Oil filter disposal fee

If a shop has price for oil change and they charge extra for filter disposal, are they screwing you over? Or just being misleading. Since the price on sign is for a partial job. And shop supplies is an extra charge also? This ad has had the filter fee in small print for years. Are they just shady sob’s?
Water pump removal is $200. WP install is $400 more?

If they have the fee in the add, how are they screwing you over? If the add says it costs X plus Y, and Z fees and you agree, what deception occured?

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Even if the extra fees are listed in small print, the fact that they are listed is the prime point.

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Got it. Advertised oil change prices are teasers.

I’d have to see the ad. If it says “$20 OIL CHANGE” in bold print, then a fee for oil filter disposal, shop supplies, etc in barely readable fine print…that’s a little deceptive in my opinion.

I wonder what they’d do if you asked to take the old oil filter with you? :thinking:

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I do my own oil changes and recycle my used oil for free at the NAPA store in town. The used oil filters go to Walmart where they accept them free for recycling. I have never been charged a fee for disposal or recycling of oil or filter, even when going to the dealer for an oil change. There is just one fee that must cover all of their costs.

It’s just the way of many, many businesses these days. Yesterday I heard an advertisement on the radio for tax advisors, saying (presumably as a reason to scare you to use their service) "The IRS often confiscates bank accounts of tax delinquents on Dec 23 or Dec 24. " What a nice Christmas message, eh? It just the way business is done in the USA.

Are you upset for an old tire recycling fee when you buy new? At $2 each fine with me, don’t put them in my car so I can drive to the drop off site and leave them for free. Not rich but $8 I can let go. Guess that is why I am not rich :cold_sweat:

Every place that sells it in California and New Mexico takes
them, even if you didn’t buy it from them, free. I do my own, never
had a question when I brought them in.

Reminds me of a joke story I heard when I was a kid:

A man who owns an eyeglasses store is teaching his kid how to work in the business. He tells his kid, “Someone comes in to our eyeglasses store with a new prescription, looks over frames and says, “How much for these?” You say, “That’ll be $150.” If they don’t flinch or scream you say “For the frames.” If they still don’t react you say, “It’ll be another $150 for the lenses.” If they are still pretty calm you say, “Each.””

It’s a capitalist economy here. After a while you get used to it.

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We crush metal oil filters and place them in a barrel. A company called Safety Clean collects the old filters for disposal, the service is not free.

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I haven’t bothered to research the specific laws but nationally, used oil (which is in your filter) is classified as a Hazardous Waste requiring “proper disposal” and in my area my understanding is that anyone who sells motor oil is required to accept used motor oil without charge.

But on the broader question, Why would anyone want to do any business with someone who would nickle and dime you with the small print?

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Every shop I’ve used has “disposal fees” of some sort.

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No

Depends on the shop. I’ve had shops where the shop supplies are rolled into the cost and hidden and I’ve had shops that itemize it separately.

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The first time that I saw “shop supplies” added onto the bill was at a Mercury dealership in the late '60s. One of the extra charges was for a can of spray lubricant, and they “sold” that same can to… probably… a dozen customers before it was empty. Needless to say, I never returned to that service department.

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How does your shop handle drained coolant? Here is San Jose its very hard to find a shop that will take old coolant, which means diy’er have to make an appointment and drive 7-15 miles to where the only coolant disposal place is located. Is the coolant disposal service expensive compared to other auto-liquids recycling? Here in San Jose we can put up to 2 gallons of used oil out and the garbage people handle the recycling. But not for coolant.

Why? For the convenience.

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I imagine there’s a little more profit in used oil disposal compared to coolant disposal. Does Autozone and stores like them take old coolant? I don’t remember.

when I was in charge of the Post Office trucks in my office, the shop that I brought the trucks into for repair work loved when I brought them in for an oil change in the winter. he had installed a new supposedly clean burning heating system for the shop. it ran on used oil. free heat for the shop.

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Five times per year, my county’s recycling centers accept old coolant, along with used motor oil, oil filters, trans fluid, brake fluid, car batteries, scrap metal, pesticides, and other stuff that can’t go into the garbage. Isn’t it possible that you could locate something similar in your county?

Note: I edited this after referring to the list of acceptable items at the recycling centers. They classify all of this stuff as Household Hazardous Waste.