Halfords estimates hours only

GCMatthews2000 · 16 March 2017 at 11:08AM

Hi, I took my care to Halfords and they estimated it would take them 1.6 hours to do the job but did not say cost. Of course I am stupid and should have asked but I didn't. When I came back to collect car they then wanted £88 an hour. Is this legal, to give an estimate in terms of hours but not give the cost? I feel like they do it on purpose to trick me. Taken to an extreme, if they charged say £10,000 an hour, would I still not have a leg to stand on?

paddyrg · 16 March 2017 at 11:26AM

I suggest you start asking in the future - if you go to a lawyer, they'll charge you £300/hr. Seriously, though, what did you expect them to charge? Minimum wage? £50/hr? The fact you didn't agree a rate was your mistake not theirs. They charged you at their 'going rate' which includes staff, staff overheads, tools, electricity, garage space, paperwork, card costs, etc. If you don't say "I want that boat" without asking the price, you could pay £100 or £10M! If the price is important to you, you ask.

RoonilWazlib_2 · 16 March 2017 at 11:39AM

Where no price is agreed, the law would say it should be a reasonable price.
If you feel it isn't the onus would be on you to show this is an unreasonable price for the work.

gardner1 · 16 March 2017 at 11:44AM

your first and biggest mistake was going to Halfrauds next time try a local independent garage

unholyangel · 16 March 2017 at 2:23PM

RoonilWazlib wrote: »

Where no price is agreed, the law would say it should be a reasonable price.
If you feel it isn't the onus would be on you to show this is an unreasonable price for the work.

The law actually changed with the CCRs

9.—(1) Before the consumer is bound by an on-premises contract, the trader must give or make available to the consumer the information described in Schedule 1 in a clear and comprehensible manner, if that information is not already apparent from the context.

......(from schedule 1)

(c)the total price of the goods or services inclusive of taxes, or where the nature of the goods or services is such that the price cannot reasonably be calculated in advance, the manner in which the price is to be calculated;

So if they were unsure how long exactly it would take and could not give a fixed price, they should have advised op it would be £x per hour at a estimate of x hours.

DoaM · 16 March 2017 at 2:29PM

That's what they should have done. The point being made though is that Halfords didn't give an hourly rate until afterwards. So what happens in that case? Do Halfords still hold a lien over the vehicle?

IMHO it would now be the OP's task to either pay it or negotiate a lower rate. To get a lower rate then OP would need to get an idea of the "going rate" in OP's area.

unholyangel · 16 March 2017 at 2:55PM

DoaM wrote: »

That's what they should have done. The point being made though is that Halfords didn't give an hourly rate until afterwards. So what happens in that case? Do Halfords still hold a lien over the vehicle?

IMHO it would now be the OP's task to either pay it or negotiate a lower rate. To get a lower rate then OP would need to get an idea of the "going rate" in OP's area.

9.—(1) Before the consumer is bound by an on-premises contract, the trader must give or make available to the consumer the information described in Schedule 1 in a clear and comprehensible manner, if that information is not already apparent from the context.

Now that could be interpreted at least two ways. One that the information needs to be supplied before the moment the contract becomes binding. The other is that the contract doesn't become binding until that information is provided.

With nothing indicating what the effect of failure to comply is, I'm leaning towards the latter.

GCMatthews2000 · 16 March 2017 at 8:29PM

Thanks for this. They offerred me £50 to shut up (the total cost was £192) so I am now quoting the CCR at them and lets see what they say. They should not have this practice of only quoting hours at people and I think they should change their entire practice.

GCMatthews2000 · 16 March 2017 at 8:39PM

What the CCR says as far as a remedy goes is that every contract a trader enters into assumes that compliance with the CCR is a term of the contract. So if they don't comply, then either the contract is void (if a condition of contract, going to the heart of the contract) or can sue for damages (if less serious). In my case, it is a condition, so I will argue the contract is void and they better give me a refund in full AND change their working procedures for whole country.

Marktheshark · 16 March 2017 at 8:41PM

I would get the work checked as well.

pinkshoes · 16 March 2017 at 9:07PM

GCMatthews2000 wrote: »

Thanks for this. They offerred me £50 to shut up (the total cost was £192) so I am now quoting the CCR at them and lets see what they say. They should not have this practice of only quoting hours at people and I think they should change their entire practice.

An independent mechanic would charge around £50/hour. The likes of a Renault dealer are around £140/hour, and BMW about £120/hour as a comparison, so the £88/hour isn't THAT bad!!

(So be careful what you demand, as you might struggle to prove their price being unreasonable...)

What was this 'job'???

Halfords estimates hours only

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