HELP!!!!! What should/can i do?

[Terry]

If we're given a quote to do a job from anyone and they find out the price is gonna be 30% more than the estimate, I think it's only fair that they call to give the up-dated price before going ahead with the job.

It was 50% more wasn't it

[lew]

It was 50% more wasn't it

 

Yeah your right Terry, 50% increase, not 30.

 

My bad.

[limeyangler]

Stop along the way and pick up Uncle Guido and his violin case and make him a offer he can't refuse

LOL.

[limeyangler]

thanks, you guys are awesome. . Gonna go with all the money, talk nice, and try to split the difference. He has usually been a decent kind of guy, but I just don't trust mechanics....too many bad experiences, but I will try to put that feeling aside and talk openly......If all else fails....the violin case gets opened!

[jimmer]

It's always a tough call, but some great advice here. Not worth going to court over $200. Talk to him and if he holds fast with his latest figure, tell him you're disappointed and move on. Most of us have stories like this.

 

I brought an ATV into someone that said "if I can't fix it no one can". I knew it was something small, but he calls me and says he hasn't figured it out yet. I ask how much I have into it and he says $200. I told him not to do anymore on it because I didn't want a surprise bill of $1000 for an old machine. I go pick up the machine and he hands me a box of parts (crankshaft and all that) and said he would have to charge me more to put it back together. I take it home, put it on kijiji and it sells within the day for $300, my original purchase price. I talk to the guy the next day and he says he has it running, just some small electrical problem.

I have never been back to him and I always tell the story to people that are planning on using that repair shop. His loss for not being up front. I was not expecting him to take the engine apart and he did not tell me that's what he was doing.

[Beans]

Stop along the way and pick up Uncle Guido and his violin case and make him a offer he can't refuse

 

Tell Guido to bring Vinnie (The Chin) with him...

[Big Cliff]

There is always more than one side to any story and believe me I could tell you plenty from a mechanics side of the fence too. There is no excuse though for quoting someone to do a job and not advising them if there is a significant increase in what you quoted. How this guy handles it when you go to see him will speak volumes for the type of mechanic he is.

[RangerGuy]

I would question why he didn't notify me of the increase, I've been burned by this trick before.

 

Now I get a quote and specifically make them write on the bill "Will call if changes" or something like that.

 

With that said it depends on how long you've been using his services and your relationship with him..if it's buddy buddy

then maybe he just assumed it was ok..if not then well sorry to him..

 

I would express my disappointment, try talk him down, pay the bill and go elsewhere the next time.

[Handlebarz]

 

 

Sorry I had to add this; My Dad always would tell me this when he knew I was pissed at someone. Danny youll catch more flies with a little bit of sugar, then you would with a whole gallon of vinegar

Dan I guess your dad never seen these stupid fruit flies we get here in SW Ontario around September the best way to catch them is with a glass of vinegar with plastic cling wrap on the top and poke a couple holes with a fork these things come flying out of every crack in the house when you shake the glass and get the vinegar stirred up.

 

But for Simons problem here I would use sugar or honey

[cheaptackle]

Why not send the mechanic a link to this post before you pick up the machine? If he reads it through I'm sure he'll get the idea....

 

Michael

[i2cool2fool]

There is always more than one side to any story and believe me I could tell you plenty from a mechanics side of the fence too. There is no excuse though for quoting someone to do a job and not advising them if there is a significant increase in what you quoted. How this guy handles it when you go to see him will speak volumes for the type of mechanic he is.

Agree with this comment. You can remind your mechanic you were hesitant to go ahead with the work knowing it was $400 (presumably taxes included). If he is interested in building a relationship with you where you will tell 10 friends a good story, he will be helpful. If he is not interested in middle ground or helping you out, I say pay the price and tell 10 friends and ask each to tell 10 of their own the bad story. Be sure to let him know your thoughts and that you actually know more than 10 people.

