Car servicing and car repairs
Despite some big reductions in prices for new cars across the motor industry, many consumers are deciding against trade-ins and are holding on to their cars for longer. While this may save money in the short term, as your car gets older, you will need to spend some money to keep your car in good working order.
There is plenty of competition out there for car servicing and repairs. So don't be afraid to pick up the phone or go online and shop around for quotes to find the best value.
Legal requirements
As a car owner, you are responsible for ensuring your car is in a roadworthy condition. It is illegal, for instance, to drive a car:
- With tyres that are below the minimum standard thread depth of 1.6 mm
- With defective lighting or
- Which doesn't display compliant licence plates
Cars that are more than four years old must undergo an NCT test. Failure to display a valid NCT cert can result in up to five penalty points and this has led to a surge in requests for the test.
Most cars fail the NCT test due to issues like headlight alignment, exhaust emissions and problems with brakes. These issues can normally be identified and put right during a regular service.
Servicing
Some car owners might try to economise by cutting back on how often their cars are serviced.
Consumers need to ensure that their cars are roadworthy so cutting back on car servicing, repairs, or not replacing tyres and other spare parts when they are due for replacement, is likely to be a false economy.
It could also lead to the law being broken (for instance, excessively worn tyres) and may ultimately be dangerous.
- Service intervals: Each model of car comes with a manufacturer's recommended schedule for routine servicing and you should try to service your car as close to these intervals as possible to keep it in its best condition.
- Main dealer service: Manufacturers recommend that you have the car serviced at one of their main dealers but you do not necessarily have to do this. Check first if your warranty is dependent on the car being serviced with a main dealer. If it isn't, or the car is outside the warranty period, you are free to shop around for the best deal.
Many main dealers advertise services for all makes and models of vehicle for a set price.
Before you sign up for a deal like this, check what is included in the set price and do your research to get the best value. And remember, don't be afraid to haggle about the price before you give them your business, even with big motor dealerships.
Pre-NCT test
Many garages now offer what's called a pre-NCT test. This test should cover all the items which will be checked during the NCT test itself and any potential problems should be brought to your attention.
However, you may find that this test will not guarantee that your car will pass the NCT itself. It is also possible that some of the recommended work may not be necessary to pass the NCT.
The NCT costs €50 and a retest for a failure costs €28 - a retest that only requires a visual inspection is free.
Before deciding to do a pre-NCT, weigh up the likelihood of your car failing - routine servicing over its lifetime and a recent service leading up to the NCT should mean your car will not be in bad shape.
If you do decide on a pre-NCT, remember that you are only paying for the test (although, some are free) and not for any repairs to potential problems it identifies.
This also means that you do not have to get any suggested work done by the same person or garage that carried out the test. You are free to shop around for the best deal you can get.
Freelance mechanics
More freelance or self-employed mechanics are advertising their services online, on notice boards in shopping centres and in the small ads in the newspapers. Some offer to repair your car on-site, at your home or in your workplace.
Some motorists use so-called "black economy" or "backstreet" mechanics, who deal in cash only and usually don't issue receipts but:
- Be aware that without a proof of purchase, you may find it difficult to take the matter further if you run into problems later
- Only ever employ a "back street" mechanic on the recommendation of someone you trust
- Be very cautious about getting your car repaired by people who have no premises, or trading address
No matter where you get the service done, you should always ask if the work will be covered by a written guarantee. If it isn't, you might consider taking your business elsewhere.
Be clear
You should be clear with the garage or mechanic about what you want done.
Make sure they know not to do any additional work on the car without consulting you. If you are specifically asking them to do anything more than a routine service, such as replacing a windscreen, get them to quote you first for the parts and labour then decide whether you want them to proceed.
If you are getting your car serviced in advance of the NCT, tell the garage or the mechanic and ask them to advise you on anything you may need to address.
