Halfords AutocentresReviews 

Car booked in for 4 wheel track Halfords Autocentre, Washington, Tyne and Wear.

Turned up for appointment on time and informed that they cannot carry it out as the equipment not working!!! Surely you can inform your customer before they make the journey for the appointment, surely there is no way the equipment failed at the time of turning up.

Really frustrating and wasted time off work!

Away from home, so couldn’t use my usual. The air conditioning needed regassing. There was a slot online so I chose this one. I arrived on time, they started on time and the job was done.
Cheerful staff.

Would be zero starts if possible. Halfords (Tritton Road Lincoln) did my MOT on 25 March. The Certificate had 38K miles when it should have been 35K. Went straight back in after double checking in car but it was 4.55pm and they said they would correct the next day. Now 3 months later (27 May), I still don't have a correct Cert so it will be wrong when I sell the car privately. Halfords Autocentre's excuse (unbelievably) was that they "don't have an envelope or stamp" despite there being a stationers on same Retail Park!! For me, it is 32 mile trip to go back. Even their own central Customer Services have tried to get this corrected for me but theAutocentre just don't care, nor take responsibility for correcting their own daft error. Have now complained to DVSA. Last time I use them.

Charged me twice for 1 item online....all website have errors and phone number cuts off without allowing an option.....
Bonkers customer services where are you.......

I phoned Halford’s Mansfield book my car in for an aircon regas. I was told it would be £74.99 in total so I booked it in.

When I dropped off the car an employee said that we also had to buy a £34.99 aircon diagnostic service first or they wouldn’t be able to proceed with the regas. I said that when I booked the regas I was told that the £74.99 charge covered everything. The woman behind the counter was adamant that I must buy the additional diagnostic service or the garage could not regas the aircon.

She then said that the person who told me this had only been working there for two weeks. I said that didn’t matter, I was told one price but now she wanted to increase it by almost 50%. She was still adamant that we must buy the additional diagnostic test. When I said no, she said that she would waive the fee. I handed the woman behind the counter the car keys and left.

A couple of hours later the employee phoned to say that the car had failed the diagnostic test because the aircon condenser had a “massive hole and a severe leak”. She also told me that three of the tyres were illegal because their tread was so worn. I went to collect the car from the Autocentre.

Upon arrival, the woman talked to me about new tyres and that the garage could fit them. She emphasised that I should pay a little more for “better quality tyres”. She also told me that the cost to fix the broken aircon would be over £800, “which is a good price”. At that point, the technician who had looked at the car appeared and showed me a photograph of an aircon condenser he said was from my car, and said that some of the vanes looked a little bent and may indicate that there “might be a leak”. This would indicate that he hadn’t tested for a leak, but he just thought that there may be one. This certainly contradicts the account of the woman behind the desk about a “massive hole and severe leak”.

I said that I would think about the tyres, and then she said we owed £34.99 for the diagnostic test. I said that she told us earlier in the day that she would waive the fee, but she then said that was only if we had the aircon regassed. I disputed this as she had simply said the fee would be waived with no mention of the condition that I would have to pay it if the car “failed” the diagnostic. The employee was argumentative and insisted I paid for the diagnostic service. I said that she can’t simply change what she said a couple of hours ago. She looked furious, and went through a door to return with my car keys. She handed them over and I left.

After I arrived home I telephoned several other Halfords Autocentres and every one said that the aircon regas fee was £74.99. When I asked about the diagnostic service they all said that was optional, but wasn’t required. Most said that the machine that automatically refills the gas tests for leaks anyway as part of the procedure.

I also checked the tyre tread (ironically using a tyre tread depth gauge I bought from Halford’s several years ago) and in my opinion all of the tyres were legal.

In my opinion, this whole episode was little more than deceit and attempted miss-selling from the employee and/or Halfords Mansfield. I would hope that this embarrassing event is not representative of your company. Consumers need confidence in the companies they deal with, and I’m afraid that in my opinion Halfords Mansfield gives your company a bad name and re-enforces the image of a ‘dodgy garage’.

Booked an air con diagnostic check online . Attended the local Halfords who informed me I had attended the wrong location and that there was another Halfords nearby which was the correct location . I duly attended the other location , they informed me that I needed to go back to the original location as that was the correct one ! They even phoned up the original location this effect.
Went back to the original location , they insisted that I go back as the appointment wasn’t at their premises. When I asked for a refund I was informed they couldn’t give me one . Tried to contact Halfords online to get a refund ,no chance ! Every time I tapped on the contact us or refund link the page wasn’t found . Absolute farce !

