How To Read a Repair Invoice

Imagine it’s a random Tuesday and you’re at the auto shop picking up your car. You’ve just spent hundreds of dollars on a major repair for your vehicle and been handed a 2–3 page invoice detailing exactly what that money was spent on.

You may be inclined to toss those papers in your backseat and get on with your day but hold on a second. Taking a few minutes to read over the repair invoice can save you time, money, and frustration later.

Here's an example invoice:

Start at the Top

The first thing you’ll recognize right away is your personal information such as your name and contact information. In addition, you’ll see the information about the vehicle itself. It’s important that this information is complete and accurate so that repairs carried out on your vehicle are verifiable.

You should be able to clearly see the year, make, and model of your vehicle as well as a complete vehicle identification number (VIN). You’ll also want to verify that both the mileage and the date of the repairs are present and accurate. Hand-written receipts are not ideal and will miss a lot of pertinent information, so stay away from these if possible.

Invoice Categories

Parts:

Each part that was replaced on your vehicle should be listed clearly and have its own part number and cost. While the name of the part and/or description can vary, part numbers are unique and identifiable. This is important if any warranty claim should be needed in the future.

Labor:

Labor will have a category or description along with a total cost. What you read here will reflect just how good a service advisor is at making clear and understandable notes and descriptions. Let’s say your check engine light is on. You may see a labor line that says “check engine light diagnostics” with an associated cost. This would be considered the least desirable description as it doesn’t give you any new information or even the work that was performed.

Ideally, you should see test procedures and/or diagnostic steps that were taken or at the very minimum a result of diagnostics that were performed. The labor on your invoice is going to be the meat of all your record keeping concerning the vehicle. The more information, the better.

It’s Okay to Ask Questions

When you pick up your vehicle and receive your invoice, take the time to go over it and ask any questions if something is not clear. If you had a discussion over the phone with your service advisor and everything was clearly explained to you, make sure that information is on your invoice so it can be referenced later, if need be. The more information your invoice contains, the better off you’ll be.

Check Out the Recommendations

Another part of your invoice that is helpful and should be paid attention to is the “recommendations” or “notes” section. Not every invoice may have this section, although frankly, it should. A vehicle owner should not be expected to remember every upcoming repair, maintenance, and/or service the vehicle may need. Even owner’s manuals that contain some of this information have become bloated and confusing.

If you do not see a “recommendations” section on your invoice, ask your service advisor if there are any upcoming maintenance items or repairs advised so you have the chance to budget and prepare for them. Also, ask your advisor if those notes and/or recommendations can be recorded if they are not already. It’s also important that you understand them without having to translate technical jargon or mechanical hieroglyphs.

What’s Under Warranty?

One of the last things your invoice should have clearly stated is the warranty information. Any repair made to your vehicle will have some sort of warranty attached to it. How long is the warranty in both time and distance? What are the limitations? If you’re someone who travels often, what options do you have if your vehicle breaks down out of town? If the repair shop you frequent does not have a warranty at or longer than 12k miles/12 months, you might want to consider a change. A lot of repair shops have an umbrella policy that grants their customers a good warranty with national coverage. Find out if your shop does.

TechNet 24 months/24,000 miles warranty badge

In summary:

• Be sure to get a printed copy of your invoice after your vehicle is repaired.

• Go over the invoice with the service advisor to be sure you understand everything and ask questions until you do.

• Make sure the invoice contains all the necessary information and that it is all accurate.

• Keep the invoice for future reference. It will act as a maintenance record for your vehicle. It lists upcoming repair and maintenance items, as well as warranty information you may need.