BBC show claims 'shocking' tactics from Kwik Fit mechanics
ERJ staff report (BC)
London – The BBC 1 television show Your Money, Their Tricks carried out an undercover test of Kwik Fit service centre mechanics, reports Sarah Coles of AOL.
Journalists had ten cars assessed by two independent experts, and then sent the vehicles into Kwik Fit branches across the UK for a free check on brakes and tires. They said that in four of the ten cases, mechanics tried to press the drivers into getting unnecessary work done, and that mechanics tried to push customers to have £700 (€808) worth of work on their cars. It was claimed that the work was either unnecessary or not as urgent as the mechanics were making out.
The show also claimed that the mechanics did not carry out full checks on seven of the cars; that they failed to spot under-inflated tires, and in one instance they missed a nail in a tire.
Kwik Fit disagreed with the allegations. It said in a statement: "From the limited information the BBC has provided in advance of its broadcast we, and an independent expert, seriously disagree with most of its findings." It also said that as a result of its response to the BBC, the programme has: "accepted that a number of its conclusions were wrong".
A BBC spokesperson is reported to have told AOL: "We stand by the programme."
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