Back Charging My Mechanic

Soliciting advice on my situation:

I left my boat with mechanic for some outdrive service and to install a new shift cable. Mechanic takes a few days shy of a month to do the work. Boat is splashed and on second day of usage the boat loses the ability to shift. Since the original mechanic keeps inconsistent hours and is gone by 11 AM, a mobile mechanic was called and the diagnosis was that the original mechanic had installed a bent piece of wire in the spot that holds the barrel of the shift cable assembly into the actuating shift lever (Alpha One Gen 2) and this wire came loose and fell to the starboard manifold. The mobile mechanic re-adjusts the barrel and installs a new cotter pin and off I go.

I had taken pics of the engine compartment and can plainly see (in retrospect) where original mechanic inserted the piece of wire. I've posted this picture below.

Now, I'm planning on back charging the mechanic the money it cost me to have the mobile mechanic remedy his defective work. I haven't paid his bill yet since he had double charged me for work I had previously paid for, which he just acknowledged. Anyone else go through this before?

Needless to say this mechanic will be asked to return my spare key and informed he is no longer welcome on my boat.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

Doesn't look like a piece of wire. It looks like a cotter pin that he only ran one leg through the hole.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

Agree w/oldjeep. It's the cotter pin the keeps the adjustment barrel seated in the shift plate. Those pins can be hard to see, and the mechanic may have thought he got both sides of the pin in, but missed it. I would probably discuss the payment of the invoice with the mechanic before you just short-pay him. It was likely an honest mistake (and a minor one at that), and you didn't give him an opportunity to rectify it.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

Thanks for the replies. I have the old piece in my boat and will check it out. It's "V" shaped and twisted and if it started out its life as a cotter pin, it certainly doesn't resemble one now!

I didn't give the original mechanic a chance to fix the problem since he was gone by 11 AM (I called him) and I was out on the water when the sutuation arose and needed to get back to my dock. Minor as it turned out to be, it would have been a different situation had I been going at speed when I lost the ability to shift.

I plan on talking with him face to face as I am that kind of a person. I do believe, under the circumstances, that his bill should be reduced by the charge for the mobile mechanic.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

From a good person perspective, I agree, he could reduce it by the cost you incurred. In the legal world, that isn't how it works. He is absolutely not liable for the money you were out by calling a different mobile mechanic.


*disclaimer, i am not a lawyer, and that is not legal advice...*

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

I agree with smokingcrater. You never gave him a chance to correct his work.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

Maybe another alternative could be, assuming you come to an agreement it was an honest mistake and you'll let him work on your boat again, is instead of deducting your cost for the mobile mechanic, he can "credit" you that same amount on future work (labor) with him.
That way he is not actually out any hard money and he'll just be doing some future labor that has already been paid for.

Mark

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

Actually, in the legal world it is how it is done (at least in construction law in NY, the profession I work in)...and I am a lawyer.

Analogy: If you have a contract with me to do a specified scope of work and you perform that work in a defective manner and another entity has to remedy that defective work, your contract value is deducted accordingly. Particularly if you choose to close early and your defective work leaves me stranded, thus necessitating a mobile mechanic to be called to effectuate the repair.

Original mechanic is not a mobile mechanic but has a brick and mortar shop on site at my marina...75 yards from my slip. He decided to close at 11 AM that day to go play golf. I was stuck out on the water at a dock 12 miles from my marina when this happened. There was no option for him to remedy the work unless I had the boat towed home. I'm not nearly good enough as a mechanic to have diagnosed this issue while on the water, hence the mobile mechanic.

Had this happened weeks down the road I'd chalk this up to "***** happens", but not on my 2nd use of the boat. I'm lucky I took the pictures ahead of time so I can show them to him.

Again, I am doing this in person. I'm also not looking to stiff him on the bill...I'm just miffed I'm out $150 due to his error.

Ordinarily I'd agree with allowing this as a credit on future work, but this isn't the first improper thing he's done. When I asked for a new shift cable to be installed, he said the old one might just need some "greasing up". I told him the cable was shot and it was tough to get into gear and find neutral and also that water was coming in from the shift boot and that I'd like the cable changed while the drive was already off the boat. What did he do? Stuck a turkey baster tube full of oil on the engine side of the shift cable for 3 days before agreeing the cable was shot and needed to be changed. This was while the boat was on a trailer, at his shop and with the outdrive off. While the outdrive was off I also asked him to change out the bellows since this is a salt water boat and they'd been on for over 5 years. I asked him several times and he agreed. Never did the bellows work and claims they looked "okay".

I forgive many errors, but not in this case with this guy's history.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

You are right about one thing. I would never let him touch my boat again.

I would tell him what happened and see what he says about the $150. If he doesn't give in, just be glad he hasn't screwed up something worse for you and you learned a lesson here about him.

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

Soundview - Hindsight is always 20-20. Go see him. If he refuses to re-imburse you for having someone else re-do his work (which he can legally) then say thank you and walk away. Why? Because you may find yourself in jamb and need him in the future. In the future, reserve his services for just emergencies and find someone else to do your regular maintenance. You've done your venting here, now use your anger to your advantage.

The second thing you'll want to remember is never bad mouth him to others. Instead, if someone say's they're taking their boat to the marina for work, tell them the name of the mechanic that you found that you think is better. This will preserve your reputation as a good guy and if he bad mouths you, no one will believe him. You win again!

Re: Back Charging My Mechanic

ya sounds like ide be looking for a new machanic as well. if the ower insists the work be done it should be done even if they do look OK.

this is why in fact i learn to work on my own stuff when i can. DTA. dont trust anyone.

couple years back i got a 98 f-150 from my grandpa. it started bucking one night after i accelerated over an overpass bridge.

i went to change plugs in it. the rear two on either side are a real pain but the pass side rear is hard. they are down in a 4" tube and to get to this one you need several extentions and a universal joint. i got it out. WOW. didnt match other 7. was orig autolite. my grandps had them changed at the ford dealer a year prior. tell me how you pull out 8 plugs and then forget one? you are sitting there with 7 old and one new. they were to lazy. also the same year he had a mechanic change the wires at a small shop in atlanta here. wow. they didnt look anywhere new. the one bad plug had stopped firing. it helped the miss but check engine stayed on. after new set of plug wires it was fixed and light stayed off. im betting the other guy didnt change wires either. they were a paint to re locate and re snap in. he got shafted maybe twice in a row. i in fact just put new bosch double platimums in the truck 2 weeks back. again a pain. but I KNOW THEY ALL are new. not just some. and all i paid for was plugs.

my wife will hear me yelling and cussing and tell me they do it like that so you will take it to them to fix it. i laugh and say i dont care im doing it if it takes me all week. they aint getting a dime from me.