Recently bought a second hand Puma from Yeovil Ford that was just over 3 years old. Thought the one month warranty was a bit stingy. However, we still decided not to take out the extended warranty as we considered it a bit pricey. After just 6 weeks the screen washer motor failed. The cost of replacing this was a lot less than what we would have paid for the extended warranty, so although a little disappointed that we had a repair bill shortly after purchasing the Puma, we were still happy that we took the right decision about not purchasing the extended warranty as if we had, we would have been out of pocket.

However what really got me annoyed was Yeovil Ford’s insistence that we would have to pay £75 for “an assessment inspection” to determine the cause of the washers not working. That’s before any cost of fixing the problem !!   This was not made clear to us when we purchased the car. My first thought was it might be a blown fuse that was causing the washers not to work and the guy at Yeovil Ford agreed with this – but he said we would still have to pay the £75 “inspection” to determine this.

So, let’s go through the “inspection” process. 1. Open the car bonnet – 10 seconds. 2. Open the fuse box – 10 seconds. Replace the fuse – 20 seconds. Total time 40 seconds. Let’s round this up to 1 minute.  75 x 60 = 4500 equates to an hourly rate of £4,500 an hour.

How on earth can they justify this?  What about fostering good customer relations and waive the ridiculous “assessment inspection” fee which is a total rip off? 

I decided not to pay this exorbitant fee and took the Puma to a garage where I’ve been going to for many years. They found out it was not the fuse, (30 seconds), and then spent about an hour dismantling various bits of the car to get at the washer motor which is very awkward to get at. They determined it was the washer motor that needed replacing and they would have to order it in. Another 20 minutes taken to put the car back together so I could drive it away. Total cost for this “inspection” - £0 – yes ZERO !!

They ordered the motor and a few days later had the car back in to replace it. I was told by this garage that they have had quite a few customers come to them with similar tales about Yeovil Ford. 

So the moral of this tale is BEWARE OF THE “INSPECTION” RIP OFF FEE”   

That's the cheapest inspection fee we've seen from a Ford main dealer so far.  It's usually over £100.  It's a fixed cost that should cover around an hour.

I must admit, I don't understand why your garage has given you a free hour of labour to diagnose the fault.  That makes no business sense at all.

15 hours ago, JCol said:

So the moral of this tale is BEWARE OF THE “INSPECTION” RIP OFF FEE”   

Proof, if any needed, that it's often much better to take your car to a trusted independent garage rather than a Ford main dealer... My guy has never charged an 'inspection fee' but I'm sure gets it back by over a decade of my loyalty (& recommendations), and I'm sure the odd 'extra' charged over the years...

15 hours ago, JCol said:

Recently bought a second hand Puma from Yeovil Ford that was just over 3 years old. Thought the one month warranty was a bit stingy.

All motor traders have to provide a minimum of 90 days warranty. In addition to that they are legally bound by consumer legislation to repair a defect in the vehicle with in the first 6 months of purchase if it can be shown that the fault/defect must have been present at the time of purchase.

Don't take my word for it, give your local trading standards a call and they will explain your consumer rights.

Yes, plenty of guides to Consumer Rights Legislation on line, eg:

https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/the-car-i-bought-has-a-problem-what-are-my-rights-aAnMC5b0ZzJb

 

3 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

It's usually over £100.  It's a fixed cost that should cover around an hour.

Yes, well over £100 at a main dealer if it includes an allowance for a certain amount of labour if they can fix it there and then. After all, an hour's labour charge would be well over £100 even without some allowance for software development / computer systems etc. which I would say they are entitled to recoup in some way.

I had/have an intermittent problem with my USB charging socket. The booking receptionist said "we can have a look at that, but do you want to see if it persists first, as we'll charge £180 for a diagnostic check which would also cover HALF an hour's labour". At least she was very clear about what the charge would be. 

But remember the old apocryphal story where the punchline is:

You asked for a breakdown of my £100 invoice for two minutes' work:

• Hitting machine with hammer £1
• Knowing where to hit it £99

We give big dealerships a lot of stick on here, often rightly so, but as Al and Tom have already mentioned, they have a lot of overheads to cover.

Another point on this is if the franchise dealer gave free inspections, you could then just nip round to another garage armed with your free diagnosis. A bit like people who try on clothes/shoes, etc for nothing in a high street store then buy cheaply off the web.

2 minutes ago, Eric Bloodaxe said:

..., but as Al and Tom have already mentioned, they have a lot of overheads to cover...

That's why I often recommend folk to go to a trusted independent garage. They don't usually have pricey marble flooring, expensive coffee machines, and expensive reception staff on the payroll.

Kinda like when supermarket shopping, I avoid branded goods I've seen on TV ads, as I know the people that pay for the £Millions adverting is the poor sods that buy it...