(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: This week on
 
"Marketplace."
 
>> Oh, boy, came in for a $20
 
oil change.
 
>> You're about to see a fast
 
lube franchise pull a fast
 
one.
 
>> If you can, try and get
 
your transmission fluid
 
changed.
 
>> Is it necessary?
 
>> No, I just did a
 
transmission service.
 
>> Tom: That's what I thought.
 
We go up on the hoist
 
to show you what's really going
 
down at these oil change shops.
 
>> Let me tell you a little
 
bit about fraud.
 
>> Tom: Insiders share the
 
secrets of shaking you down.
 
>> I've never worked for a
 
more shady, crooked, deceitful
 
company.
 
>> Tom: And we track down the
 
man behind all this greasy
 
business.
 
>> That's him right by the door.
 
Do you want to just go get
 
him, Tom?
 
>> Yeah.
 
>> Just go, just go.
 
(♪♪)
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: We're heading to this
 
Economy Lube in Guelph,
 
Ontario.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: It's part of a chain of
 
oil change garages that
 
promises fast and affordable
 
service.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Ten minutes, 20 bucks,
 
and you're done, according to
 
their ad.
 
(♪♪)
 
♪ Just $19.99, at Economy Lube♪
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Catchy but maybe not
 
that simple.
 
>> Hi there.
 
>> Need an oil change?
 
>> Yes, please.
 
>> Tom: Who hasn't worried
 
about turning over their car
 
to some gearhead and getting
 
back a big bill.
 
And a lot of gobbledygook.
 
>> Tom: We've been hearing
 
there's reason to worry at
 
Economy Lube.
 
That's why we're putting it to
 
the test.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Right off the bat,
 
they're upselling that $20 oil
 
change.
 
>> Tom: Recommending a more
 
expensive package than
 
advertised but does it get any
 
worse than that?
 
These guys say you can bet on
 
it.
 
>> I have never worked for a
 
company like Economy Lube, for
 
a more shady, crooked,
 
deceitful company.
 
>> Tom: They're insiders,
 
former employees of Economy
 
Lube, who still have ties to
 
the industry, and don't want
 
to be identified.
 
>> I totally rip people off
 
and I did that for a number of
 
years for the dollar and the
 
money.
 
>> Tom: Their years of ripping
 
people off at Economy Lube
 
ended in a bitter fight over
 
wages.
 
You had issues, you went to
 
the labour department and
 
argued over money, that sort
 
of thing.
 
>> Everything we're saying
 
is a hundred percent true.
 
There would be many more
 
people besides us that would
 
be, you know, willing to say
 
so as well.
 
>> Tom: They have no axe to
 
grind, they say, just a
 
conscience to clear.
 
>> This is our chance to right
 
our wrongs and bring awareness
 
to what's going on.
 
>> Tom: So they're blowing the
 
whistle on a company that they
 
say tops you up and rips you
 
off, all because the boss wants
 
it that way.
 
>> I couldn't remember
 
questioning him about the
 
practises as far as sales go,
 
and his exact words were go
 
save the whales somewhere
 
else, and he told me it was an
 
upsell world.
 
>> Tom: But we're not just
 
talking their word for it.
 
We've assembled a team of
 
testers to help us see for
 
ourselves.
 
All of them work for CBC.
 
Anu, Steve, and Ryan.
 
Each driving a car with one
 
thing in common: They all need
 
an oil change, and nothing
 
else.
 
They will be heading to that
 
same Economy Lube in Guelph.
 
And what's about to happen has
 
lessons for us all.
 
Our home base for the day is
 
Conestoga college.
 
They train a lot of future
 
mechanics here, and they have
 
agreed to let us use their
 
massive garage.
 
>> Tom: Morning everybody.
 
Nice to see you.
 
So the plan as you know is
 
we're going to head down to
 
Economy Lube and you're going
 
to just be customers.
 
>> Tom: Helping us with our
 
test is expert Mark
 
Sach-Anderson.
 
>> They shouldn't be offering
 
you anymore than just the oil
 
change you're going in for.
 
Everything else is fine on the
 
car so it should be a nice
 
simple, easy, in, oil change,
 
and out.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Mark has been in the
 
industry for more than 20
 
years.
 
He began as an oil change
 
technician himself.
 
Became a mechanic and worked
 
his way up the ranks.
 
He now runs this garage in
 
Toronto's west end.
 
>> There are a lot of good oil
 
change facilities.
 
Unfortunately, there's a few
 
bad ones, and it spoils it for
 
everybody.
 
