Car repair conflict with mechanic whom has been paid
I paid the sum of R3000 to the mechanic who removed the head of my car as well as the cams and shims. He since has not returned to work on the car and just blames on it some other engineer who was going to fix the head, which is not my concern as I contacted him to fix the car. This lead to heated conversation over the weekend and now he refuses to give my parts back, although i paid him the money owed to him. The parts are over R5000 in value and I paid him R3000 at this stage for just removing parts from my car.
Category: Civil Matters, Damages
Region: South Africa, Western Cape
1 Answer
The principle of privity of contract says that you claim only from the party you contracted with. This means you can only hold the mechanic to account, not the engineer. However, if there was an agreement regarding time period to have your vehicle fixed, and it has not fallen due, you must wait. If there was a time frame which has elapsed, then mechanic is in breach. You can specifically demand he has your car fixed say within 7days failing which you can cancel the agreement all together and demand full refund of your money and spare parts(or its money worth). If the total amount is under R12,000 my suggestion is that you look for any small claims court near you and lodge your matter. It is quick and no lawyer is required.