C’mon, let’s...

C’mon, let’s be honest. We can moan as much as we like about how franchised dealers are greedier than Heather Mills McCartney, and indeed they are. But, at the end of the day, it’s our apathy that lets them get away with charging nearly as much per hour for their mechanics’ time as you’d pay to hire a barrister. Or charter a private jet.

It’s all down to basic economics. A simple case of supply and demand. They provide the service at a grossly inflated price, and we are willing to do absolutely nothing about being ripped off. Just the other week I wrote an article which revealed that while the average labour rate at a main agent is чЈ83 per hour, the garages only pay technicians a tenth of this. The story appeared in the national press and I even talked about it on the radio. Everyone was jolly annoyed. Things must change, people said. But they won’t.

There’s something in the British psyche that lets us accept a raw deal. The French, on the other hand, don’t have this handicap. No way would they pay чЈ83 per hour for a mechanic to unscrew a widget and pour oil into a hole. And if dealers dared charge this much, there would be uproar, boycotts and probably even another revolution.

When we ran the mechanic salary story, the garages were quick to defend themselves. Some dealer principals wrote in to say how they have to spend thousands on training, millions on equipment and the equivalent of Africa’s debt burden on branding. And maybe they do. But surely their counterparts in the rest of Europe have similar costs? Yet when I did a survey of franchised dealers in France a while ago, I found the average labour rate was чЈ35 per hour! I’m sure that makes you as mad as it does me. But probably like me, apathy will see you return to a main agent come service or repair time.

For instance, when our long-term Volvo C70 was due its first check-up the other month, I could have taken it to an independent outlet. Ever since 2002 you have been able to do this without invalidating the car’s warranty, so long as the job is done in accordance with the maker’s guidelines. If only I had, I would have saved a packet. But apathy took over. I went with the easy option; I defaulted to my nearest franchised dealer.

It’s in Primrose Hill, north London, which is where actor Jude Law lives. Sadly, I’m not in the same income bracket, so when the service manager at HR Owen Regent’s Park told me the bill for the oil and filter change was чЈ303 (чЈ174 was for labour), I nearly had a heart attack. I tried to convince myself that somehow it was worth it. The staff had, after all, called me ‘Sir’, which was nice. I also got to drink posh coffee dispensed by a futuristic machine. And when my car was returned, it was so clean I thought they’d decided to give me a new one.

No way would the French pay чЈ83 an hour for a mechanic to pour oil in a hole... so why do we Brits put up with it?

This ‘added value’ is nothing more than a sales trick that firms use to justify high prices. After all, the place I’m most concerned about value being added is in my bank account. So next time, when my car needs a service or repair, I’m going to find a cheaper independent outlet. Sadly, I may not be able to.

The Block Exemption Rule, which enables independent garages to have access to the vehicle manufacturer’s technical details needed to work on cars, expires in 2010. Independent garages reckon that if the law isn’t renewed, consumers could find only franchised dealers have guaranteed access to these details. Anyone else simply wouldn’t have the knowledge to work on new models. That’s why the independents have launched the Right to Repair Campaign. By clicking on www.r2rc.co.uk you can lend your support. Us consumers need to take immediate action, so I’m going to log on to it now. Well, maybe tomorrow. Perhaps...