Kwik fit mot help

[barney2]

My dh took our car for a service and MOT at local kwik fit. We new there was something wrong with rear brakes hence the service as well. They phoned few hrs later to tell me it had passed with an advisory on front brakes. I asked them if they were sure rear brakes were ok, i was assured they were fine, i asked again, they put me through to the technician who allegedly completed service, he told me he had stripped them and put them back and nothing wrong. So fast forward 2 wks and the rear brakes are grinding metal on metal. I phoned kwik fit and they told me to take it in. Few hrs later i get a call they tell me i need new discs and pads on rear. I asked them why i didnt need them 2 wks earlier and it had passed its mot, they checked my paper work and gave me some figures for rear pads and of course a quote for the work. They told me that it must of been some grit that had caused them to wear down. I was rather angry so told them i would phone back. In mean time i phoned a few other garages to question them, they basically all laughed at me. The measurements they had given me were for practically new pads. Kwick fit phoned me back and i explained that i didnt believe what they were telling me. They told me if i paid for front brakes they would do rear as well. They werent going to let me have car back untill brakes were done. We evetually agreed a price and they were done. Now i am far from happy about service i received but more importantly that they passed my cars mot and let me take a car that obviously had very worn brakes and put my 3 young children in it. Is there anything i can do about this, i really dont like the fact that something bad could of happened an accident for example, but also they could be doing this to other people.

[afcwben]

All I know about MOT's are is that they are only good for when they are done and do not indicate the road worthiness of the car at a later date. That is why if your car fails an MOT and you take it off premises then a full MOT has to be done again as there may be an effect on other parts of the car due to the mileage from the last MOT.

[Surfer01]

Maybe an idea to contact VOSA and inform them that you think the MOT was not carried out in accordance with regualtions. Have a look here We also got caught by Kwikfit in 1994 to the tune of £600 for new brakes and shocks and it was only by chance we ran into the original owner who assured us that about 6 months prior to selling the vehicle, new brakes and shock absorbers had been fitted. He had no reason to lie. Have never been near another Kwikfit shop since.

[tommy.king]

Hi,

There is a 3 month time period when the MOT tester can be questioned about his work.

As the car has been repaired now, if you have a second invoice for the repairs done, you will have a case and not much can be done.

 

What you can do.

You can go back to the garage and tell the MOT tester (not the receptionist) that he missed something and that you will tell VOSA for overcharging (making you pay twice for brake pads) unless you are refunded, and that you will also let VOSA know that he missed the brakes which became faulty in 2 weeks. and the proof that you have is the invoice for a service and brake change.

 

He should pay you because he will get some points for not noticing a fault. Too many points and they cant work

 

There has been a senario of a MOT tester who was willing to pay the buyer of the car £500 as he was going to loose his job because VOSA got involved. Personally I would have accepted the £500 and told the MOT tester to fix the car.

[heliosuk]

You are quite right to be concerned and I think Tom Farmer the owner of Kwik Fit would be too. Getting to him will be a nightmare though. You can log the complaint with VOSA though you have (I would think) no evidence of the condition of the rear pads at the time of test unless you have been extremely lucky or foresighted to get back the parts they changed.The excuse they have given is ......................well not repeatable here!!!

 

You ought to put together a letter of complaint to head office in Scotland outlining the complaint and what went on when. Then pm me with a copy and I'll advise/suggest what to do next. Make sure you include make, model and mileage and centre concerned.

 

I just love Kwik fit and if I'm having a bad day at work it always cheers me up to call into one and listen to the rubbish they try to sell me.

[barney2]

Thanks for replys. The amount we paid was not that much £100 for all 4 pads and discs and it really didnt take much to get them from the original £600 quote, which to me shows an admission of fault if ever ive seen one. Thanks for the offer ill start on a letter as soon as.

[heliosuk]

From what you have said and from a financial point of view you have little to complain about but it's the principal that matters here. It must not be allowed to go on and hence you should go through with the letter to both VOSA and Kwik Fit. The reality is that VOSA will not take any action and you will get an apology from Kwik Fit possibly with a goodwill gesture.

 

The point I think is to alert the people who need to know what is going on and from my dealings with the organisations concerned, and at quite a high level, it will not go unnoticed if delivered in a proper way.