>> Tom: The oil change industry
 
knows it has a bad reputation.
 
>> It seems like mechanics are
 
always out to get you.
 
>> Tom: Jiffy Lube, for
 
instance, plays off customer
 
worries in this ad.
 
>> But at Jiffy Lube, we don't
 
fix vehicles, we help keep them
 
running right to help you leave
 
repair shop worries behind.
 
>> Tom: So if the industry
 
knows we're suspicious, can we
 
really finally leave worries
 
behind?
 
If only.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: To do our test properly,
 
it's important to establish a
 
base line.
 
So Mark spends days going over
 
test vehicles.
 
He knows the kind of
 
additional services routinely
 
offered by places like Economy
 
Lube, such as fluid and filter
 
changes, and he wants to beat
 
them to the punch.
 
He makes sure none of our cars
 
need anything more than an oil
 
change.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Our hidden camera
 
specialist. Rob, is hard at
 
work making sure we've got all
 
the angles covered when it
 
comes to capturing our test.
 
>> Tom: Cool.
 
And where is that going to go?
 
>> Under the hood of the
 
Uplander.
 
>> So the guy working under
 
the hood, we'll be able to
 
see his hands working.
 
>> We'll be able to see his
 
hands reaching to all the
 
different -- stick and engine
 
coolant.
 
>> Cool.
 
>> Tom: So wondering what to
 
expect?
 
Back at Conestoga college, our
 
first tester, Anu, is wired up
 
and ready to go to see if what
 
we're hearing about Economy
 
Lube holds true.
 
>> I'll open the door for you.
 
>> Okay, thank you.
 
>> All right, good luck.
 
>> Thanks, Tom.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: The Economy Lube shop
 
is less than five minutes down
 
the road from our home base.
 
As Anu approaches, our
 
surveillance camera across the
 
street picks her up and
 
follows her in.
 
Our insiders say at Economy
 
Lube, the technicians count on
 
your ignorance, even though
 
they might not know much more
 
about your car than you do.
 
>> When I started, I'd never
 
worked on vehicles, never
 
popped a drain plug, never did
 
an oil change, no experience.
 
>> Tom: How about you?
 
>> I had experience from a
 
previous oil change places but
 
I worked with people who
 
didn't know anything about
 
cars at all.
 
>> Tom: They soon learn the
 
way things work at Economy
 
Lube.
 
Who trained you?
 
>> Actually, the owner of the
 
company Steve Moxey.
 
>> Tom: And what did he teach
 
you?
 
>> How to sell all the
 
different services, upselling.
 
>> Tom: What did that mean at
 
Economy Lube?
 
>> To sell as many services
 
and get as big of a bill as
 
you possibly could on every
 
single vehicle.
 
>> Because he didn't care if
 
you did the work, he cared if
 
you got the money.
 
>> Tom: And were these services
 
that were needed?
 
>> Uh, majority of the time, no.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: You can find a photo
 
of owner Steve Moxey right on
 
the door as you enter Economy
 
Lube.
 
Moxey has built a chain of 12
 
shops throughout southwestern
 
Ontario.
 
And according to our insiders,
 
he's done it through
 
dishonesty.
 
>> Just need an oil change?
 
>> Yeah.
 
>> Tom: Inside the shop, our
 
first tester is hearing she
 
needs a lot more than a simple
 
oil change.
 
>> Couldn't have smelled burnt
 
and it certainly wasn't brown
 
because I changed it.
 
>> Tom: And later, a former
 
fraud cop weighs in on our
 
findings.
 
>> I have told people all my
 
life that fraud is theft with
 
a smile.
 
(♪♪)
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: We're inside a quick
 
oil change shop called Economy
 
Lube.
 
Like all these types of shops,
 
they say they specialize in
 
fast work at affordable
 
prices.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Insiders tell us they
 
do a lot more than that.
 
Like sell you services you
 
don't need.
 
>> Engine flush.
 
>> Tom: Charge whatever they
 
can get and often not even do
 
the work.
 
>> Gimme some examples of
 
where you might do something
 
that wasn't really the real
 
thing?
 
>> One of the easiest things
 
to sell is power steering
 
fluid.
 
Take a sample and you can tell
 
a person that it should be
 
clear, you could tell a person
 
that it should be red, or you
 
could just go by the smell of
 
the fluid, smell this, the
 
fluid is very burnt.
 
There's a very easy sale.
 
>> Tom: With each lie they
 
tell, technicians earn money.
 
