The story behind this situation with the Honda owner really rattled me and I felt I should post the details as it has been a regular topic of conversation on here. I did not post this subject to grab any head lines or put anyone down, that does not interest me. The real issues are that the garage in question either do not have any quality control procedures in place or simply don’t care. I have also checked the ATA registers and from what I can see there are no ATA accredited technicians employed there. That would at least be a start for them to prove their competence at the job. As I said no one is perfect but if I worked with these guys I would want to promote their strengths and build on their weaknesses, or find them a new career in some other trade. Motor codes cannot be held directly responsible for these actions of this Honda dealership in question but they should endeavour to correct the situation and ensure it does not happen again. I would much rather see the garage be made to train its staff and improve the way they operate, than be booted off the scheme and continue to trade in a potentially dishonest manner. Most of us could probably tell stories about bad repair jobs or exuberant invoices until we are blue in the face and of course it is only the bad jobs that you generally read about in these cases. As Steve said it is the associations with these garages involved in the ‘rip off’ cases that we all hear of that strikes a nerve with us guys. I was chatting to some of the guys at the ADS Harrogate conference a few weeks ago about the main dealers mentality when it comes to customer service. Now again this does not necessarily mean that all main dealers are out to get you but one of the possible suggestions was that maybe there is a tactic where by an extortionate price is quoted for a repair in the hope that the customer will agree to the extra work of say £1100. Then the customer later gets the call from the dealer to say actually your car is fixed and it’s only going to cost you £500! So the customer thinks the Dealer is fantastic and has saved them a load of money. Another suggestion was that some main dealers just want to get as much money from each job while it is there and are not too fussed if the customer does not come back next time. As Graham said, how will all these schemes, codes or licensing be policed?? This is such a tricky situation we all are facing and I don’t know what the answers or final outcomes will be. But I for one am committed to promoting the true professionals in this trade, as I have said before this is more than just a job for me. The upshot of this is that I now have a new customer that trusts us and will come back to us next time work is required on the car. |
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Motor Codes........... Again # - Mark Banks December 16, 2009, 2:12 pm
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