Is it right to be charged for the piece that did not make my laptop work, even though I agreed to the ordering of it in the beginning?

No. The technician misdiagnosed the problem so he should pay, or give you your old pats back somehow. That is how I operate. I do not charge people for incorrect parts. I am a technician of sorts..

It is fair to pay the repair shop for diagnostic time but not for the part. After all, they did spend time on your computer. If you offer to do that they might offer to drop the parts charge.

@worriedguy

So under that assumption the tech can just rack up time. An expierenced tech would have not made that mistake. Do not pay for someone’s lack of expierence

@johnb1100 So does that mean that any time a doctor doesn’t get the exact diagnosis the first time, you don’t pay them? I guarantee you won’t get too many doctors agreeing to see you under those circumstances.

That’s why Doctors are a scam. $75—$150 a pop. One just to see you and refer you to a specialist, a visti to get the meds, another in 30 days for a refill, then you’re back because the meds don’t work and repeat….

Take your car to the dealership. If the diagnosis is extended they will charge you per diagnostic hour. Once they diagnose the problem and agree on it, it is set. If the customer comes back for the same problem, the shop just “eats” the loss and I as a tech get bitched at by management. You do not misdiagnose!

I agree with paying for the diagnostic fee. Time is money. I just wasn’t sure what was correct, as far as paying for repair pieces that left you back at zero. I really didn’t want to feel like I was being cheated, and it seems as if most people agree that I shouldn’t have to pay for the piece that did not end up working, and only the diagnostic fee.

it depends. Was there more than one problem with the computer? Did the first part they order fix the first problem, which then revealed the second problem? If so, then yeah, you have to pay for it.

If the technician misdiagnosed the original problem, no.

@johnb1100 I’d argue that insurance companies are the scam. Doctors can charge whatever they want; the insurance companies will only pay what they’ll pay. And usually the person themselves only sees the insurance co-pay.

And heaven forbid a doctor wants to see you to find out if the medication is actually working…

If they told you that part “x” would fix it and then when it arrived part X didn’t fix it you should not have to pay for it. Especially in light of their belief that more parts will now be needed (motherboard) to fix it.

A decent repairman, upon realizing that he misdiagnosed the problem, will not try to force you to buy more parts to chase down the real problem. Especially when it takes very little by way of parts and/or repairs to make buying a new system the more economical choice.

Thank you all for your feedback. I talked to the repair specialist, and indeed they were going to charge me for the part that I had ordered. It wasn’t until I had to remind her about the piece not making my computer work, therefore it was pointless to pay the extra fee. She did seem bothered by my response, but hey, I saved myself about $100. I am glad I heard all of your all’s response, reassuring my initial thought on the issue.