Women drivers feel overcharged
Almost two-thirds of female drivers think they’re quoted too much for car repairs.
Almost two-thirds (62%) of women who believe garages have over-stated the cost of repairs to their cars say they were quoted too much just because they’re female.
Research commissioned by mobile tyre fitting specialist TyresOnTheDrive.com found that 62% of women who have visited a garage thought they had been excessively quoted for maintenance on their car.
Of those that had, another 62% thought their gender was a reason behind the mechanics’ inflated price.
Meanwhile, 64% of the women quoted too much also said they felt that the mechanics assumed they didn’t know enough about cars, while 39% thought they were deemed gullible enough to fall for it.
Dominic Clark, founder and CEO of TyresOnTheDrive.com, believes it shows that the car maintenance industry still lags behind other businesses in terms of gender discrimination.
Commenting on the findings, he said, ‘It’s really stark proof of the sexism that still exists at many garages in the UK.
‘Although I, unfortunately, don’t think anyone would have been too surprised to find it happens occasionally, to see that such a high proportion of women have felt this way really is shocking in 2016.
‘The industry is completely unregulated, and that needs to change if customers are to be treated fairly and not fall victim to outdated stereotypes.’
Almost a quarter (24%) of women who felt the garage was simply being sexist now bring a male friend with them to avoid being ripped off, compared to just 1.7% who bring another female friend.
Meanwhile, 34% go to a different garage altogether, demonstrating the amount of lost business that can result from sexist staff.
