How trustworthy is your mechanic?
So far this year there have already been more than 15,000 complaints to Consumer Direct about car repairs and servicing. Fixing cars is something that most of us know little about, and so when things go wrong more often than not, you have little choice but to trust your mechanic.
But as our investigation this week proves, you can't always rely on someone who says they know what they're doing when it comes to your car's engine.
Darren Palmer is a mobile mechanic in Romford, Essex. He's been trading under three different company names; East Valley Mobile Mechanic, Start Rite Mobile Mechanic*, and The Mobile Mechanic, not to be confused with other companies with similar names.
We've heard from complainants who've paid Darren for what's turned out to be shoddy work. And when they call him to rectify the problems, he's notoriously difficult to get hold of, not least because the address Darren has provided on his invoices doesn't exist.
The price of hiring Darren
Anita Dodd, a single mum with five children, called in Darren when her mini-bus broke down. Darren told her she needed a new engine, and sold her a second-hand replacement engine for £952.
But just weeks later Anita was coming home from holiday and the mini-bus broke down again. Anita said, "I called them back out. Eventually they came back out and they said I was the unluckiest person in the world; I needed get another engine."
Darren didn't offer to replace it for free, and Anita paid again for another engine. By this point she had paid Darren almost £2,000.
Anita told us that Darren was very persuasive. She said, "He was the sort of person that if he told you the sky was pink, by the end of the conversation you would believe him.
"He seemed really nice and I was really taken in by it and I feel pretty stupid for that."
And when Anita told Darren she couldn't afford to pay out for work anymore, he stopped coming back.
On the trail
Matt and Dan decided to hit the road to Romford where we know the mobile mechanics operate, to see for themselves what standard of work Darren provides.
We set up a secret filming house and got a Ford Focus with an odd rattling noise and dodgy brakes for Darren to look at. He arrives and correctly identifies the source of the rattle and that the car needs new brake pads. But he also tells our actress the car needs new brake discs too, which isn't right. So he quotes us £70 for work which actually isn't needed.
Darren tells us he will return the next day with the parts but doesn't turn up. We phone him over and over again, and end up waiting for six hours. Despite assurances that he is just around the corner, he never arrives.
Not to be disheartened by Darren's no show; we set up a new secret filming house and asked an actor to pose as our householder Mr Wilson. And we get another car - a Seat Leon that badly needs new back brakes and has an overheating engine, which is forcing water to gush out up through the header tank and leak.
Darren arrives and after just three minutes work he tells Mr Wilson that the radiator is leaking, which is wrong. He then pours in radiator sealant, which is a complete waste of time and money.
Next Darren turns his attention to the brakes. And he strangely uses a gigantic hammer to get the brake pads in place. Our car expert Steve Lee has never seen anything like it; he said, "You'd use it in ship building or mending tanks. You don't whack bits of brakes with a fairly great hammer".
Darren though is getting frustrated and only replaces the brake pads, not the brake discs. The brake discs on the Seat Leon are completely worn and need replacing.
Steve Lee said that only replacing the brake pads could mean that in extreme driving conditions such as driving on a motorway, "the brakes will be unbalanced and the car could spin out of control".
Steve Lee thinks that Darren and his guys are 'jokers'.
We give Darren another chance to put the work right, so we call him and tell him that there is still water leaking in the engine. And once again Darren wrongly tells Mr Wilson that the problem is the radiator, and he needs a new one which is incorrect. He offers to take the car for a test drive but Mr Wilson says he needs to check with his son first. Darren says he will come back to Mr Wilson with a price for the radiator in 15-20 minutes.
We again wait six hours but Darren doesn't turn up or call. After numerous phone calls we know he isn't coming back.
Darren's response
The next time we call out Darren to a house, it's so Matt can surprise him with a few questions. Matt asked Darren about his mechanical knowledge with particular reference to Anita Dodd and her engines.
Darren told us, "There was nothing wrong with them engines at all. I trade a satisfactory manner I believe yeah. Um, you can't satisfy every customer.
"I ain't running away from nothing because the thing with it is I do believe we trade in a satisfactory manner to be honest with you."
As he wasn't running away, we then asked Darren about the address he has provided on his customer invoices, the address which actually doesn't exist. Darren claimed it did exist, before getting in his van and driving away.
We also handed Darren a letter detailing our allegations, but he did not respond.
* Start Rite Mobile Mechanic is not to be confused with another mechanic called Startright Mobile Mechanic who also operates in the Romford area and who is fed up with getting calls complaining about the other company.
What you can do
We spoke to Trading Standards Officer Laila Benfaida to find out what you can do to avoid getting ripped off by mechanics. Have you had trouble with mechanics? Do you feel confident negotiating with garages? Let us know what you think.
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Comments
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Hi I have just seen latest episode of Watchdog starring Darren Palmer the dodgy mechanic. I was unfortunate enough to be ripped off by him and 2 of his associates after calling them to replace a cambelt and bearings on my car in late 2004. Unbeknown to me they had damaged a pulley when carrying out the work and when driving the car the next day I discovered (from the awful racket coming from the engine) that there was a problem. They refused to accept responsibility even though I knew they would have had to slacken the pulley to gain access to the cam belt. I later found out that I had also been overcharged for the parts they had supplied after checking with the main dealer. I contacted Havering Trading Standards to inform them of my experience with Darren Palmer and his company and to tell them about his fake trading address. Trading Standards told me they had limited power and had only received a "few complaints about him" and would need more before they could investigate. A total waste of time! No wonder this [removed] is still trading and ripping people off. Well done Watchdog for showing this [removed] in his true light! ps It cost me £125 to repair the damage done by Darren Palmer.
