McLea's Tire and Automotive Service Automotive repair not done or poorly done....at $145.00 hr. Santa Rosa California

 My Complaint: Work incompetently done (or not done at all) at $145.00 hr.

The Scenario (Posted on Yelp 4/14/2015)
I'm from out of town. I broke down in Santa Rosa in March and was towed to the nearest mechanic.....McLea's. My backyard mechanicing had finally caught up with me as I had tried to repair a leaking valve cover and spark plug  seals approximately 11 months earlier. Those spark plug seals were a challenge for me to put in and I was hoping the "small tears"  would not be a major  issue until I could get in into the shop. Unfortunately, I waited to long

Well, McLea's discovered my handiwork, recommended a tune up, valve adjustment, and repair or of the gasket and spark plug seals.........at $950 (145.00 per hour). It was three times what my local mechanic would have charged.....but I needed my car and I didn't have the luxury to check other shops......my error.

Unfortunately, when I made it back to my hometown, the cover was still leaking in the same area. I called the warranty number who advised me to take it to my mechanic, verify the problem, and they would pay to fix it......easy enough......things happen, so I understood until.....

My mechanic said the plug seals were either never replaced, or incompetently replaced as ALL FOUR plug seals were torn (in addition to the leaky valve cover.) The response from the McLea's manager was basically the warranty covered it and that they are honest people so no refund....partial or otherwise.

So some of my questions are:
1. How much of the work that I was charged for was never done?
2. Why did the manager come to a decision without even doing a thorough investigation by calling my mechanic?
3. Are we dealing with a major competency issue?
4. After successful litigation, what is the compensation for a consumer  who is charged for work that is never done?
5. Does the "warranty" remove liability for charging for work that was not done?
6. What steps has McLea's put in place to prevent this type of problem from occurring to other consumers?
7. What impact will contacting the Better Business Bureau and the Bureau of Automotive Repair have on this type of issue?

Lastly
How does one determine the integrity of a business? Quality of work and quality of problem resolution........both a negative in my experience. Businesses tend to protect  what they value; their name or their pocketbook...........I believe McLea's has demonstrated which one matters

Update 4/17/15****************************************************

Update 6/2/15***********************************************************************

 ************************YELP Posting (Cont.)**************************

After forwarding information to McLeas management from my mechanic, McLeas apparently no longer feels I am a concern.....hence they have not replied since 4/17/2015

As a consumer (and paralegal) these are the steps I have taken thus far.

1. Attempted to negotiate with McLeas (phone and email) - no longer responding
2. Filed a complaint (#57321379) with the Better Business Bureau / AAA Auto club 
    
3. Filed a complaint with Bureau of Automotive Repair:
    
*Of note...the BAR found out that McLea's actually ordered the parts for my car.....installation, however, is the question.
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Consumers could then possibly receive help utilizing the following:

1. Notify Protection Plus National Service Warranty at 800-351-8565  
   Warranty Program Administrator
    P.O. Box 33535
    Denver, CO. 80233
    800-351-8565
This organization may need to know about this concern since they are the ones who get stuck paying for work that is not done or incompetently done. They may want to consider raising their warranty premiums on McLea's

2. File a complaint with the "Rip-Off Report "
    

3. Communicate / document concerns to each member of the board of the  Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce:
    

4. Pursue litigation (In a civil action, the court looks at the preponderance of the evidence....i.e  51%  or better) Have a legal professional review case law regarding plaintiffs who have been on the receiving end of poor performing automotive shops. Compensatory as well as punitive damages may apply.

5. Take out strategic ads in the Santa Rosa area saying:

                               Who charges $145.00 hr. for 3 out of 5 star performance?
                                                              "McLeas on Piner"

6. Contact local tow services to discourage utilization of " 3 out of 5 star " repair shops for out of town travelers.

7. Consider signing up for an account on Angie's List.....document your concern there.

8. Contact every dissatisfied customer on the yelp list and provide them all the contact information that I have listed thus far (Better Business Bureau, Bureau of Automotive Repair, Rip Off Report, Chamber of Commerce, Warranty Service, etc.)

My hope is that McLea's will take ownership / responsibility for this issue before other steps, unfortunately, have to be taken.

UPDATE 6/6/15 ***********************************************************************

 The above email was immediatly followed (same day) by a 13 minute phone call from McLeas. Their opinion (as I understand it) is that they do quality work, they trust all their staff without the need to verify, they have been in bussiness for a long time, and that their warranty service is an acceptable means of resolving issues like mine. They are not going to change their prices or how they verify the quality of their work.