It is too easy to spend more money on your auto repairs than you need or ever anticipated. Unfortunately, there are just some repair shops out there who are scamming their customers for a few extra dollars … or even more. An honest auto repair shop is not only crucial to the safety and confidence of every motorist, but also to your wallet. You rely on your auto repair shop to keep your vehicle running smoothly and maintained, fix dangerous problems and make honest service suggestions to help you avoid major issues down the road. Do you have an auto repair shop that you can trust?
We want you to know that not all repair shops scam their customers. By following some of these tips from My Auto Repair Advice, you can avoid scams and save yourself money and the hassle of auto repair fraud:
First of all, knowing your vehicle can help tremendously. If you know what was replaced and when, you will know if it needs to be replaced again or if the repair shop is trying to sneak something by you. You can also find a list of when things need to be replaced in your owner’s manual, if you aren’t sure when something is due for maintenance. If you don’t know anything about your car, the auto mechanic can pretty much say whatever he wants and you wouldn’t know if it were true or not.
Some crooked mechanics, will make the repairs sound serious or very important, preying on your ignorance and fear. They will reel unsuspecting customers in and charge them exorbitant prices that they won’t question because they just want their vehicles to be safe. However, by asking questions and being a part of the process, you’ll let them know that you’re educated and you know about your vehicle and that alone could save you from being a victim of an auto repair scam.
Second, get a detailed, written repair estimate for your auto repairs. If you have repairs that go beyond basic auto maintenance, ask them to give you an estimate of exactly what they will be doing, what they are replacing, the tests they will be doing if any, the parts they plan to replace and the amount of time they think it will take. They will need to follow this as they work on your vehicle and notify you of any major changes. In most states, they can’t do anything that is not on the estimate without your approval.
Third, teach yourself a little bit about basic car repairs and have a backup plan. Again, knowing even just the basics will tell any mechanic that you’re involved, and it won’t be easy to get one over on you. Talk to friends and family and see if they have any trusted repair shops they recommend. If you can find one before the major repairs are needed, it’ll save you a lot of time and stress and we can all use more time and less stress in our lives. Would you know what to do if you got ripped off? We hope it never happens to you, but we want you to be prepared. You can read more from the My Auto Repair Advice article. Educate yourself and be your own advocate when it comes to automotive repairs.