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As a mobile mechanic working from hemel hempstead i think it is important to understand firstly that not all mobile mechanics are rogue traders, and secondly the point at which certain mechanical components can be considered dangerous. the rear brake discs which were not replaced in the program by Darren although not in perfect condition may well have been adequate to perform the job. brake discs as a rule all have a minimum wear thickness which should have been the criteria for determining them as worn, the corrosion seen around the edge of the disc is very common on VW/Audi/and Seat cars and this corrosion can be as much as 50% across the width of the braking surface and still be acceptable as far as MOT guidlines are concerned. obviously at 50% corrosion one would expect the braking efficiency to suffer but the corrosion seen on the SEAT's discs was minimal in comparison. there has always been a fine line when it comes to brake discs, but in this instance i do not believe Darren was out to rip anyone off, it would have been very easy for him to sell a pair of brake discs, and hardly any extra labour involved (2 extra bolts to remove the brake caliper carrier)
I am not defending Darren, his aftersales service left a lot to be desired, and his workmanship was just as bad, but lets not connect this with mobile mechanics, I have been in the trade for over 20 years and have seen just as bad, if not worse from main dealers and independant garages alike. its purely down to the individual involved and finding a decent mechanic and making sure he keeps coming back.
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Firstly I thought this expose was on the industry as a whole, the gentleman in question is hardly a threat to the motor trade in general.
Although he clearly showed huge ineptitude in some aspects there is always another side. Mainly it was ridiculous was how much he was criticised over the choice of hammer he used on the seat leon. It’s irrelevant, he could have used a sledge hammer or a side of beef... he tapped at the brake disc retaining screw with a hammer and screwdriver. Completely standard practise with this rusty/oxidized component. How would the “expert Steve Lee" recommend this be done, telekinesis!!!
The possibility of a good piece of TV spoilt and undermined by needlessly hiking up the drama..
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I watched this programme and was shocked to see my mechanic that i have used for years be intimidated on t.v. Its bad enough that most of the stuff said about him is untrue, but if you watch all the footage of Darren Palmer it has been edited. When being asked if his address wasn't correct he was saying something, and then was cut off and Matt was again speaking this shows that Darren did answer but shots had been cut out! So is this really the truth? Everytime my own car brakes down or has any sort of problem Darren and his team have done the job superb with what i think to be cheap prices, my car has always been fine for a long time after the job and Darren has been plesant and helpful. I think it is appauling that this poor man has to be humiliated and could lose alot of custom from this, the lady crying about her money problem after Darrens work on her cars may have lost money, but after this who will be losing more, she isn't the only one in the world with a family to care for.
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I was watching watch dog tonight and seen darren palmer on here, he as done work for me for years to a very good standard! they only put one side of a story on here which is theirs, they cut out so much like the fact has it turns up to one brokes car his wearing shorts then on the same clip his wearing jogging bottoms! i think they should be out there catching REAL con man!
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Hi All at watchdog and members
we are are very angry at what happened to anita and her familys minibus at the hands of darren palmer and the likes of him we are a reputable garage who have operated in the essex area for over thirty years and who carry out engine rebuilds for the trade and retail customers alike every day of the week we would like to help anita and her family we will collect her minibus and the engines and make one good engine from the three plus replace any new parts that are required which cannot be re-used from them in it and then refit it to her vehicle free of any charge we understand that some garages and mechanics give this industry a very bad name but we would like the opportunity to prove we are not all the same if you would like to pass this on to anita and her family we will do the rest
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I own 2 BMW's and 1 Mercedes-Benz and i use a Mobile company called [company names removed] to look after them and they are wonderful. The mechanic always shows me the parts and lets me get a second opinion and is happy for me to watch him at work and answers any questions. they even write to you and give you a discount if you recommend them to a friend. Many times the main dealers have quoted me hundreds to do servicing and brake work that wasn't required and [company removed] have rectified it cheaper and once even told me that the reported work wasn't required. I think like any tradesmen; you need to get a good reference and check they are qualified.
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This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the House Rules.
I went to a garage to get my fan belt replaced or tightened. In end they only had to tighten it, which was a relief. Drove it out the garage, round the one way system, over the speed bumps, crash!!! took it straight back to garage.
They admitted when it came off the ramp, they had knocked the exhaust pipe, it was hanging so low, I couldnt get over even a small speed bump.
This was Just before new year 2008. They said come back in few days when they had the part to replace it, they polly fillered it temporarily to get me to where I was going.
I was due to move beginning of January 2008 so needed it fixed, living in country makes own transport essential.
When I went back, they didn't have a new part, they just re-bodged it.
I went back a third time as exhaust fumes were blowing into the car, so they realigned the whole lot.
Since then, all the silence material came out, quite rappidly after the disturbances, I had to get a friend to take remaining material out, as the car actually broke down and over heated dramatically.
The exhaust has never been right since, always rattles and always smells. It got dramatically worse again recently, and after watching WATCHDOG, I realised they DID have responsibility for damage they did, now I am faced with having to pay for complete new exhaust system. Problem is my car is old and exhaust pipes are very expensive, being a single mum, I can't afford to. And feel like paying for something the garage caused.
Is it too late to do anything about it? Is it called public liability the insurance they should of claimed from? I need to do something as it gets worse and worse.
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if darren isnt dodgy then why does he trade from an address that doesnt exist???
Thank you to the person who offered to repair my minibus but as a result of darren i have lost the minibus completely and am left without a vehicle completely. all in all i lost all my money and the minibus so unfortunately i have nothing to repair just two engines!!!. but its nice to know there are genune people out there so thank you once again
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