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So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Peter Warman on April 16, 2010, 3:33 pm

Hi All

I have an interested party that would like to hear your comments on this subject

As we all know there are many "Schemes" that are running at the moment, many are soft franchise driven, some you have to purchase their products and some take your money upfront then vet you 2 years later (by a third pary)

What we need is a list (check list if you like)of the minimum criteria that a garage / workshop must meet before they can legally call themselves a "Good Garage". Every garage must pass ALL of the criteria BEFORE they hand over any money or be signed up

Many of us have been running our businesses for 20 years plus, so we are in the best position to know what our customers expectations are and what we are going to have to do to survive the future in both satisfying the customers needs and keeping up with technology

I have put a few examples down below, you may agree or not agree, but please add comments

Basic criteria for a "Good Garage"

System for handling customer complaints

Keep customer informed, call customer if additional work is required

Issue service and MOT reminders

Labour rate displayed in reception, plus any other standard charges

Customer database and kept up to date

Job sheet created for every job and kept on file

Service schedule completed and handed to cusomer with invoice

At least one diagnostic scanner to be able to read codes, reset service lights, basic adaptions, live data

At least one technician having been on a days course training on that scanner (may be a refresher every 2 years on new systems added)

Every technician must attend a training course once a year (sign up to a training scheme or company that make sure you are kept up todate with changing technology)

Must have access to Technical Information eg: Autodata, Vivid (possibly also subscribe to a technical service that issues bulletins)

Estimates for jobs and make valid for 30 days

Make sure that all parts fitted are of OE quality (recognised supplier). Warranty parts and labour for 12 months

---------------------------------

I have listed a few, but I am sure there are many more

Peter

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Keith Simpson on April 16, 2010, 5:40 pm, in reply to "So what makes a "Good Garage" #"

I agree with all Peter has said. I would like to add.

1/To provide honest and accurate advice that is in the best interest of customers. And back this up with good quality workmanship and a friendly efficient service at a price that represents good value for money.

2/If any additional work is Identified, contact the customer and inform them of the cost and whether the work is essential or advisable so that the customer can make an informed decision on how to proceed. If for any reason the customer cannot be contacted, no additional work should ever be carried out without the customers Permission.

3/Make sure the technicians have the skills and the know how to complete the job in a professional and timely manner and Quality Check the car against the work undertaken before returning it to the customer.

4/Only choose quality parts or those originally fitted by the manufacturer of the vehicle.

5/With the additional reassurance of 100% satisfaction, or your money back guarantee.

Keith

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Tom Williams on April 16, 2010, 7:57 pm, in reply to "So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Tom Williams

"A garage can only ever be as good as it's worst mechanic"

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by John Ritchie on April 16, 2010, 9:48 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
John Ritchie

Hi all , nice points but Keith "With the additional reassurance of 100% satisfaction, or your money back guarantee", how can this work ? . If your mechanic leaves a dirty finger print on the car or you only completed 7 out of the 8 items they wanted done, then your customer is not 100% happy so therefore you would give them their money back and they go away happy (free repair) and leave you broke ? .What trade does this ?
As Tom says " you are only as good as your worst mechanic"

Regards
John

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Tony Sefton on April 16, 2010, 11:12 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Tony Sefton

From the Customers Point of View.

( 1 ) Know whats wrong with the car Just by the description that the customer gives you over the phone.
( i,e every warning light comes on the dash but only before 3 AM on every 3rd sunday of the month going up hills in top gear at 12 MPH and only when its sunny.)

( 2 ) As you now Know whats wrong with it, You can also tell them how much it will cost.

( 3 ) Fix the car whilst his Wife is Driving it Because they cannot manage without it.

( 4 ) Have all the parts on stock ready to fit on the car before you know whats wrong with it even though the Main Dealer doesnt stock the Parts.

( 5 ) Make sure that you fix the car for less than the Cost of the parts as the customer doesnt have much money. ( As hes just ordered a New BMW 7 series to park outside his new Mansion and has just come back from a 3 week holiday in Barbados. )

( 6 ) Dont forget to say Thank you for your business as the customer gets in his car and pulls away. ( even though its cost you more than it cost the customer )

And then you realise that someone left your one and only scanner in the car when he threw it on the floor Because it hadn't read the Correct Fault codes and led you up the Garden Path Causing you to waste 2 days looking for a fault that wasnt there.

Only Kidding but its what some customers expect.

And Keith, Dont even think about giving customer an excuse to try and get some money back as if theres a way, 2 or 3 percent will try it on and its more grief that you can do without.

