As for me, Juanita, if a prospective customer asked me to deal with THAT checklist I would price doing so at $1,000 in advance and tell them they could check back in a week to see how I was getting along and how much additional money was needed. Such offers worked much better than refusing someone.
There’s way more than a few minutes involved in filling out a checklist like that; way more.
I also think the labor rate is being looked at in a very skewed manner.
When someone initials that they “checked” the brakes on such a list they accept any liability that might arise if there is an accident and the driver “asserts” that the brakes were the cause. Such a list is tantamount to the shop adopting the vehicle relative to any failure. If the brakes are checked OK on Monday but the master cylinder fails on Friday the shop is now responsible for repairing the car for FREE.
Check alternator- yes, it has an alternator–RN
Check radiator hoses- yes, there are 2-----RN
It isn’t necessary to have a law degree, or any degree for that matter, to know how to dodge that trap.
Many years ago when green behind the ears a customer asked me to adjust the timing on his car that he had just tuned up but had no timing light. I agreed to set it for the minimum shop fee. After setting the timing the engine continued to idle poorly and lack power but the customer was certain that the timing was the problem and insisted that I get it correct. After a considerable amount of time and effort I found the problem which, of course, the owner was sure he could repair. A lesson was learned that stuck with me for all these years.
No offense meant, but the list is a bit “much”. You’re asking a mechanic to break out into great detail exactly what he did relative to “check underside”. A simple checkmark indicating that he’s accomplished the task would be reasonable, but few mechanics are going to want to spend time trying to figure out how to answer some of these questions on your list.
You’re not compiling a database here, just getting your car maintained. Unless I’m wrong and you ARE planning to compile a database, in which case I’m sure most shops will help for an extra hour’s shop cost.
Mechanics are probably hesitant to mark anything at all on your list, as it doesn’t have the legal disclaimer information that appears on their own invoice sheets. Being a car mechanic carries with it a significant legal liability, so the get liability insurance for this. Their liability insurance company rules might not allow them to use anything but their own invoices.
Try this: Instead, ask them to go through your own list line by line when you pick up your car, and you write down on your list their summary of what they say was done, what it cost, etc. If they won’t even do this, then ask your friends and co-workers for recommendations for a new shop.