Billing dispute help

[Tones]

As title. A friend has had his car in a workshop for a while getting some semi major work done to his car and just received the final bill.

Long story short but keeping the basics. Was quoted $32,000 for the work. Had expect it to run over a bit and paid in advance $35,000.

Final bill came in today at $67,000 with no prior warning to the bill blow out previously and even had a conversation with the business stating what he had paid should cover the bill.

Understandably my mate is shocked and wondering what his options are. He's wondering if the workshop has an obligation to inform him the bill is going over the quoted amount before continuing work, as he had no indication it was blowing out by that much.

Any help, ideas, contacts, previous experiences ect will be greatly appreciated. At this point my friend wishes to keep his and the shops details to quiet so if people can figure out who it is please keep it to yourself for the time being. Eventually everyone will know but the less the workshop knows what he is doing the better it is for him we are guessing.

Thanks.

[Blueraven]

What was specified on the original quote, and what if anything changed in between.

If nothing changed, then its likely off to court, if things changed, the shop will likely trump it up and he will probably struggle even when it gets to court.

Either way, paying up front and/or not keeping track/staying informed of the costs progressively of what must be a fucking amazing/retarded build....what the?

[perthute]

my basic understanding is any quote cant go over 10% more without some sort of approval .
does he have the 32k quote ?

[RGVFAST]

I would pass out with a bill 35k more that the quoted price. If it did go to court surely the shop would have to present some evidence that your mate was notified of the excessive increase especially if the original scope had not changed.

[Blueraven]

I've been out of the scene for nearly ten years, but please tell me dropping 35k(let alone 65k) is an easy thing. 35k should build a fucking monster if planned well(unless you are working on a lambo etc...).

Whats your mate like, meek and obviously loaded? They just trying to fuck him expecting that he will just cough up?

[Brett_J]

I believe a quote is as good as a contract, but if it was an estimate, he basically gave him a blank cheque, if they both agreed to the 32k Quote, then your mate has a better chance of fighting it.

Stuff
https://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/sites/default/files/atoms/files/repairstoyourmotorvehicle.pdf

[Brockas]

Did the workshop run into cashflow problems and decide to rape the nearest customer?

Would not be the first time it's happened in WA.......

[SSICK]

Wouldnt surprise me if it is who i think it is.

[Ash]

wasn't a trailer was it

[Tones]

He has the original quote and not estimate at home.

Mate is hot headed and one of their own Hahaha... 35k was to finish the car and make it complete.



Workshop is well known and far from struggle street. He paid a premium going to the shop but did not expect this!

[killabeez]

As title. A friend has had his car in a workshop for a while getting some semi major work done to his car and just received the final bill.

Long story short but keeping the basics. Was quoted $32,000 for the work. Had expect it to run over a bit and paid in advance $35,000.

Final bill came in today at $67,000 with no prior warning to the bill blow out previously and even had a conversation with the business stating what he had paid should cover the bill.

Understandably my mate is shocked and wondering what his options are. He's wondering if the workshop has an obligation to inform him the bill is going over the quoted amount before continuing work, as he had no indication it was blowing out by that much.

Any help, ideas, contacts, previous experiences ect will be greatly appreciated. At this point my friend wishes to keep his and the shops details to quiet so if people can figure out who it is please keep it to yourself for the time being. Eventually everyone will know but the less the workshop knows what he is doing the better it is for him we are guessing.

Thanks.

Was the $32,000 a quote or an estimate?

Is the bill actually broken down stating what the extra 35k is for, did they do more work than the original quote?
i.e things they didn't quote on & your mate wanted doing.


If more work was needed and was going to exceed the budget they agreed on, the workshop should have been upfront about the costs prior to the work.

[Tones]

I'll find out from him asap if it was a quote or estimate. Im hoping he doesn't get screwed over wording. Even tho I understand that everything comes down to the fine print!

Bill is broken down and going over it he's been charged multiple times for things and them taking the piss on others.

Gearbox was a drive in drive out deal 11k. Then charged for dip stick and dip stick modification. Cover plates and yoke.

Some labour charges like "0.5hrs fitting boot matt"
"1.5hrs bleeding brakes"

[Mike Hunt]

What sort of car was it??

[Aleo24]

Thats rough. Hope it all works out for your mate. Bit of a dog act not letting your customer know the original quote/estimate has doubled!

