Personal Auto Service Ltd Mobile Mechanic (No Longer Trading) / Shelters in Tauranga City

"Early in October last year, I contacted Grant at Personal Auto Services, Papamoa, to check our Ford Focus for oil and water leaks, because I had the car advertised on Trade… Me. He is a mobile mechanic whom I had used previously. Amongst other items, the invoice for that job showed that he replaced the rocker cover gasket at a cost of $125.00 (excluding GST and labour).

In early December I asked him to come back to investigate a smell that was occurring. He cleaned the engine, and took the car for a short run. The total cost of that visit was $120.46 including GST.

Between Christmas and New Year, I left a message on his answerphone asking him to contact me because the smell had not disappeared, and a potential buyer wanted to come a look at the car. He emailed that he was on holiday.

In early January, another person phoned in relation to purchasing the car. I took the car to AA Auto Service and Repair. They investigated, and found that the rocker cover gasket needed to be replaced. There had been some 'orange gunk' applied to the cover. They replaced the gasket - an after market version - with a branded version at a cost of $75.00 (excluding labour and GST).

I contacted Grant and told him I was not happy, and suggested that he should refund the cost of replacing the original gasket and half of the cost of the second visit (on the basis that, if AA could see that the rocker cover gasket needed to be replaced, Grant should have been able to diagnose the problem when he came in early December). The total refund would be just over $250.

I gave Grant my bank account details (although it turns out that I omitted one number: I rectified that on 5 March) but there is no sign yet of the money in my account.""