Really appreciate your integrity. One problem with being the boss is that you can go against policy. If your policies are sound and make sense for your business, you need to vow to yourself to not violate them. I hope most of your customers bring you joy and share their appreciation for your efforts on their behalf.
42yr wrencher here, I have been ripped off so much, and now am very selective about doing work for those that can pay you. You're a good guy, it sucks, but now karma will pay him a visit.
I've been in the business for 25 years it's just crazy what people try to pull how they always want to use you. I had a recent Endeavor similar to yours.
Mike. I can echo everything said so far in comments. 50 yrs in car repair and I’ve been taken more times than I care to say. My advice : Get advance deposit on cars that may exceed their value from new or short time customers. Explain you’ve been scammed before and this is part of your policy including no charge accounts. Del
I learned you always make sure the customer signs because they can win in court if they didn't sign.. and of course if you take partial payment they can win in court. And not have to pay you anymore. Saying that you agreed to that is full payment..😮
I have dealt with these people before and they live to keep every dollar in their pocket.. there is no winning with them and they will always back down if you push it. They think everything is negotiation but with that said I think you handled it correctly and he is a Dumb A$$ because he WILL need repairs in the future and you are right across the street. Too bad so sad for him.
A contractor, have had service with for years, replaced a residential boiler. They didn't install the boiler according to manufacturer installation instructions. They will not admit it. I called today and told accounting I'm not paying until corrected. Haven't heard back.
There is an auto repair shop I’ve known about for years. Their lot is filled with non-payment cars. I thought credit cards (paying up front) would solve this problem but it hasn’t.
Been there many times in this business, I get deposits from sketchy customers BEFORE I start repairs, usually get paid in full at the end of the day, also have done several lien sales for vehicles not paid or picked up.
Another thing you could have done is add some kind of remotely controlled gadget to the car that lets you shut it off if payment isn’t made. When he doesn’t pay and comes back that the car won’t turn on, you pull it back to your shop across the street. After you get it running you tell him you had left a ground connection loose. It’s ready and driving fine. Now bring the money because this time it doesn’t leave the shop until paid. Of course, this is in hindsight and best thing to do is not release the car in the first place.
@@TheEnthusiastMechanic Not really James Bond anymore. Tech like that is cheap now. It’s like those tag trackers you can just attach to a car or in a bag pack to know where your kids are and stuff like that. Not as cheap but not really considered that high tech. I mean, we have remote starters and such. That was trusting of you and shows you have a good heart: DON’T DO IT AGAIN!😂
I always Take deposits No matter what I the customer don't like it they can go somewhere else. 100 percent Deposits on the parts and half on labor. Then if they don't pay NO keys until the ticket is settled no exceptions. We are a small shop we have signs posted stating our Rules in bold letters in multiple places. This goes to my repeat customers that I've had for years. 99 percent of the customers have zero issues with this like I said if a customer dont like it there's the door I don't want B hole non paying clients.
@ It happens to us all. Forget those types, continue forward with your good, respectable customers. Always look forward and business will continue to flourish.
I would have put the lien on the vehicle. Word gets around that your an easy mark and this kind of thing starts to snow ball. I do not know about Illinois law but I would have a sign "After 30 days car is considered abandoned" or similar and I would also be charging storage per day. What ever your state law allows. Im sorry to hear about your lesson but at least it was not a major amount of money you lost.
Just had to go to court over a guy wanting to sue me for his negligence on an engine we put in last year. Always make sure you get a good paperwork trail.
Mike I am sure he needs a good honest mechanic more than you need anything that he sells. I wish you were 4 hours south, just saying. Now I am not a licensed therapist but I can send you a bill for my time. LOL
Assume some unprofitable jobs and some no-pay jobs. Try to minimize them obviously. But adjust your hourly rates upwards to compensate for this drag, maybe 10%? Mechanics can chime in on a reasonable rate.
The loss is my loss. I won’t raise my rates the compensate for any loss that’s not fair to everyone. I’m just happy that at least I got some form of payment from him that covered his parts and some of my time.
Working with consumers is a pain. The majority of people are unskilled and clueless. They have no intrinsic value themselves and don't understand that the time, skill and knowledge of those who have them is valuable. Your lucky that your worse case course of action was worse for him. It's not possible to place liens on property for all consumer debts. Don't deviate from your payment policy. Do you serve commercial clients with running accounts as well?
Oh man, don't go against your inner voice. If a repair doesn't make economic sense for you and the customer don't do it. It was moronic to dump good money into a vehicle that should have been scrapped out. You don't want morons for customers.
