When you take your vehicle to the mechanic for repair, the mechanic has the right to keep your car until you settle the agreed bill. This is a way to secure payment for the shop for the complete repair they did on your vehicle.
Usually, car repairs by mechanics are expensive, not to mention the time you will spend without your car will add to the total expense of the car repair. However, there’s taking too much time and correct handling of business at the mechanics.
But several factors will determine how long your car should stay at the mechanic. Read on.
Factors That Determine The Time Your Car Stays At The Mechanic?
First, the type of repair matters a lot. Minor fixes and repairs should only take a few hours to fix. Usually, in such cases, the car owner can opt to wait for the mechanic to complete the entire task and leave with their car. But this is not the case for significant repairs, which end up taking a lot of time.
Also, the garage’s activities will determine if you will leave your car for more days at the mechanic or wait for a short while. If you happen to take your vehicle for repair and find a busy garage with lots of activities, most likely you have to wait a little longer for your car to get proper attention.
Moreover, the availability of materials and resources is a determining factor in your car’s duration remains in the garage. Some vehicles have hard-to-find spare parts or need experts to handle the repair. If the garage owner does not have the spare parts, they might ask for your patience to access the pieces and get a qualified person to do the fixing. This is not an instant solution hence the need to exercise patience.
There are also cases of unforeseen problems. You may take your care for a minor fix, and the mechanic finds out a major underlying issue that should not go without attention. This may also take more time in the garage.
While it is irritating to wait for ages for your car from the mechanic, there are ways to handle such a delayed situation.
What to Do In Case Of Delays from the Mechanic?
It would be best to set a clear timeline for the duration the repair should take. You need your car to run your daily errands and not take too long in the garage. Because the mechanic does not want to lose clients, they will not like to extend your car’s duration in their garage. Therefore, ensure they understand the state of urgency with your vehicle.
Also, ensure you are clear in terms of payment. Before the mechanic works on your car, ensure you have set an agreed cost of the whole procedure. In a situation where you did not understand the charges clearly and come for the car refusing to pay, the mechanic will hold on to the vehicle until you find a way to settle the total costs.
You can also consider a second opinion. Consider going to another mechanic shop for the same problem and carry with you all the information of repairs from the current garage. Sometimes, a second opinion can be much better and more productive, hence taking less time in the repair process.
The above factors are the main reasons many car owners ask, ‘how long can a mechanic keep my car.’ Luckily there are ways to handle the same issue for better and quicker results.