for a fact that i have had to pass cars on brakes because i couldn't fail them, even though i wouldn't let my worst enemy drive the car.
did you know that on an mot test, if i can't see a fault, then i can't fail it. for example if your car has 3 wheel studs missing on each wheel, if they are tight and covered by wheel trims, then i have to pass it.
p.s. the tester at BETS probably left the engine running to make sure it was warm so that it would not fail the emission test. cold engines fail the test.
p.p.s. everyone makes mistakes, we are all human

[mrbadexample]

Not sure whether the OP went to VOSA before or after changing the discs, but if you wish to challenge the issue / non-issue of the MOT certificate then the vehicle should be made available for VOSA to inspect before any work is done.

This is so the garage can't say "they weren't the discs we inspected" when you just show VOSA a set of discs.