[barney2]

The money isnt an issue, we were fully expecting to have to replace them anyway. Its the safety aspect, they let, as far as im concerned, an un road worthy car leave. If theyve done it to us how many more people are they putting at risk.

[Surfer01]

You are quite right to be concerned and I think Tom Farmer the owner of Kwik Fit would be too.

 

In 1999, Farmer sold the company to the Ford Motor Company for US $1.6b.[/url] A decision by Ford to concentrate on its core business led to the sale of Kwik Fit in 2002 to CVC Capital Partners. In 2005 Kwik Fit was sold for £800m to PAI Partners, a leading French-based private equity firm . In May 2010, it was announced that PAI Partners have put the company up for sale for £200m.] At the end of 2009 the company had £811m of net debt

With that sort of debt no wonder they want to overcharge!

[j66]

Hi,

There is a 3 month time period when the MOT tester can be questioned about his work.

As the car has been repaired now, if you have a second invoice for the repairs done, you will have a case and not much can be done.

 

What you can do.

You can go back to the garage and tell the MOT tester (not the receptionist) that he missed something and that you will tell VOSA for overcharging (making you pay twice for brake pads) unless you are refunded, and that you will also let VOSA know that he missed the brakes which became faulty in 2 weeks. and the proof that you have is the invoice for a service and brake change.

 

He should pay you because he will get some points for not noticing a fault. Too many points and they cant work

 

There has been a senario of a MOT tester who was willing to pay the buyer of the car £500 as he was going to loose his job because VOSA got involved. Personally I would have accepted the £500 and told the MOT tester to fix the car.

 

How do you know for certain that the tester failed to inspect the rear brakes? The tester doesn't have the luxury of been allowed to remove items to effect a thorough visual inspection. For all we know the view of the brake components from the front through the wheel and from the rear could be extremely poor.

 

The criteria for failing brake discs is quite clear, they can only fail for excessive wear if it is considered that they are severely weakened, they can also fail for being insecure or contaminated by oil/grease. Pads fail when the friction material is less than 1.5mm, if the tester can see them. It is not part of the test to measure the thickness of discs or pads.

 

As part of the test the brake efficiency will be measured, usually by means of a brake roller test (RBT), the braking weight of each wheel will be recorded on the check list and entered into the computer, which will produce an efficiency calculated on brake testing weight of the car. Some cars are not suitable for a RBT and will have their braking efficiency measured by an accelerometer, which will give a reading for the braking system as a whole. So if you consider the scenario of the brake efficiencies above the the fail threshold and the tester not having an adequate view of the brake components, then the brakes have to pass, a car can't be failed just because a testable item can't be inspected.

 

The 3 month window is for structural corrosion issues, passing a MOT doesn't guarantee that the car will work for 2 hours after the test, let alone two weeks.

 

The issue is with the service, not the MOT.

[barney2]

My issue is with both. They claimed the service was done before the mot, so he should of seen there was an issue with rear brakes and should not of passed its mot. I spoke to a main dealer for car who said that you can see enough when inspecting without touching anything, as i know they dont touch just look. And as it turns out they cant remove car seats either to test seat belts somthing i didnt know.

[barney2]

Please can someone tell me that the fact my warning light for brake system came on and now abs warning light is on has nothing to do with the work they will of done on car.

[heliosuk]

Please can someone tell me that the fact my warning light for brake system came on and now abs warning light is on has nothing to do with the work they will of done on car.

 

Perhaps someone can correct me here. Did I see a response from Kwikfit asking for details?

 

In answer to your question can you expand on the lights you are seeing? When they appeared and which lights are you seeing plus a description? Indeed you are right there might well be a connection but you musn't jump to conclusions.

[mightymouse_69]

Perhaps someone can correct me here. Did I see a response from Kwikfit asking for details?

 

Yes, Kwik fit did post on here. That post now seems to have gone.

[barney2]

Yep the kwick fit bods were removed dont think they were approved to be on here by site team. Husband was on way home from work, on a dual cariage way, brake warning light came on then speedo went and abs light came on he said there was some loss of power, light still on and speedo still not working seems to drive ok power wise at mo but only did a 2 min around the village. Im not jumping to conclusions yet but i know my luck.