A shop owner in Redwood City, CA, has been sentenced to 30 days in jail and fined $1,116.22 by the California Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR). According to the article, an undercover vehicle was equipped with a new alternator and alternator belt. The alternator had been unplugged so it would not charge the battery. Instead of simply plugging in the alternator, the shop owner told the operator it was not working and the belt was old. He charged the operator $442 for a new alternator and belt which he did install.
Below is the article as it appeared on the San Mateo Daily Journal website.
Mechanic convicted of unnecessary repairs
May 09, 2012
By Michelle Durand, Daily Journal Staff
Prosecutors put the brakes on a Redwood City auto mechanic who they say performed unnecessary repairs on two different undercover vehicles to confirm consumer complaints about being charged for unneeded work.
On Monday, Hudson Auto Repair owner Sohail Irshad, pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of false or misleading representations for performing unnecessary automotive repairs. He was immediately ordered to spend 30 days in jail followed by two years of probation and must pay the California Bureau of Automotive Repair $1,116.22.
The BAR is also working to revoke or suspend Irshad’s automotive repair registration, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.
The case was the first against Irshad, said John E. Wilson, deputy district attorney in charge of the consumer and environmental protection unit.
“The vast majority of mechanics are honest, but occasionally either our office or the bureau get complaints,” Wilson said.
To read the entire article on the San Mateo Daily Journal website, click HERE.