Are you being ripped off at the garage?

Most people have no idea what's going on under the car bonnet. It means that when we drop the car off for an MOT, service or repair, we leave ourselves entirely in the hands of the professionals. They could come out, declare the car to be broken, and demand £100s of pounds, and how would we know whether that was fair? So it's hardly surprising that 60% of people drop the car off with a sense of dread.

The figures were revealed by the RAC, which found that for more than one in ten people, these fears prove well-founded, as the work ends up being more expensive than they were initially told.

Spokesman Pete Williams said: "Despite most motorists being reasonably satisfied with the cost of their bills, one in 10 claim not to trust local garages at all while a wary 41% say they do 'a little' which doesn't really seem like an overwhelming vote of confidence."

A previous study would seem to indicate that we're right to be worried. Auto Express and Warrantywise found that motorists can pay up to three times more for car repairs depending on where they live. Mechanics in Kirkwall, Orkney, charged the lowest average hourly rate at £44, while those in Twickenham, London, charged £144.
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What can you do?

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a company that has just launched a garage comparison tool, Williams adds: "Even though we now live in a society which is obsessed with comparing prices for almost everything we buy, this behaviour has not become commonplace when booking a car in for an MOT, service or repair. This is partly because it had previously been a case of having to phone around to get prices and partly because there wasn't an online service simplifying the process."

And while the research has clearly been released to help promote the RAC's new garage comparison tool, it's a good idea. There are already a couple of these around - ClickMechanic and TootCompare. You can use these sites to search local garages to check the prices for MOTs, services, and repairs, check reviews and even book your car in.

Its also worth checking with the Retail Motor Industry Federation's Trust My Garage scheme, which ensures that the members meet its standards, has a customer charter, and demands that members comply with guidelines laid down by the Trading Standards Institute.

Motor Codes recommendations are also worth checking, as its 8,000 garages are inspected by the AA, and sign up to provide an honest and fair service, clear pricing, repair costs that match the initial quote, a good standard of work, and an easy and fast complaints procedure.

Once you have picked a garage, Which? recommends asking for a written quote - and making sure it includes parts, labour and VAT. You should also check that the garage uses original parts or those of equivalent quality so you don't invalidate any remaining warranty on your car. Then when you collect it, make sure you ask for a receipt and a stamp in the service book.

With all these things in place, it should make leaving the car for a service less terrifying - and hopefully less expensive too.