[Slop]

Sometimes the ability to communicate effectively between business and consumer can create issues, It happens all the time. Tom should make this situation right, or you 2 grown men both need to come to an agreement and move on with your day. If the outcome is less than satisfactory on your end, I doubt you will seek Tom's services again. Surely Tom is bright enough to get your business more than just once. I could be wrong...lol

[limeyangler]

So….went over….Tom seemed a bit "off' for want of a better word. we loaded the machine in near silence, he said "ok well, there ya go". I explained we needed to talk before we went any further. I asked what problems he ran into that had caused him to go $200 over the original quote. He started off pointing out that he had changed the sheer pins too "for proper ones"….." i was quick too point out that sheer pin change is a 30 second job…cost max $6. He did not say much. I went on to explain that I could understand that he could have run into issues while the work was already underway, and that i appreciated he got the work done, but felt he should have given me a heads up as we were approaching a cost point not far off a new blower!!! I suggested we meet half way and offered $500….he accepted and I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

 

On the way home i was thinking if he had done what was on the bill he had done good by me, i was just finding it hard to shake the feeling that something was wrong.

 

Got home, had to pull start it to get into the garage….F$%$#$%^%….pull cord snaps first pull…..right at the very end. Call Tom as i can't believe this is coincidence….he says he has not touched it. Get the machine into the garage and hook it up , push the button…it fires up (he tested it in front of me at the shop too…fired up then) i start to go and try it…my wife comes out to say i have a phone call…go to switch it off….DOES NOT STOP NOW WHEN YOU REMOVE THE KEY!!!!! I know this was fine before it went in because i had to start and stop it to get it on the trailer……GRRRRRRRRRRRR.

 

Ok…really……REALLY!!!!!REALLLLLLY!!!!!!

 

 

pass the valium!!!!!

[aplumma]

The key should be a ground of the ignition system check for a little green wire that should go to the frame. A broken cord is kind of normal in my book. He after all though he was going to get the full amount so he had no time or reason to sabotage the unit. I am not defending the man I just think from the frame of mind you wrote it you might be seeing something that is not there. If I am wrong I am sorry you had to find someone who did not treat you as well as I think you should have been. Take the valium and look for the wire or call him when you are calmer in the morning.

 

 

Art

[limeyangler]

Thanks Art….no need to apologize. Its been one of those days….had to trailer my snow machine to Kenora today…..whole other bunch of attitude from the owner…whole other story lol….then a 2 hour drive back again to talk with Tom….my whole day has been filled with strife with small engine mechanics

 

 

Oh well….in the grand scheme of things this is SOD ALL….NADA….NUFFINK……but its been a day to forget…. i have a strangely sore behind and a hole in my bank account to show for it!

[Bernie]

Tough situation, been there myself.
But I never would do that to a customer.
If along the way something unseen does arise (it does happen to mechanics) I call the customer right away for approval.
This legally can be done on the phone if written on the estimate sheet the time of call and details of discussion.

Also, I believe an estimate can go over by 20% without approvals.
I never have had a money issue with a customer in 20 years of business. Doing it right avoids messes like this one.

[lew]

 

Doing it right avoids messes like this one.

 

And keeps happy customers coming back year after year.

[Big Cliff]

It isn't always easy:

 

Customer comes in because his electric start isn't working, he indicates he doesn't want to spend a lot of money so you fix the electric start problem. A week later the auger stops working, customer comes back complaining that you just fixed his snow blower last week and charged him $150.00 and now it isn't working again. Doesn't seem to matter that he didn't want to spend the money to have you check everything over in the first place. You fixed the snow blower now it doesn't work!

 

Customer comes in and askes you to do a tune up on his snow blower then complains like hell when you give him a bill for two hours labour + parts because you took the time to check and replace worn bushings, belts, replace bolts with proper shear pins, inspect and change the friction disk, lubricate the the shifter assy. drain and clean the fuel system, change the oil, put fresh fuel and stabilizer in it, check the tire pressures. They don't seem to think they should have to pay you for the time you spend having to look up the parts for their machine and doing up the estimates.......

 

Then there are the ones that lie to you: "It was working fine when I put it away in the spring so it must be something simple"! That was the one I had to pull the whole blower assy. apart on to find out that the brass gear in the differental had been compleatly destroyed because someone had engaged the auger while it was jammed and just kept it engaged until it ground itself to nothing. $60.00 for the gear + tax and freight.

