Independent inspection reports when you and the garage disagree

A report is evidence, not a verdict

Under rule 35.3 of the Civil Procedure Rules it is the duty of experts to help the court on matters within their expertise, and that duty overrides any obligation to the person who instructed them or who is paying them. Sources: ^[1]

Practice Direction 35 says expert evidence should be the independent product of the expert, uninfluenced by the pressures of litigation, and that experts should give objective, unbiased opinions and should not assume the role of an advocate. Sources: ^[2]

Rule 35.1 restricts expert evidence to that which is reasonably required to resolve the proceedings. Outside the small claims track, rule 35.4 says no party may call an expert or put an expert’s report in evidence without the court’s permission. Sources: ^[1]

On the small claims track, rule 27.5 says no expert may give evidence, whether written or oral, at a hearing without the permission of the court. Sources: ^[3]

Rule 35.11 applies outside the small claims track: where a party has disclosed an expert’s report, any party may use that report as evidence at the trial, so a report that does not support you can be used by the other side. Sources: ^[1]

This duty overrides any obligation to the person from whom experts have received instructions or by whom they are paid.

No expert may give evidence, whether written or oral, at a hearing without the permission of the court.

What to do

• Commission an inspection to find out what is actually wrong, not to obtain a document that says you are right.
• Expect the findings to go where the evidence goes; paying for the report does not buy a conclusion.
• Assume the garage, an ombudsman or a judge may all read it, and that a judge decides what weight it carries.

Which rules apply where you live

The Civil Procedure Rules are made under section 1 of the Civil Procedure Act 1997 and govern practice and procedure in the civil division of the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the county court; legislation.gov.uk marks that section as extending to England and Wales. Sources: ^[5]

Citizens Advice publishes its car repair guidance with separate versions for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Sources: ^[6]

What to do

• If you might claim in Scotland or Northern Ireland, check the court procedure for that nation before you commission anything; the expert rules quoted on this page are not the ones that will apply.
• Read the separate OBDCode UK guides on alternative dispute resolution and on court claims in your nation for the procedure itself.

Deciding whether the report is worth paying for

Practice Direction 27A sets the amount a party may be ordered to pay for experts’ fees on the small claims track at a sum not exceeding £750 for each expert. Sources: ^[4]

Rule 27.14 says the court may not order a party to pay another party’s costs, fees and expenses on the small claims track except for the items listed in that rule, which include court fees, limited travel and loss-of-earnings amounts, the capped experts’ fees, and further costs where a party has behaved unreasonably. Sources: ^[3]

Outside the small claims track, rule 35.4 allows the court to limit the amount of a party’s expert’s fees and expenses that may be recovered from any other party. Sources: ^[1]

What to do

• Set the likely inspection fee against the amount actually in dispute before you book, not afterwards.
• Ask the inspector in writing what the fee covers, whether a written report is included and what a follow-up question or a court-compliant report would cost.
• Treat the fee as money you may not get back: permission to rely on the report can still be refused after you have paid for it.
• If the sum in dispute is small, ask whether a written quote from a second garage would answer the same question more cheaply.

Stop further work before the inspection

Practice Direction 35 requires a report to say who carried out any examination, measurement, test or experiment used for it, to give that person’s qualifications and to say whether it was carried out under the expert’s supervision, so it matters who touched the vehicle and when. Sources: ^[2]

For repairs and similar contractual claims, Practice Direction 27A lists the material the court usually needs where it is available, including any written contract, photographs, a list of works complained of, and any relevant estimate, invoice or receipt including those relating to repairs to each of the defects. Sources: ^[4]

Citizens Advice describes taking the car to another garage as a risky option, because you would probably need a trade association or a court to recover the extra money you spend and there is no guarantee that you will get it back. Sources: ^[6]

What to do

• A vehicle that has been taken apart and rebuilt twice more is much harder to report on; the inspection is worth least once the original state is gone.
• Confirm the inspection location and access arrangements before paying, including any attendance fee if the inspector must come to the vehicle.

