The average car repair bill
All car repair bills are made up of two parts:
The cost of the replacement parts or welding
The labour charges to fit the replacement parts or do the welding
Often the cost of the parts to fix your car will be a lot less than the labour charges to fit them, which is why it’s important to find a quality garage that doesn’t charge the earth. Things like new batteries, spark plugs, alternators and starter motors shouldn’t cost more than around a hundred pounds to buy and fit so if a garage wants to charge much more than this, think again.
Bigger jobs, such as welding, new exhaust parts and anything that involves taking bits of the engine apart e.g. oil leaks, water leaks, head gasket problems etc. will cost quite a bit more so you need to be prepared for a £300+ bill at the very least. Some car engines are easier and quicker to dismantle than others but if you have an awkward engine you could pay another £300+ just in labour charges.
And what if your car can’t be repaired? It’s no secret that garages will still charge you labour charges even if your car turns out to be beyond repair. You may take it in for a small knocking sound and find out, after 8 hours of tinkering with it, that it would cost more to fix than it’s worth. You get a repair bill for £320 and a condemned car.
Finding the right garage
Unfortunately repair garages do in general have a bad reputation, but there are still some that try to keep repair costs down. Word of mouth is a great way to find a reputable garage so ask friends and family if they can recommend anywhere. Alternatively check the internet for reviews written by past customers. People rarely lie when writing reviews so if one garage has loads of positive feedback then they will definitely be worth contacting.
Paying your repair bill
Understandably there aren’t many people these days with £500+ lying around just waiting for a car repair bill to come along. This means that if you do find yourself in this situation you’re probably going to have to think fast about how you’re going to pay it.
Getting a credit card is out of the question because you’ll have to go through all the rigmarole of applying and waiting for your confirmation and card before you can even pay the car bill! In this case, a short term loan might be a more viable option to get your wheels back in motion.
The internet is a great place to start your search if you’re looking for this type of lending, and there are numerous short term loan companies who will lend money in a matter of hours, so you don’t have to delay in getting your motor back. You simply borrow the amount you need and repay it with interest when you next get paid. Just be sure to check for reviews and recommendations, as you would with your garage, to ensure the lender is reputable.
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/usaghumphreys/7174846990/