[Joe]

Is the car rolling? Does it have a tow point? I've got a snatch strap and a 4x4.. Shouldn't take us more than 15 seconds to extricate the vehicle.

[Lonewolf]

if it went to court one would expect that the company should have quoted more accurately on the work required (its their job to know how much a job will take/cost to complete - not the customer)
If additional work was done without the customers consent then thats an issue too.

[killabeez]

Those hourly labour charges should mean fuck all anyway if everything was quoted as a whole.

I could understand if the workshop agreed on doing X amount of work for $32,000, then they did the work and your friend decided he wanted to change a whole bunch of things which would obviously involve additional labour and parts costs, but this sounds like daylight robbery.

From my understanding a written 'formal' quote can't change unless more work was actually done (pending the quote was still valid) and then still, this should have been communicated with the customer.

[Tones]

The work carried out is this shops money maker. Gbox, turbo setup, cage, ecu wire up, fuel system, and engine by paint.

The problem we see is that they should have informed him, if it was a quote or estimate, of the bill going over by such a large margin.
Mate got the quote/estimate for 32k and figured it would end up closer to 40k. Not another 20k + on top of his expectation

[huggy_b]

You expect a bit of cost over run on an estimate, but double is taking the piss. Surely they should have said something when the costs starting heading so far north of the original estimate? I wouldn't be very happy that's for sure.

[Dzenci]

Almost everyone is becoming a hungry bastard in the car tuning/modifying industry and far from being honest.
The pingpingpingpings you've heard nothing but good things about and trusted them in building your engine or car have proven to be nothing than a bunch of dogs. I can stand by this as I've had my brother go through it.

Hope this gets resolved for your mate soon enough

[Ash]

If it comes to it i would rather spend $10,000 on lawyers and possibly save $25,000 than give them $35,000+ extra

[Tones]

Another point is he was constantly asking about the bill and for updates. It wasn't like he just sat back and didn't care and just handed cash over.
Ah well thanks for the input and support. He's feeling pretty pissed, and embarrassed about the whole situation.

[DRKWRX]

double the estimate is not an estimate!

[TJ]

My advice is free.

Dispute the fuck out of that. That is ridiculous.

P.S you owe me $1100 for thr advice

[Tones]

Hahaha take cheques?

[urabus]

I had a very similiar problem with my car. Was quoted $20k labour and after i picked the car up i was given a bill for $40k. I would be interested to know if it was the same workshop.

In the end we did a deal and ended up somewhere in the middle. I have no doubt they spent most of the extra time on the car but if they had of spent less would they have charged me less than $20k?! It was a brand new car and a build they have done several times before. They should of been more accurate imho.

I then heard spoke to someone else that nad them build a car after mine and exactly the same thing happened.

Brendon

[TJ]

quote low to get you in the door B?

[mARC]

Is there any e-mail correspondence between your mate and said shop authorizing additional works or expanding on existing works being done?

I had this happen to me with a well known shop, they tried, they failed 'though no where near this level of bs though'.

Mining boom down, can't charge $1k for windscreen wiper change anymore.

[2jzlux]

I fucking hate being in situations like that, let alone spring another 35k.....fuck!
Don't see why it's so hard to call the customer and say hey mate we fucked up on the estimate, it's going to cost x amount more now. Yes or no?

[Tones]

Very little email correspondence from memory. Mostly done over the phone and 1 trip in person.

For those who have messaged and commented it's not a WA shop, so their name will most likely remain silent until a result has been sorted.

I'll be going over the bull tomorrow when back in perth with prices from their website, his quote/estimate and any other info he has. He's unfortunately flown back to work so is limited in what he can do.

[Phildo]

WTF is required to spend $67,000?

They didn't have to gold plate all of the bolts.

[DanWA]

ouch

my torana was a similar story, quoted 6k, once it got over 10k and the exhaust was only 3/4 finished, i went and picked the car up

[DRKWRX]

if its a resto Im sure its pretty easy to spend 60k

[Damo 69]

pretty easy to drop $60k in general on a build

[TJ]

Especially when building a FIFO yolo 32 GTR

[huggy_b]

pretty easy to drop $60k in general on a build
Yet no Hollinger......Brisustow plz.