Checklist

• Ask the garage in writing to carry out no further dismantling, reassembly or parts changes until the inspection has happened.
• Photograph the vehicle, the engine bay, any removed parts and the paperwork before anything else is disturbed.
• Ask for the replaced parts back and keep them labelled and dry.
• Record the mileage, the dates and who you spoke to each time.
• Save the fault codes and any printout the garage produced, together with the warning-light behaviour you observed.
• Do not assume that the vehicle can be collected immediately. Before booking, ask in writing whether the inspector can access it and what each side says is required for release. Use the separate guide ‘When a garage will not release your car until the bill is paid’; this page does not decide any right to retain or dispose of the vehicle.

What a useful report contains

Practice Direction 35 says an expert’s report should be addressed to the court and not to the party who instructed the expert. Sources: ^[2]

Practice Direction 35 requires a report to give the expert’s qualifications, give details of any literature or other material relied on, set out the substance of all facts and instructions material to the opinions expressed, and make clear which of the stated facts are within the expert’s own knowledge. Sources: ^[2]

Where there is a range of opinion on the matters dealt with, the report must summarise that range and give reasons for the expert’s own opinion, contain a summary of the conclusions reached, and state any qualification if the expert cannot give an opinion without one. Sources: ^[2]

The report must contain a statement that the expert understands and has complied with their duty to the court and is aware of the requirements of Part 35, Practice Direction 35 and the Guidance for the Instruction of Experts in Civil Claims 2014, and must be verified by a statement of truth in the form set out in the practice direction. Sources: ^[2]

Rule 35.10 also requires the statement about the duty to the court at the end of the report, and requires the report to state the substance of all material instructions, whether written or oral, on which it was written. Sources: ^[1]

Practice Direction 35 expects experts to consider all material facts, including those which might detract from their own opinions, and to make clear when a question falls outside their expertise or when they cannot reach a definite opinion because they have insufficient information. Sources: ^[2]

On the small claims track, rule 27.5 requires the court’s permission before an expert gives written or oral evidence at a hearing. Follow the directions made in the actual claim and their requirements for filing and serving the report; because most of Part 35 does not apply, the content list above is a standard to ask for rather than a binding small-claims format. Sources: ^[3]

Expert evidence should be the independent product of the expert uninfluenced by the pressures of litigation.

An expert’s report should be addressed to the court and not to the party from whom the expert has received instructions.

What to do

• Tell the inspector in writing what you want examined, and keep that instruction: it has to be described in the report.
• If you want a report you could use in court, say so when you instruct, because a short opinion letter will not meet the content requirements.

Checklist

• Who the inspector is, what they are qualified in and where that qualification is registered.
• What they examined themselves on the day, separated from what they took from your account or the garage’s paperwork.
• The fault codes present at the inspection, and whether each one matches the symptoms you reported.
• Whether the work already carried out addressed the fault, was necessary, and was done to a reasonable standard.
• Any point where another competent engineer could reasonably reach a different view, and why the inspector holds theirs.
• A summary of conclusions, including anything the inspector could not determine and why.
• A signed statement of independence, and the duty-to-the-court and statement-of-truth wording if the report may be used in a claim.

Finding someone qualified and independent

The IMI Professional Register lists individual members and their place of work, recognised for their achievements, experience, professionalism, a Professional Standard of behaviours, and for keeping knowledge and skills up to date through continuing professional development. Sources: ^[7]

IMI says that to maintain status on the Professional Register a member must evidence continued learning and development activities, with a minimum of 90 CPD credits over a three-year period. Sources: ^[7]

IMI explains that the letters shown after a name are post-nominals identifying membership level and additional recognition, including Certificated Automotive Engineer and Advanced Automotive Engineer. Sources: ^[7]

The Institute of Automotive Engineer Assessors describes itself as dedicated to the advancement of automotive engineer assessors, states that it is a Professional Affiliate of the Engineering Council with Learned Society status and is a registered charity, and provides a Member Register for checking whether an automotive engineer is a current member and what grade they hold, noting that affiliates are not included on that register. Sources: ^[8]

The IAEA search facility covers types of inspection including mechanical failure, post-sale disputes, hybrid and electric vehicles, pre-purchase inspection and litigation, and says all the engineers listed are qualified independent IAEA assessors. Sources: ^[9]

The IAEA states that by employing the services of one of its members you are contracting with them directly and not with the IAEA itself. Sources: ^[9]

by employing the services of one of our members you are contracting with them directly and not the IAEA itself

What to do

• Open the register entry yourself and check it is current, rather than trusting a badge printed on a website or an invoice.
• Match the recognition to the job: an assessor who values accident damage is not automatically the right person for a diagnostic dispute about a fault code.
• Ask directly whether the inspector has worked for the garage in dispute, for its group or for your insurer, and get the answer in writing.
• Ask what happens if the findings go against you, and confirm you will receive the report either way.
• Ask for the fee, the scope and the turnaround in writing before you commit.

