Rip Off

cowboy · 25-09-2007, 12:06 AM

So the ariel lead for the UHF radio in my ute had a break in it so in I went to the local radio/phone kit/GPS store and asked to have it joined. They agreed and asked me to bring the car round the back, no worries. Ended up pulling some more lead from under the dash and soldering a new fitting on the end (fitting supplied by me). All up maybe 5 min work. went in to pay the account and almost fell over when the girl says that'll be $47. I was stunned. I mean living in remote areas you always expect to pay a little more but holy crap, $47 for 5 min! That's about 560 bucks an hour! Remained calm (temper never wins in these situations) and after much discussion they dropped it to $27, still dear but i paid and left.

Any other blatant rip off stories out there?

[Tonko] · 25-09-2007, 12:12 AM

Yeah, I bought an EBXR8 from a car yard that also does RW's. Drove around for 2 days and got a MAJOR defective. All i had done to the car was fill it up with fuel.

Mehanic/neighbour tried to charge me $35 for 'advising' because i asked him about Holley adaptors.

Thats all i can think of ATM

Riksta · 25-09-2007, 12:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cowboy

Any other blatant rip off stories out there?

All service stations for both petrol & goods from within the store.

flappist · 25-09-2007, 12:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cowboy

So the ariel lead for the UHF radio in my ute had a break in it so in I went to the local radio/phone kit/GPS store and asked to have it joined. They agreed and asked me to bring the car round the back, no worries. Ended up pulling some more lead from under the dash and soldering a new fitting on the end (fitting supplied by me). All up maybe 5 min work. went in to pay the account and almost fell over when the girl says that'll be $47. I was stunned. I mean living in remote areas you always expect to pay a little more but holy crap, $47 for 5 min! That's about 560 bucks an hour! Remained calm (temper never wins in these situations) and after much discussion they dropped it to $27, still dear but i paid and left.

Any other blatant rip off stories out there?

So why didn't you fix it yourself?

What? You didn't know how? You didn't have the equipment?

So you went to a place where a person who did know how and did have the equipment stopped what they were doing, went out to sort your problem when YOU wanted it fixed and then you complain about the bill?

I have a good idea. You are obviously a hard working employee. How about you only get paid for your ACTUAL work. Every time you are not ACTUALLY working, like walking to or from a desk, looking out the window, posting on AFF, having a drink of water, talking to other people you don't get paid?
And if there is nothing for you to do even though it is not your fault you don't get paid at all until there is even if it is days or weeks.

Don't like that idea?

You might get the idea I have very little time for whingers........

Mongoose · 25-09-2007, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riksta

All service stations for both petrol & goods from within the store.

hahaha! tell me about it. $3.50 for a bloody mars bar!

[Tonko] · 25-09-2007, 12:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mongoose

hahaha! tell me about it. $3.50 for a bloody mars bar!

What?!
I thought $3.80 for a coke, $8 for a pack of NO-DOZ and a redbull was bad enough...
But theres a deal where its like $4 for a mars bar and a coke. What the?

Super Roo 1970 · 25-09-2007, 01:08 AM

I would have waited till I was in a decent sized town and found a Dick-head Smith Store and feel ripped off paying $29 for a new base and lead.

schnoods · 25-09-2007, 01:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

So why didn't you fix it yourself?

What? You didn't know how? You didn't have the equipment?

So you went to a place where a person who did know how and did have the equipment stopped what they were doing, went out to sort your problem when YOU wanted it fixed and then you complain about the bill?

I have a good idea. You are obviously a hard working employee. How about you only get paid for your ACTUAL work. Every time you are not ACTUALLY working, like walking to or from a desk, looking out the window, posting on AFF, having a drink of water, talking to other people you don't get paid?
And if there is nothing for you to do even though it is not your fault you don't get paid at all until there is even if it is days or weeks.

Don't like that idea?

You might get the idea I have very little time for whingers........