Quotations
If you are looking for repairs to be done to the car, ask for a detailed quotation for the work they will carry out and what this will cost. Do not settle for an estimate, which is simply an initial guess at the cost of the work and which could end up costing you much more once the work is done.
A written quotation can be referred to later in case of any dispute so always check the quotation carefully before agreeing to the work to see what is included in it - labour, parts, VAT etc.
Don't be afraid to ask questions if you're not clear on anything, particularly about spare parts and the necessity to replace them.
It is illegal for a trader to claim work needs to be carried out when in fact it doesn't, so don't be afraid to get a second opinion if you think some work may be unnecessary.
Insurance
If repair work is to be covered by an insurance claim you will need to submit a quote to your insurance company before the work is carried out. The insurer will generally appoint an assessor to review the amount in the quote.
In many cases, the assessor will negotiate the figure and may deem some of the repair work unnecessary. When the work is completed, you should be provided with a detailed invoice, showing parts, labour and VAT.
Tyres
The legal minimum standard thread depth for tyres in Ireland is 1.6mm and a visual inspection will generally tell you when you need to start thinking about replacing them.
Another indicator of wear is if you feel less grip and more noise being generated from the road when driving. If your car tends to shake above a certain speed, this may be caused by excessively worn tyres and you should attend to this immediately.
Many tyre problems are caused by incorrect inflation - over-inflation can cause excessive wear to the centre of the tyre while under-inflation can wear the edges and sidewalls. You should check the tyre pressure regularly to ensure they are inflated correctly.
A routine check of the tyres should also be carried out by whoever is doing the service on your car and they should advise you of any potential problems.
There is a lot of competition in the tyre market at present with some companies offering "buy four, pay for three" deals. So shop around, online or by phone and you will find that you can save a lot of money.
Always ask them to quote you their "best price" and don't be afraid to haggle. Most companies will have both branded and "generic" tyres (tyres made by the big manufacturers under a different brand name).
Generic tyres are generally cheaper but may not give the same level of performance. However, as required by law, they should always meet minimum safety standards.
As the front tyres of a car wear quicker than the rear, some people and garages swap them around (put the front tyres on the rear and rear tyres on the front) to extend the time they can leave them on the car.
When shopping around, ask if the items being offered are "directional" tyres. These tyres are generally made to rotate in one direction and this can affect their ability to be swapped around.
Breaches of consumer law
Consumer legislation can be breached in several different ways by those carrying out repairs or routine services on cars, for example:
- They claim to be a member of a trade association when they are not
- They claim to have some industry approval for the work they do when they do not have such approval
- They claim that work needs to be done or new parts are needed when this is not the case
If you have evidence that a breach of consumer law has taken place you should let the NCA know the details.
Complaints
If you encounter a problem with a routine service or repairs being carried out on your car, in the first instance you should complain to the person or garage which carried out the work. Ask what they will do about putting things right - if the work was done by a garage, you should complain to the manager.
If you are not satisfied with the response you get, and the person or garage is a member of a trade association - for example the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) - you could consider taking the matter up with that association.
If there has been a breach of consumer law you should complain to the NCA.
If you are not getting anywhere with either the person, the garage or the trade association, you might consider taking the matter to the Small Claims Court. This Court deals with disputes up to a value of €2000 for a fee of €15 and there is no need to hire a solicitor.
Among the problems you may wish to complain about to the person or garage which did the work are:
- Replacement parts failing a short time after the service or repair
- Generic (sometimes called "spurious" parts in the trade) being used if you specified you wanted genuine manufacturer parts
- Second-hand parts being used instead of new parts
- Additional work being done without prior approval from the car owner
- The final bill varying considerably from the quotation
- Misinformation about the need to change a vital part - such as a timing belt - after a certain number of miles
- The service is not complete at the time specified and there is no communication about the delay
- If the car fails the NCT for an issue which should have been picked up in a pre-NCT test
- If there is damage to your car which wasn't there before the work - always check around the car before you drive off and raise any issues immediately
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