I sent my car to a garage and they have done work on it without consent is this legal???

Question

My exhaust was sounding rather funny, so i took it into a garage, they then told me they had to replace the exausht and a catalytic tube. They said this would cost me £250.
I called them this morning to arrange when to collect my car and they said they had to replace the 'back box' and that i would now have to pay £309.
Is this legal to alter my car without consent???

Answer 1

The bit I'd be worried about is getting charged for a new cat!!

Absolutely DEMAND that they PROVE to you it was faulty as these fail VERY rarely.

BUT...

If the exhaust was in poor condition - it may well have been that the connecting areas between the mid-section and the back box that failed due to rust (on the back box / silencer). They are NOT responsible for it failing, so maybe they SENSIBLY fitted a new one to allow you to go away safe & legal.

You can LEGALLY demand they remove it, but you obiously NEEDED one in their opinion...unless it was a bad franchise that scam people. ie. ALWAYS demand to see the parts they removed.

Answer 2

Technically yes it isn’t legal and you can ask them to refit your old back box. If you left contact details they should have contacted you before carrying out further repairs.
However when dealing with exhausts sometimes a major exhaust blow will mask and hide more minor defects such as smaller exhaust blows or corroded joints so parts don’t separate.
If you couldn’t be contacted sometimes garages have to make the decision on the customers behalf, as you would be just as upset if you arrived to pick your car up and it wasn’t ready because they were waiting for you to return to authorise the work.
You should ask to see the old parts and get them to explain to you the reason they had to change it. If it seems plausible you may be able to negotiate a discount keeping everybody happy.
It is worth noting that if the problem wasn’t with the catalyst converter but the pipe work from the cat to the back box Walker exhausts do a repair pipe for French cars such as Peugeots 206 and Renault Clio’s that should cost approximately £30 fitted instead of a new cat.

Answer 3

Well it would mean the work you authorised would not be effective and perhaps not able to be completed because of a further fault in the exhaust system. It might have been illegal for the garage to assemble the system with a faulty or corroded back silencer box. What would you have said if the garage had advised you? Without the box the car would not have been drivable so what would you have done? I think the garage has used their discretion and assumed that you wanted your car back in good condition as quickly as possible. The extra price is not unreasonable. You do not have a lot of options.Pay the bill or if you don't you won't have a car to use until the matter is resolved.

Answer 4

It is completely unethical for a mechanic to do any work on your car without contacting you first for approval. I don't know about there, but un the USA it is also illegal and you are not liable for the fees for unapproved work. This doesn't mean unscrupulous mechanics don't try to get away with it anyway. Sadly, they try this brand of nonsense on women much more frequently than on men because they realize that women are much less likely to know enough about cars to be able to tell when the mechanic is adding bogus unnecessary things to the bill just to make more money. Not that all mechanics are this way. I know several that I feel are completely trustworthy and honest about their work. I have also dealt with some real scumbags that would try anything. I would bet that you are not liable for that charge, but check your local laws to make sure. Also, one thing that I have gotten my mother to do is to always ask for the old parts when anything is replaced. Sometimes there is something called a 'core charge', where they need to return the old part to where they purchased the new one, but when you drop off the car for work let them know that you will want to see the old parts when you come back to get the car, and then make them show you where the new replacements are on the car. I say this because I have seen mechanics personally claim to have replaced parts when they didn't actually do so. I hope this helps!

Answer 5

Sounds like you asked them to fix the exhaust and that is what they did. The back box is another part of the exhaust system. Most garages should have called you to advise of the extra cost but I dont think it is illegal cos they gave you an estimate which turned out not to be complete. Look at it this way, if you insist they will remove the new back box and then you will have a faulty exhaust system again.

Edit, I agree with number 1 which wasnt here when I answered - try and talk the price down on basis that they really should have called you. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Answer 6

It's not a good practice to do extensive work without notifying you first - you COULD press for this, but think about taking a day off work to attend the Small Claims Court, bear in mind that your case won't definitely be heard on this day, and you would be paying a Solicitor to send a letter... It WILL cost you money to try to fight this. Just roll with this punch - you were going to pay for new brake pads, so you would have had to buy those, so in effect, you are only arguing about their labour cost. Bearing in mind how quickly I can change pads on my cars, I don't think this bill can be EPIC!

Answer 7

Doepnds exactly what you told them to do. I expect you asked them to "fix that funny sound", and they've done just that. On the other hand, if you told them to replace the cat and whatever-it-was, that's all they should have done without confirming with you. To be fair, you wouldn't have been very pleased if they'd just done the first two and when you turned up they'd said "Oh, and by the way, the back box is defective and your exhaust is still blowing . . . "

Answer 8

Hi

In reality, the garage should only carry out work which you have authorised, and I have to say, I am very dubious as to why your whole exhaust would need to be replaced. Is the car a Peugeot 106 by any chance?

Regards

Geordie

Answer 9

Legally, these people should have contacted you before replacing that part. However, if the part is bad, you're going to need it no matter where you go. So, it's either pay now or pay later. You may, if you're willing to argue a little, be able to talk the price down because of not being called to prior to replacing the item.

Answer 10

Hi Foxy
If ,as you say they said initially that the quote was to replace the exhaust and cat then they should have included the rear box in this, as it is part of the exhaust that they have already quoted you for. Cant see how they can up the price on something already included in the quote....
Good luck.