My car was booked into Inverness Halfords Auto Centre for an exhaust inspection. The staff were very polite, helpful and thoroughly professional. They provided a first class customer service, advice and resolved the issue to my satisfaction. This is my third experience of using this Centre and on each occasion it has proved to be extremely good. Highly recommended

Halfords (Bicester) auto centre I would highly recommend. Matt helped us out when we got stuck and needed a tire sorting. Thanks Matt for helping us.

Avoid!! Hubby took car for service and mot to Palatine Road Halfords on Friday. He rang later in day for update as noone had contacted him. Guy said a spring was missing on handbrake and was trying to source but couldn’t and said best to take elsewhere. Picked car up it was rattling and smell of burning. Took to another garage they said nothing wrong with spring but cable had been over tightened. Went back to halfords to complain to be told by same guy that it was now the adjuster missing. Shocking service caused more problems. Halfords failed it. Other garage passed first time. Halfords should be struck off from doing any mot’s or servicing. Be warned and avoid

Just a warning to anyone using Halfords MOTs/service work. I took my car in for its MOT on Monday 25/05/2026 and it failed for “headlamp aim too low”. I was told I needed a new headlight adjuster and a completely new headlight, despite there being nothing actually wrong with the headlight itself. I told around £365 for the replacement plus another extra £20 for who knows what.

I was told this was simply “wear and tear”, although the screw looked very newly broken as you can tell with wear and tear it usually looks older and more of a natural deterioration, this was a brand new (polished) looking screw which has a suspiciously clean mark/break on it, something wear and tear wouldn’t show. Obviously I can’t say for certain what happened, but it does make me question whether it could have been damaged while they were inspecting it.

We then took the car back down today (26/05/2026) with the issue being fixed, expecting the issue to simply be checked, only to be told we’d need to pay another £27 for a retest. We obviously refused and instead took the car to another MOT garage. After explaining the situation, they mentioned they’d recently had another customer come in from the same Halfords centre who had also been told they needed a completely new rear headlight when no issue was present beforehand. This was within the space of 48 hours.

Do not recommend due to overcharging for repairs.

Spent the extra money to upgrade to the motoring club
When it came down to getting free mot , booked well in advance and then day before THEY cancelled . Did not offer any alternatives , so left high and dry !! Sent me a gift voucher when I needed mot
They promised to repay cost of mot if I sent them the proof of me getting it done , I sent copy but they just come back saying case closed !,,,

On Friday, 22nd May, my car was booked into Halfords on Saughall Road, where I was greeted by a lovely young lady whose name unfortunately escapes me. She was professional, informative, courteous, and genuinely cheerful throughout my visit. I was really impressed.

To be fair, I’ve always been impressed by the service, communication, and overall courtesy from this branch. The team consistently provides excellent customer service, and it’s very much appreciated. Please keep up the fantastic work.

I drove to Halford in Farnborough Gate for changing the wiper and buy few other stuff, at service desk I booked for wipers and fitting wiper the lady told me it will be 10 mins waiting so we walked around the shop and picked few items and left at desk to pay all together, After 30 mins of waiting someone called me and said go to your car I grab the wipers and will be with you in a min, then I went to my car with my little one and waited for 15 mins at this hot weather, still no one came, I'd back to the desk and asked about it and she replied to me he's with another customer, I couldn't believe what I've been told, I get so angry and frustrated so I left the shop. Horrible experience and I hate them non professional services.

The centre at Surbiton was very well managed by Jimmy Majinya, from the start of my experience to the completion of the job first class.

Jimmy should be the benchmark for Halfords UK, based on extremely efficient customer service.
Excellent phone manner, and his interaction with his staff and customers is above and beyond.
Jimmy is very knowledgeable, and you can see Jimmy always tries to put the customer first.
Jimmy listens to staff and customers to achieve the required outcome, which I know is difficult sometimes, I observed this whilst my repair was in progress. Jimmy is very understanding to customers and will always try to give his best above and beyond customer service.

Great service why go anywhere else !

Second time I've used Halfords auto Doncaster Road scunthorpe. Booked in for Mot and service. Brilliant customer service. Staff polite and knowledgeable. Definitely recommend 👌

I paid to have 4 tyres fitted on my drive. After they had been fitted, when driving the car it wobbled and vibrated. Clearly something was wrong. Immediately drove to a garage to get it looked at. Transpired that Halfords had not balanced the tyres at all. Therefore leaving my car in an unsafe state. Reckless and uncaring behaviour. Would never use these charlatans again.

had a rear brake service carried out at the Middlesbrough (Trunk Road) Halfords branch on 1 May 2026, including rear discs, pads, and wear sensor replacement.

