ComplaintsforBKD Automotive

• Initial Complaint

  02/09/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On Sept 1 we were suppose to pick up our vehicle from the garage. He has sent us via email a quote to get our transmission fixed. We had asked him out the door all included the total. The morning he called to advise it was ready to pick up, the price has now go $800 above. He said the cost for the transmission has gone up and even if we had a quote from Aug and he was made aware of this price hike in July …. He was horrible and bc I made a big fuss would take $400 above quote cash to get my **** back. He even suggested keep the winch on the car to keep as collateral. Worse mechanic ever. And should be able to charge more that the quote advising without contacting prior. He was not ok!!

  Business response

  20/09/2022

  In response to the quote for ****** ******s 2010 **** wrangler.the quote was done without the **** present  over the phone on march 29/22.at the time he was not sure of transmission model or what caused the failure.when we got the appointment in late august due to finances the **** was run for another 5 months.our prices had an increase in july same as everything else.when we received the **** it was obviously equipped as an off road vehicle.the transmission cooler was plugged.we also scan tested for any codes.it had PCM  code p0304 engine missfire #4.ABS codes ******************and body control codes.there was extra time to diag the cause of failure and the wiring harness clips were full of sand that took extra time to dissamble and reassemble along with other unforseen problems with engine misfire.none of this was mentioned during quote.the job also took extra 4.hrs at $80.per hr.when i called she said it was only 3375.00.i tried to explain the price increase and labour cost she indicated she did not have the funds and needed the **** for transportation of handycap child.i did say i could remove the winch so they could be on there way and i would have insurance they would be back.she explained that her husband need the winch for off roading

   every weekend.so i lowered the total price to #3800 even from 4056.85.when ****** left i gave him work order paid in full and the print out of the vehicle health report and explained the engine missfire will ruin the transmission.thought everthing was ok when they left.

  
  

  Business response

  03/10/2022

  Good Day Mrs. ******,
  

  
  

  I would like to return to the original reason for the complaint and desired outcome of a billing adjustment. For this I would to find a compromise where we both may walk away happy.
  
  As a small family business, we want to support other families in our community, including yours. In an effort to find common ground I would like to explain each or your points from my perspective.
  
  1 – You indicated that we had your vehicle one week prior to your appointment. This is true. We had agreed to have your vehicle arrive early as it waits for your appointment as this was a good time for you to have it delivered. This was based on an understanding that your vehicle would not be looked at in any way in advance of your appointment. For this reason, I must disagree to the argument of having extra time to address the potential for additional costs. Furthermore, we did not charge an additional storage fees which we normally would for vehicles arriving early or late pick-ups as space is limited at our business co-located with our home.
  
  2 -  I did resend the same quote, you are correct, I do apologize. I let the stress of the day reduce the effort that should have gone into double checking if the cost had increased. This has been a tough lesson for me, and for that I thank you. For this, at the time of pick-up, I had agreed to reduce the bill by$256.00. When you were unable to cover the remainder, expressing that you only had $3400.00, the compromise that was suggested was that I hold the winch until there was an opportunity to return with the remainder. This suggestion was made in an effort  to reduce the financial burden on you and your family. I apologize for the miscommunication on this point and would like to offer an addition $200.00 reduction to your bill.
  
  3 – Speaking to the lights on the dash – this is something that as a registered mechanic must do to ensure the safety of the vehicle, also, so if the codes were associated to the original transmission failure and an effort to ensure that another transmission replacement would not be required due to the issue going unresolved. I had described the conditions remaining on the vehicle, to which you agreed to take with the cylinder 4 misfire, which was explain would result in immediate and/or future transmission issues. This was another factor of the additional costs on the bill.
  
  4 – All of my communication up until the point of payment including the invoice was between myself and your husband (Steve) which is why I had requested to continue communications with the original customer. If we’re speaking about defamation of character, the indication of not wanting to speak to you as a female, is an insinuation of sexist comments/behaviour which is not how I conduct business and is not appreciated.
  
  5 – You had mentioned that I had chosen the wrong word (handicap) when you felt I was describing your child in a derogatory way, there are a lot of things my generation has been using as terminology for decades, that I continue to work to unlearn, this is one of those terms, I know now that the term is special needs.
  
  6 – As far as the claim of defamation of character to your husband, this was a comment in generality about those in the past offering labour in exchange for bill reduction (which had left us taking the financial loss). This was not addressed at your husband, merely a response to our business policy and description of the background that made this decision to not exchange labour for payment.
  
  In closing, I would reiterate my point of finding a resolution and bill reduction. The bill that was paid was $4056.85. On that day, I removed $256.85 from the bill (out of my pocket), leaving the total at $3800.00. I am additionally offering to further reduce the bill by another $200.00, for a total of $3600, which is less than half of the difference.
  
  I hope that this will satisfy a resolution to our conflict and we can close from here.
  
  Respectfully,

  
  

  Customer response

  03/10/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  I am requesting the refund to be sent by e-transfer due to not wanting any further interaction with this company or it’s owner.  Email address is *******************.  

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