[SSICK]

ouch

my torana was a similar story, quoted 6k, once it got over 10k and the exhaust was only 3/4 finished, i went and picked the car up

Did they give a reason?

[Tocchi]

"Cashflow issues" tend to be the reason for large unexpected invoices

[DanWA]

many many excuses, but after taking april to september to get that far and blown out so much, i was over it, been sitting in shed since

[magic1]

take car for test drive.........................

[TJ]

"Cashflow issues" tend to be the reason for large unexpected invoices

#didsomeonesaysomethingwith101init

[volt_bite]

"Cashflow issues" tend to be the reason for large unexpected invoices

That is on the basis they believe that you can pay the invoice. Otherwise, there is no point and they will drag their reputation through the mud (which is what you should threaten to do).

That's the problem with long term builds, big money, and big distances (over east).

Combine that with people who can't run businesses and don't give a fuck!

[ReaperSS]

and guys who are involved with serious dudes. People you dont want to argue with

[Joe]

Ah so the car isn't here?

If it's a rotary and it's over East, I've got a pretty good idea about which workshop it is.

I'd be rocking up there and pulling out a chicken kebab double meat chilli sauce as a peace offering.

[dmanvan]

'Speculative invoicing' has been going on in tune/shop circles for years. They seem to prey on people who don't appear to be short of coin.

I think that in many cases it is exacerbated by poor business practices typical of smaller family run setups where they don't actually know how much time was spent doing what to a vehicle. Then they estimate, as they have some supplier invoices coming due, and viola hours are way over original quote but they have to get the money from some sucker right!

Questioning, certainly made harder by some of the comments already made.

[c.rusli]

Surely there is a communications break down some where.

Any good workshop would inform their customer FIRST before it blow their specified budget.
its just ridiculous when it doubled than what was budgeted/quoted for and Owner was not informed until the Invoice.

[shifted]

and guys who are involved with serious dudes. People you dont want to argue with

Fly this guy over there, expect results.

[yeahlow34]

Written quote is a Contract.

Unless the quote has been varied in writing, with associated approval from the vehicle Owner, then the $32k is all the vehicle Owner is liable for.

The whole intention of a written quote is to avoid this very purpose.

[volt_bite]

Conditions for a contract:

offer and acceptance;
all of the terms must be agreed upon;
the parties must intend to be legally bound; and
consideration, that is, something of value must be exchanged in the transaction.


Verbal agreements can be legally binding but of course, are notorious to prove.

I think the problem is most initial contracts aren't definitive enough (that's why some contracts are so boringly long because they want to cover all bases and usually require a lawyer to draft up).

If that is the case, you'll be fighting in the grey area and will probably require a settlement.

If you try to fight them from the law side of things I can only imagine it will be long and expensive.

So, firstly, talk to them as much as you can and resolve it out and come to a settlement if possible. If you can't then start proceeding with legal means if that's what you want to do.

Just goes with anyone, there is no need to simply "accept" contracts and you are fully within your rights to stipulate and expand on the details of the contract before proceeding. Just need to come to an agreement from both parties and do it in writing.

[TJ]

Says comms were via email, so it wasn't a verbal agreement ?

[volt_bite]

Maybe I should say that any contract that isn't explicitly stated could be very bad.

Emails aren't as bad because at least there is a trail but still, unless the contract is explicitly stated in an email it's still just as bad! Unless it isn't stated explicitly it's going to be their words against his which will inevitably end up in an half way point (best case for OP as it seems he hasn't the time to do this).

So unless they said "we'll bill you as we go along are you ok with this?" - Leaving an open WIP contract. Or as long as they didn't say that in their T&Cs (and you agreed in some form) you may have some ground but other than that you'll struggle.

It sure isn't a very good way to do a business but you'll be surprised how many people don't read and put in place contracts and then end up in hot water.

Anyway - best thing to do is talk to them first. I wouldn't necessarily hand over any money yet. You could probably go through the list, even get someone else to quote or look through the invoice to see if it's reasonable, negotiate with them, fly over, look at the work, negotiate more, come to an agreement, pay off and collect car. Or you can't negotiate and you take even more time and you start pursuing in the courts/get lawyers.

At the end of the day:

They've done some work that your mate hasn't necessarily agreed upon. They want some compensation.
Or they've done the work that was agreed upon but it wasn't within the aforementioned agreed limits. They still want compensation.
Or they not charging you correctly at all either unfairly/unreasonable or fraudulently.


