Study Finds Discrepancies in Auto Repair Quotes given to Men and Women
Everyone needs a car repair from time to time, but do all consumers pay the same price for the repair? A new study suggests there is a discrepancy on the estimates people are given for repairs to an automobile. Researchers Meghan Busse and Florian Zettelmeyer, of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University,conducted an experimentto see how car repair shops gave quotes.
What they found was there is a difference in the price quotes given to men vs. women.
Do car repair shops take advantage of women? If the data collected from the study accurately reflects the overall market, it seems women looking for mechanical work to be done on their cars may end up paying more than a man would for the same exact repair. Researchers found the quotes given to men and women by the shops were not consistent.
How the study was carried out
In order to carry out the study, Busse and Zettelmeyer, along with Ayelet Israeli, a doctoral student at Kellogg, collaborated with AutoMD.com to determine how mechanic shops quoted different customers. Theexperimenttook place in the summer and fall 2012.
The question they sought to answer was, "How much would the shop charge to replace the radiator on their 2003 Toyota Camry?"
Experienced mystery callers, employed by AutoMD.com, were used to call hundreds of auto repair shops in a variety of cities. This group asked each one for a quote to repair the Camry. All of the callers read from a script provided by the researchers.
One script read as an informed buyer with a lower price, another one read as a buyer with a high estimate and the third scenario was a naïve buyer with no idea of how much the repair should cost.
What researchers found
Researchers found an informed buyer does not necessarily equate to lower prices, but the team did note a pattern when looked at the responses given according to the gender of the caller.
If the caller was a male, whether he was a "savvy consumer" or not, he got the same quote which was around market value for the area. However, for the women that called, there was a difference.
“You’re much worse off saying you know nothing as opposed to quoting the price of $365," said Zettelmeyer.
Do mechanics stereotype?
Researchers examined the issue of stereotyping as a part of this study. Based on the data, it seems men are assumed to know more about auto repairs than women. One theory is that mechanics perceive men as potentially "testing" them when they say they have no idea of a price, whereas women are possibly perceived as truly having no idea.
“Our findings suggest that auto shops may assume men know the market price of a given repair, so they automatically grant it,” Busse said, according to theLos Angeles Times. “They may not expect women to be knowledgeable in this area, so the perception is they can charge them more.”
One other interesting finding emerged. Women who were willing to haggle the price received a lower estimate 35 percent of the time, whereas men who questioned the price and attempted to negotiate a lower one, only got the lower price 25 percent of the time.
“It may be that men are more likely because of social or cultural conditioning to respond positively to requests made by women,” the researchers wrote in their report.
The researchers recommend in order not to get the best price available in the market, consumers, especially women, should do research online or by phone to arm themselves with as much information as possible. The findings suggest all consumers, whether male or female, who show the shops they know what they are talking about will more likely get a fairer price.
