This jerk doesn’t sound like they type of guy who’s going to tell anything close to the truth when asked. So I’d be willing to bet that when asked he’d say the gastank either…
A) Fell off at his garage…
B) Was in the back seat when we towed it.
Does anyone really think this guy is NOW all of a sudden start telling the truth???
So far I cannot decide whether the shop owner is an incompetent shade tree mechanic, an unscrupulous shop owner or a well intentioned shop owner who mistakenly jumped to conclusions. If the total bill had been $100 and the car ran like new would there be any outrage? If the shop owner had called and demanded that the owner bring full payment for $250 for a wrecker bill and diagnostics and sign a work release for $650 would there be any outrage? I lean toward the mechanic being too presumptions, possibly thinking he was doing what was in the best interest of the customer but the bill was well beyond the budget of the owner.
My friends, I believe the OP has long since left the building. I propose that we let this thread rest in peace.
Maybe the OP and the shop owner are now both in jail. I don’t think wi-fi is available in most jail cells.
I’m with mountainbike, this is beginning to be another bonneville 2nd gear start thread which needs to go to the “Locked” status.
transman
This thread is only 5 days old and the OP last responded only a couple of days ago. Please give her a break, because she is trying to get advise on a real nightmare of a situation.
Well its a nightmare now but at the beginning it was just a $650 repair bill to get a car going again and a simple dispute over the non-bill. It has escalated because sometimes we refuse to take the interstate and instead opt for the winding cowpath for the scenery.
@MikeinNH, re:"All we’re hearing is ONE side of the story. Someone this sleazy can’t stay in business too long if he treats his “Friends” this way. How does he treat someone he’s never met."
Well, there’s a shop here that’s about that bad. They charged me $200 to replace a lower radiator hose (which is about a 15 minute job) AND managed to do it wrong – they didn’t remove the tag from it so it leaked! I didn’t get an estimate (since I figured a hose is cheap), they didn’t offer an estimate either. The only other time I know of anyone going there, it was similar – VERY VERY overpriced and work done improperly. At least this guy presumably did the work properly… BUT! They are open Saturdays, and there’s fresh college students every year, so it’s busy as hell all the time.
@Bing, shrug. Not too bad of escalation in terms of outcome. For the pump to be installed, the tank must be dropped anyway. So, it’s a screwed up situation, but they can just tow it somewhere else and get the pump done if they wish.
Some things are more about principle than the money. IF he’s truly making unauthorized repairs and charging people for them he needs to be stopped.
I once quit a job because I was promised a vacation and had already made travel plans, but the supervisor decided at the last minute he didn’t want me to have the time off. On the afternoon of the last day I was supposed to work prior to vacation he told me I wasn’t getting the time off. I told him I had already made plans and I took my vacation. About a year later I went back to work for the same company with the same supervisor, worked for them for about 9 more years and was never refused my vacation again. Sometimes you have to stand up for your rights.
I’ve been giving the OP quite a bit of benefit of the doubt on the story as told. If the OP never returns and fills in a few blanks then that benefit of the doubt could disappear completely.
There are 2 sides to every story (this one is downright weird) and at this point there has only been one side presented; and that was by a 3rd party who was not there when this entire thing started.
Just to fill in a few blanks, I may have misquoted in the beginning when I called this man a friend, he is not, nor has he ever been a friend of mine or my husbands. The mechanic and my daughter met through a mutal friend several years ago, so I apologize, I should have referred to him as an acquaintance. This matter was never about whether the repairs needed done or not, the entire point of my initial post was to understand how someone could take it upon himself to do repairs without any prior notification or estimate given to the owner. I have tried to be nice and not mention his name, as my intent was not to bash him, but to understand my rights. If you would care to have his name and number to get his side of the story, I’ll gladly provide it, as he has no website for his business. After exhausting all my options, AG, police, etc., we have come to the conclusion that we have no choice but to pay the bill just to get the car back. I have contacted an attorney, but in the end it will cost more to fight this in court with an attorney than it would be to just pay him. We are not happy about the situation, as I have not mentioned before, although my husband is not a “mechanic”, he does know how to do the repairs that were done to the car and would have, had we been made aware of the situation before it was too late. In my mind, this guy is CROOK and he broke the law and I will make sure that no one that I know will use this man for anything. The only thing I will give him the benefit of the doubt on is he did not start to tear the car apart as he had threatened. And to answer an earlier question as to how things have escalated to this point without my husband, daughter or myself getting angry, raising our voices to him or anything else along the lines, my answer simply is that we not trouble makers of any kind, simply a military family, working daily jobs to make ends meet, trying to raise 3 kids. Karma is a bitch, things have a way of coming back to you and biting you in the ass, and we will be content to sit back patiently and wait
First, please accept my sincere apologies for thinking you had “left the building”. It’s rare for an OP to stay around through 5 pages of our dickering amongst ourselves.