I completely agree with you but in my shop it’s not uncommon for people who can’t afford a new car to spend a couple thousand bucks to fix up their older car so this is not anything out of the normal. The situation is just one of those few things that occurs here and there that kind of makes you realize you shouldn’t go against the rules like I did if I had stuck to my policy, I wouldn’t of had any loss
Tell them they need to pay for parts in advance and deposit on the labor. The faster they pay the faster you can get started. $$ talks and bull$hit walks
Unfortunately, as the economy tanks even further these customers will pop up more frequently. Especially in the socialist stronghold of the Chicagoland area. Chalk it up as experience and trust your gut next time. You'll know!👍
Unfortunately, I will not be sharing that information. I’m not the type of person to go out of my way to do anything like that I’ll let karma catch up to him.
When people need you, they are your best frinds until they dont need you.
Really appreciate your integrity. One problem with being the boss is that you can go against policy. If your policies are sound and make sense for your business, you need to vow to yourself to not violate them.
I hope most of your customers bring you joy and share their appreciation for your efforts on their behalf.
Thank you!
Give no one the benefit of the doubt.
In God we trust, everyone else pays cash.
That is a great saying, wondering were you are from ? New Orleans area ?
42yr wrencher here, I have been ripped off so much, and now am very selective about doing work for those that can pay you. You're a good guy, it sucks, but now karma will pay him a visit.
Thank you!
You have a "Mechanic's Lien". No pay, no keys.
That's the usual policy I have at my shop, but I let this one-slide trough unfortunately it would up biting me in the end.
Sorry that happened. The worst part is it shakes your faith in everyone.
Thank you, but I still believe in the greater good of people one bad apple won’t ruin my view of that it happens. It’s a part of doing business.
I've been in the business for 25 years it's just crazy what people try to pull how they always want to use you. I had a recent Endeavor similar to yours.
never trust anyone.
The ones that seem “cool” are always the ones that f you over in the end.
Mike. I can echo everything said so far in comments. 50 yrs in car repair and I’ve been taken more times than I care to say.
My advice : Get advance deposit on cars that may exceed their value from new or short time customers. Explain you’ve been scammed before and this is part of your policy including no charge accounts. Del
Good advice thank you!
I learned you always make sure the customer signs because they can win in court if they didn't sign.. and of course if you take partial payment they can win in court. And not have to pay you anymore. Saying that you agreed to that is full payment..😮
I have dealt with these people before and they live to keep every dollar in their pocket.. there is no winning with them and they will always back down if you push it. They think everything is negotiation but with that said I think you handled it correctly and he is a Dumb A$$ because he WILL need repairs in the future and you are right across the street. Too bad so sad for him.
I worked in Outside Sales in the Industrial Gas and Welding Supply field and finally learned the biggest problem I had on any day was PEOPLE.
😂😂😂😂 true!
@kurtknapp4864 fires.
Got that right. People make problems, then problems cost you time & money.
Business is business. It is not personal. Its business
A contractor, have had service with for years, replaced a residential boiler. They didn't install the boiler according to manufacturer installation instructions. They will not admit it.
I called today and told accounting I'm not paying until corrected. Haven't heard back.
There is an auto repair shop I’ve known about for years. Their lot is filled with non-payment cars. I thought credit cards (paying up front) would solve this problem but it hasn’t.
Been there many times in this business, I get deposits from sketchy customers BEFORE I start repairs, usually get paid in full at the end of the day, also have done several lien sales for vehicles not paid or picked up.
And he ruins it for the honest ones
Another thing you could have done is add some kind of remotely controlled gadget to the car that lets you shut it off if payment isn’t made. When he doesn’t pay and comes back that the car won’t turn on, you pull it back to your shop across the street. After you get it running you tell him you had left a ground connection loose. It’s ready and driving fine. Now bring the money because this time it doesn’t leave the shop until paid. Of course, this is in hindsight and best thing to do is not release the car in the first place.
That’s some James Bond stuff! Not giving him the car would have been the best like you said.
@@TheEnthusiastMechanic Not really James Bond anymore. Tech like that is cheap now. It’s like those tag trackers you can just attach to a car or in a bag pack to know where your kids are and stuff like that. Not as cheap but not really considered that high tech. I mean, we have remote starters and such. That was trusting of you and shows you have a good heart: DON’T DO IT AGAIN!😂
@ I’ll never do it again that’s for sure!
