My Sister’s Car Held Hostage

Customer service is a trust or not situation. Even businesses that have provided you with services rendered with good results and satisfaction can throw the customer for an unexpected loop.

In the past blog postings, I've expressed the good, not so good and bad situations that I've encountered with customer service.

Usually, the situation just involves me. This time, the situation involves my sister, Darlene.

Darlene has been going through some hard times. A few years ago, she suffered a foot injury on her job at automotive wiring company. She's gone to therapy to heal the foot but it has not healed very well.

The job only gave her so much time with sick leave to heal with pay. Recently, I found out that she would receive one fourth  ¼ of what she makes in a week as she is on sick leave.

Darlene had a hard time keeping up with her bills. Even with the foot injury, she still went to work and did her job.

In August of 2014, she lost her car. Darlene was getting rides to work and the grocery store and pharmacy to get medicine. I’ve been trying to help. Someone gave her car that had been sitting in the yard for while. I bought a battery for the car.  We got the car started, but the car was smoking. We thought maybe it is something minor to take care of, like a core heater, something like that.

Darlene and I took the car to an auto repair shop she knew.  When she had worked for a bus service and they had their buses serviced there. Darlene has had her personal cars serviced there with no problem.

The diagnosis was it was not worth it to fix the car. It took a week or so as Darlene paid for their diagnosis. She was still without a car.

The auto repair shop sold cars. Darlene saw a 2004 Chrysler 200 she liked.  The car had 200,000 miles on it. She and I took the car for test drive and it ran well and we drove it the best we could.  

The auto repair shop agreed to $2000 for the car as is. She decides to buy the car. Within in a week, Darlene drops off a small down payment.

Over the next few months, Darlene worked overtime as much as she and her injured foot could manage. There were times, Darlene wouldn't be able to get the money to the auto service place for another payment unless I took the money or someone else took the money to them.

Sometimes, It could be three to four weeks for Darlene scrape the money to pay down the amount because she was trying to pay rent and keep her lights on.

Finally in late January, Darlene was able to make that final payment for the car. She was so happy.  Before, she left the lot, she asked the repair place to look over the car, and they did find a few minor things, which they took care of.

I took pictures of her posing with her new/used car. Darlene was excited to get her car and be independent again.

In a few weeks after having the car, the engine light came on. Darlene was hearing clicking sounds when she started the car and it wouldn't go. Then the car would start. It didn't happen often but haven't enough to give her a little bit of concern.

Darlene was very hesitant about taking the car back.  She said if they find anything she would be charge for it and she didn't have money to get it fixed.

Also, the driver side of the wiper was not squirting out fluid.  Darlene had gone through several bottles of ice de-icer. Especially, with the winter we were having, that was very dangerous. That was another thing that had to be looked at.

I wanted to her to take the car back to have some of these things checked out. I felt she had worked really hard to get that car and it should be right as it could be.

About two weeks, Darlene was on sick leave for her foot. I decided we should take the car in and get it checked out.

Again, Darlene was concerned about the state of the car because of the high mileage and if they found something; she would not be able to pay for it.

I couldn’t really help her financially because during the winter, the roads iced up really bad, and I had slid off the road into a guardrail. So, the back of my car was dented and I had slammed the brakes to avoid the guardrail and the brake line broke.  I have taking care of that.

Darlene calls the auto repair place to let them know that we are bringing the car to them.

On the day that we are going to the auto repair place, Darlene told me that the car sounded like the belt was making a sound. I told her we need to include that for them to take a look at.

On Wednesday, we arrive at the auto repair place about 11:40 AM. The owner,(not using his name's real name was leaving for somewhere in the parking lot. Darlene quickly explained what was happening with her car.

The owner seemed to be in a hurry and said leave the car with the keys in and someone will come out to check the car. The owners seem very much in a hurry, he said he had an appointment and got in a car and headed up the road.

I suggested to Darlene to take the keys in to give them personally to one of the mechanics. My concern was because her owner had driven off if someone not the mechanics had taken Darlene’s car, she would be out of a car completely. The auto repair shop would have no responsibility.

So, she took the keys. We walked into the shop to talk with another mechanic that we both were familiar with Chuck, (not his real name.) Again, Darlene explained the car situation.

Chuck said that they would take a look at the car. As we were leaving.  my intuition was kicking in to ask Chuck if he had Darlene’s number. But, I didn't.

As we're walking up to my car. I told Darlene that she should tell Chuck about the sound the belt was making.

