How to Get Mechanical Repairs
When you take your car in to the shop for repairs, you have every reason to expect to be treated with honesty and integrity. However, it’s pretty hard to know when you are lied to, over charged, or taken advantage of, when body care is not your expertise. So how do you know when you are getting honest repairs? It all boils down to the details.
What You Should Expect With Mechanical Repairs
Taking your car into an expert shop for repairs is always a good idea. It improves the appearance of the car, prolongs the car’s useful life, prevents larger repair bills and it prevents you from having to deal with unexpected problems and expenses, or wondering whether or not you really need this repair. When you take your vehicle into the shop, the team should tell you what services will be performed, how long it will take, and the cost. Honest body shops want you to know these details and strive to perform the work as described.
What About Repairs?
An honest auto shop will provide a description of the parts or services necessary to fix the problem and an estimate of the time and cost. They shouldn’t start work without your authorization and shouldn’t do anything outside of the scope of the agreement without your consent. Body shops that deal with integrity will not have any problem being upfront and transparent in their dealings with you and would be willing to show you broken and replaced parts, for example.
What About Additional Work?
When you bring your vehicle in for work, it’s not unusual to expect the team to find additional problems. Your repair technician should tell you what needs to be done and its urgency. Bringing up needed repairs isn’t necessarily a sign that a repair shop is somehow dishonest. In fact, it may be just the opposite! A technician may bring up a needed repair because they have the necessary area accessible and a repair now can save you on labor. Another reason they may bring up needed repairs is that not having some things fixed could lead to unsafe driving conditions and they may be required to tell you of the danger.
