Need Urgent Legal Advice

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news24

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Hi :(

On the 5th January while going to OR Tambo Airport my car broke down in Pretoria. It was then taken to mechanic who said he could fix it for R3800, my father was dealing with this, I was out of the country by then.

The price then climbed to R7400, we promptly gave the mechanic R3800 as deposit. Since then he has been sending my dad from pillar to post, every-time we called him, he said the car will be ready for pick up next day.

So today he called my dad and told him to come right away, when my dad arrived there he told him that the car engine has been fixed 100%, the only problem is just some rubbers that need to be replaced, he says that he is not competent in fixing the diesel pump, he will tour the car for free from Pretoria to Brits once he gets his balance.

I find it unacceptable, so I told my dad not to pay him the remaining balance because the engine is not running, how will we know if the car is fixed or not. I told the mechanic to fix the car, I don't care if he charges extra but I want a running car. He says that he will not lay one hand on the car unless he is paid the balance. Now he is threatening to take the car to a storage where it will rent every day unless we pay the balance.

So what can I do, I'm on the other side of the world and I wont be back in SA for a few months.
 
Ask the guy for a complete breakdown of what he has fixed so far and post it here so people can see if he actually did anything.
 
TheGuy said:
Ask the guy for a complete breakdown of what he has fixed so far and post it here so people can see if he actually did anything.
Click to expand...

The problem was with the CAM belt coming off. Some valves were broken and the top had to be replaced. The car was due for a service two before it broke. What the guy told my dad is that he could fix the car and service it for R3800, which then escalated to R7400, and we paid the initial figure as deposit.

We never gave him problems regarding the deposit, it was paid right away. Why now the urgency to get paid, we are not the ones to delay anything, he had the car with him since 6th January, today its the 4th February, he is the one who has been delaying. Now he wants to be paid because apparently he fixed the car :(
 
R7K sounds fair for that type of breakage. Why not pay the balance?
 
biometrics said:
R7K sounds fair for that type of breakage. Why not pay the balance?
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I am not arguing whether it is fair or not. I don't have a problem with paying for the car. I've called the guy about 8 times and on all occasions he kept on telling me that the car will be ready tomorrow. What I want is to pay for a car that is running. You can't fix and service a car that is not running and then proclaim that the engine is 100%.
 
Agreed with SB. You may have to cut your loss and get the car from him and take it to a real company, not some backyarder.
 
satanboy said:
especially since he has no qualms bragging about the dollars he earns each month...

R7K should be pocket change
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I did not choose the mechanic, it was my father who did that, apparently he has a very strong respect for Afrikaaners, I'd be surprised if he hasn't referred to him as Baas yet. Money is not a problem, but on principle this mechanic really needs to be taught a lesson.
 
news24 said:
I have always used reputable Mechanics, but as I said in my previous post. My father thinks that Afrikaaners are God's gift to mankind, he has a huge respect for them, so he was sold when the guy told him that he could fix the car.
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So sorry to hear that :(
 
news24 said:
I have always used reputable Mechanics, but as I said in my previous post. My father thinks that Afrikaaners are God's gift to mankind, he has a huge respect for them, so he was sold when the guy told him that he could fix the car.
Click to expand...

Link
What is this Afrikaaner Mechanic youtalking about?
 
biometrics said:
R7K sounds fair for that type of breakage. Why not pay the balance?
Click to expand...

For repairs on a car that's not running? What was wrong with the diesel pump? How can you determine that the repairs were done successfully? Sounds like a scam to me!
 
Facts are as follows:
1. Paying for the repairs isn't an issue for you.
2. You don't need the car for a few months since you aren't going to be here.

From the above I would thus conclude that you tell your father to go have the car towed to the dealer of your car i.e. VW if it's a VW, Ford if it's a Ford etc, and have them sort it out.

If he does not wish to release your car, your father simply goes to the police and open a case against him since you have done nothing wrong. You have paid a deposit and should only pay the balance upon completion of the service to be rendered (in this case that would be the repair of your vehicle to original working condition).

Once the dealer of your car makes an assessment, you take the cost they charge you to get the car to working condition off the final figure of R7,400 since the Afrikaaner didn't fix your car as he described. If it is simply rubbers and stuff, then the cost will not be great and you pay him since he did actually fix your car.

On the flip side, if the car isn't fixed at all because your dealer tells you the truth, you sue him for extortion as well as attempted fraud since he simply wanted to take your money.

I'm sure if you phone him and tell him the above, he will change his tune very quickly. It's the norm to only pay for something when you receive the final product and not before. When I take my car in for repairs, I only pay on collection so why is he so adamant that he wants payment now?? It does sound fishy!
 
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