garage bill advice

jbjbjbjbjbjbjbjb

After the diog I asked for a fixed fee and they came back with £1200 inc the £300.I told I would have to think about it.I rang them back and recorded the conversation.I said would this fix the problem and for £1200 would that get the car back on the road he replied yes pretty certain thats what it is.I was phoned up and asked 2 days ago basically we dont know what else to do?

maninthestreet

4 hours of diagnostics to identify the problem as a faulty fuel pump? Then a further £900 to replace the fuel pump? What car is this??

jbjbjbjbjbjbjbjb

its a van a vauxhall vivaro

garethgas

Ultrasonic wrote: »

How much money are they asking for and what are they saying they have done for it? You should obviously be paying them something though. I've never heard of any garage offering a No Fix, No Fee service!

I would't pay them a penny!
I'd like to know a reason why the OP should pay for not fixing their van.
In fact, OP, if you think £1200 is a bit steep, bring it to me and I wont fix it for you for much less than that

jbjbjbjbjbjbjbjb

exactly mechanics are paid to solve problems and they didnt do that,I know they spent time on it but is that the point?

jbjbjbjbjbjbjbjb

Im a roofer if somebody wants me to fix there roof do you think they should pay me if it still leaks?Or if I spend a couple of days trying to fix it then its no better should I be payed,why should mechanics be any different?

jbjbjbjbjbjbjbjb

Does anyone know where I stand with the law?

Ultrasonic

Firstly, I am not a legal expert, but as the following was responding to something I wrote I will reply.

garethgas wrote: »

I'd like to know a reason why the OP should pay for not fixing their van.

This is where I was coming from. Every garage I've ever used has, I think reasonably, charged a fee for the time it takes to diagnose a fault. Customers agree to this when they take a vehicle in, without to the best of my knowledge ever any caveat along the lines of 'I'll only pay you if the diagnosis is correct'. Now there may well be an argument over whether 4 hours of labour is reasonable in this case (I'd challenge it if I was asked to pay this), but to pay nothing did not seem reasonable to me. I would be very interested to hear what any legal experts think though. Can it be argued that time spent incorrectly diagnosing a fault should not be paid for?

When it comes to the cost of replacing the fuel pump, I would naively think that legally it will depend on EXACTLY what was agreed with the garage in the phone conversation that the OP was very smart to record. I wouldn't have thought of that but will try to remember to in future.

Edit to add: Although I guess at some point when a customer is agreeing to work being done that a garage suggests should (not certainly will) fix a problem, there must be some requirement for this suggested fix to be reasonable. If an utterly incompetent mechanic suggested a totally stupid fix there probably is some sort of consumer protection legislation that applies even if the customer agrees to the work being done. There certainly should be.

jbjbjbjbjbjbjbjb

Ultrasonic wrote: »

Firstly, I am not a legal expert, but as the following was responding to something I wrote I will reply.



This is where I was coming from. Every garage I've ever used has, I think reasonably, charged a fee for the time it takes to diagnose a fault. Customers agree to this when they take a vehicle in, without to the best of my knowledge ever any caveat along the lines of 'I'll only pay you if the diagnosis is correct'. Now there may well be an argument over whether 4 hours of labour is reasonable in this case (I'd challenge it if I was asked to pay this), but to pay nothing did not seem reasonable to me. I would be very interested to hear what any legal experts think though. Can it be argued that time spent incorrectly diagnosing a fault should not be paid for?

When it comes to the cost of replacing the fuel pump, I would naively think that legally it will depend on EXACTLY what was agreed with the garage in the phone conversation that the OP was very smart to record. I wouldn't have thought of that but will try to remember to in future.

I coudnt have put it better no I really mean it I couldnt have put it better myself :T

wealdroam

OP, you haven't yet told us what the garage have asked you to pay?

Have you discussed the situation with them?
You have said on your other thread that they plan to put back the old fuel pump.

Crazy idea having the same saga on two threads.
Unless one goes looking, we have no idea what suggestions have already been made.