MOT fail - garage want to fit new o/s headlamp at

[andyoctavia]

Well, the Octavia failed its MOT on a few minor things (easily sorted or so I thought).

The least troublesome are two outer CV boots and a track rod end, but the one which has peed me off most, is that the garage have phoned me back and added in a new o/s headlight at £95 because the light is too low and they cannot adjust it - they say the plastic screw is just turning. I have not altered it since the last MOT and the headlight cluster itself is only about 14 months old after a front end bump last year (all repaired by a designated firm).

I have three days to get it tested fortunately, so what would you guys do, because I am pretty perplexed about this.

 

Andy

[StevesTruck]

How long is the bodywork repair guaranteed for?

[andyoctavia]

How long is the bodywork repair guaranteed for?

 

 

Since posting I have been looking for the paperwork (the missus must have "tidied up" again), but I am not sure if it is one of these extra long guarantees. Anyway, I am just going to pop over the place now, and see if they will help me, or even carry out another quick headlamp alignment test, just to make sure.

If it turns out to be nothing wrong, and if they can adjust it if there is, then I may ask them to look at the other MOT fails as well.

[flat-eric]

I bet they turning the wrong one, I bet they have the high beam adjustment and havent spotted the other ones.

[DaveyBoyWonder]

Tell them they're doing it wrong. Search on here - it seems to be a common problem with some garages not knowing their arse from their elbow. Happened to me the other month... Was in a hurry so got Kwik **** to mot the car and they failed it on this. Read up some stuff and then took it to my normal garage the following morning - adjusted and passed no probes.

[Rob_Quads]

I bet they are adjusting the main beam. Just drive up to a flat surface and you will be able to check if it works or not.

 

If they have adjusted the wrong one them make sure they also fix the main beam alignment too.

[m0bov]

Yep, they are def adjusting the wrong screw! Muppets!

[billywhiz040480]

OMG what a joke, I'd rock back up with it fixed and demand to know why I needed a new headlight when all it took was someone with half a brain to realise it was the other screw. Then I'd tell them my friends, family and their dog will be going elsewhere next year. £95 for their incompetence, doh!

[andyoctavia]

Cheers guys, you would not believe what a time I have had today.

I went over to the place who did the repair work, and although they confirmed that their labour is guaranteed for life, the VAG/OEM parts are only guaranteed for a year. They didn't even bother to check whether or not the headlamps were aligned properly, or if the screw had been f****d up. However, I do reckon that they have been turning the top screw which mounts the headlamps to the frame, and not the other allen headed bolt which looks up at you from the inside of the h/lamp surround.

The guy at the repair place also had a look at the CV boots, and reckoned that they did not need replacing, He also thought that they were having a laugh about the n/s indicator lens, because it is only a slightly lighter shade of orange than the one in the 13 month old o/s cluster.

I keep hearing about mates, and friends of the missus being ripped off at MOT centres, and it just makes me sick, that these leeches are taking advantage of folks in times like this.

I have only just got home after picking the missus up, so when I have had a bite to eat, I may get out there and try a little adjustment whilst it is dark. I think there is a transit parked in front of me at the moment, so the back of that should be a good target board. If the lights move at all, then I will know that they are either totally useless at the garage, or trying to rip me off.

 

Once again, thanks for your help.

 

Is there any way you can get an MOT fee refunded for incompetence, because there is no way that I am using them again.

[DaveyBoyWonder]

Don't know but if there is, let me know. I still need to get a strongly worded mail sent to kwik fit complaining about the goons at their Halifax branch.

[m0bov]

If you take it back to them and show them the error of their ways and mention another garage said there is little else wrong, they should refund you under SOGA. Otherwise you can have it retested elsewhere then sue via SCC. I'm pretty sure when they know they've been rumbled they will refund. You could also mention you have an appointment with trading standards next week who are interested....

[monkster]

It's all too common I'm afraid. I recently took Mrs Monksters 2006 Toyota Yaris to Burrows Toyota, Doncaster for it's MOT. The car (was) on a service and MOT plan. They failed it on "Excessively corroded brake pipes." I had previously checked the car and knew this was not the case. They told me that they could repair the car "While we still have it on the ramps" for £198! I took the car to another MOT centre the following day and guess what it passed.

 

I subsequently cancelled the service plan and chewed the ears off the service manager.

 

Regards Monkster.

[gadgetman]

You can always go to VOSA.

Sometimes simply throwing VOSA into the conversation is enough.

[steve33]

I had a similar fail earlier in the year because my off side headlight was from "a left hand drive car". This was from a no pass no fee outfit, so it didn't cost me anything other than my time whilst they undertook the mot and five minutes berating the tester afterwards. Went somewhere else whose response to the fail was WTF!

