The garages charging you £234 an hour for repairs: Prices at franchises linked to car makers are up to 40% more than independent workshops
- Franchised workshops charge £99 an hour average, investigation has revealed
- Independent garages cause an average of £56, 40 per cent less than franchises
- Some franchises, including Porsche and BMW, charged more than £200 an hour
- Porsche dealer in Reading was highest at £234 – equivalent to £468,000 a year
Franchised garages linked to big car manufacturers are typically charging 40 per cent more to fix a car, according to a report.
An investigation into more than 6,000 garages across the UK has discovered that some mechanics are charging up to £234 an hour in labour costs.
It highlights the startling difference between the amount franchised dealerships of big car companies and ‘fast fit’ firms such as Kwik Fit charge, and the hourly rate charged by independent garages.