I do agree with most of it. Not only the gear and the expertise side of things, but also the liability as well. Not only do they use their profession and skills, but they do have to put name to it too. And with that they do take responsibility, as if your car shorted out and had a fire they would be under scrutiny, as they did the work.

myxr6 · 25-09-2007, 09:16 AM

Most places charge a minimum hours labour regardless of the time taken.

cowboy · 25-09-2007, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

So why didn't you fix it yourself?

What? You didn't know how? You didn't have the equipment?

So you went to a place where a person who did know how and did have the equipment stopped what they were doing, went out to sort your problem when YOU wanted it fixed and then you complain about the bill?

I have a good idea. You are obviously a hard working employee. How about you only get paid for your ACTUAL work. Every time you are not ACTUALLY working, like walking to or from a desk, looking out the window, posting on AFF, having a drink of water, talking to other people you don't get paid?
And if there is nothing for you to do even though it is not your fault you don't get paid at all until there is even if it is days or weeks.

Don't like that idea?

You might get the idea I have very little time for whingers........

Would have fixed it myself if i had known what they'd charge. Was in a mining town a long way from home and all my tools and thought it would be cheaper and easier to get it fixed than go and buy a soldering iron. The place I went didn't have to stop any jobs, spoke to receptionist then waited out front until one of their guys had finished a job and could look. Would be quite happy with your pay idea. I have 2 jobs, one on an oil rig where i am now and the other driving road trains hauling ore. There is no "not working time".

fmc351 · 25-09-2007, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

So why didn't you fix it yourself?

What? You didn't know how? You didn't have the equipment?

So you went to a place where a person who did know how and did have the equipment stopped what they were doing, went out to sort your problem when YOU wanted it fixed and then you complain about the bill?

I have a good idea. You are obviously a hard working employee. How about you only get paid for your ACTUAL work. Every time you are not ACTUALLY working, like walking to or from a desk, looking out the window, posting on AFF, having a drink of water, talking to other people you don't get paid?
And if there is nothing for you to do even though it is not your fault you don't get paid at all until there is even if it is days or weeks.

Don't like that idea?

You might get the idea I have very little time for whingers........

I dont care how you slice it, $47 to refit the PL259 coupling on coax is rough, especially when the client supplies the fitting. Oh and if they just shortened the coax, they havent a clue what they are doing. The length of coax should be a mathematical portion of the wavelength. Sure it still works, but like runners on EFI manifolds, the length has a purpose in good design.

You have little time for whingers? Please, there was more wine in your post than a Holden diff. Pot, meet kettle.

zhodak · 25-09-2007, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cowboy

Any other blatant rip off stories out there?

I bought a new Ford once :(

flappist · 25-09-2007, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fmc351

You have little time for whingers? Please, there was more wine in your post than a Holden diff. Pot, meet kettle.

No I drink rum and beer not wine. As far as I am aware holden diffs contain oil.

All these terrible ripoffs. If you don't like it go somewhere else.

Lets see. In a remote location so you pay more to have those services available. Do you gat paid more to work on your oil rig than someone doing the same level of work in the suburbs?
Do you earm more driving your road than than a courier driver?

As far as the rip off servos. They could be the same price as a supermarket if they were only open 9-5 weekdays and half Saturday.

What you pay for is convenience. Someone else is spending time and money so YOU can have it easier and so YOU are paying for that privilege.

So get out and save money. Sell your falcon and take the bus or buy a Hyundai. Buy your food and drinks at Aldi. Buy your grog out of the specials bin. If you break anything fix it yourself.

Lots of people do, you have probably seen them......

Falc'man · 25-09-2007, 10:30 AM

Easiest way I suppose is to ask "how much" will it cost before you "yeah, go ahead with it mate" so you don't end up thinking "oh *add your choice of cursing/abuse/swearing/begging*". Its not nice being ripped/raped/shafted, but at the same time... you can always ask beforehand. If you don't like the "damage" don't get it fixed.

fmc351 · 25-09-2007, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

No I drink rum and beer not wine. As far as I am aware holden diffs contain oil.

