I brought my car for a “Free Brake Check.” at the Woolwich branch for their “Free Brake Check.” What I was told bears little resemblance to reality:They claimed my rear pads were 47% when they were already on the wear indicator.They told me my front pads had only 25% life left, when in fact they had more than 50% remaining.They said my rear discs were corroded and needed replacing, yet an independent inspection confirmed they were fine.They even recommended a brake fluid change despite the brake fluid reservoir being full and clean.The quote I was given was: ?206.13 for front pads, ?160.59 for rear pads, ?251.52 for rear discs, ?49.99 for brake fluid or a total of ?668.23 for work that was largely unnecessary.When I challenged the cost of the parts, I was told that the parts they would fit in the workshop were “better” than those sold on the Halfords website. I was also told that if I bought parts myself, they would be “squeaky” — along with a string of other weak excuses.When I refused the work, the manager was clearly unhappy — and now I know why. If I had trusted them, I’d have paid hundreds of pounds for unnecessary and overpriced work.As far as I’m concerned, this “Free Brake Check” is nothing more than a scare tactic and sales trap.
