auto repair estimates

auto repair estimates

Widely used Auto Repair Scams and Rip-offs

Every year, people lose over 20 million dollars to unnecessary car repairs and other auto shop repair scams. The California Bureau of Automotive Repair gets approximately 25,000 complaints per year concerning bad auto repair jobs. None of which should come as a surprise. Most car owners know little to nothing about automotive repair, and shady mechanic shops usually have no problem taking advantage of this. But by being aware of the most common scams, you can better avoid falling victim to them. Here is a brief rundown of how some of these common auto repair scams work.

The Highway Shop Scam
Shops that pull off this scam are situated along road stops and road-side towns. They know that when you’re car breaks down in the middle of the highway, far from your destination and any nearby cities, you’re willing to pay almost anything just to not get stranded in the middle of the road. Shady mechanics who work these shops will often use this against you. They’ll overcharge you tremendously and might purposefully damage your car even more because they know that you won’t risk leaving the shop with a faulty vehicle.

Bad Repair Estimates
Some repair shops will give you a low repair estimate when you first drop off your car but will purposefully fail to disclose the estimate to you in writing. Then, when you come back to pick up your car you’ll find that the bill is considerably higher than the initial quote. The claim is that they found additional needed repairs as they were working on the car. However, if they go ahead with the repairs without informing you, you have a right not to get charged. Many people don’t fight the extra charges, however, and simply end up paying extra. Make sure that all estimates are disclosed in writing and signed before you leave your car at the shop to be worked on.

Special Offer Hook Schemes
Often, auto repair shops will advertise “hook” deals. These are free or very low priced offers on services like tire rotations or oil changes. The hope is that you will come in for the hook deal and then be sold on more expensive repair or maintenance procedures. Now, this in and of itself does not constitute fraudulent practice; it’s simple hook marketing. The problem comes when mechanics intentionally cause damage to your car so that they can claim to have “discovered” further repair needs in the process of doing a free routine check up or oil change.

Bad Part Replacement
This is the scheme where a dishonest mechanic will tell you that a perfectly functioning part of your vehicle is broken or very near being done and needs immediate replacement. They’ll charge you for the new part and the labor and do absolutely nothing to your car, because the old part works just fine. To avoid falling victim to the part replacement rip-off, ask to be shown which part needs replacing and ask to keep the old part, so that you can make sure that a replacement did in fact take place.

To learn more about San Diego car service shops and other car services please visit http://www.robertsautoservice.com.

About the Author

Ryan Frank is a 23 year old blogger and writer living in San Diego, CA.