Servicing chippers

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

Just put mine in for dealer service, I like to keep on top of such things and I prefer not to do the 'mechanicals' myself.

 

Quote was 2 hrs labour @ £50/hr + necessary ancil's.  Bit rich perhaps but a necessary and justifiable expense.

 

On collection I find 4 hrs labour @ £60/hr and other costs such as 'cleaning' and £6 for white grease.

 

So where I was expecting a couple of hundred quid the invoice was close to twice that.   

 

A little bit peeved wouldn't be an entirely accurate description of my reaction.

 

OK, I can see a few sprays of white grease around the appropriate areas - but certainly not a whole £6 can full.

 

I know it wasn't cleaned because it was 'king mint when it went it.

 

A short discussion ensued which resulted in the person on the til undertaking to discuss the matter with the service manager who was currently out at lunch.

 

Chipper loaded and off I toddled without having settled the bill waiting for the phone call which had been promised.

 

Apparently, the service manager had not seen the bill before it was compiled and presented to me.

 

It's been "adjusted" from just shy of £400 to £188.

 

Now I know I'm a miserable bar steward at the best of times but there are occasions when you feel like someone is trying to pull your pants down (negative grease) and it pays to say "...hang on a minute....."

 

What sort of money are folks paying for chipper service?

 

 

 

 

[Matthew Storrs]

Yeah- that’s rip off money. I have CBL saltash come to my yard to service 2 of my diggers, track motor oils, engine oil, fuel/ air and hydraulic filter. Total was £380 for both machine inc VAT and their travel time. Can’t grumble really

 

 

just checks invoice £353 all INC. 

Edited March 13, 2020 by Matthew Storrs

[Matthew Storrs]

And that includes a £40 fuel cap which I’d forgotten about. 1 machine service on its own was about £100 including labour/oils/travel 

[doobin]

Jesus Matt you could do it yourself for 50 quid in parts and a couple of hours. There’s nothing to them. A pound saved is a pound earned, and basic servicing is the one of the easiest ways to achieve this. Even if it took you all day you can’t tell me you’d have made £380 on a miserable wet day and have a full year of £380 days booked?
 

Main dealers are renowned for tricks like Kev describes. 

[wicklamulla]

Kev they are complete tossers!  Did they admit to a clerical error or was it merely readjusted because You are clearly no push over?  I take mine to my mechanic that does both trucks, Wifeypoos Honda Jizz and anything else i feel i may need a hand with.  Truth be told the GM manual is pretty good so i can do it all myself at home if i want to but his plush, immaculate garage means it's so much easier to do.  We service it together and chew the fat as we go,  i supply all the filters and oil and he only charges me about £60 as it's not rocket science. If i dug out all the receipts then i could give you an accurate cost of parts and labour but thas not gonna happen!

[gdh]

It could be worse, we have a £300 travel fee before they even start. ?

 

We do a lot of our servicing for basic stuff but a fresh pair eyes and more experience is usually worth it.

 

The bill above shouldn't have been out by that much though.

[Matthew Storrs]

7 minutes ago, doobin said:

Jesus Matt you could do it yourself for 50 quid in parts and a couple of hours. There’s nothing to them. A pound saved is a pound earned, and basic servicing is the one of the easiest ways to achieve this. Even if it took you all day you can’t tell me you’d have made £380 on a miserable wet day and have a full year of £380 days booked?
 

Main dealers are renowned for tricks like Kev describes. 

Yeah I know I normally do it myself. But I had a lot of work on so thought I’d get them to do it. It was £353, minus the fuel cap (£40) - 2x filter kits, hydraulic filter and oils. There wouldn’t have been much difference between that and me doing a days work elsewhere...

 

when they did just the 1.8t first service it was £91 on site. I don’t think that’s unreasonable is it?

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

9 minutes ago, wicklamulla said:

Did they admit to a clerical error or was it merely readjusted

Just chopped it in ½ and said it was because service manager hadn’t seen it before it was finalised. 
 

My mate ‘was’ working out of a barn 500m away but has now got himself a unit and has changed business direction otherwise he’d have done it. 
 

 

[monkeybusiness]

1 minute ago, Matthew Storrs said:

Yeah I know I normally do it myself. But I had a lot of work on so thought I’d get them to do it. It was £353, minus the fuel cap (£40) - 2x filter kits, hydraulic filter and oils. There wouldn’t have been much difference between that and me doing a days work elsewhere...

 

when they did just the 1.8t first service it was £91 on site. I don’t think that’s unreasonable is it?

Sounds like a bargain to me - I’ve just had a Takeuchi 1000 hr service kit for my 6 tonner which has every filter (but no fluids) and that was £200 on its own. 
 

 

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

4 minutes ago, Matthew Storrs said:

Yeah I know I normally do it myself. But I had a lot of work on so thought I’d get them to do it. It was £353, minus the fuel cap (£40) - 2x filter kits, hydraulic filter and oils. There wouldn’t have been much difference between that and me doing a days work elsewhere...

 

when they did just the 1.8t first service it was £91 on site. I don’t think that’s unreasonable is it?

That’s very fair!