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Garage carried out MOT without being asked to
Last week I requested a quote from a local garage for a 2 year service. My car was registered on 12.03.2012 and is a '12 plate Aygo Ice, and has now done 14000 miles. I bought it from a Toyota dealer last November, it had one previous owner, and it had its first service June 2013 on 4000 miles.
The garage gave me an acceptable quote so I booked it in, they picked the car up this morning and dropped it off at my workplace tonight.
When I've got into the car, there was an MOT test certificate and the invoice included a £35 fee for the MOT, which I did not ask for, did not need, and was not originally quoted. Additionally when I checked the logbook they have stamped the "3 year/30,000 mile" service and left the "2 year/20,000" square blank, and looking at the invoice they have indeed carried out a 3 year service as there are also charges for oil filter & cabin filter which were not originally quoted. While the total cost (£155) is still less than I'd have paid if I'd gone elsewhere, I still want to argue paying the MOT because I didn't ask for it.
I'll pay the filter charges because it's only about an extra £10 and they've done the work, although I'm not happy about it because it's going to confuse things going forward. I wanted the 3 year service to be carried out & stamped when the car was actually three, weirdly enough.
My question really is - is there an obvious reason why they've done this? With 8 months left before the first MOT is due have they considered the car to be "nearly 3"? I planned to get the MOT done in March when it was due, not now - surely that is my decision to make, not theirs?
The garage gave me an acceptable quote so I booked it in, they picked the car up this morning and dropped it off at my workplace tonight.
When I've got into the car, there was an MOT test certificate and the invoice included a £35 fee for the MOT, which I did not ask for, did not need, and was not originally quoted. Additionally when I checked the logbook they have stamped the "3 year/30,000 mile" service and left the "2 year/20,000" square blank, and looking at the invoice they have indeed carried out a 3 year service as there are also charges for oil filter & cabin filter which were not originally quoted. While the total cost (£155) is still less than I'd have paid if I'd gone elsewhere, I still want to argue paying the MOT because I didn't ask for it.
I'll pay the filter charges because it's only about an extra £10 and they've done the work, although I'm not happy about it because it's going to confuse things going forward. I wanted the 3 year service to be carried out & stamped when the car was actually three, weirdly enough.
My question really is - is there an obvious reason why they've done this? With 8 months left before the first MOT is due have they considered the car to be "nearly 3"? I planned to get the MOT done in March when it was due, not now - surely that is my decision to make, not theirs?
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Comments
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Looks as if some one has had a blank moment. I think you are being more than fair offering to pay the extra service items and saying no to the MOT.
I doubt they can really argue too much.0 -
I would too hold them for what was contracted to be done with pre permission.
the stamp is another issue you may wish to take up as with them (perhaps provide FOC new service book and re-stamp it, retain the the original for future proof of service with a letter of explanation from the dealership as to why it has a new one), they made a muck up by the sounds of it, got your work order mixed up with another?0 -
IMO you shouldnt have to pay for the MOT and they should sort you out with a new service book and stamps0
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Was the service actually done?
It's possible they made a mistake, put your car for MOT instead of service, realised their mistake and then just stamped the service book.“I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an a** of yourself.”
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Thanks for all the tips everyone - they were closed by the time I realised and really just wanted to find out if I was being unreasonable before I talk to them tomorrow!
Strider - I assume so, as the tag they left on my keys said MOT/Service and the invoice is exactly as quoted for the service except for the extra MOT fee and the oil/cabin filter charges. I will check before I pay anything though!0 -
I'd insist the second year was stamped before paying them.. Don't let them muck up the third year by crossing it through or anything though, you can sort that out in twelve months time.0
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Why do you believe they shouldn't have changed the oil filter?
You'd normally change the oil and the oil filter as part of a service, if it's been 10k miles since the last service then the oil and filter change is perfectly reasonable.0 -
Just check one of the filters looks new, cabin filter would be easiest to get to.“I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an a** of yourself.”
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Why do you believe they shouldn't have changed the oil filter?
You'd normally change the oil and the oil filter as part of a service, if it's been 10k miles since the last service then the oil and filter change is perfectly reasonable.
I would have expected it to be honest, but as it wasn't originally quoted (the item was on the quote but had 0.00 beside it) despite them being provided with all the dates/mileage of previous service I'm not sure why I've been charged for it now.0 -
If you change the oil you change the filter. Otherwise you just contaminate the new oil with the old in the filter. Maybe just a mistake on the original quote?
MOT wise you definately shouldn't have to pay. I'd simply bring it to their attention. Any reasonable garage would accept their mistake and sort it out. Your car would have beeen due it's first MOT on 12:03:15 so be worth checking that the one they've done by mistake is completely valid. I'm not 100% sure of VOSA's rules on moting cars 8 or so months before the first one is actually due.0
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