Unfair service charges

How to challenge unsatisfactory repairs to your vehicle and unfair service charges

Your rights as a consumer

Car servicing and repairs are protected under the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982, which is very clear about what your rights are when you pay for goods as part of a service. The work has to be carried out with reasonable care and skill, in a reasonable time, and for a reasonable price. Common complaints include delays in carrying out the service or repairs, charging for work not done, considerable discrepancies between the estimate and final price, and unsatisfactory work.

What should you do?

In the first instance, contact the mechanic or garage explaining why you are dissatisfied (defective work, higher than expected price etc) and give them the opportunity to rectify the problem. If you are still unhappy, or they refuse to acknowledge your complaint, put it in writing.

You can strengthen your case by arranging an independent examination of your vehicle and requesting a report listing the mechanical problems – send copies of this report to the original trader. If there are serious problems with the work undertaken, you can withhold part of the payment to cover the cost of rectifying the problem. However, if the work is satisfactory and price is the issue, you are not entitled to withhold payment, but make the trader aware that you are paying ‘without prejudice’ or ‘under protest’, and obtain several quotes for the work carried out to approach the trader with. (You can avoid such disputes by always requesting a written quotation before repair work is started). If your complaint rests with the time taken to carry out the repairs, you are entitled to compensation as long as you have evidence of the dates agreed for the completion of the work. Similarly, if the work is taking more than a reasonable time you are within your rights to cancel the work and ask for compensation or a refund to cover the cost of contracting another trader to finish the job.

What the law says about spare parts

When you buy goods (in this case a spare part which a trader fits on to your vehicle) they are required by the Sale of Goods Act 1979 to be ‘of satisfactory quality, fit for its purpose as described’. If the seller breaks any of these conditions you have the right to ask for a refund (not a credit note), you are not required to accept a replacement and, if you do, ask for a written agreement stating that if it is faulty you will receive a refund. However, where spare parts have been fitted for more than a few weeks or you have had sufficient opportunity to check that they are in full working order, you may find that you are only entitled to have the fault rectified. Reconditioned or second-hand spare parts are not expected to last as long as new ones, so always check with the garage what guarantee they come with before you agree to have such items fitted.

Additional work

If the trader has undertaken extra work without your permission, or claims to have done so, you are not required to accept it. Perhaps you suspect that some of the work may not have been carried out? In such cases The Trade Description Act 1968 comes into force – it is an offence, under this legislation, for a trader to make a statement which he knows to be false in relation to the provision of any repair or service.

If the trader still refuses to acknowledge your complaints, contact Trading Standards Central and consider taking the matter further.

If you are a Privilege car insurance policyholder and need to make a claim for repairwork to your car, we have a network of approved repairers that service, collect repair, clean and deliver your car back to you. You’ll also be provided with a courtesy car when you use one of our approved repairers.

Read more about the service provided by Privilege car insurance on this website and get an online car insurance quote today.