Halfords We Fit - Vent.

lulu_92

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

I find when I take the car to a garage for work to be done that the final bill is generally around a 50:50 split between labour and materials.

So if £10 was a fair price for the bulb (I have no idea) then £7 to fit it sounds reasonable to me.
I agree with the guy from Halfords who says you'd have a job to get it fitted elsewhere (especially out of hours) for £7.
But equally I agree with you that it's a waste of £7 if it is a job that you could have done yourself.

I think the answer in general is to learn as you go along. There will be some things you will be able to fix and some that you won't.
If you've spent £7 to find out how to fit a headlamp bulb, and that knowledge will now see you through doing the next 9 headlamp bulb changes yourself, that's only 70p fitting per bulb that you'll be paying.

Thanks, I guess it is a "give a man a fish" situation. I know it's a situation I have learned from.

I know I paid for the convenience, as I didn't want to risk driving in the dark to work the next day with one headlight. I had to accept the service for that reason as I know that if I had attempted to do so myself it could have cost me more than £16.99.

If the other motor parts shop was open I would have gone there as their labour charge for a bulb is minimal (as OH has taken his car there before)

I was wondering if both prices sounded reasonable to others.

Inner_Zone

Price clearly stated here, note it is from £6.99:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/AdviceArticleDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=21202&categoryId=292528&langId=-1&articleId=1042771&cm_re=WeFitPage-_-banner+bulbs-_-moreinfo

And bulbs from £7.99 upwards:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/BulbsGuidedSalesCmd?action=getProducts&storeId=10001&catalogId=10151&categoryId=165538&langId=-1&engineInd=0&makeName=17&modelName=1722&dvlaYear=62&subset=1722030&bulbTypeName=HEADLAMP+%28DIPPED%29&bulbTypeValue=H%2FLAMP+%28DIPPED%29&bulbType=H%2FLAMP+%28DIPPED%29&findPartsMMYS=Find

No issue here, clearly stated prices which you could have checked before even visiting the store.

lulu_92

Inner_Zone wrote: »

Price clearly stated here, note it is from £6.99:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/AdviceArticleDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=21202&categoryId=292528&langId=-1&articleId=1042771&cm_re=WeFitPage-_-banner+bulbs-_-moreinfo

And bulbs from £8.99 upwards.

No issue here, clearly stated prices which you could have checked before even visiting the store.

Yes I know I could've checked it. I didn't because I was in the car already, noticed it had gone and drove straight to the shop.

I didn't write this post to say that it is an injustice, that Halfords have stolen my money or committed a horrible crime against customers. I have just been a bit miffed by it.

Don't get me wrong, the guys in the shop were lovely and helpful and I didn't complain to them for that.

timbstoke

£7 to have somebody else do the work while I wander around the store for 10 minutes rather than messing around under my bonnet, in the dark, on a freezing cold night seems like a bargain to me.

bod1467

I have used their service once, a few years ago. This was also to fit a new bulb - nearside dipped headlight on the C3 I had back then. I went in with my eyes open and knew it would cost me a few quid (was £3.99 back then I think), but it was worth it because the nearside dipped headlight bulb replacement on a C3 was a total biatch to do.

R34GTT

As a side comment, their TV advert is annoying and wrong in saying "Don't forget, bulbs are hot". Er, not if they're dead they're not.

kwikbreaks

I don't see this as a problem. It isn't cheap for sure but I'm guessing you knew the price before you bought - if not then you should have. As it was they got you out of a hole albeit not a particularly deep one as many cars get driven on one headlight. If you don't want to pay so much in future carry some (hopefully cheaper) spare bulbs and fit them yourself.

I had a Vectra that must have had umpteen bulbs scattered around it in obscure places because every service I'd get stiffed for bulbs I hadn't notice as being duff and fitting - they weren't cheap either. More modern cars tell you when a bulb blows these days.

photome

Sounds like a bargain to me.

It was , dark and wet and you paid £6.99.

You asked for a bulb and asked for it to be fitted so there was no need for them to break the price down.

On some cars the bulb would have cost much less than the labour charge so not sure why you are venting

arbrighton

In my old car, headlights were a b***h to fit (I'm a woman, I had tried myself on a previous occasion) so I got halfords to do it. Unfortunately they completely messed up the alignment to the point it wouldn't have passed MOT with it like that.

Haven't had to do it on current car yet but I have *always* changed my own wiper blades, topped up screen wash, antifreeze and check my own oil and tyre pressures. I am also capable of changing a tyre for a puncture but find it difficult and tend to just go straight to the tyre place now as they're usually slow punctures and it's 2 miles max.

helphelphelphelp

I called my local Motorserve as my headlight wasnt working. Was quoted £5 for the bulb. Asked how much to fit as thought it would be easier to get someone else to do it for a few pounds. They said they fitted them for free, so decided to buy from there. However, before I got the bulb he checked the connection for me and confirmed it was only a wire that had come out so didnt cost me anything. Very impressed and would recommend them and go back (would say for future business but have yet to spend anything there!)