Second, please accept my deep and sincere thanks for your service and sacrifice.
Regarding the original question, I think the sunnary of it is that your rights and his rights will both be defined in state statutes and the individual states vary in their approaches. That’s why I personally believe that a lawyer is essential in a case like this. It’s essential that any action you take be as proscribed by your individual state’s laws.
Sincere best to you and yours.
I’m in agreement with mountainbike and this is just my personal opinion but I would not, and could not, allow this incident to go unpunished. Principle is a huge thing for and I spent almost 6 months fighting a guy once over 5 lousy dollars. This cost me far more than that in time off work and so on but the moral victory was worth it.
What would I do? Pay the bill and get the car back. Since there was no prior authorization signed I would not push that issue at this time but get a receipt showing you paid what he says you owe. SIGN NOTHING!
I’d then print off the statutes from the OH AG’s office about written estimates and so on along with pushing the AG’s office for something in writing, or on tape, about this area.
Then file a suit in small claims court. You do not need a lawyer for this and there’s a decent chance the judge will decide in your favor. I’ve been in court a few times on both sides of an automotive issue so I kind of understand how some of it may go. For what it’s worth, I’ve never been on the losing end! 
If you go the small claims route I would advise that you do the following. Keep it short and simple. A judge does not want to hear a long rambling tale like this post and a he said/she said diatribe. Write it down as a reference if you have to but keep it to a paragraph, or maye two at most.
If the law says written estimate on so on then the sticky part will be on his end of this matter. You keep your side of it short and sweet. He may have a hard time trying to wiggle out of this in a short and sweet manner.
In other words, let most of the talking on your side be done by the printed out statutes and so on.
I don’t really believe in putting names and addresses out there no matter how much of a low life they are but I’d kind of like to know the city and the approximate street address. This could possibly lead to some prior problems with this guy and that could also come in handy if you go to small claims.
A few years back I was in a traffic accident in which the fault was in dispute. You should have seen the other guy’s face in traffic court when I showed up with printouts of his prior traffic transgressions; about a dozen or so altogether. He was ranting and raving about my “invading his privacy”, “being appointed by the Govenor…” to some commission, and was going to sue, blah, blah.
Hope that helps and good luck.
Elisabeth…What a NIGHTMARE you and your family are enduring. You have my sympathies. However, perhaps you might just slip the number to just me… YOu know no one else here will write it down. Then I can give him a call AFTER you have your vehicle back.
Then after that…I may slip the number to a few more folks on here and possibly each of us may take turns calling the shop to speak with him ON A DAILY BASIS…We can set up and ask for repair estimates as though we are planning on driving down to his shop for some service…This could become a full time job for him after a while.
You know we could “Reach Out and Touch Someone” a few hundred times. I’m game… Its not exactly right to do so…but neither was what he did to you and your family…especially a MILITARY FAMILY… Don’t mess with the US baby…
NOW BEFORE EVERYONE gets their panties in a bunch over my suggestion, just know that I am joking around…sort of…yeah…sort of. PLEASE do not create 6 more pages of why we shouldn’t do what i jokingly suggested…It got way out of hand the last time I suggested something risque…remember? LOL
It will be our own little COVERT OPERATION !
Blackbird
Maybe we can get together with the mechanic and OP and compare DD-214s.
While a Legal Assistance Officer cannot represent you, he can help advise you if you go the small claims route. He can help you state your case concisely and in accordance with the established law. If he is allowed to do so, he may also accompany your husband to pick up the car, and assist if the mechanic starts to re-invent state law to his advantage. He can also be a witness to the transaction payment and handing over the car. My sincere best wishes in trying to get this resolved.
Giving out the number is a real good way to get the judge pissed off at you if you do decide to haul him into small claims court. Harassing the other party never looks good, no matter how much the little jerk may deserve it.
Thanks for clearing this up. I’d be real careful about naming names and so on since it could be defamation and so on. Just stay above board. If your husband is military, there should be a JAG officer that’s assigned that he may want to talk to for legal advice. That’s what they do to take care of the troops and they have already been paid for.
Maybe we can get together with the mechanic and OP and compare DD-214s.
Last time I saw mine was when I got a VA loan…some 30+ years ago.
The public is very fickle and support for veterans has waxed and waned and now waxed again since the date on my DD-214. My point was, the mechanic could be a former Green Beret with a chest full of fruit salad for all we know. Would that change anyone’s opinion of him?