can they do this???

I'd be annoyed in principle but in this case only $5 saves you the hassle of failing your WOF and driving away to replace the bulb and then drive back to get your WOF.

I'd leave it this time. Next time, specify that if anything needs doing, please phone for permission first.

They're probably not technically allowed to do it (not sure why I think that, so don't take my word for it ) but I'm sure since it was something so small that needed to be fixed for the car to pass its WOF, they didn't think it mattered too much - that you'd need to pay for it anyway or else drive around with no WOF. I'm sure if it was something bigger they would have called you. I'm sure there are people who would be annoyed if there was a dead lightbulb and the WOF people waited til they came to pick up the car to tell them "Oh, there was a lightbulb out that will cost $5 to fix, but we didn't want to do it until you agreed - oh you agree? Okay, you'll have to wait another ten minutes." So it's probably just become standard for some of these people to just go ahead and fix little things.

I know my WOF guy said last time, "If there's something small like lightbulbs, do you want us to just go ahead and fix it? If it's something bigger we will call you." Definitely talk to them about it before your next WOF though and come to some sort of agreement. For example, I don't mind if they fix a bulb, but I would be furious if they went and put in a new radiator or something without asking me first!

My, what a ramble I've gone on!

thanks guys, like Jess said its more the principle of things than the cost that bothers me ($5 is nothing!)

Personally I like this approach. I'd far rather pay the extra $5 and have the WOF then and there rather than going out to get a bulb then queuing up for a recheck.

I used to go to a guy who would say, its failed but you can go around the front to the garage and buy a bulb and I'll put it in for you. I ended up giving him the go ahead to do up to $20 worth of work without asking, but then I'd been going there for years, so I trusted him.

[QUOTE=jazzy]They have done that to me before also . I stopped going to them after they failed me once & said I should go to there workshop down the road to have the work done, so I went to a mechanic I had never been to before & he could not find anything wrong so I went back to the AA test station a day later & said nothing & went through the recheck lane & passed...without doing anythingI don't go there any more you got to wonder sometimes.
[QUOTE]

 

That makes me think that even though sarahm's bulb was only $5.00, what if it didn't need replacing and they're just ripping her off by saying it needed replacing and yet it didn't and still charging that amount.  What if they did that with everyone???  They'd be ripping people off and nobody would know, or question that fact it's only $5.

 

I'd say something Sarah, either ask for the lightbulb that was replaced, or something to show there is proof a new light bulb was put in.  To go ahead and just replace things whatever the cost isn't right.

I have asked my oracle (DH) and he says that most people would say go ahead which is why they probably just did it HOWEVER there really should be a sign telling you that they might do this.

$5 is fine imo, and if you think of it this way, your lucky it was only the bulb they charged you for. Some people would have charged you the labour to change the bulb too

I worked in the membership call centre for the AA and man you get crazy's there! People call up to find out if the weather is going to be good 2weeks from now, or I had someone tell me they wanted to join telecom or something really random. There was one guy who was straight outta the box crazy and would go crazy about stupid things, such as he had a service done and he was told they would use say 2ltrs of oil for a standard car, his was slightly bigger so they had to use a bit more and therefore it cost a bit more appropriately, yep went mental! Then they apparently took his papers out of the back seat of his car, nevermind they had no reason to go into the backseat of his car, he had left them in the front seat and they were still there. He used to threaten to cancel his membership and it got to the point that the manager just said next time he does that and asks for a refund do it! haha

Ok slightly off topic but I had to share the nutter