i'm in illinois.@myst4au wrote:
It would probably help if you told us the state in which the service was performed, becayuse state laws all differ.
i knew that they would hold my vehicle hostage when they didn't let it down when i had to go to a doctor's appointment.@siamese5555 wrote:
I will not do a brake inspection for just these reasons. They say they found a serious problem and will not put your brakes back together again. Thy hold your car hostage. I had this happen at a Midas many years ago and will never do business with them again. I did eventually get them to put my brakes back on after an hour.
this is exactly what happened to me. except he wouldn't stop the work once it had begun.@laura007 wrote:
Last fall I was visiting in Colorado, and completed the brake inspection shop, also at the yellow sign shop. The lady at the counter came to the counter part way through the visit and told me I had an issue. I asked how much it would cost and she told me $150.00. I told her I did not want the work done. She said they already started the work. I said they needed to stop. She was not happy and said, in a huff, that she would have them stop. Never was an estimate given to me in writing. I was not asked to sign anything. Honestly, it wasn't the money as much as fear of not following the guidelines.
I do the same shop in Michigan, and have never had an issue. If there is ever a problem, I am always given a written estimate, and asked to sign, which I always refuse, due to guidelines.
wow.@scanman1 wrote:
I do my own brake work. The one time I took it in to have them check it, they removed the two caliper bolts and literally let the weight of the entire brake caliper HANG on the brake hose while they brought me the pad that still had 30,000 miles worth of meat on it. (Not even half worn) and told me the OEM rotors I replaced las time I did the pads were worn out and needed replacing. They did not have a scratch and were not heat warped. This is when I walked into the garage and saw my caliper dangling by the hose and took a photo of it. I threatened to post that photo on Yelp and the manager agreed to replace the hose if it leaked and then admitted there was nothing wrong with my brakes.
no, this is incorrect. i never signed the work order. i merely stated that they gave me a copy of the work order after they had already started the work.@miketfse wrote:
If I understand the Op correctly, you signed the work order (eventually). This gives legal consent for the repair shop to do the work.
nope, i never signed the work order. nor the estimate. i have copies of both, unsigned.@ wrote:
In the end, you signed the document. You are obligated to pay.
the problem here is that if i were to refuse payment, then they would destroy my perfect credit .. and that could go either way. better to pay and dispute it later.@jmitw wrote:
There is no way I would have paid on the spot...and I would have told them why..I DID NOT AUTHORIZE THE WORK. you could have tried contacting the police ..but that could go either way.
You could try to report it as fraud to your credit card...but that can go either way.
no, they would just have to send a collection agency after me. then it gets reported to the credit bureau. credit destroyed.@jmitw wrote:
How do they destroy your credit? They would have to take you to court and sue.
the transaction took place on the yellow card three days ago (friday). they first allowed me to dispute it yesterday after the transaction posted on their end, but i must wait several weeks for a written response.@jmitw wrote:
so you had time to dispute it...you could have at least delayed paying it to try to fight it.....and they might not send collections knowing they violated the law...
exactly. and they would have destroyed my perfect credit by sending an unpaid bill to collections on top of it.@myst4au wrote:
I think that the reality is that if he had not paid them on the spot, that they would not have given him the keys to the car.
@jmitw wrote:
If they refused to give me the car--I would have called the police first...it should be considered to be auto theft....but at the very least they can try to get the car back....especially when they see the forms were not signed
exactly!!@myst4au wrote:
The police would have seen an unpaid bill. In most states, the place which did the work would then hold a "mechanic's lien" on the car and could hold it pending payment. Of course, this could be debated in court, but the police are not the court. I think that in the short term, the OP would have ended up without a car. Maybe the police would have recognized the absence of written approval, but I believe that they would have simply said, "resolve it in court."
@vince wrote:
exactly!!@myst4au wrote:
The police would have seen an unpaid bill. In most states, the place which did the work would then hold a "mechanic's lien" on the car and could hold it pending payment. Of course, this could be debated in court, but the police are not the court. I think that in the short term, the OP would have ended up without a car. Maybe the police would have recognized the absence of written approval, but I believe that they would have simply said, "resolve it in court."
i'd have no car AND my credit would be ruined by a collection agency for non-payment. all they would do is report the non-payment to transunion/equifax/experion.
yes, i could debate these in court. but i wouldn't have a car to get to court and i wouldn't be able to afford a cab to get to court either after they destroy my credit.
maybe a year later, i'd get my car back and have my credit cleared again, after i lose my home and become homeless during the court battle that i can't afford without a job that requires a car.
better off to pay now and dispute it later.
@myst4au wrote:
The police would have seen an unpaid bill. In most states, the place which did the work would then hold a "mechanic's lien" on the car and could hold it pending payment. Of course, this could be debated in court, but the police are not the court. I think that in the short term, the OP would have ended up without a car. Maybe the police would have recognized the absence of written approval, but I believe that they would have simply said, "resolve it in court."
@jmitw wrote:
If they refused to give me the car--I would have called the police first...it should be considered to be auto theft....but at the very least they can try to get the car back....especially when they see the forms were not signed