Try to find out what you/your mare are actually disputing. It will probably require going over the work listing and seeing the car in person.

[Tones]

Initial quote/estimate was written and worked out in person with a copy given to my mate. Im still trying to get a copy of that but hes on site and its at home.

Was given receipts upon them receiving his payments, totaling $35k.

Over the last 3-4 months he had been asking for a updated bill. Those requests were basically ignored and he never received one. Was told verbally that the bill shouldn't total more than what he has currently paid. Now receives update bill totaling $67k.

[volt_bite]

Maybe an invoice error? Has he talked to them since?
Anyone else notice that 35k+32k = 67k? Clerical error or misunderstanding?

Call them up is best. Either yourself or your mate (better if it's your mate).

Whatever you do, don't let more time lapse!

Try to get the car back asap too.

[Tones]

Try to find out what you/your mare are actually disputing. It will probably require going over the work listing and seeing the car in person.

Thanks for you posts by the way. Im screen capping and sending them off to him.

Where it looks like the bill has blown out is in extra charges for what were quoted as supplied and fitted. eg. Gearbox supplied and fitted 11k on the initial quote. Then on the bill there is the 11k for gearbox but then there's extra charges on 3 other pages relating to the gearbox. These charges added up to an extra 2.2k.. This happens again for the ecu, exhaust system, fuel system. Quoted supplied and fitted then charges upon charges for extra work above the quoted price.

[Tones]

Maybe an invoice error? Has he talked to them since?
Anyone else notice that 35k+32k = 67k? Clerical error or misunderstanding?

Call them up is best. Either yourself or your mate (better if it's your mate).

Whatever you do, don't let more time lapse!

Try to get the car back asap too.

Not an invoice error. He called then as soon as he got the bill and they were trying to justify the added charges. Tried calling later that day and they never answered or returned his call. They still haven't returned it 2 days later.

We can guarantee they won't let the car go without full payment of the current bill or an adjusted one. He's not looking at paying absolutely zero extra above the quote, but isn't willing to pay what they are asking.

[volt_bite]

I think you need to start looking at how he can get his car back asap. Maybe they will release it, technically they should be able to.

You can fight the same way, I mean if they don't have explicit contracts they shouldn't have legal grounds to hold the car. They only have grounds to pursue unpaid debts and that's painful for them too! That could be held on your back pocket so your mate can collect his car.

Go through the list explain to them item by item what you are disputing and why and send it back to them. Do this in written form and then follow up with a call in a few days to confirm they have received the list and understand what you have stated. Ask them for a response in a given time frame. Negotiate further on each line item if they want to come to the table. If it's complelely unfair and unreasonable write to them and let them know you are coming to collect the car and if it will be available for pick up. They will probably say no. Ask them why and on what grounds they are holding the car. After all, you don't want to fly over and not be able to collect the car. Check the law regarding holding property unlawfully. Still can't get anywhere? Follow up with another letter and a call outling the time line and that you've exhausted all means resolve this issue and you are now lodging a complaint with the ACCC with regards to the invoice (see below) and (other legal means to get your car back).

Don't pass over any money until you get EVERYTHING else in writing including the means to get the car back. After all, once you get the car back there is no real need for you to do anything further. Any unpaid bills will be pursued through debt collectors etc but they will have little chance since with no hard contracts.

Again, try to do things quick and write done and trace everything that is said or done. Government will take awhile if you are pursuing things through ACCC and DOCEP. Give the company time limits and be clear and concise with the action you are taking.

Need even more help? Go through this:
https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/contracts-agreements/unfair-contract-terms
https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/complaints-problems/make-a-consumer-complaint
https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-protection/where-to-go-for-consumer-help

DoceP:
http://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/

[Lonewolf]

ACCC wont do anything unless its a major issue affecting the public.

DOCEP is where you will go, but unsure how it will work given its in different states - they're usually pretty helpful though.
as above you'll need to clarify everything re what has gone on, what they are asking for, reason why its unfair, what steps have been taken to resolve etc.

