Action 9

Action 9: Customer claims mobile mechanic took him for pricey ride

ORLANDO, Fla. — A mobile auto repair service promises big savings online, but one customer claims it charged him for work it never did, and he's not the only one.

Action 9's Todd Ulrich first exposed the company three years ago, and found customers are still at risk.

Wojciech Wlodarski claimed a mobile mechanic took him for a pricey ride. He found M & M Mobile Auto online and paid mechanic Michael Blair $1,000 to rebuild his SUV's engine.

When he got it back, Wlodarski said it was obvious that most of the work had never been done.

“Had he removed the engine?” asked Ulrich.

“No, not at all. I paid him to pull the engine and do a full rebuild,” said Wlodarski.

Instead, Wlodarski said Blair painted a part so it looked new and an actual new part he gave M & M to install was being sold by the company online.

“I think he's just trying to sell it to make some extra money,” said Wlodarski.

Another customer, Manny Loaiza, said he gave M & M $700 for engine repair work it never did.

“So you paid $700 for what?” asked Ulrich.

"I guess for his kid's Christmas present," replied
Loaiza.

Ulrich first confronted Blair in 2013 after two customers complained to Action 9.

Ulrich caught up with him again.

“Three years later, I think you're doing the same stuff. Consumers say you took the money but didn’t do the work,” said Ulrich.

Blair denied doing anything wrong and said he completed the repairs.

“I did all the work he paid for,” said Blair.

But Ulrich found out that once again, there was a problem with his Florida license.

“I checked with the state. You're not registered for auto repair,” said Ulrich.

“Yes I am,” replied Blair.

“Under what name?” asked Ulrich.

“Don't worry about it. Look it up. You're the detective,” said Blair.

Florida regulators require repair shops to include registration numbers on their invoice.

“It's supposed to be on your receipt,” said Ulrich.

“It's on my receipt ***hole. I shouldn't even talk to you. You’re a piece of garbage and all that will be edited out,” said Blair.

But later, Blair agreed to give Wlodarski a $700 refund, and told Ulrich he's applied for a Florida auto repair registration.

Also, three of his customers contacted Ulrich to say they were very pleased with the repairs he did.

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