Many people believe that it's a way for shops to rip off their customers. These people are usually not well informed. The flat rate system of repair estimating and billing isn't dishonest at all, but it does present some interesting problems at the shop. Let's say you take your vehicle in for a brake replacement. The mechanic looks up the repair in his book, and it tells him that replacing the brakes in your vehicle takes 3 hours. You're billed 3 hours labor for the repair, a flat rate based on what the book says. Let's say the mechanic knows what he's doing and is able to install your brakes in under 3 hours. Under the flat rate system you still pay for 3 hours labor. If you have an above average mechanic with years of experience, it stands to reason that he'll be able to do the same job faster. He still bills for 3 hours because it's his extensive training and experience that make him faster, training and experience that cost him money along the way. It could take him 5 hours; you still will pay the 3 hour flat rate. There are many reasons why it can take longer to complete the job.
The management puts lots of pressure on the technicians to bill as much as humanly possible. If they fall below a certain number of hours per day, the techs have problems. And it doesn't matter why the day went slower. Left in a position where one slowed repair can put him behind, lose him money, and get the bosses breathing down his neck, some mechanics will rush the job and take short cuts. That's when the flat rate system can fail. This not only causes problems for the mechanic but also for the vehicle owner. The vehicle owner is left thinking they are being ripped off when it is not true at all. We are left to fend against the rules of management in that particular business.
So how do we (mechanics and car owners) change the system? Instead of feeling like a victim when we go for repair and bouncing from place to place looking for the best pay or the lowest rate, we should inform ourselves as much as possible about how things work. That way we know when someone is not being honest with us. We cannot change the system. But we can have a little more patience and change the way we think, the way we operate and never fall victim to dishonest management again!!!
"Ask Roman mechanic questions now for a fee"
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