Mechanic Did Dodgy Repairs and Won’t Fix Them? Send a Letter of Demand

You dropped the car off. You paid the invoice. Three days later the same warning light is back on, or there is a new noise that was not there before. You ring the workshop and suddenly nobody can find your job card.

This is one of the most common consumer complaints in Australia. Don’t. The law is on your side, and a formal letter sets out your rights in writing.

What the law says

Every service bought in Australia comes with automatic guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010). A mechanic must:

• Do the work with due care and skill (section 60)
• Make sure the work is fit for the purpose you told them about (section 61)
• Finish it in a reasonable time (section 62)

If they replaced your alternator and the car still will not charge, the work is not fit for purpose. If they “serviced” the brakes and the pads are untouched, they did not do it with care and skill. You do not need a lawyer to say that. The Act says it for you.

What you are entitled to

If the problem is minor, the mechanic gets one chance to fix it within a reasonable time, at their cost. If the problem is major, or they refuse to fix it, you can:

1. Cancel the contract and get a full refund of what you paid, or
2. Get the job done elsewhere and bill the first mechanic for the difference, plus any damage caused (section 267 and 268)

So if you paid $1,800 for a gearbox job and the second mechanic charges $2,400 to fix it properly, you can claim the full $2,400. Not just your original invoice.

Why the phone calls are not working

Workshops know most customers go away after two or three calls. Nothing you say on the phone creates a record. A Letter of Demand does. It states the facts, cites the sections of the Act, names the dollar figure, and gives a deadline. It tells the mechanic that the next stop is the tribunal, where a default judgment goes on their record and their business name.

Before you send anything

• Get a written diagnosis from a second mechanic saying what was wrong with the first repair
• Keep the original invoice and any texts or emails
• Take photos of the parts if you still have them
• Do not let the first mechanic touch the car again unless you have agreed in writing that it is a warranty repair at no cost

What happens next

Give them 14 days. If they pay, done. If they ignore you, your letter is Exhibit A at VCAT, NCAT, QCAT or your state’s Magistrates Court. Filing fees are usually under $100 for claims of this size, and you do not need a lawyer. Tribunals regularly hear motor vehicle repair claims, and a second opinion and a clean paper trail are the evidence that matters.

Every week you wait, the workshop’s memory gets shorter and your evidence gets older. Do it today.

Claim Done drafts your Letter of Demand for $49. Done in about 5 minutes. You approve it before it is sent.