Kwik Fit Fake Repairs...
Discussion
A Watchdog-like article in the Daily Mail today, about how Kwik Fit fitters allegedly scammed several cars at several of their garages for unnecessary or overlooked repairs.
For example, according to the Mail, mechanics charged for 4 new spark plugs as part of a £196 car-service package -- but they were never fitted.
The article implies, to me, there is a widespread company culture to rip off customers...
No surprises for PH regulars, but interesting, nonetheless.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4215926/Th...
http://www.name-n-shame.co.uk/kwik_fit.html
For example, according to the Mail, mechanics charged for 4 new spark plugs as part of a £196 car-service package -- but they were never fitted.
The article implies, to me, there is a widespread company culture to rip off customers...
No surprises for PH regulars, but interesting, nonetheless.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4215926/Th...
http://www.name-n-shame.co.uk/kwik_fit.html
Yipper said:
A Watchdog-like article in the Daily Mail today, about how Kwik Fit fitters allegedly scammed several cars at several of their garages for unnecessary or overlooked repairs.
For example, according to the Mail, mechanics charged for 4 new spark plugs as part of a £196 car-service package -- but they were never fitted.
The article implies, to me, there is a widespread company culture to rip off customers...
No surprises for PH regulars, but interesting, nonetheless.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4215926/Th...
http://www.name-n-shame.co.uk/kwik_fit.html
Not read it but parts not being fitted is rife across the industry, some disappear into mechanics tool boxes, some disappear into profit. For example, according to the Mail, mechanics charged for 4 new spark plugs as part of a £196 car-service package -- but they were never fitted.
The article implies, to me, there is a widespread company culture to rip off customers...
No surprises for PH regulars, but interesting, nonetheless.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4215926/Th...
http://www.name-n-shame.co.uk/kwik_fit.html
TR4man said:
Is the article a surprise to anyone?
For as long as I can remember KF has been tarnished by such shay practices.
I have to admit that the bit about the screenwash not being the correct mixture seems to be a little desperate journalism though.
Absolutely. 30 years ago I went into one knowing I had a loose exhaust bracket and naively hoping they might do it for the price of a pint. Obviously the 'whole exhaust needed replacing'.For as long as I can remember KF has been tarnished by such shay practices.
I have to admit that the bit about the screenwash not being the correct mixture seems to be a little desperate journalism though.
I tightened the bracket at the weekend.
Quite how it's been allowed to go on for so long is beyond me.
We have had this from main dealers too.
Got my step-daughters car serviced at a Ford main dealer - major service and they were supposed to change the spark plugs.
When it came round to it's next sparkplug change - the plugs were completely shot, almost welded into the block and disintegrated when the guy servicing the car eventually managed to extract them - he reckons they hadn't been changed since the car was new.
Got my step-daughters car serviced at a Ford main dealer - major service and they were supposed to change the spark plugs.
When it came round to it's next sparkplug change - the plugs were completely shot, almost welded into the block and disintegrated when the guy servicing the car eventually managed to extract them - he reckons they hadn't been changed since the car was new.
KungFuPanda said:
Nothing new here.
Cue a 90/10 split of people having bad experiences interspersed with the odd story about some guy who needed a tyre fitting at 4:55pm on a Sunday afternoon, the tyre fitter did it for free, valeted his car, serviced his Mrs and cooked him dinner.
He didn't valet my car and the dinner was a bit dry, but I had a great experience at Kiwikfit less than a month ago.Cue a 90/10 split of people having bad experiences interspersed with the odd story about some guy who needed a tyre fitting at 4:55pm on a Sunday afternoon, the tyre fitter did it for free, valeted his car, serviced his Mrs and cooked him dinner.
I went to kwik Fit once in my 306 as they had a deal on for tyres, back before black circle was around.
when I came back to pick it up they tried to sell me discs and pads stating mine were worn out and unsafe, asked them if they were sure about that as one of their other stores had only fitted them 6 weeks prior, if they would like to state they were not new pads and disc to the manager as they were definitely not 6 weeks old, so I could get my money back they could... shut them up.
Never went back to them as they fitted my tyres, but the a
holes didn't put them up to decent pressure, lowest one was something like 22psi when they should all be 32+
when I came back to pick it up they tried to sell me discs and pads stating mine were worn out and unsafe, asked them if they were sure about that as one of their other stores had only fitted them 6 weeks prior, if they would like to state they were not new pads and disc to the manager as they were definitely not 6 weeks old, so I could get my money back they could... shut them up.
Never went back to them as they fitted my tyres, but the a
holes didn't put them up to decent pressure, lowest one was something like 22psi when they should all be 32+mybrainhurts said:
And why not?