I Actually would refund a Customer the full invoice price if they had a justified complaint, But please dont put it in writing.

Tony.

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Bryan Smith on April 16, 2010, 11:59 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Bryan Smith

Have you been poaching my customers Tony?

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Keith Simpson on April 17, 2010, 11:32 am, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"

Hi Guys, It's a well known fact that our trade has a poor reputation for the way it treats its customers. I have always looked to capitalise on this by demonstrating very clearly that we operate in exactly the opposite way.

I have built the business on being honest and genuine with customers and in fulfilling the promises we make. Our customers appreciate this and we enjoy a very high level of repeat business along with many many recommendations.

The reassurance of your Money back says it all in my book. It's a fact you cannot please all the customers and of course we get customers try it on at times, but if you follow procedures and spend time to talk to the customer and keep them well informed, and listen. I find 99% of the time things run smoothly as planned.

For many years, I have always made it clear to our customers that if they are not 100% happy with a repair, I would give them there money back and I would, because we have got it wrong.

What you have to ask yourself is why should a customer come to you in the first place, and not the other 15 or so garages in the area, in our case it certainly isn't low prices, in fact when it comes to Mot test fee's we charge £53 when all the other garages in the area charge around £35 yet we still do 8-9 test per day.

Our labour rate is based on the profit I want to make and not based on competitors rates like many. So we are not the cheapest, I think the biggest plus for us is our reputation, especially one I know is envied by many of our competitors.

It's not rocket science lads.

Keith

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Phil Dunmore on April 18, 2010, 9:21 am, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Philip Dunmore

Trouble is, if we give away all our secrets in the form of a foolproof list, all the big players will copy it. Best of luck to them.

What I am trying to say is that no list of requirements will ever accurately distinguish a good garage from a bad one.

I have said this before but the worst garages are fueled by the worst customers. Most of us have realised the way to rid ourselves of the customers Tony describes is to charge more than they can afford/are willing to pay.

I tend to treat the first job for a new customer a bit like a job interview. Get a feel for their attitude and go from there. Very occasionally I will tell someone I do not wish to work on their vehicle as the outcome will not be satisfactory for either of us. How do you put that in a code?

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Keith Simpson on April 18, 2010, 11:01 am, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"

Phil I couldn't agree more. As the title says So what makes a "Good Garage"

It certainly isn't Motor Codes or the likes.

Peter who are the interested parties?

Keith

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Tom Williams on April 18, 2010, 9:28 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Tom Williams

In a small to medium sized business vetting potential customers can pay dividends.
Sometimes instinct tells you to avoid certain potential clients like the plague.

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Tony Sefton on April 18, 2010, 10:11 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Tony Sefton

>>>>>>>> Make sure that all parts fitted are of OE quality (recognised supplier). Warranty parts and labour for 12 months <<<<<

Would that Be recognised supplier or OE Quality.?

Some Manufacturers Rebox Non Genuine parts and Resell as Geuine either because of lack of supply or to be able to compete on price.

You could buy a Chinese Copy Alternator or a "Genuine LUCAS Alternator and end up with Exactly the same item in the box. ?? Which one can you fit. ?? either, Neither or both. ??

How would most garages tell the difference between a genuine or Chinese Alternator in a Lucas Box. ?

I Supplied and fitted a Focus window regulator/motor this week, Cost price £60 + vat. A Genuine Dealer one was £230 + vat.

I then bought a genuine one for a Kia at £36.00 + vat. ( The Retail Price difference on Car parts is Scandalous but the Manufacturers can charge whatever they like and if they had no competition from aftermarket suppliers they would hike up the price even more )

Does it make me a Bad Garage by offering the Customer a Pattern part From Recognised Distributors Such as Andrew Page. Euro Car parts or GSF etc. ???

If you can only fit Genuine, How would you go on when the dealers cannot supply parts for several weeks or months as is happening with GM etc at present. ??

There is more to being a good garage than being tied to using Genuine parts. ( even though we all know that some non gen parts are garbage. )

I Just offer a Good Honest Service, I give 12 Months warranty on All new parts whether genuine or not. I Dont fit parts that aren't required just to make more profit out of the job, etc etc.
What more could the Customer want. ??

Tony

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Tony Sefton on April 19, 2010, 8:52 am, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Tony Sefton

Just thinking more about the OE thing,

If We shouldnt use Non genuine Parts, Then also we shouldnt use Non genuine Repaired parts such as Ecu's, Steering racks, ABS units,

So thats just killed off BBA, ATP, Bluestreak, etc etc.