[volt_bite]

Probably have to go through both local agencies in that case, ours and the state they operate in:
https://www.accc.gov.au/contact-us/other-helpful-agencies/state-territory-consumer-protection-agencies

[miss_petepie]

sounds very familiar to a situation a mate is going through too. unfortunately they aren't having much luck and when contacting consumer affairs the builder is not required to provide written break down of the time spent on the car. just issue a final bill. if they are willing to provide it then its up to them.

best of luck to your mate

[DanWA]

sounds very familiar to a situation a mate is going through too. unfortunately they aren't having much luck and when contacting consumer affairs the builder is not required to provide written break down of the time spent on the car. just issue a final bill. if they are willing to provide it then its up to them.

best of luck to your mate

This is what happened when i phoned consumer affairs to, i just dealt with it after that

Dunno if i could deal with this amount though

[Tones]

UPDATE:

Mate sent off an email to the workshop just saying he wanted them to stop any further work. He also asked for then to clarify and reorganise the bill so it was easier to read. Stated that he wouldn't have proceeded with the work knowing the full extent of the final bill ect.

Received a phone call today that lasted 3 hours. He recorded it on his phone. Started off semi civil. Broke down into yelling, insults, and threats of damage to the car all by the business owner. During this time my friend said he wanted everything from now on in emails with the business owner replying " why so you can take me to court?" They somehow managed to go through the bill and they removed some of the charges from the bill that he was originally sent.

Anyway he is now waiting for the revised bill to arrive hopefully tomorrow and he will go through it again. He isn't very hopeful of it being a substantial amount being dropped. He's now thinking it's best to get some professional help involved. Any reccomendations on places or people to see and talk with? He's actually on here but isn't posting but will be reading the thread over the next couple days.

[Aleo24]

Not good business sense really. May be worth looking into ways of legally taking your car back pronto if they are threatening damage.

[S85FI]

Advice business your flying over and all work is to cease.
Collect car. Freight back to WA.

Fuck being intimidated by some business wanker.

[_S9_]

Don't these dodgy chumps even have the right to a "mechanics lein" for customer vehicles until the bill is paid?

Flying over might not work out in his favour.

[Satan]

how can you recover the car if there's a large outstanding amount? they'e not gonna let you out the door in all honesty!

[volt_bite]

Well, what I was saying previously is they probably have no right to legally hold your property over unpaid bills. If they want to pursue you for unpaid bills, they have to do it through other means and not by holding personal property.

Also afaik he's actually paid for some of the money already.

But of course, you need to make sure that if you are flying over that you can actually get the car. No point flying over and you are stuck there trying to find a legal means to get the vehicle back.

[DISTRBD]

" why so you can take me to court?"


Sounds like the pingpingpingping has been down this path before , just arrange a drive by or to have the shop burnt down ..

[_S9_]

Well, what I was saying previously is they probably have no right to legally hold your property over unpaid bills. If they want to pursue you for unpaid bills, they have to do it through other means and not by holding personal property.


They probably do. It's called a Mechanic's Lein.


"Paying for services and repairs

Before you pay, obtain an itemised account listing the work undertaken and how the costs were calculated.
Get a receipt and keep it safe, in case of future problems. A clear record of regular servicing and repairs may add to your car’s resale value.
If you cannot pay for the work and you have not come to any financial arrangement, the mechanic has the right to keep your car until you can pay. This is called a ‘mechanic’s lien’.
In some cases, the mechanic can also charge a storage fee. Your best option may be to try negotiating instalment payments prior to agreeing to the work.

"
from: http://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/motor-cars/maintenance-and-repairs/services-and-repairs

[volt_bite]

Pretty sure "invoking" mechanics lein isn't that simple and it will most likely depend on each state.

The fact is, you paid for the work that you specified. The additional work is in contention and wasn't clearly communicated to you ahead of time before work commenced.

Hence, on what basis do they have claim to unpaid work for unagreed work?

I found some more information here for you:
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1890461


"From my personal experience (use to work for a mechanic) I've only ever seen liens taken out in situations where the customer is refusing to pay, the quality of work is not in contention, and the work was clearly authorised. Only in cases where all 3 of these occured did we ever take out a lien."

As mentioned before you need to check the consumer laws for the state that the business is in.

[DISTRBD]

Pretty sure "invoking" mechanics lein isn't that simple

Yes it is , done it here a few times , people come to get car and do the " oh I forgot my wallet can I take the car to go back home and get it " line or they say yes to repairs then come in and say they cant afford to pay , be surprised what the fuckers will try .. I have the MTA sign on the counter here .