All these terrible ripoffs. If you don't like it go somewhere else. Bit hard once the job is done

Lets see. In a remote location so you pay more to have those services available. And they have a captive customer base, no competition. Do you gat paid more to work on your oil rig than someone doing the same level of work in the suburbs?Not my oil rig, not my truck. Not my thread
Do you earm more driving your road than than a courier driver?Is he driving something larger than a normal courier? Is a PL259 harder to solder in the outback?

As far as the rip off servos. They could be the same price as a supermarket if they were only open 9-5 weekdays and half Saturday.Please. What are you, 12?

What you pay for is convenience. Someone else is spending time and money so YOU can have it easier and so YOU are paying for that privilege.I see youre in fact 8. Privilege? They set up business for profit, rip off is a fair complaint. $47 for a PL259 resoldering qualifies as a rip off. Convenience, pigs ar5e

So get out and save money. Sell your falcon and take the bus or buy a Hyundai. Buy your food and drinks at Aldi. Buy your grog out of the specials bin. If you break anything fix it yourself. Save your playschool financial advice for the kids in the playground.

Lots of people do, you have probably seen them......

You seem confused, allow me to point you in the right direction, Im not the OP. I made no complaints. I simply suggested a mirror may be useful to you if you feel the need to spot a whinger. Ill check back later to see if you decide to whinge some more.

red_hotxr6 · 25-09-2007, 10:43 AM

I had the bottom part of my seat that supports the actual cushion split, i went to the upholsters up by me to get it fixed, $95.00 was quoted, so i said thanks and left On the way to redcliffe dynos i passed an upholsterer, stopped and asked him how much to fix, $10.00, and it will take 1/2 an hour. went to steve,s passed back and the guy said it was a bit harder to do than we thought $15.00, but for that price i wasnt arguing. Got some RECARO material finally from japan, asked the same guy near me again how much to recover 2 panels, $350.00, so i went to the one at alderley, $140.00, so guess who is doing it for me tomorrow. Rip offs..everywhere.

Falc'man · 25-09-2007, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by red_hotxr6

I had the bottom part of my seat that supports the actual cushion split, i went to the upholsters up by me to get it fixed, $95.00 was quoted, so i said thanks and left On the way to redcliffe dynos i passed an upholsterer, stopped and asked him how much to fix, $10.00, and it will take 1/2 an hour. went to steve,s passed back and the guy said it was a bit harder to do than we thought $15.00, but for that price i wasnt arguing. Got some RECARO material finally from japan, asked the same guy near me again how much to recover 2 panels, $350.00, so i went to the one at alderley, $140.00, so guess who is doing it for me tomorrow. Rip offs..everywhere.

But wait, thats common sense you're not supposed to post that lol. It pays to ask does it not?

flappist · 25-09-2007, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fmc351

You seem confused, allow me to point you in the right direction, Im not the OP. I made no complaints. I simply suggested a mirror may be useful to you if you feel the need to spot a whinger. Ill check back later to see if you decide to whinge some more.

Well I was looking to reply to your points but you haven't actually really made any. I then looked back over your history and that seems to be what you normally do.

Now you seem to want to make this a personal attack and you know what happens to members who do that.

Macca23 · 25-09-2007, 02:32 PM

Well i woulda charged for that job - $5 in part.
Labour say 20min ? - $30

Thats in sydney metro too btw!

flappist · 25-09-2007, 02:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Macca23

Well i woulda charged for that job - $5 in part.
Labour say 20min ? - $30

Thats in sydney metro too btw!

That is $90/hr. You would need to charge 20 hrs/wk just to make wages.

For those who do not work for themselves or run a business.

You have to pay for:

Telephone/Internet
Vehicle expenses
Rent/lease of premesis
Body corp fees (usually)
Public Liability Insurance
Professional Liability Insurance
Income protection insurance (no work cover or paid sickies)
Fees and interest of EFTPOS, overdraft, whatever
Accounting fees
Work cover (if you employ anyone)
Advertising
Plant and equipment
Stock on hand
Consumables

and lots lots more.

