Annoyance in the workshop – charged 84 euros for a few seconds of work

It all started when the electronic lock of his four-year-old BMW 318 broke down and could no longer be opened. So Huemer drove to his trusted auto repair shop. “I was then offered to make a goodwill request to BMW, after I was no longer under warranty,” says Huemer. Said and done. An employee contacted the car manufacturer in Munich and after a lengthy telephone conversation it was agreed that BMW would cover 80 percent of the costs.

The bill came a few days later
“But I have to pay for the working time of about 90 minutes. Then I said I wanted to think about it,” Huemer said. Ultimately he decided to force the mechanics to open the fuel cap and not wait for BMW. “It took five seconds and then it was done,” said the BMW driver. That was the end of it for him, he got in the car and drove home. But a few days later there was a surprise in the form of a bill for 84 euros.

Vehicle diagnostics were billed
“They hung the diagnostic device on my car. However, I was never told that it would cost anything and I never signed an order,” says the Pinsdorf resident angrily. A complaint didn’t help either, so Huemer turned to the “Krone”. A corresponding request from the workshop went unanswered, but the boss contacted Huemer. “I now only have to pay half,” he says. The anger remains. “I have been a customer there for decades. If it had been necessary, I would of course have taken the risk of filing a lawsuit.”