Or am I looking too deep into the wording / intention of OE. ??

I Recently bought a "GENUINE" Ford Transit EGR valve. It was So well reconditioned that it looked as though it had been crimped together with a hammer and chisel by a 5 year old in a shed in india and the Connector plug would not fit as it had the wrong top fitted. ( possibly due to Batches of different EGR valves being reconditioned at the same time and the parts getting mixed up. (

Who Reconditioned that. ?? was it Ford or was it someone that did them for Ford. ??

I think that The OE thing should be at the discretion of the Person doing the job with the knowledge / approval of the vehicle owner. ???

Tony.

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Keith Simpson on April 19, 2010, 5:17 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"

For a garage to say they will use only genuine parts would be ridicules. I would say parts of matching quality.

Now Mr Sefton is going to say "who decides they are parts of matching quality".

Keith

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Michael Whitworth on April 20, 2010, 7:17 am, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Mike Whitworth - Administrator

Just thought I would repost this reply here I just made to mark Duhigg in a thread about dealer cost of an ABS unit. As I felt it was relevant to the discussion.

Re: ATE ABS pump - Supplier required #

Posted by Michael Whitworth on April 20, 2010, 7:11 am, in reply to "Re: ATE ABS pump - Supplier required #"

>>>>£1400 ouch and 5% discount!!!<<<<

Isn't that ridicuous to lay out all that money for 5% discount!! The manufacturers are a joke when it comes to parts supply, I know parts is not their main concern but it is a BIG part of it. The independant sector must be their main source of income from parts. what other industry treats their Clients in this way?

This is one reason why we need quality parts from good independant suppliers at reasonable prices instead of all the counterfiet white box items we seem to be getting these days from the independants. They and the garages that fit this cheap rubish are playing into the dealers/manufacturers hands.

Mike

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Peter Warman on April 20, 2010, 7:30 am, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Peter Warman - Administrator

Hi Mike

...."we need quality parts from good independant suppliers at reasonable prices"....

I had a 2006 Polo 1.0 in last week for an alternator

Checked online as I use Camberley ordering system, it quoted me £345:00 plus vat for a Bosch exchange. Gave them a call and they came back 20 minutes later and said the best we can do is a Valeo (original fittment) for £225:00 plus vat

So I gave TPS Croydon a ring and they had a VAG approved exchange unit for £123:00 plus vat. Fitted with no problems

So yes Mike "we need quality parts from good independant suppliers at reasonable prices" and not "stitch up prices"

Peter

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Michael Whitworth on April 20, 2010, 6:51 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Mike Whitworth - Administrator

>>>>So I gave TPS Croydon a ring and they had a VAG approved exchange unit for £123:00 plus vat.<<<<<

Hi Peter,

This is the a good illustration of how the dealers are screwing us. On stuff they have managed to lock out the independent by forcing the component manufacturers to make certain items unavailable to the aftermarket, And the stuff they can't really make it stick on they reduce their retails and still give us very little discount a lot of the time.

More than ever now we have to keep our eyes on dealer RRP and trades prices in order to ensure we are getting good prices from the factors.

We can no longer assume the factor is going to be cheaper.

Which brings us to another question, Who decides if we are overcharging for parts? ie if you have a 30% mark up policy and the dealer only gives you 5%, do you charge dealer retail or add your standard mark up? And would trading standards have a case to reprimand you if you did charge your markup? And what if you purchase from factor at a higher price than dealer retail and then add a markup?

Mike

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Steve Nicholas on April 20, 2010, 8:42 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Stephen Nicholas

So who decides how much you are allowed to mark-up on parts?

You source a part from a dealer and it is more expensive than the factors . Or it's the other way round.

Either way you have had to spend time finding the part, paying for 'phone calls and, in the end, the buck stops with you as you have to guarantee whatever-it-is to your customer.

I don't think that anybody reasonable would begrudge you a modest mark-up on a price which the supplier has already charged a margin on to make THEM a profit.

We could not survive on labour charges alone surely?

