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Used Car Warranties
When you buy a used car you might be offered a used car warranty. They have various warranties and they are supposed to give you some peace of mind, they range from 300 to 3000 for these warranties and they are full of fine print. I've dealt with most of them trying to get claims and if you are 10KM over a service they will decline, if for example the alternator goes then in most cases they won't pay for a new one just a % of the cost or a second-hand alternator. One company claimed it would cover the cost of engine failure but then only payed for 1xpiston and no labour. The fact is you have bought a 2nd hand car and the only real warranty you have is the 30-day statutory warranty, a legal requirement for all used car yards in Australia, some (not all) used car yards will use the warranty as a pawn if you have problems with the car after purchase and to refer you to that warranty when in reality you have normal consumer rights within the 30 day period in which you must report in writing any problems within 30 days of purchase. I'm not targeting any specific used car yard but be aware that these are the tactics some used car yards use to get the sale only to find a lot of things are not covered. The upside is if something is going to fail, then it most likely will within the 30 day period. if you take that 300 to 3000 and put that in a savings account, then if something fails you will have the money to get it repaired or part thereof. Just buy the car is my advice, don't fall for the upsell. Also they might say you need to service the car with their mechanic in order to keep the warranty. This is not true, even if you have a new car with a new car warranty, you do not have to service with the dealer. As long as the mechanic is qualified and is a registered business and as long as you use genuine parts and keep within the specifications that is required you have the freedom to choose any mechanic you wish. This blog is NOT an intention of denying you a warranty, it's to let my customers know that some of these warranties only cover in part a claim made and in a lot of cases won't cover anything at all. I know as I'm the one to has to justify the claim only to be knocked back by red tape or something mentioned in the pages of fine print. I do not take aim at any particular Car yard this is purely to inform my customers of a warranty that might look good on paper when in fact it could be just another upsell you do not need.

 

(TRICKS) OF THE TRADE

We now live in a world that almost everything you do or anywhere you go there are people out to either scam you or rip you off. Mechanics do not have the best reputation when it comes to honesty.

I'm a Motor Mechanic and Diesel Fitter, I hurt my back a few years ago, that finished my diesel fitter roll. I still needed a job so I went to 6 job interviews around Cairns. All of them did the upsell, the more I upsold the more of a bonus I would get. This is good for the mechanic, but also breeds dishonesty. I therefore started my own business 7 years ago and have a lot of regular customers.

When you book a service or repair off me, if i find something urgent I will always call to get your authority and give you a firm price, if I cannot contact you to get your authority, I will not go ahead and do it anyway, thats like giving me your credit card number and access to your bank account.

If you for example book your car in for a service and you ask the price, then when you collect the car then the bill should be that price, if they say we had to do this or that, if they didn't call you then legally you don't have to pay for it, and the mechanic cannot hold your car if you can't pay the bill. But, if they inform you that it will cost this amount and when they come to collect the car if the bill is exactly or under what you quoted then the mechanic can hold your car.

Beware also of the $140 service, its designed to find faults, but most of those faults are just wear and tear and can probably wait, some faults are not even faults, i've seen the lists, one customer showed me a huge list with 24 points to do all urgent but none of those 24 points needed doing, none were urgent.

Also and in conclusion you are either Male or Female, it makes no difference to me which sex you are, when you come to me you are a customer, and your legal rights are taken into account when you become my customer. Don't fall for the upsell, it's a blatant rip of scam mechanics have used for decades!

BEWARE OF WWW.LOCALMECHANICS.COM.AU


I thought I would search my own business and found yet another site advertising my business without my authority. Local Mechanics site do not have my authorisation to advertise my business on their site, I've never heard of them and they never contacted me to ask permission nor do they answer my emails and no contact number. So I rang a few mechanics advertising on their site and they haven't been asked either and were unaware their business was being advertised. The information they have about my business is incorrect and even though the ad is free until a booking through them is made I do not need extra customers nor do I give my authority for anyone to advertise my business.

Beware of this rouge website as they are probably a scam. Legal action has commenced, I will keep

you posted.




From a business perspective


A Mechanical business requires the support and back up of other companies in order to deliver great customer service and quality repairs.

You have a lot of mechanics that know how to charge, will pick the cheapest parts and sell them for way above retail with labor charges that are way too high for mechanics that have less than 10 years of experience and in some cases you're not getting a trade qualified mechanic to do the repair.


So when I started this business I put honesty first, I don't go chasing the cheapest part but I look for Quality at a fair price, sure I mark up the price but sometimes only @ 10%, sometimes at cost, depending on the repair the vehicle and the customer. Parts are vital to any mechanical business so you give them all a go, Repco, Autobarn, and the list goes on.


It's when you have a warranty claim that they show their true colors. So when I started, I used all of them. As they dishonored their warranty parts the accounts were shut, not just this but you look for any support from the managers and if you don't get support you simply stop using them. I put over 92k through one of these parts suppliers and when it came for a warranty claim they refused, no need to mention who they are, account was shut and I won't fit their parts either so be warned if you supply parts from the suppliers I've black listed, they won't be fitted by this business.


So I narrowed the best parts suppliers to deal with in Cairns. They are Bursons at Manunda and Supercheap at Manunda. The 92k I put through that ex-parts supplier now goes to either of these 2 on top of the 100k I put through them already. If I'm looked after then you, the customer is looked after so please understand that you are welcome to supply your own parts, but if you purchased them anywhere else than these two business's then I won't fit them.




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