MAD HATTER AUTO SERVICE

Very professional

simple job, well done, with caring personnel

Great auto service shop, John and his team at Mad Hatter went above and beyond to diagnose and fix the various problems with my vehicle. I've lived in Waterloo for over 20 years and been to dozens of shops around town and I can tell you that NOBODY ELSE would have helped me with my problem, they all just blew me off. Mad Hatter is conservative, contentious and responsible and absolutely deserves a A grade in my book.

I've been using them for about 12 years without any problems. Their estimates are always right down to the penny accurate and I like the way I am treated.

He was incrediby professional. He explained to me thoroughly what need to be done. He was fair and didn't try to rip me off. He had it done in a timely manner. He was honest.

I use this shop myself for tires, oil changes and small repairs. They are knowlegable and efficient and the prices are reasonable.

I'd used these guys for years and always felt confident taking my car to them, but then something happened... I had to leave my car there over night for a repair while a part was being ordered. I picked it up late the following day, and after getting it home, something caught my eye as I went to close the drivers door. There were dents on the roof where the door met the roof...with touch up paint covering them up! When I inspected further, I could see more scratches on the inside of the door jam that corresponded to the dents on the roof...but without touch up paint! First thing the next day I called and spoke with the owner. His general attitude was 'not concerned'. He said he would ask the guys in the shop if anything had happened and get back to me. Well, I didn't hear from him for 2 days, so I called back. He said his guys didn't know of anything that had happened while it was there. I pressed harder for answers and he said, "well, maybe something happened while it was parked outside over night..." he'd check the surveillance tapes and get back to me. Again, I didn't hear from him for 2 days, so I called. He said he didn't see anything on the tapes to indicate that the car had been messed with. He offered no sympathy, accepted no responsibility, and offered no compensation for damage and a cover-up that clearly happened on his watch. My theory is that they locked the keys in the car and proceeded to try to open it with a wire/coat hanger through the door jam; realized the damage when the door was open, covered the marks on the roof with touch up paint...but either didn't notice the marks on the door or forgot to cover those. Possibly the guys in shop did this and nobody fessed up when the boss asked...that seems believable. But when a customer calls with a complaint of damage that clearly happened when the vehicle was in their care, you'd think that a business owner that cares about his customers...and his reputation...would at least attempt to make amends. No such result from the owner of Mad Hatter. I am not the type to act with litigation, but I considered it. After consulting my attorney, we both agreed it would be more trouble than it was worth (not a valuable car...but it was spotless before this happened). Needless to say, I stopped doing business with Mad Hatter, and continue to tell this story to anyone who asks where to take their car for repair.