If you do not take this into account when you run your business you will go splat like 95% of new businesses do.

The original complaint was that the guy charged $47. That is about 2/3 of our min charge, $71.50 and that business has been running for 22 years.

Now I wonder if that guy charged $47/5m or maybe charged $47/30m or part there of. Did he have continuous work lined up or was he up and down depending on external influences?

If he were not there (and there were no others) what would you have done?
Like the petrol stations, if they closed because they went broke due to petrol price cutting wars (the food shop is a major profit centre in that business model) what would you do?

sarrge2001 · 25-09-2007, 02:59 PM

A one man operation will usually be cheaper than a company with more employees.

I'm in Adelaide and we would have charged a minimum 1/2 hour ($41.25 inc GST) and our charges are probably middle of the road

That has to cover:
Labour to fix it.
Processing time to raise and close a service job
Invoice and payment processing
Warranty on the work conducted
Premises
Tax

etc etc etc

Yes, at first glance, $47.00 could be considered expensive when you look at what needed to be done, but looking at the picture of business as a whole, it's not that bad.

Moral is - ask for a quote first.......

cowboy · 25-09-2007, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

No I drink rum and beer not wine. As far as I am aware holden diffs contain oil.points for being a bundy drinker

All these terrible ripoffs. If you don't like it go somewhere else.somewhere else is perth, 600 odd km away

Lets see. In a remote location so you pay more to have those services available. Do you gat paid more to work on your oil rig than someone doing the same level of work in the suburbs?yes I do, but then people in the suburbs can go home every night, see their loved ones, have weekends off and don't work with constant danger of explosion/fire/sinking etc
Do you earm more driving your road than than a courier driver?again yes but how many couriers vehicles are 53m long and weigh 150ton.

As far as the rip off servos. They could be the same price as a supermarket if they were only open 9-5 weekdays and half Saturday.I have no prob with servo prices

What you pay for is convenience. Someone else is spending time and money so YOU can have it easier and so YOU are paying for that privilege.

So get out and save money. Sell your falcon and take the bus or buy a Hyundai. Buy your food and drinks at Aldi. Buy your grog out of the specials bin. If you break anything fix it yourself. serious question here, what the heck is Aldi? And i fix nearly everything myself but as stated i'm a long way from home and my tool kit

Lots of people do, you have probably seen them......

Guess I have just been spoilt by too many small bush towns. This type of little job gets sorted out easily there. Cash or beer.

And isn't whinging about whingers a whinge in itself?

fmc351 · 25-09-2007, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

Well I was looking to reply to your points but you haven't actually really made any. I then looked back over your history and that seems to be what you normally do.

Now you seem to want to make this a personal attack and you know what happens to members who do that.

I responded to YOU calling someone a whinger because he was appalled at paying $47 for a $20 job. Whinger, sounds like a personal attack to me. Im just calling a spade a spade. Maybe you should worry about what happens when you make personal attacks. You could have just made that last post instead.

Blonk · 25-09-2007, 04:57 PM

I once spent 5 minutes reading flappists whinging posts..

I want my 5 minutes back..!!

Yellow_Festiva · 25-09-2007, 05:22 PM

There is a difference between being charged whats "Fair" with whats "Fair and reasonable". Yes I would agree with the original post that the price paid was too much. My experience with country towns is that they charge "Fair and reasonable", where as city charges "Fair".....

You could have just got the guy on a bad day and he wanted to take up out on you?

And the guy doing the job was also clever by not quoting a price beforehand. I have learnt the hard way about that personally. Any work that is ever done by a tradesperson is quoted up front, no matter how small. If I agree I also add that should it end up costing $1 more than I want a call beforehand to OK the extra money.

Hows this..... Walk into Aus post to get info on delivery charges for different types of mail as well as other leaflets of info. They are out of the specific leaflet I was after so the person pulled out a book with the info to refer to. The person said words to the effect of "I can copy that if you want" seeing as they were out of the leaflet and I couldnt take their behind the counter booklet.....

