Bike shop Labour

[fred bloggs]

I took my bike in the other day for front wheel bearings, as it failed the MOT on them, and was a bit shocked to find labour had jumped from £55 per hour last year to £60 +vat this year !

Is this what most shops are charging now ??

[klootzak]

Doesn’t seem unreasonable to me.

How much do you charge for your time?

k

[black-k1]

For how many years was it £55?

[Chris32345]

Was it £55+vat before or just £55

If plus vat before I'd say that's a fair increase

If not that hell of a hike in price

[NMNeil]

fred bloggs said:

I took my bike in the other day for front wheel bearings, as it failed the MOT on them, and was a bit shocked to find labour had jumped from £55 per hour last year to £60 +vat this year !

Is this what most shops are charging now ??

Shops have to pay wages, power, water, rent, property tax, liability insurance, taxes, licenses etc.
They are not a charitable organization.

[boyse7en]

klootzak said:

Doesn’t seem unreasonable to me.

How much do you charge for your time?

k

Surely that depends on where the dealer is? A city-centre main dealer operation and I'd say £60+VAT is probably reasonable. If it a small dealership in the wilds of Devon or North Wales I'd say it was expensive.

[Pothole]

fred bloggs said:

I took my bike in the other day for front wheel bearings, as it failed the MOT on them, and was a bit shocked to find labour had jumped from £55 per hour last year to £60 +vat this year !

Is this what most shops are charging now ??

When was the last time it changed?

[PurpleTurtle]

OP your biog says you are in the south of the UK, so there is the Southern tax to consider, or dare I say it, the London tax!

Are we talking shiny main dealer or back street one man band? Both have their own costs to bear, and have probably been strapped for cash during a global pandemic of very little work, and now finding that everyone wants their bike looking at, now, for summer.

What would you do, in those circumstances?

[Pothole]

Provided you have a driveway and a paddock stand you could have done them yourself. It might have taken you half a day or an hour depending on your skillset. You preferred to take it to a bike shop. £60 is not just the labour, it's the skills.

[Prof Prolapse]

I took my car to Volvo for service to maintain a warranty. They charged me about £150 an hour for labour.

My two cylinder Honda cost £230 for an oil and filter change so I could return it to them at end of term. I think that's about £100/hour labour.

By contrast £60/hour labour sounds very cheap.

[conkerman]

Thats about what I'd expect to pay at a decent indy in the SE.

[Biker 1]

£60/hour seems reasonable to me.

[lukeyman]

A friend has just been quoted £70+VAT by Aprilia.

[mike-v2tmf]

My local bike independent charges £78.50 per hour...........now I hear you say they have large overheads etc , then I tell you about my chat with one of them .......Your speed Triple has a steel frame painted to look like alloy........

[Simes205]

£95 / hour at mine......Ducati dealer who are my authorised service agent for my Vespa!
Looking forward to the warranty running out and doing my own oil changes!!

[KTMsm]

Small backstreet place in the Midlands - £65/hr (not sure about vat) I just heard him quote on the phone

But I pay him £29 for an MOT which takes 10 minutes (then I have to wait another 20)

He literally has two young lads and two bike lifts in a unit the size of a 4 car garage - seems easy money to me

[Pit Pony]

KTMsm said:

Small backstreet place in the Midlands - £65/hr (not sure about vat) I just heard him quote on the phone

But I pay him £29 for an MOT which takes 10 minutes (then I have to wait another 20)

He literally has two young lads and two bike lifts in a unit the size of a 4 car garage - seems easy money to me

A mate runs a garage in Uttoxeter. Last year I looked at his books. I told him he was a busy fool.
Put the price up to £50 an hour, Mark up the parts by at least 20% more than the 10% you are adding.
Employ another mechanic and an apprentice. (He turns down work and has a waiting list for servicing)

[sooty61]

HD dealers down south charge £150 per hour, but I suppose anything HD is three times normal prices

[ChocolateFrog]

An incentive to buy some spanners.

[miroku1]

My local bicycle shop charges that !!