Many vehicle owners in Nigeria are at the mercy of roadside mechanics who rip them off through repair scams. DANIEL AYANTOYE writes
A car owner, Joel Odeleye, was happy to pay a pocket-friendly amount for a Nissan 2008 model car which he said an acquaintance sold at a giveaway price because it had an engine problem.
Odeleye told our correspondent that someone introduced a roadside mechanic to him who was said to be so good that he would fix the car in a few days.
He stated, “I trusted the person who introduced the mechanic to me. My initial plan was to buy another engine but the mechanic convinced me that he could perfectly fix it and that it would cost me N85,000. I negotiated the cost and he eventually agreed to N75,000. For about three months, the vehicle was with him because I was always travelling due to the nature of my job and there was no time to go to his workshop. I also expected him to call me when he completed the job as we agreed. One day, he called me that the car was ready and added that he also spent extra money on it.’’
He added that he merely ignited the engine of a client’s car for him to listen to via phone speaker and said it was that of his car.
Odeleye stated, “I was happy to hear the cool sound, thinking it was from my supposed car. I was eager to see him anytime I returned home so I sent him the balance. When I visited his workshop upon my arrival, I discovered to my chagrin that the car was still in its initial state. The sound was even worse. I was seriously not impressed and asked him why he lied to me. He only said that he repaired it but what he fixed was damaged again. At the end, I angrily took away the car in that state and till now, he had yet to refund me and I didn’t even bother to reach out to him again. Later, I bought a new engine for N150,000 and I have been using it for the past four years now without stress.’’
He further told Sunday PUNCH that despite his knowledge in cars, he was shocked to fall victim to the dubious antics of the mechanics.
Odeleye’s experience is one among several other experiences of Nigerians hoodwinked by car artisans through repairs. Many of the roadside mechanics deceive clients by passing off fake spare parts as genuine, reporting false car diagnoses to swindle car owners among other sharp practices.
Another car owner, Ifeanyi Amobi, said a mechanic presented a scrap fuel pump to him as the damaged one he removed from his car and demanded money for a new one he lied to have bought.
He said, “Unknown to me, there was nothing wrong with the fuel pump in my car. Perhaps, he worked on it, fixed whatever was wrong with it and returned it into the car. I remember taking my car to a mechanic before I got to know him. It was the first time I took the car to him. He said the car had a fuel pump problem. Immediately, I left the car at his workshop to fix it. When I returned later, he brought an auto electrician who began to fix an electrical problem affecting the car. But the auto mechanic didn’t tell me that the car no longer had a fuel pump issue.
“The fraudulent auto mechanic brought a damaged fuel pump and left it by the side of my car and told me that he bought a new one for N13,000. I was curious, but didn’t know how to approach the matter. Fortunately, while he left to briskly attend to something, the auto electrician told me that the auto mechanic didn’t change the fuel pump in my car, insisting that nothing was wrong with the car’s fuel pump. He told me that the mechanic only brought the scrap from his workshop box and left it beside my car to create the impression that he changed the fuel pump in the vehicle. I confronted him and he became angry with the electrician who was busy fixing the fault.
“The worst act from the auto mechanic was that he disconnected the tap connected to the fuel pump and left to attend to something else somewhere. The auto electrician became curious because he had earlier tightened it before he started the engine. He told me that if we had moved the car in that state, it could have gone into flames at a point. I immediately reported the matter to the police station and he was arrested. He was released later.
“Unfortunately for him, his dubious acts recently made him have a brush with the law when he sold a N2m worth of car for N250,000. The vehicle was left in his workshop by a client for many months.’’
More worrying experiences
Another motorist, Adeniyi Olaitan, said that he had lost count of the terrible experiences he suffered in the hands of roadside auto mechanics, adding that it was one he would never forget.
He stated that he took his Toyota Camry 2004 to a mechanic when he observed that there was a noise coming out from the front shock absorber.
Olaitan said, “I didn’t see the mechanic at his workshop that day but I met his apprentice. The boy removed the tyre and we saw that the shaft and tie rod were bad. So he called his boss on the phone in my presence. He briefed him and told him the faulty parts, adding that he already told me and I was ready to give him money to buy the spare parts.