I agreed, thanked them for their help then proceeded to gather the leaflets and the copy to leave the counter. She then said... hang on, I have to charge you for the copy.

I looked at her blankly and said are you serious? Your charging me for a copy that you suggested and that was only done caus you were out of the info leaflet? Had I known they were gonna charge me I would have just written down the info from the book, or get the info online.

In the end after some heated words with the person in the next teller I screwed up the copy and threw it over the counter. (He sugested I do this and F^#K off if I was going to argue over 30c... so I did).

And yes, the office was empty and I wasnt holding anyone up.....

flappist · 25-09-2007, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cowboy

Guess I have just been spoilt by too many small bush towns. This type of little job gets sorted out easily there. Cash or beer.

And isn't whinging about whingers a whinge in itself?

Probably.

Aldi is a super cheapo supermarket that sells all its own brands and is usually much cheaper than woolies/coles etc. I think they are german.

I grew up in a small bush town where things were done as favours, cash or beer. The difference was if something went wrong it was resolved personally face to face, there was not "fair trading", "ombudsman", "a current affair", "solicitors at 10 paces" etc. etc and you get the job done when it was convenient, not NOW NOW NOW.

I am not saying that you personally are like that but a large percentage of society is and that is who you have to cater for.

Just read this forum. How many threads blame someone else for their troubles?
"I modded my <insert car here> and got it tuned at <insert shop here> and it went bang after only 120,000 quarter mile runs".
or
"I got my car tuned at shop A and only got 750rwkw whereas baldrick got his done at shop B and he got 751rwkw. I want a refund".

It is a litigeous world and you have to cover your bum or else you will get hammered.

You pointed out that you earn more because you are in woop woop and control a large and difficult vehicle and this is rightly so. Your employer pays you more than he would a 17 year old kid because he needs skill, experience and some trust that you will do the job properly.

So although you think you were ripped.

If he had shorted the coax and you fried the PA tranny then he would have had to fix it, at his cost.
If he had made a dry joint and later when you broke down or need info from other trucks the radio had a range of 10 feet you would spew.

He did a professional job, tested it afterward and for the cost of a few drinks you have a safety/communication device that works and next time you have a problem you will not see a "For Lease" sign in the window as he will probably be there to fix that one too.

flappist · 25-09-2007, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blonk

I once spent 5 minutes reading flappists whinging posts..

I want my 5 minutes back..!!

Well one day if you post something worthwhile somebody might read your posts and actually care what you say.

uranium_death · 25-09-2007, 05:55 PM

I don't agree with Flappist too often and he never agrees with me (probably because I'm a nice whinger too), but I think he's correct.

Before you get any work done, get a quote and if you don't like it, go elsewhere.

After somebody has completed the work you leave yourself open to any costs.

I will say that your 47 dollar cost is nothing for five minutes

An anesthetist charged me 80 bucks for a 10 second consultation where he walked up to my bed, said, "I'll stick a needle in your arm and you'll fall asleep. Any questions? No? Bye". That's about $28,800 an hour. Was it right? Absolutely...an anesthetist (or anybody working in the field) has massive risk of litigation and is under a lot of pressure with appointments throughout the day.
They have to work hard to get to where they are and work harder to stay there. There was no alternative so any cost I pay is the way it goes.

Life is full of costs and sometimes, you just need to grin and bear it.

flappist · 25-09-2007, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uranium_death

I don't agree with Flappist too often and he never agrees with me (probably because I'm a nice whinger too), but I think he's correct.

It is not that I never agree with you at all. If I have no interest in a thread or the points made are very obvious, indesputable and I would just be repeating what you or others have said then I usually say nothing. Too many threads have the same comment or statement over and over again.

uranium_death · 25-09-2007, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flappist

It is not that I never agree with you at all. If I have no interest in a thread or the points made are very obvious, indesputable and I would just be repeating what you or others have said then I usually say nothing. Too many threads have the same comment or statement over and over again.

Fair enough.

Peace