I always Take deposits No matter what I the customer don't like it they can go somewhere else. 100 percent Deposits on the parts and half on labor. Then if they don't pay NO keys until the ticket is settled no exceptions. We are a small shop we have signs posted stating our Rules in bold letters in multiple places. This goes to my repeat customers that I've had for years. 99 percent of the customers have zero issues with this like I said if a customer dont like it there's the door I don't want B hole non paying clients.
It’s perfectly OK to fire a customer.
100% agree definitely told him not to ever come back
@ It happens to us all. Forget those types, continue forward with your good, respectable customers. Always look forward and business will continue to flourish.
I would have put the lien on the vehicle. Word gets around that your an easy mark and this kind of thing starts to snow ball. I do not know about Illinois law but I would have a sign "After 30 days car is considered abandoned" or similar and I would also be charging storage per day. What ever your state law allows.
Im sorry to hear about your lesson but at least it was not a major amount of money you lost.
Here it’s the 30 day rule and then you can put a lien on it
I worked a roofing job we got fired off of. The contractor was afraid of me and had his wife pay me.
Between the government and my customers I decided to close my shop.. Trump 2024
There is always people like that it happend to me also.
Just had to go to court over a guy wanting to sue me for his negligence on an engine we put in last year. Always make sure you get a good paperwork trail.
I always try to be really good on the paperwork and cover every aspect.
Guess you learned a life lesson? No dough; no show - it just makes your life easier!
You bet! Lesson learned, that’s for sure.
Mike I am sure he needs a good honest mechanic more than you need anything that he sells. I wish you were 4 hours south, just saying. Now I am not a licensed therapist but I can send you a bill for my time. LOL
😂😂 thank you very much that made me laugh. I appreciate it!
Assume some unprofitable jobs and some no-pay jobs. Try to minimize them obviously. But adjust your hourly rates upwards to compensate for this drag, maybe 10%? Mechanics can chime in on a reasonable rate.
The loss is my loss. I won’t raise my rates the compensate for any loss that’s not fair to everyone. I’m just happy that at least I got some form of payment from him that covered his parts and some of my time.
I spend more time chasing money than I do wrenching.
I try to avoid it as much as I can.
If they don't pay full price they don't get warranty.
100% correct!
I wouldn’t release the car without payment to anyone even if they gave me one of their kidneys.
I learned the hard way!
13 mins in and I’ve concluded you’re too soft, too timid . Car would have never left my shop
@@EASTOAKLANDSS that’s a great opinion, but that’s all it really is. Thanks for your input buddy.
Working with consumers is a pain.
The majority of people are unskilled and clueless. They have no intrinsic value themselves and don't understand that the time, skill and knowledge of those who have them is valuable.
Your lucky that your worse case course of action was worse for him.
It's not possible to place liens on property for all consumer debts.
Don't deviate from your payment policy.
Do you serve commercial clients with running accounts as well?
I do commercial accounts as well, but it’s always payment upon pick up. I don’t let them run net 30 or anything like that.
Camera got hot, you taking too long to tell the story.
Haha 🤣
Oh man, don't go against your inner voice. If a repair doesn't make economic sense for you and the customer don't do it. It was moronic to dump good money into a vehicle that should have been scrapped out. You don't want morons for customers.
I completely agree with you but in my shop it’s not uncommon for people who can’t afford a new car to spend a couple thousand bucks to fix up their older car so this is not anything out of the normal. The situation is just one of those few things that occurs here and there that kind of makes you realize you shouldn’t go against the rules like I did if I had stuck to my policy, I wouldn’t of had any loss
Tell them they need to pay for parts in advance and deposit on the labor. The faster they pay the faster you can get started. $$ talks and bull$hit walks
It's always the same type of cars tha will these sorta things
No one wins.
Mechanic's lien.
Unfortunately, as the economy tanks even further these customers will pop up more frequently. Especially in the socialist stronghold of the Chicagoland area. Chalk it up as experience and trust your gut next time. You'll know!👍
If I were you, I would name and shame him and his business. Going forward, don't release the vehicle until you receive full payment.
I won’t name and shame him. I’ll let karma catch up to him at the end of the day you get what you put out.
record in stero, otherwise a good video
let’s cut through the doo-doo - name and location plz . . .
Unfortunately, I will not be sharing that information. I’m not the type of person to go out of my way to do anything like that I’ll let karma catch up to him.
5 minute story turned into 30 minutes. Dam
Had to let off that steam!
no sound
Sound is working
@@TheEnthusiastMechanic when the commercial plays. must be youtube sensoring
@ could be possible