“Unknown to his boss that his apprentice put the phone on speaker; he said “Make sure you inflate the prices for the spare parts. We have to make more money from the purchase before giving him our bill for work done.’’ I was shocked and for about one minute, I was blanked out and confused on whether to continue with the service or not. The boy was embarrassed as I saw in his countenance. I decided to go with the boy to buy the part which I never intended to do initially. Despite that, I know they still had their way because he kept calling his boss on the phone and they chose a particular seller who they said they were sure of his goods.’’
He stated that he didn’t want to argue with them but tried to haggle with the seller to at least reduce the prices.
He said, “But that was the last time I visited the mechanic shop.’’
Also, a motorist, Segun Odeyemi, told Sunday PUNCH that most motorists must have had nasty encounters with roadside auto mechanics.
He noted that the dubious nature of the auto artisans made him frequently change them but discovered overtime that they were not different from one another.
Odeyemi added, “The target of most of them is to maximise profit to the detriment of their clients. One is in for a long one if one’s vehicle develops fault on the road and one has to be at the mercy of an emergency auto mechanic. Some of them believe if they don’t rip one off, they cannot get enough money from the job. There was a time I was using a rover and its gasket got burnt. I called an auto mechanic. I was new to the car at the time and he immediately told me that the cost was N22,000, whereas the price was N600. I gave him the money but discovered some months later that he swindled me. There was one that charged me excess money to buy engine oil for my car. He ended up swindling me and still bought engine oil which was not meant for the vehicle. It’s that bad.’’
He further said that it could be painful when they charge so much and still do shoddy jobs which would eventually affect the vehicles’ output.
He added, “It’s one thing to scam customers and still deliver a good job. I mean if something is sold for N500 and you collected N2, 000 from me and you bought the best product. But you fleeced me and I still didn’t derive value for the money paid. Such a situation is troubling.’’
On his part, a car owner, Taiwo Arinola, stated that some of the roadside auto mechanics would make friends with one by delivering a good job only to show their true nature thereafter.
Arinola stated, “I have had many experiences with mechanics. If one is not careful, they may make one end up not using a car again. They can be funny. I once had an issue with a mechanic who I gave money to buy a fuel pump and he bought a bad one and till today he didn’t refund me. I had to get another one. There was also an instance where an auto mechanic removed a part which he said was damaged from a car. He collected money to buy a new one and still returned the old part he claimed was bad into the vehicle. What do you call such an act, lying that he had fixed a replacement?’’
He advised car owners to have some knowledge about their vehicles and be sure of what they want to fix in them and monitor whoever is handing the job.
Samson Ajifowobaje, who drives a Nissan Primera Saloon, recalled an experience when his car had a shaft problem and he bought a replacement for his auto mechanic to fix.
He noted that the mechanic rejected it on the basis that it was not the size, adding that when he took it to the seller he insisted it was the size.
Ajifowobaje said, “The mechanic insisted but the person I bought the part from insisted that he should fix it, adding that if it didn’t fit it he would collect it back. I asked the mechanic to do that and it fitted the size well. It was then that I discovered that he was aware that it was the size. But he was only trying to disturb me because I didn’t give him money to buy it himself.
“There was also a time when my car’s fuel pump had a fault. I asked the mechanic the cost for a replacement and he said N7,000. I decided to buy it myself and I eventually got it at a far lower price. Most times, when these roadside auto mechanics know they will not get money from one apart from the money for the work done, they will find a way to fleece one. At another time, I wanted to replace a part in my car. He directed me to someone to buy from and before I got there, he had called the person on the phone to sell it at a particular amount. I decided to check another store and saw that the difference was N5,000 for the same brand of the product. A friend did repair work on his car which was the same model and brand as mine for N120, 000. I did the same repair for N40,000. There are several different ways these guys scam people and I don’t think it is okay. If they want to buy parts or repair a car, they should do it with the fear of God. They should make customers want to return to them after patronising them.’’
Punch
