Do You Get Better Service at Independent Auto Garages?

When it comes to paying for a service, there’s often the perception that you don’t get as good quality when you go for bigger brands. There’s the idea, for example, that going to a chain restaurant means the food won’t be as good. In some cases, that’s correct – though we won’t name any names – but is it true of auto repair?

There’s an idea that going to a small, independent garage will get you better, more tailored service – but here’s why that’s likely to not be the case.

The auto repair industry isn’t regulated

This may come as a surprise to many people but there are no regulations that require a technician to have qualifications to work on your car.

In theory, that means that the technician working on your beloved car at the independent garage may well have never looked under a bonnet before. They could have been plucked out of anywhere, put in front of your car, and told to “replace a head gasket”. We don’t mean to scare you but they could be working from a YouTube video, do something wrong, and let you drive your car out of centre with a glaring safety problem!

Now, this isn’t to say that independent garages will have unqualified staff, just that there’s no real way of knowing.

How do I know that Kwik Fit staff are qualified?

In an unregulated industry, you have two options:

1. Offer the service according to however you like.
2. Regulate yourself to ensure consistent quality of service.

The main benefit of being bigger, here, is that we have the resources to provide industry-leading training to all of our new recruits.

We’re not content to just let them watch a video before working on your vehicle because lack of training and standards doesn’t just cause minor inconveniences, it can cause serious damage to life. That is, even just changing a tyre (one of the first things our recruits learn) comes with real hazards. Not only can the fitter lose fingers by being careless, but an improperly fit tyre slipping off a wheel can be hugely dangerous to everyone on the road.

How are Kwik Fit staff qualified?

All our staff are qualified in part with our internal guidelines, but our apprenticeship is overseen by Ofsted. What’s more, when technicians get to more advanced stages, we encourage them to do certified training in specialist areas such as refrigerant replacements, welding, and so on.

We take the education aspects of our training seriously because a better trained workforce is a more effective workforce – which ultimately means happier staff, better service, and safer roads.

What happens if I get bad service?

The other main benefit of being bigger here is that if you do happen to get bad service at a particular branch, there are many more ways to escalate a complaint that’s not been handled correctly.

In an independent garage, your complaint starts and ends with the centre manager. At a Kwik Fit centre, on the other hand, managers are overseen by regional teams, who themselves are managed. If you’re not getting great service, we want to know about it so that we can do something about it!

For services you can rely on, choose Kwik Fit

When it comes to keeping your car running, and you & your family safe on the roads, come to experts who care – get in touch with your local Kwik Fit centre for everything from maintenance services to full part replacements.