Problem with a car repair

You should ask the garage to fix any faults that:

• weren’t repaired properly

• weren’t correctly found

• didn’t exist before you took the car to the garage

If the garage won’t do the work

You could negotiate with the garage to get a report from an independent garage or vehicle engineer to show the repairs were done properly. You and the garage would need to agree on who provides this report, how the cost would be split and that you’ll both accept the findings. If the report shows that the work wasn’t done properly then the original garage should fix the car.

You could ask another garage to give you a written quote or estimate for the work. This will prove that the repairs or service need to be done again, and could help you negotiate with the original garage for the problem to be fixed.

You can also ask the garage for a refund of some of the payment you made - you have the legal right to a price reduction if the work wasn’t done with ‘reasonable care and skill’. A second opinion can help you and the garage agree on what is reasonable.

You may be able to get your money back through your bank. Contact them and say you want to use the ‘chargeback’ scheme. Many bank staff don’t know about the scheme, so you may need to talk to a manager.

If you paid by credit card and the repair cost more than £100, it may be easier to tell your bank you want to ‘make a section 75 claim’.

Next steps

You should take further action if the garage refuses to make the repairs and you can’t reach an agreement.

If you agreed a price before the work was done

If you agreed on an amount (or got a quote) before the garage did the work, you’ll have to pay the full bill. This is because you’ve entered into a contract with the garage (even if you didn’t sign anything). You can ask for them to come down on the price, but they don’t have to.

You can take further action if they’re charging you more than the agreed amount and you think it’s unreasonable.

If you didn’t agree a price before the work was done (or you only got an estimate)

If the trader only gave an estimate then they can charge you more within reason. If you don't think the extra charged is reasonable, ask the garage to reduce the price.

If you think the cost is unreasonable and they won’t lower the price, you should take further action.

If you told the garage to do whatever needs to be done to fix the car, then you gave them the right to decide what work to do. You’ll have to pay if the work was necessary and the price is reasonable. Get a second opinion if you think the price isn’t reasonable.

If you only asked the garage to do a specific piece of work and they did extra work that you didn’t ask for, you can ask them to undo the work. If this isn't possible, you should insist you only pay for the work that was agreed.

Next steps

Take further action if they’re charging you for work that you didn’t ask for.

You can ask the garage for a courtesy car (this is a car that the garage will give you to use - not all garages will offer this). Keep a record of everything extra you spend on travel - you might need to prove this later on.

If the car is having body work done and parts are delayed, you could ask to take your car and continue to use it until the parts have arrived.

The other actions you should take will depend on whether or not you originally agreed a date for the work to be finished by.

If you agreed on a date for the work to be finished

If you want the original garage to finish the job you should negotiate a new deadline for the repairs to be carried out. If you're not sure what the new deadline should be, you could get the opinion of another garage about how long the repairs should take. Take further action if the garage is not offering to do the work within an acceptable time period.

If you didn’t agree on a date for the work to be finished

Contact the garage and agree on a date for finishing the work - make a note of when you called, who you spoke to and what was agreed.

Next steps

Take further action if you can’t agree on a reasonable date to finish the work, or if the work doesn’t get done by the new agreed date.

If your car has been damaged while it was at the garage, you should negotiate for them to pay for the repair of the damage.

It’s best to point out the damage as quickly as possible, or you could be seen to have accepted what’s happened.

The maximum they’re obliged to offer you is the cost of of the repair damage. For example, if they’ve scratched the door of your car, they should pay the cost of respraying the door, not necessarily for buying a new door.

To reinforce your argument, you can show that you know your legal rights by telling them that you’re aware that “traders have a responsibility of care under the Consumer Rights Act 2015”.

The garage might have a sign on their premises saying that they’re not responsible for any damage - this can be considered an ‘unfair term’, which means they’re still liable - you should tell them this.

Claiming insurance

Depending on the type of insurance you have, you might be able to claim for the damage on your car insurance. You might lose your no claims bonus if you do.

You could also contact the garage’s insurance company to see if you could negotiate for them to pay for the work. They’re not legally obliged to though.

Next steps

Take further action if the garage is refusing to pay for the damage to your car, and you don’t want to claim on your insurance.