Another such national chain told my daughter it would cost £319, so I took it to my independent who fixed it for £70.
There are plenty of independents who you could say the same about where a national chain may have done it for £70.Another such national chain told my daughter it would cost £319, so I took it to my independent who fixed it for £70.
I'm not sure it's so much a "national garage" issue so much as there are always bad apples and if there were 500 "Phil Mitchell under the Arches" branded independent garages nationwide we'd likely be reading a similar story.
TR4man said:
Is the article a surprise to anyone?
For as long as I can remember KF has been tarnished by such shay practices.
I have to admit that the bit about the screenwash not being the correct mixture seems to be a little desperate journalism though.
Main dealers pay everyone's wages out the mixture of screen wash. Sir it's too thick for the washers jets For as long as I can remember KF has been tarnished by such shay practices.
I have to admit that the bit about the screenwash not being the correct mixture seems to be a little desperate journalism though.
Wacky Racer said:
KungFuPanda said:
Nothing new here.
Cue a 90/10 split of people having bad experiences interspersed with the odd story about some guy who needed a tyre fitting at 4:55pm on a Sunday afternoon, the tyre fitter did it for free, valeted his car, serviced his Mrs and cooked him dinner.
Cue a 90/10 split of people having bad experiences interspersed with the odd story about some guy who needed a tyre fitting at 4:55pm on a Sunday afternoon, the tyre fitter did it for free, valeted his car, serviced his Mrs and cooked him dinner.
Jeeezus wept. It's the Daily Mail FFS and you're all kicking off like it's to be taken seriously? Come on Chaps, get a grip.
As a ex mechanic I read that article with some interest and with the exception of the plugs that weren't changed which they've admitted was an oversight it's all a absolute load of tabloid sensationalist bks.
Yes wheels can fall off if a bearing fails catastrophically but nobody said that particular car was going to do so and anybody who continues to drive a car with the noise a badly worn bearing starts making hundreds or maybe thousands of miles before it fails completely really ought not be out on their own.
Nobody in their right mind would expect a car with a known damaged strut as well as needing several hundred quids worth of other work - what work exactly - to show accurate and repeatable alignment especially when checked on two different occasions on two different machines.
The "leaking" oil filter was not in stock at the time the customer took the car but was a couple of hours later so who's to say the issue wasn't forced by the customer insisting on taking the car before the job was finished?
And the weak screen wash. Dearie, dearie me... WTF is the poor sap doing the service supposed to do if the reservoir is almost full of plain water when he goes to fill it up - suck the contents out with a straw so he can put the right concentration in?
Smacks of a nasty vindictive set up to me. If you read it carefully you'll see the independent "expert" actually agreed with pretty much all the faults Quick Fit reported.
Now go and have a quiet word with yourselves, go on, off you go.
As a ex mechanic I read that article with some interest and with the exception of the plugs that weren't changed which they've admitted was an oversight it's all a absolute load of tabloid sensationalist b
ks.Yes wheels can fall off if a bearing fails catastrophically but nobody said that particular car was going to do so and anybody who continues to drive a car with the noise a badly worn bearing starts making hundreds or maybe thousands of miles before it fails completely really ought not be out on their own.
Nobody in their right mind would expect a car with a known damaged strut as well as needing several hundred quids worth of other work - what work exactly - to show accurate and repeatable alignment especially when checked on two different occasions on two different machines.
The "leaking" oil filter was not in stock at the time the customer took the car but was a couple of hours later so who's to say the issue wasn't forced by the customer insisting on taking the car before the job was finished?
And the weak screen wash. Dearie, dearie me... WTF is the poor sap doing the service supposed to do if the reservoir is almost full of plain water when he goes to fill it up - suck the contents out with a straw so he can put the right concentration in?
Smacks of a nasty vindictive set up to me. If you read it carefully you'll see the independent "expert" actually agreed with pretty much all the faults Quick Fit reported.
Now go and have a quiet word with yourselves, go on, off you go.
Although the report picks out Kwik Fit, I wouldn't expect it to be any different in any chain throughout the industry.
I'm sure we have all got multiple examples of Poor workmanship and service, but thinking about it, I must have used them 20-30 times over the years and I've never had any issues and actually on my last two visits I'd say they went above and beyond.
I'm sure we have all got multiple examples of Poor workmanship and service, but thinking about it, I must have used them 20-30 times over the years and I've never had any issues and actually on my last two visits I'd say they went above and beyond.
Only time I tried to use em was for a puncture that went at speed, wanted something roughly similar to the m+s tyres the 4x4 was wearing, manager insisted that the summer/gt type tyre that he had in stock was the only correct option and refused to entertain ordering anything different. So off I went! Berk!
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