Customers who want to bring their own parts.

Anyone have any comical  ( yet  Effective ) signage to deal with illustrating we only wish to use our parts not parts we don't profit from?

Two things I do when installing customers parts.My labor rate goes from $80.hr to 90 or 100.hr also no warrranty on the parts or the labor if the part fails or dont correct the problem.I have no problem telling custmers my overhead and the hours I work.In my opinion they should feel shame for being so cheap!

Increasing the labor rate a few bucks doesn't even come close to the profits lost or needed. Yes, you could double the labor, which may be enough, but that only solves half of the problem with customer supplied parts. YOU OWN THE PART. Whether you like it or not, and whether you document it or not. YOU OWN THE PART for your implied warranty. You do not want to try and defend it in a court of law. You are the professional, you took the money to install it. YOU OWN THE PART. A savvy consumer has this wonderful tool today, the internet, and a motivated idiot will do the research. If that part failed, causing harm or damage, you may be sued. You have too much to lose, it's not worth it.

I beg to differ on the customer supplied parts issue.  Some guys who bring in parts, bring in the high-dollar stuff that it would make no sense for our shop to stock.  These guys know what they want; they've done their homework on quality and function.  I understand their position, and explain to them that I can't warranty the part (although typically the part is warrranted by the manufacturer.)  I will stand behind my installation every inch of the way, and they respect my position and work.

Now, having said that, the cheapskates who bring in suspect parts....I explain why their part is junk and what additional parts will fail when the one they brought me does.  I tell them I would feel bad charging them twice; once when I install it, and once when I have to replace it (plus the additional parts it will damage.)  I offer them suggestions on alternate parts (including those I don't sell) and what the difference is.  If the part is inferior to what I sell, I will not install it.  Hey; my shop, my rules.

This approach works very well for my shop. I explain to the customer that we DO NOT install parts that customers supply. PERIOD.  I also explain the reasons why. First of all, my shop, just like all others depend on parts profits to help pay the overhead associated with running a high quality repair shop. Second, we cannot warranty the parts they supply. They always say thats ok, but I explain,   it has happened before that a part will fail, and the customer claims we installed the part improperly. Just a no win situation. Then I let them know for just and few dollars more, I can provide them with a very high quality part, install it, and stand behind the parts and labor. About 8 out of 10 times, the customer appreciates the honesty and becomes a customer, some into long time customers!! If not, we don't need them for customers.

I can think of many times when I bent my own rule and installed a customer-supplied part, even after I explained the extra charges they would incur and that there would be no warranty.  In several of those instances, parts have failed (as was expected), but the customer seems to forget the conversation we had, and what was documented on the Repair Order.  They still want to blame us!

In one instance, I installed a reman clutch for a customer who begged and pleaded and swore up and down that he understood that there would be no warranty on the parts he brought in.  We installed the clutch, but the pressure plate had problems right out of the gate.  When I called and explained this to him, he was livid.  He wanted me to warranty the repair and replace the clutch at my expense.  The clutch he had purchased came from an online store with no return policy and no warrantly.  Yes, we got rid of the customer, but it was not without a lot of yelling and screaming on his part.  I have not installed a customer-supplied part since then (3 years ago).

Almost with out fail everytime someone asks to make an exception, either supplying their own parts, a break on labor, or making installment payments, their request is just the beginning of a bad ending.  The worst part is that there must be some sort of network out there that you get your shop name posted on and you will invite a steady flow of people needing repairs they can't afford because they are on a "FIXED INCOME".  I have always been on a "FIXED INCOME" and it's always been FIXED TOO LOW!  As Mr. Stasch says you accept the part and you become responsible for the warranty.  It's been tested in court and I don't have time for court.

Get back to basics. The rule I try to follow with all customers is before we decide to make a repair to any car we need to know that it meets three criteria, it needs to be good for the car, good for the customer, and good for the shop. Any time you allow a customer to bring there own part you loose the needed profit on that job so it cannot be good for the shop.

Also the type of customer your cultivating with this practice in general shouldn't be the type of customer you want in your shop.

i recently had an issue on this same subject in my shop. Trying to save this young mother some money. Good intentions with a bad outcome. AC compressor replacement on a 92 lexus es300. $144 labor for install plus a $79.95 system recharge. The 1st new compressor was bad from the beginning. So we ended up reinstalling another one for her. After giving the parts house a hard time on the bad one, they reluctantly replaced the other. after the install was done, her car started over heating when she would drive it, nothing to do with the install, separate issue. It didn't happen though until after we did the install, so it must have been something we must have done according to her. We ended up selling her a thermostat at a very cutrate price to make her happy. Then after she picked up her car, she came back in saying her ignition key was broken. this is one of those with the security system built in it. Well $400 later for the new key plus the other issues she was finally happy. I made it a policy at this point to never install another customer part again. I do people like this use their ignorance on the subject to benefit them. i recommend to stay away from customer bought parts.

If you bring your own parts please also supply the following:

Your own tools.  We'd like to use yours.

Your generator, we'd like to use your electric.

A shirt, pants, and size 11 steel toe boots.

A various supply of chemicals, cleaners, and sealants.

Bring a list any torque specs you'd like us to use.

Include a broom, hand cleaner, and a trash bag to take

 your mess home with you.

Also, please be prepared to wait until the entire repair is finished

 in case the parts you brought with you are wrong, and you can deal with

 trying to get the right ones.

A notary public to sign a realease form to alleviate the burden of liability

 for installing your parts.

We may also need some additional fees to cover enviromental, workers' compensation,

 and B&O taxes that may be incurred.

A gallon of luke warm water and several shop towels. Our

 hands are sensitive, and we don't like cold water.

Lunch.  We like pizza.

Or, you could just let us take care of the whole darned thing.

In this it is important to note that only written warranties are covered by Magnuson-Moss. Though very important, express warranties offer unfortunate opportunities to get ourselves in trouble. A warranty is our promise, as a seller, to stand behind our products and sold services. It is our commitment to correct problems that occur on products we sell and sold services we provide. Federal law and most state laws recognize two kinds of warranties, implied and express. Implied warranties are tied to state law and are an unspoken, unwritten promise between our customer and us as a seller. They are based on the common law principle of "fair value for money spent." Further, there are two types of implied warranties. They are the implied warranty of merchantability and the implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose. A common example is installing used parts and customer-supplied parts. I can think of any number of times where a customer pleaded and begged with me to install a used junkyard part or a part that they supplied. I remember reluctantly agreeing, warning the customer that the part would have no warranty and going to the trouble of writing in huge letters all over the receipt that there was no warranty. State courts have ruled again and again that an automotive repair shop is perceived as expert in its field and that the very instant we agree to install a used or customer supplied part, we are agreeing to accept any liability associated with its failure. I know that in my home state of Maryland and many other states, there also is an issue of parts warranties not being transferrable. In Maryland, any installed part has to be given a minimum 4,000-mile/90-day warranty, and any repair facility would be on its own if a customer supplied part fails. Those implied warranties are very serious business, with all of the risk and liability that comes with them, including such little gems as responsibility for property damage or bodily injury. Install a customer supplied part at your own risk.