She told Chuck. And we felt very confident that Darlene fully explained what was going on with the car.

One thing we didn't do which would be a major mistake for us.

 Later that day, I was at the library when I received a phone call formal underling. She said they fixed the car. Relief came over me, then immediately that feeling was gone. She said they had charged her $265 and were waving $20 for the wiper blade situation.

Darlene didn't have the money and I didn't have any extra cash to help out. She didn't authorize the auto repair shop to do anything.

I was thinking that maybe they didn’t have Darlene’s number so they could call when they found out something was wrong and the cost.

Darlene was upset and fearful because we both didn't have the money to get the car. I told Darlene, I would go to the auto repair place and talk to Chuck.

I did go. I asked why they didn't call Darlene and why they had done repairs.

Chuck said the car sensor was faulty and could stop working, maybe not today but could go anytime. He continued to say once they were into the car, it would be double the price to take the part out and find out what was wrong and put it back in. So, they replaced it.

According to the bill, they saw the belt was hard and needed replacing so they replaced it.

None of this was authorized by Darlene to replace or repair. She didn't sign any agreement for them to do anything.

I explained Darlene doesn't have the money for the repairs and they should have not done it without her permission.

So, I asked for bill for everything they did.

I am feeling really bad because I am the one who encouraged Darlene to get the car looked  at. Now again, she doesn't have a car.

Darlene’s car which she paid for is being held hostage because we trusted Chuck and the owner to call us before they made any repairs. Darlene thought she had a repair relationship with them. In the past, they had called her if they had to do repairs.

We really didn’t expect this to happen. As I waited for Chuck to bring the bill. I was thinking how do get through this. Could we sign something to make payments for the repair?

Then, Chuck brought me the bill. I look at what they had done. Near the top of the bill, I saw Darlene’s name, address and two contact numbers. So, they could have called her before doing the repairs.

To add to the insult at the bottom of the bill was a term of authorization to have the repairs done. There are blank lines for Authorized by, Date and Time.

Even though, Chuck explained why they did the repairs. I said they didn’t have authorization to do anything but to look for what could be wrong.

I asked if we could work out a payment agreement, Chuck declined stating that people have not paid after agreeing to pay.

If they would have just looked at the car as we hoped. She would been able

to save up for the repair like she did for the car.

This has been a lesson learned, no matter how we have done business with someone always make sure that the work that may be done, should in writing so  that they know that they are not to do anything without authorization.

At this point, the repair has been put undue stress on both of our lives. Not only, Darlene is dependent on me.

Last week, Darlene has a foot doctor's appointment to get to and she wondered how she would get there. She said that she needed that appointment. My heart sank as she look like she was almost coming to tears.  No one wants to see someone that they love suffer for something they didn’t do.

At this point, the auto repair shop has the upper hand in the car hostage.

We don't understand the auto repair shop. They saw how Darlene struggled to make payment for the car. No matter how much time it would taken, they would have gotten the money for the repairs. She may have not gotten the car repaired that day but she would have been back.

Darlene said in the past, the auto repair shop called with any repairs needed and what it would cost.  This time they didn’t.

But, this time, Darlene’s back is against the wall. She is trying to rent, have food and keep the lights on.

 While on sick leave Darlene received one fourth of her weekly pay. This Friday, Darlene had made sure she had her paperwork in. Then, she found out that she would not be getting no pay for this week because the agency handing her sick leave has not done something.

She has some bills that need to be paid.

Darlene says she is very depressed.  The stress of not receiving badly needed money, having the possibility to move from a house she likes, and electricity and water turned off.  Then, your car held hostage for something you didn’t do.

Darlene is preparing to go back to work with an unhealed foot because she has to. But, she needs her car to get to work. Her car is being held hostage by people who have treated her fairly before.

In reality, the auto repair shop was a business that I was confidant that they would treat my sister as a valued customer and that did not work out.

Darlene is strong and has gotten through some tough things before. It hurts to watch her in pain because of her foot and to go through stress for something that was unnecessary as them making a phone call.

I wrote this blog because what happened to Darlene can happen to anyone with a business or services they have confidence in.   Make sure, things to be looked or done are in writing.  

We have rights as consumers but some businesses are playing a game, which they believe perceived power over us.  They are wrong.

At this point of writing this blog, I am not sure how we will come up with the repair money. Darlene is trying to go back to work this week. Especially, after what just happened with the sick leave no pay.  

 I know we are good people and things will work out.

Thanks for reading the whole story.