Steve

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Bryan Smith on April 20, 2010, 9:10 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Bryan Smith

My comments about Tony having my customers was only said in jest as in reality I do vet my customers and all my work is on recommendation or repeat business. With regard to which parts I fit and what to charge depends on many variables which can only be allowed for with previous experience. As an example, Golf headlamp recently. Cheapest factor quote was £70 for a Valeo unit, TPS retail was £55 and about £44 to me, also Valeo. As far as I am aware we do not have to stick to retail prices but it's a dangerous game to charge more, unless you can really justify it. Imagine that I went for the cheapest factor unit and then quite reasonably charged the customer £80, the customer then does a quick "google" or checks ebay. They would wrongly think I was having them over.
I don't go along with the "we must fit genuine" brigade (except certain parts) but I always make my customers fully aware of what the choices are, advise but never mislead them and then let them decide.

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by Dave Hill on April 24, 2010, 9:22 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"

Interesting debate guys.

It is my belief that a good garage is built on old fashioned ethics. I & my staff try to treat each customer & their concerns as if we were dealing with our own mother or loved one. If you think your mums set of pads will last another six months then tell the customer that. They will usually appreciate the honesty & the "culture shock" they experience with you, will generally give them cause to tell a few folks. Now that's your advertising budget slashed to zero!

I also think it is important to look after your existing clients rather than chase new work. Instead of spending 300 quid a week on adds in the local papers, why not give your customers car a wash once its been serviced. Give your good customers something to smile about & they will promote you far better than any advert.

That said, customers need to appreciate what you are offering. I am not particularly tolerant of customers who expect the impossible or display unreasonable distrust. I like to be given the benefit of the doubt until I give cause to think otherwise. When I look at some of the bandits that trade in my area, I get more than a little defensive when I am challenged over my costs & ethics!

Good Garage Schemes are a joke generally as the only prerequisite is that the applicant has to "cross a palm" with 20 pieces of hard earned. Sod that! Forte's own scheme has promoted one of my local Tyre & Exhaust Centres to the status of "Good Garage". Who the hell are Forte to apportion credibility? Yes their products are fine, but does that elevate them to a position where they have a right to an opinion? Absolutely not!

I think it is also important to question ones own business model too. I have not had a tyre pressure gauge or torque wrench calibrated in quite a while! Where does this "faux pas" place me in the scheme of things?

Tony, your post hit many nails on the head.

If Snap-On were to have a crystal ball & magic wand for sale on their van I reckon they would fly off the shelf, for the "tongue in cheek" novelty value. I know I would love to have them on my desk, for those magic customer moments

Cheers all

Dave

Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #

Posted by sean savage on April 27, 2010, 2:48 pm, in reply to "Re: So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Sean Savage

I agree with you dave almost 100% we havent advertised in over 15yrs and are always booked up at least 2 or 3 days in advance. i believe in treating your customers how you would expect them to treat you. Common sense is a main factor to doing well in this trade and in life if you ask me.I must admit i am now "tailoring" the business to pick and choose the jobs i take on and the ones i dont want now,which i was very dubious about doing 12 months ago and to be honest it was a good move. I can see your point dave about the good garage scheme and yes it is mainly a marketing ploy to use forte products which are good quality anyhow. i joined the scheme just over 2yrs ago,with every doubt you have in my head aswell. i am surprised to say tho that a lot of new customers are seeing the signs or feedback on the website and using us because of that,we know it isnt a governed body but to the everyday customer it looks very real and with the tv and radio adverts they believe it and come to us,which is the overall goal. the £23:50 a month i didnt agree with but the gg scheme insurance company (aviva) have just added me a huge amount of extra cover on my new policy and saved me £1600 off my origional quote so i aint gonna argue with the £23:50 p/m.
regards
sean

Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Peter Warman on April 27, 2010, 4:43 pm, in reply to "So what makes a "Good Garage" #"
Peter Warman - Administrator

Can we add these to the list?

Agree work required with the customer and check before starting additional jobs.

Set a price and payment method, don't change these without customer authorisation.

Encourage technicians to talk to customers to build personal relationships.

Don't charge for small/easy jobs to generate goodwill and trust.

Contact every customer after a few days to ensure maximum satisfaction.

Monitor customer feedback and act on it to make improvements.

Offer a loyalty bonus to encourage repeat business and develop relationships.

Continually improve your business by discussing operational issues with staff and customers.

Turn any complaint into a positive result to retain customers.

http://www.glassguide.co.uk/News/GlassGuideNews/?News=837

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Steve Scott on April 27, 2010, 7:33 pm, in reply to "Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Stephen Scott

Just looked up my home town garages on Motor codes...

I wouldn't let 70% of them put the valve caps back on my tyres...

Cheers

Doc...