[sdiz]

..

[volt_bite]

Well we don't know the full situation so it's hard to say. At the end of the day, AFAIK the workshop has done some work and has incurred some costs, so they want compensation.

Either there was miscommunication/misunderstanding or something more sinister. Hence, why settling is probably the best you can do besides going to court.

[skidkid]

So does he have a revised bill yet?

[mARC]

Link to recorded telephone conversation not loading for me?

Not a lawyer 'and sitting on crappy chair ATM', but do you have to inform the person on the phone that its being recorded in order for it to be admissible, or do I need to update the legal shows I watch?

[huggy_b]

The recording would be inadmissible unless the other party was advised they were being recorded as far as I know.

[Gr3mlin]

The recording would be inadmissible unless the other party was advised they were being recorded as far as I know.

Have not looked in a loooong time, but remember reading that this could be exempt if it was in order to protect your lawful interests.

[TJ]

I'd just make a pac with friends to get it back asap.

[volt_bite]

http://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-topics/photos-and-surveillance/are-there-rules-about-recording-or-monitoring-my-telephone-conversations


Monitoring (listening in to), or recording of telephone conversations, is a matter tightly controlled by law. The federal Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 and State and Territory listening devices laws may both apply to this activity. The general rule is that the call may not be recorded. There are exceptions to these rules in very limited circumstances including where a warrant applies.

If a call is to be recorded or monitored, an organisation must tell you at the beginning of the conversation so that you have the chance either to end the call, or to ask to be transferred to another line where monitoring or recording does not take place (if this is available).

[Gr3mlin]

SURVEILLANCE DEVICES ACT 1998
(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), a person shall not install, use, or maintain, or cause to be installed, used, or maintained, a listening device —

(a) to record, monitor, or listen to a private conversation to which that person is not a party; or

(b) to record a private conversation to which that person is a party.

Penalty:

(a) for an individual: $5 000 or imprisonment for 12 months, or both;

(3) Subsection (1)(b) does not apply to the installation, use, or maintenance of a listening device by or on behalf of a person who is a party to a private conversation if —

....

(c ) each principal party to the private conversation consents expressly or impliedly to that installation, use, or maintenance; or

(d) a principal party to the private conversation consents expressly or impliedly to that installation, use, or maintenance and the installation, use, or maintenance is reasonably necessary for the protection of the lawful interests of that principal party.


Going by that you could easily claim your vehicle as lawful interest and record the conversations, especially now considering he has threatened to damage it.

(I have general law interests, no where near a lawyer though)

[adrenalin]

It is a problem when they are located on the PACific ocean side of Australia ?

[ossie_21]

It's shame that it seemed really good at first with your mate and the workshop, but now the relationship is quite Rocky :(

[dattoman]

Yes it is , done it here a few times , people come to get car and do the " oh I forgot my wallet can I take the car to go back home and get it " line or they say yes to repairs then come in and say they cant afford to pay , be surprised what the fuckers will try .. I have the MTA sign on the counter here .

Keeping a car till the bill is paid is easy
Just don't let it off your property or park it in a carpark out the front where they can drive it away with a spare key
If they take it off public land you don't have a leg to stand on
However... selling a car thats subject to a lien is troublesome and painfully long to achieve.

[S85FI]

My car id be getting it. Fuck the workshop and fuck the Mechanics Lein.

A negotiated price would be a quote or estimate so who cares.

As TJ said form a sworn group of buddies and collect car.

[S85FI]

(I have general law interests, no where near a lawyer though)

Was that WA state law, the state the car is in of Federal and if Federal did it quote inconsistency with other laws? ;)

[2jzlux]

The mechanics lien is not worth the card it is written on.
Place I worked for did major work for a lawyer/law student who knew his rights.
We tried to hold the car till the bill was paid and the pingpingpingping rolled up and called the police and said his vehicle was being held unlawfully and got them down there. Police made us hand him the keys and said it is a civil matter that needs to be taken up in court.
Given who the workshop is would you really want to fuck with them?
Is it possible they like the car a lot and want to keep it so they jack up the bill?

[S85FI]

Since I'm not a kook Kat and no idea who is who in the zoo? Why is this workshop any more special than any other work shop?