 

Sometimes you are just plain dammed if you do and dammed if you don't.

[lew]

 

Sometimes you are just plain dammed if you do and dammed if you don't.

 

Cliff, everyone who's ever dealt with you, including me, knows you do excellent work for a very fair and honest price and if you say that's what the job is worth, we all know you can be trusted.

 

The issue here though is a mechanic giving a price that the client agreed on, but then jacking the bill waaay up without checking 1st to see if the extra work and money is OK before going ahead with it.

 

Years ago my wife and I booked a room at a lodge for a week of snowmobiling and asked for a price for an all inclusive stay. He gave me a price that I felt was fair and agreed on it. At the end of the week we went to check out and he told me that he'd given it some thought and had decided that he wasn't charging me enough and wanted an additional $200. I refused to pay the extra and gave him the agreed on price and left.

 

There was about 25 of us that stayed at that lodge a few different times but after the attempted rip-off and me telling everyone about it, nobody ever went back. He tried to beat me for $200, but ended up losing a few thousand dollars in the process.

[limeyangler]

It isn't always easy:

 

Customer comes in because his electric start isn't working, he indicates he doesn't want to spend a lot of money so you fix the electric start problem. A week later the auger stops working, customer comes back complaining that you just fixed his snow blower last week and charged him $150.00 and now it isn't working again. Doesn't seem to matter that he didn't want to spend the money to have you check everything over in the first place. You fixed the snow blower now it doesn't work!

 

Customer comes in and askes you to do a tune up on his snow blower then complains like hell when you give him a bill for two hours labour + parts because you took the time to check and replace worn bushings, belts, replace bolts with proper shear pins, inspect and change the friction disk, lubricate the the shifter assy. drain and clean the fuel system, change the oil, put fresh fuel and stabilizer in it, check the tire pressures. They don't seem to think they should have to pay you for the time you spend having to look up the parts for their machine and doing up the estimates.......

 

Then there are the ones that lie to you: "It was working fine when I put it away in the spring so it must be something simple"! That was the one I had to pull the whole blower assy. apart on to find out that the brass gear in the differental had been compleatly destroyed because someone had engaged the auger while it was jammed and just kept it engaged until it ground itself to nothing. $60.00 for the gear + tax and freight.

 

Sometimes you are just plain dammed if you do and dammed if you don't.

 

Like i said Cliff…..if its all above board the guy did right by me…….but my gut is telling me there is something fishy going on and it aint a walleye supper!!!

 

Like so many have pointed out already on this thread…..the guy could have handled it better….but i am as happy as can be expected in this crappy situation with the compromise that was reached.

 

BUT….first the pull cord….then the STOP mechanism….when i absolutely….one thousand percent 1000% know these were working fine 20 minutes before he had it and then both go wrong within seconds of getting it home…hmmmmmmm coincidence…yup…maybe..BUT I DONT BUY IT. (lol…I guess i did buy it already for $500).

 

Anyway…..is it the most important thing in my life….NO ….is it annoying….yes

 

I have other things to worry about this morning…going for surgery in 2 hours……LOL…hope they do a better job on my elbow than he did with the snowblower!!!!!

 

Cliff i do want to Thank you for your input ….it did help me adjust how i eventually approached the situation as you helped me step back and see it from his side a little bit…..and in the end the approach i took helped resolve the situation somewhat.

[aplumma]

Good on you I think that the end result of putting it in the past and not letting it fester is the best path to be on. Best of luck on the surgery and heal up quick the fish are waiting for you.

 

 

 

Art

[msp]

This story really BLOWS !

[danc]

Did a day trip there for a meeting at the mill today Simon. Looks like I'll be there through January. We'll have to get together some time.

[limeyangler]

Did a day trip there for a meeting at the mill today Simon. Looks like I'll be there through January. We'll have to get together some time.

AWESOME DAN.

 

i am off work till January 5th…so really most days between 8am and 3:30pm works for me.