OBDCode UK does not recommend, rank or receive any commission or referral fee for any inspector, engineer or garage found through these registers. The registers are named because the bodies that run them publish what their entries mean.

Who pays, and can you claim it back

Citizens Advice suggests negotiating with the garage to get a report from an independent garage or vehicle engineer, and says you and the garage would need to agree on who provides the report, how the cost would be split and that you will both accept the findings; if the report shows the work was not done properly, the original garage should fix the car. Sources: ^[6]

Rule 35.7 allows the court, where two or more parties wish to submit expert evidence on a particular issue, to direct that the evidence on that issue is given by a single joint expert. Sources: ^[1]

Rule 35.8 says that unless the court otherwise directs, the parties who wish to submit the evidence are jointly and severally liable for the payment of a single joint expert’s fees and expenses, and that the court may give directions about payment of those fees or limit the amount before the expert is instructed. Sources: ^[1]

For a small claim, rule 27.5 and the court’s actual directions control whether expert evidence may be relied on. Practice Direction 27A’s special directions show that the court may require a single jointly instructed expert, a written report and stated arrangements for questions and fees. Sources: ^{[3] [4]}

Rule 35.12 applies outside the small claims track: where experts reach agreement on an issue during discussions, that agreement does not bind the parties unless the parties expressly agree to be bound by it. Sources: ^[1]

You and the garage would need to agree on who provides this report, how the cost would be split and that you’ll both accept the findings.

What to do

• Put a shared instruction in writing before the inspector attends; an agreement reached afterwards is worth much less.
• If the garage refuses to share the cost, keep the refusal in writing and decide separately whether the report is still worth buying on your own.
• Do not assume a favourable report converts into repayment of the fee: recovering it depends on what was agreed, what any scheme decides and what any court orders.

Checklist

• Who is instructing the inspector, and what question they are being asked.
• How the fee is split, and who pays it up front.
• Whether both sides will accept the findings, and what each side will do if the report goes against them.
• That both sides receive the full report at the same time.
• That the vehicle stays as it is until the inspection is done.

Using the report in a complaint or a claim

Citizens Advice advises asking the garage whether they belong to an alternative dispute resolution scheme, and says that if they do not respond, are not a member or will not use ADR, you should keep a record of when you asked because you will need it if you end up in court. Sources: ^[6]

The standard small claims directions in Practice Direction 27A state that no party may rely at the hearing on any report from an expert unless express permission has been granted by the court beforehand, and that anyone wishing to rely on an expert must write to the court immediately on receipt of the order to seek permission, explaining why the assistance of an expert is necessary. Sources: ^[4]

Rule 27.4 describes a standard direction that each party must, at least 14 days before the date fixed for the final hearing, file and serve copies of all documents including any expert’s report on which they intend to rely. Sources: ^[3]

Rule 27.8 says small claims hearings will be informal, that the strict rules of evidence do not apply, and that the court must give reasons for its decision. Sources: ^[3]

What to do

• Send the report to the garage first with a clear statement of what you now want them to do and by when.
• If a complaint or ADR route is open, use the report there before starting a claim; the separate OBDCode UK guides on complaining in writing and on ADR cover those routes.
• If you do start a claim, ask about expert permission at the first opportunity rather than turning up with a report nobody has allowed in.
• Keep the covering instruction, the invoice for the inspection and the report itself together as one bundle.

Citizens Advice — problem with a car repair

Important

Nothing on this page promises that a garage, an ombudsman scheme or a court will accept an inspection report, prefer it to the garage’s own evidence, or order anyone to repay what it cost.

The court rules quoted here are for England and Wales. If you would claim in Scotland or Northern Ireland, use the procedure for that nation.

This page does not decide whether a garage has any right to retain or dispose of a vehicle. Use the separate guide ‘When a garage will not release your car until the bill is paid’ for an access or release dispute.