After the repair, I obtained equivalent like-for-like quotations from major competitors which were significantly lower than the amount charged by Halfords. I therefore submitted a Price Match refund request within the timeframe specified under the Halfords Price Match Promise and provided supporting evidence, including competitor quotations and my invoice.

Since then, I have sent multiple polite follow-up emails, formal escalation correspondence, and a Final Complaint Notice through the designated customer resolution channel. Despite allowing reasonable time for review, I have received no acknowledgement or response whatsoever.

My frustration is now less about the original pricing issue and more about the complete lack of customer communication and complaint handling. I made every effort to resolve the matter directly and professionally before leaving this review.

I took my car to Halfords for a “full vehicle health check,” which was ideal because the vehicle was technically carrying two problems:

A squeaky fan belt.
Keith from Swindon in the boot.

The receptionist was lovely. She asked, “Anything we should know about the car?”
I said, “There’s a knocking sound at the rear.”
She nodded and wrote: Customer reports suspension issue.

Efficient.

Now, credit where it’s due — the mechanics at Halfords are thorough. One lad plugged in a diagnostics machine that looked sophisticated enough to launch a satellite. After ten minutes he returned looking deeply concerned.

“Mate… your battery’s dead.”

I said, “Which one?”

That got awkward quickly.

What impressed me most was their commitment to upselling. I went in for an oil change and somehow left with:

New wiper blades
Air freshener shaped like a pine tree
£240 worth of “urgent advisories”
And the strong recommendation that I “avoid opening the boot for a while because of the smell.”

Professional instinct. That’s experience talking.

At one point, a mechanic asked if I wanted them to rotate the tyres.
I said, “No thanks, I’ve already moved the body twice this week.”

He laughed. I laughed. Keith remained silent, as always.

The waiting area was fantastic too. Nothing passes the time like stale coffee and wondering whether “forensics” counts as roadside assistance. I particularly enjoyed hearing another customer argue over a bulb replacement while I was mentally calculating prison sentences.

But honestly, the service was outstanding. They never asked questions. Never judged. One mechanic even said:
“Whatever’s in the boot has leaked onto the spare tyre.”

That’s discretion. In today’s world, that’s rare.

Five stars.
Would absolutely use again.
Though next time I’ll probably get the valet package.

Today in the hot weather I shut my boot and the number plate fell off. I was on the Parsonage car park in Leigh so drove to Halfords. A very helpful young man called McKenzie came to my rescue and re-stuck the number plate on. Thank you so much and Halfords you are lucky to have such a good worker. Well done

I recently used Halfords Autocentre in Barrow-in-Furness after discovering I had a flat tyre and damaged sidewall while away from home. I managed to quickly find a replacement tyre online and booked a fitting slot for the following day during my lunch break, specifically picking a time that would allow me to get back to work afterwards.

Unfortunately, the experience at the garage was disappointing from the moment I arrived. Despite having a pre-booked appointment, I was immediately told by the person I assume was the manager that the job would take between 1.5 and 2 hours and that I would need to leave the car. When I explained that wasn’t possible and that I needed the tyre replaced so I could drive 300 miles home, I was simply offered a refund instead. The overall attitude felt dismissive and unhelpful.

I questioned why specific time slots were available to book if they couldn’t realistically be honoured, and was told, “it’s a garage mate, we’re busy, the times are just guides.” I didn’t find that response particularly professional or reassuring.

After some discussion I agreed for them to proceed, but shortly after leaving I received a phone call asking which tyre needed replacing, despite already explaining this in person.

When I returned, I noticed my car had been left on the jack with the driver’s door open. Around 45 minutes later I was told the car was ready and that “the key is in the car.” There was no proper handover, and the vehicle had been left outside the garage bay with the key on the seat and the driver’s door still open. It just felt careless and unprofessional.

To make matters worse, I later discovered the tyre had been over-inflated and I had to adjust it myself back to the manufacturer’s recommended pressure.

The tyre was replaced in the end, but the overall customer service and professionalism were well below what I expected. Halfords really need to invest in some customer care training for their front desk staff because the way customers are spoken to makes a huge difference to the overall experience.

I won’t be returning to this branch, and this experience has made me think twice about using Halfords for any of my other vehicles in future.