The weather is getting cooler and you may be thinking about winterizing your vehicle. Do you know Alberta has legislation regulating automotive service and repair businesses? This means an automotive service and repair business operating in Alberta must be licensed by AMVIC.
If someone is offering prices too good to be true, they could be a backyard mechanic, which is an unlicensed service and repair facility. Backyard mechanics doing work from a residential property are often breaking zoning and environmental bylaws. Before you decide where to get repairs done, look up the business on amvic.org to ensure they are licensed.
Here are some important service and repair tips, as outlined in the Automotive Business Regulation:
- If you ask for an estimate, it must be provided to you in writing.
- Before starting any work, a business needs to get your written consent. If you’re unable to give that consent, the business must record certain information including the consumer’s name, time and date, description of the work, estimated total cost of the work and how the authorization was given (by phone, email, etc.).
- A business cannot charge a price for goods or services that is more than 10 per cent higher, to a maximum of $100, than the original estimate given for those goods or services unless:
- the consumer has expressly consented to the higher price before the goods or services are supplied, or
- if the consumer requires additional goods or services, the consumer and the supplier agree to amend the estimate in a consumer agreement.
AMVIC offers a free service and repair consumer guide that includes more tips, as well as an authorization checklist. Visit amvic.org to learn more about backyard mechanics.