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Mark Mcgrath on April 28, 2010, 12:08 pm, in reply to "Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Mark McGrath

forgive me for injecting an element of dissent !!
but some of the proposals seem like an election manifesto for "The Motor Codes Party"

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Tony Sefton on April 28, 2010, 10:16 pm, in reply to "Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Tony Sefton

How about, Dont Condemn a £1700 Component without checking the Basics first, And Dont then condemn the "Brand New component" again as it was not fitted by themselves and still conveniently forget to check the basics.

And Dont Quote £2350 to replace 2x wiring harnesses on a 2 year old car for the sake of 3 corroded connections that will clean up with a toothbrush and a squirt of contact cleaner.

The above are 2 x jobs quoted for by a Motor codes registered Main Dealer.

So From the Above jobs :-

If you quote for a job at £2350 and the customer accepts the quote that must be OK. ???

If you do same the job on Trust and charge around £200.00 without a quote first that must be wrong. ??

90% of My customers leave vehicles with me and trust me to do "What is Necessary" If I think the job is Expensive then I inform them before I buy parts etc.

Quoting Accurately for Diagnostic time is a lot More difficult than servicing and general repairs as you dont know with wiring faults how long somethings going to take to find, 5 minutes or 2 days. ??? So my policy it to go as far as i think reasonable and ring the customer if it looks serious, You Cannot spend 5 hours looking for fault and then give a quote as you have already spent that amount of time on the job and the repair might take 5 minutes.

I got one Customer that Just Said Can you Ring Me before you Do "anything" on it, So I did, He said Whats wrong with it and how much will it cost. ???? I said I have Absolutely no Idea as I rang you Exactly as Instructed before I did anything, If you want me to carry on and Diagnose the Fault It will cost you £45.00 + vat per hour and i need 1-2 hours to check it out, He said OK, I Understand.

Tony.

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Michael Whitworth on April 28, 2010, 10:28 pm, in reply to "Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Mike Whitworth - Administrator

>>>>>>I got one Customer that Just Said Can you Ring Me before you Do "anything" on it, So I did, He said Whats wrong with it and how much will it cost. ???? I said I have Absolutely no Idea as I rang you Exactly as Instructed before I did anything, If you want me to carry on and Diagnose the Fault It will cost you £45.00 + vat per hour and i need 1-2 hours to check it out, He said OK, I Understand<<<<<<

Brilliant Tony, I will have to remember that one!!

Mike

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Tony Bickers on April 28, 2010, 10:55 pm, in reply to "Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Tony Bickers

That is fair comment by Tony ,I find I am having to explain to a lot of my customers that having a diag. tool or three is not a Holy Grail, it needs experience and skill to the highest degree to sort problems on modern motors, and that costs money !And it is going to get worse with MOST systems, optical fibres and all the rest that the manufacturers are bringing out now.

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Phil Dunmore on May 8, 2010, 8:53 pm, in reply to "Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Philip Dunmore

"Contact every customer after a few days to ensure maximum satisfaction"
Hi, is your MOT ok?
Hi, does your new bulb work?

That's a bit over the top, could even lead to maximum irritation. I would only do that in exceptional circumstances. Pretty sure my customers would contact me if there was a problem. That then borders on a complaint, the customers intial attitude and how I deal with it will distinguish between "slight problem" or "complaint"

An over enthusiastic factor manager called me early one morning to ask if I needed any thing. He won't do it again.

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Pete Mutlow on May 8, 2010, 10:17 pm, in reply to "Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice"

I agree with Phil. I don't own a garage but I tried this about 20 years ago and never again. I would ring my customers about 2 weeks after a visit and ask if everthing was ok. I got a fair few with customers saying things were ok but I thought the car "missed" a couple of days ago, or "don't think it starts quite as well as it used to" etc. Difference with me compared to garage owners is that I feel I am obliged to revisit the vehicle again, whereas the garage owner simply says "well bring it in and we'll have a look."

The worst case I had was ringing a customer and a distraught lady on the other end of the phone saying that it was a bad time to call because her husband had just died a couple of hours earlier

No, let sleeping dogs lie. If there is a problem......they will ring.

Regards

Pete M

Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice

Posted by Antony powell on May 9, 2010, 8:22 am, in reply to "Re: Motor Codes Sets out best practice"
Anthony Powell

Hi Pete

mate of mine has a similar but slightly worse story, knocked on the door of a customers house to collect the cash for a job as agreed , only to find the wake of his customer in full flow and a very distraut family.......... especially as the guy was killed whilst driving the vehicle (nothing to do with the work done a horse had jumped a fence into the vehicles path)

tony

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