If linked with 1% fire bomb the place. They'll blame the other 1% they recently had a run in with and grab car then.

[mARC]

Since I'm not a kook Kat and no idea who is who in the zoo? Why is this workshop any more special than any other work shop?

If linked with 1% fire bomb the place. They'll blame the other 1% they recently had a run in with and grab car then.


I'd just make a pac with friends to get it back asap.

http://i59.tinypic.com/2e67c5i.jpg

[adrenalin]

Type in

Rotary workshop Australia.

Clue is in PAC.

[ReaperSS]

be carefull if you go to collect... The maybe PACking heat

[Nugs]

Don't worry, I'm sure they are PACifists.

[Evilteddy]

Could you guys be any more spacific?

[DISTRBD]

The mechanics lien is not worth the card it is written on.
Place I worked for did major work for a lawyer/law student who knew his rights.
We tried to hold the car till the bill was paid and the pingpingpingping rolled up and called the police and said his vehicle was being held unlawfully and got them down there. Police made us hand him the keys and said it is a civil matter that needs to be taken up in court.
Given who the workshop is would you really want to fuck with them?
Is it possible they like the car a lot and want to keep it so they jack up the bill?

I held a Colorado that belonged to an ex cop , absolute pingpingpingping of a woman but I got my $1650 before her car left .. I would told the cops its a civil matter so they can not tell you to hand any thing over :P

[-Luke-]

If you guys dont knock it off Brockas is going to have to buy the shop owners a magazine subscription to calm them down.

http://i.imgur.com/hda16aH.png

[Tones]

Hahaha been a couple days since I've had some spare time... Revised bill has come in at 26k owing. He's off to speak with a lawyer before he flies out.. There was some extra work carried out so he has no problems paying that. It's the extra costs no listed on the quote and with no prior authorisation he will be contesting..


And yes the guys are a PAC of ass holes. No risk of them being on these forums.

[phatboy]

bit of a shame such a well know shop carrying on like that.

[Tones]

The mechanics lien is not worth the card it is written on.
Place I worked for did major work for a lawyer/law student who knew his rights.
We tried to hold the car till the bill was paid and the pingpingpingping rolled up and called the police and said his vehicle was being held unlawfully and got them down there. Police made us hand him the keys and said it is a civil matter that needs to be taken up in court.
Given who the workshop is would you really want to fuck with them?
Is it possible they like the car a lot and want to keep it so they jack up the bill?

Then end question we have thought about it. Would like to think that wouldn't be the case but you never know

[Greg Rust]

I've never owned a rotary but they sound like they ping quite a bit.

Blinding fast, then pinging.

[dmanvan]

fixed.....
I've never owned a rotary but they sound like they pingpingpingping quite a bit.

Blinding fast, then pingpingpingping. :rolleyes:

[mARC]

Sooooooooooooooooooooo

Where did this end up?

[Tones]

Haven't been on here in a long time so a quick update.

Car was put into storage by the workshop when my friend told them to stop any further work. They negotiated some things off the bill over the phone.
Then last month me and him flew over to sort the rest of the bill and collect the car. Arrived at the shop around 8am and didn't leave until 4pm with the car and on our way to Ceva for transport.

Long story short me and my friend went over the car in person and he questioned every single thing on the bill. We found a couple of faults and then noticed some more when we got to Ceva. The biggest of this was pin dents in the roof from when the cage. We also noticed some of the things he had negotiated off the bill were still on the car. Stuff like egt sensors, new seat belts, and a few other bits and pieces totaling around $4k.

Ended up deciding to pay the remaining amount which worked out to be around $25k or there about' coming to a grand total of around $60k on a $35k quote! Now the majority of the work is above average and good quality. Some of it isn't, things like powder coating cracking already, to thin in some places.

So in summary the cars back in Perth, he's still majorly out of pocket, and Pac are a bunch of pingpingpingpings!

[DanWA]

Owch

They obviously know how to play the game like the place in port kennedy who took me for 10k for an exhaust to the diff

[Fukushima]

Owch

They obviously know how to play the game like the place in port kennedy who took me for 10k for an exhaust to the diff

Why did you put an m5 exhaust on your commodore?

[S85FI]

Why did you put an m5 exhaust on your commodore?
Because it probably made power, fitted like a glove, and 3 inch option was standard and under diff design all from factory ;)