Hot take: Is it ever okay to turn away a customer with a sketchy repair request?

Last Tuesday a guy rolls into my shop in Charlotte with a 2005 F-150, wants me to patch a frame crack near the rear spring hanger. I told him that's a safety issue, needs a new frame or truck is done. He got mad, said I was just trying to upsell him. I get that money is tight for some folks, but where do you draw the line between helping someone out and risking a lawsuit when that crack lets go on the highway? What would you have done?

4 comments

4 Comments

michael_jenkins391mo ago

That F-150 story hits hard man. I had a guy come into the bar I work at a few months ago, said he was a mechanic and was trying to get me to recommend his shop to customers. Turned out he was patching frame rot with beer cans and Bondo, I swear to god. I told him flat out I couldn't send anyone his way with a clear conscience. You did the right thing turning that truck away, even if he was pissed. Crack near the spring hanger is basically a ticking time bomb, and if it lets go on a highway at 70 mph that's somebody's family getting hurt or worse. Better to lose a customer than lose sleep over a lawsuit or a funeral, you know.

wesley1811mo ago

Ngl, turned away a guy wanting me to weld a brake line once because that's just a death trap waiting to happen.

the_miles1mo ago

Owned a bicycle shop for a hot minute back in my 20s, had a guy come in wanting me to "fix" a stripped pedal crank by jamming a beer can in there. Told him no, he called me a hack, I just shrugged and said my dentist would be real disappointed if I got sued for a bike falling apart. Your F-150 guy is a classic case of someone who doesn't want to hear the truth, and you're 100% right to walk away. I'd rather lose a few hundred bucks than explain to a judge why I thought a frame crack was no big deal.

-1

the_amy1mo ago

Honestly I used to be one of those "if it holds it's fine" guys until I watched a buddy's trailer hitch let go because someone had "repaired" it with pop rivets and a soup can. Now I'm with @michael_jenkins39, I'd rather piss off a customer than explain to their family why I okayed something I knew was dangerous. Better to lose the money than the sleep.