Hot take: Should shops charge a diagnostic fee or not? A customer cussed me out over it last month.

I had a guy bring in a 2012 Ford Focus with a rough idle. I quoted him $95 for the diagnostic and he FLIPPED out, saying I was robbing him just to plug in a scanner. I tried to explain that hour of testing and checking live data was the real work. He ended up leaving and I saw his car at the chain shop down the street two days later. That interaction stuck with me because I wonder if we should just wave the fee if they approve the repair. Do you guys charge upfront or roll it into the labor if they say yes?

2 comments

2 Comments

angela_knight20d ago

Wait, people actually do that? They take your diagnosis and fix it themselves in the driveway after you waved the fee?

young.emma20d ago

Nah, you're actually wrong about one thing here. That diagnostic fee isn't just for plugging in a scanner. On a 2012 Focus with a rough idle, you're looking at hours of real troubleshooting. Live data, fuel trims, vacuum leaks, maybe even a compression test if the scanner doesn't point to the issue. Charging $95 for that hour of actual thinking and testing is totally fair. If you waved the fee every time someone approved the repair, you'd get burned by guys who take your diagnosis and fix it themselves in their driveway. I've been there, trust me. Keep the fee upfront, no exceptions. It weeds out the people who don't value your time and expertise.