[Daz716]

I once had the fun and hastle of a tester not understanding the difference between opaque and transparent.

He failed My car on a tinted factory fitted sun strip.

He would not admit his error, even though he had passed it the year before.

Quoting the REGS ,," No Opaque strip"s on windscreen. I had to show the service manager a dictionary and explain the matter.

Sometimes they are clueless as well as dodgy.

[Web Ferret]

You can get your MOT done 28 days before expiry and therefore plenty of time to get stuff fixed/second opinions/ask in here.

 

My mobile (winter) tyre fitter left a F0rd main steeler to go independent as he was pressured into doing unnecessary work. A local RAC guy who is ex-main steeler has a similar story.

 

Find a better garage

http://www.goodgaragescheme.com/

[andyoctavia]

Righto, latest update.

Thanks to all your advice - especially the piccies in Mike's thread, the headlights HAVE been adjusted, and another garage has tested the lamps and given them the OK, and will also be doing an MOT for the other work tomorrow.

So, what is my course of action now?

I am not happy that the original garage has tried to swindle me out of £100+, and I am not willing to trust them with any further work.

I am thinking of contacting VOSA, and also going back to the garage to demand a refund.

Not sure where I stand on all this though?

 

Andy

[seve88]

Righto, latest update.

Thanks to all your advice - especially the piccies in Mike's thread, the headlights HAVE been adjusted, and another garage has tested the lamps and given them the OK, and will also be doing an MOT for the other work tomorrow.

So, what is my course of action now?

I am not happy that the original garage has tried to swindle me out of £100+, and I am not willing to trust them with any further work.

I am thinking of contacting VOSA, and also going back to the garage to demand a refund.

Not sure where I stand on all this though?

 

Andy

next year get your mot from the local council, most councils do mot for the public.

the good thing about going to them is that they dont do repairs so there is no incentive to fail you just to line there own pockets

just had mine done £40, failed me on a burst rubber boot on the ball joint, fixed it myself and free retest within 10 days.

at least i know that the burst rubber boot was genuinely burst.

[andyoctavia]

At the end of the day VOSA entrust their "approved" MOT centres to carry out the MOT testing to their requirements, one of which is a standardisation of what is a fail and what is a pass, without deliberately failing a vehicle with the intention of drumming up unnecessary and fraudulent repair bills. They also require an MOT tester to be knowledgeable enough to KNOW what is a pass and what is a fail. Your original MOT station has failed in both those respects, and I would be pushing hard for a refund of the incorrectly performed MOT test. VOSA need to know about it,because trust me you won't be the only one they're trying this on with.

 

Please keep us informed what is going on, and of any results you may have.

 

Glad the pictures (from ELSAWIN) were of some use.

 

Mike

Cheers Mike, I will definitely contact VOSA, and demand a refund.

[andyoctavia]

next year get your mot from the local council, most councils do mot for the public.

the good thing about going to them is that they dont do repairs so there is no incentive to fail you just to line there own pockets

just had mine done £40, failed me on a burst rubber boot on the ball joint, fixed it myself and free retest within 10 days.

at least i know that the burst rubber boot was genuinely burst.

Ironically, this used to be our council MOT centre until earlier this year, until they were privatised, and then allowed to tout for work.

[andyoctavia]

Just phoned VOSA and they are not interested in the attempt to con me out of money, they are only concerned with the fact that the centre were correct in having failed the vehicle for having a headlamp which was adjusted low.

Next stop trading standards.

[andyoctavia]

Trading Standards in my area are now run by Citizens Advice Bureau, and although they can pass the details on to the relevant department, they do not think that I will be allowed to claim anything back, because I did not give the original garage a "fair chance" to do the work and the retest. I in fact jeopardised my position by adjusting the light myself, and basically not showing the garage how to do it - priceless!

[m0bov]

How did you pay for the MOT?

[Keith Lard]

Are they really ripping him of though? Maybe the guy doing it wasn't 100% clued up on octavia headlights or maybe he just made a simple mistake?

Let's not lose sight of the fact that we only have one side of the story here.

Ask for a fund from the manager for your MOT by all means but all that running to trading standards and VOSA will do is stress you out.

Find another garage and forgot it.

[fordfan]

The MOT test and the repairs are two totally different things.  They were asked to do a MOT test, which they did as instructed, found that the car did not meet the minimum requirements and refused to issue a certificate.  The only way which you can get any recompense for the MOT is if you made an appeal to VOSA, which means paying another fee and not getting the car repaired until after they have inspected it.  Headlamp alignment is black and white, they're either within limits or not, unfortunately it wasn't and the garage weren't conversant with the way in which they are adjusted on your car.

 

What your body repair place has told you is inaccurate, VW replacement parts have a two year warranty.