>> They were on a commission
 
system as far as what you
 
sold, so if I sold, say, a
 
coolant flush for $59, I would
 
get $2, if I sold it for 69
 
bucks, I get three bucks.
 
>> Tom: The bigger the lie,
 
the more money.
 
That's why they do so much
 
lying.
 
How often would those things
 
happen where you do a trick
 
every day.
 
>> Every day.
 
>> Multiple times a day.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: So will it happen to
 
our first tester?
 
Anu's car has been up on the
 
hoist for a few short minutes.
 
When she gets the prognosis.
 
>> Most of your stuff is in
 
good shape.
 
>> Okay.
 
>> Tom: The car needs more
 
than an oil change, he says,
 
it needs a brake flush and
 
power steering flush, two
 
procedures that involve time
 
and the complete replacement
 
of fluids.
 
But why?
 
>> Tom: Burning fluid.
 
Just like our insiders talked
 
about.
 
>> Tom: Remember, our expert
 
mechanic has checked out this
 
car and assures us it needs no
 
such work.
 
But in keeping with our test,
 
we give the go-ahead.
 
>> Tom: In reality it takes
 
them half that time.
 
In less than eight minutes, we
 
get the bill.
 
>> Tom: More than 200 bucks?
 
How did that happen?
 
>> Tom: We push for a better
 
explanation and get a better
 
deal in the process.
 
>> Tom: Our tester pays up.
 
And heads back to home base.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: So how did it go?
 
>> You know what?
 
They were really nice.
 
>> Tom: Can we see the bill?
 
>> Yeah, sure.
 
>> Tom: Nice is nice but our
 
expert mechanic Mark Sach-
 
Anderson says there's nothing
 
nice about that final bill.
 
In your view, the power
 
steering flush and brake fluid
 
flush were not needed?
 
>> No.
 
The fluids were up.
 
All of this was checked when I
 
had it at my shop.
 
Not three days ago.
 
>> Tom: Not only was the work
 
not needed, Mark suspects it
 
wasn't done.
 
Given how little time it took.
 
Mark shows us the four points
 
behind the wheels where it
 
would be clear if a brake
 
flush had been carried out.
 
>> There's so much rust on the
 
back of this bleeder or on the
 
bleeder here, and around the
 
seal, it hasn't been opened.
 
That tells me that the system's
 
not flushed.
 
>> Tom: All right, Mark,
 
let's go to the videotape, shall
 
we, and see what they did.
 
Our videotape confirms Mark's
 
suspicions.
 
>> Tightening the filter,
 
wiping off any oil.
 
>> Tom: That $90 brake flush
 
never happened.
 
>> Tom: Still nothing on the
 
brakes.
 
>> Nothing on the brakes.
 
>> Tom: Same for the power
 
steering flush.
 
Our hidden hood cam shows no
 
evidence it was performed.
 
>> But reality is you were
 
charged for it.
 
And it wasn't done.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Time for test number
 
two.
 
Our man Ryan is pulling up for
 
his oil change.
 
And who knows what else.
 
>> I'm here for the engine oil
 
change.
 
>> Yeah, no problem.
 
>> Tom: Just like last time,
 
that $20 oil change they
 
advertise becomes 29.
 
>> Tom: And just like last
 
time, it doesn't end there.
 
After a quick inspection, they
 
tell Ryan he needs more than
 
his oil change.
 
>> Tom: The brakes, again,
 
and the transmission?
 
Our expert, Mark, just did that
 
a few days ago.
 
A messy and lengthy procedure
 
we captured on camera.
 
Our insiders tell us this kind
 
of deception can really add
 
up.
 
>> As much as you didn't want
 
to do it but at the end of the
 
week when you get a thousand
 
dollar paycheque take home.
 
>> The money was just too
 
good.
 
With a high school education,
 
where are you going to make
 
between 65 and $100,000
 
a year?
 
>> Tom: Now Ryan is handing over
 
his money at Economy Lube.
 
After just ten minutes of work
 
on his car.
 
>> Tom: On his way with some
 
air fresheners and a bill that
 
stinks.
 
>> Thank you, bye.
 
>> Tom: Back at home base, we
 
have a look.
 
How was it?
 
>> It was, yeah, pricey.
 
>> Tom: We'll see what you
 
came up with.
 
218.
 
>> Yeah.
 
>> Tom: You asked for a $20
 
oil change?
 
>> Right, yeah, I did.
 
>> Tom: $218, Ryan's bill is
 
ten times when he went in for,
 
including 80 bucks for the
 
transmission.
 
Was that needed?
 
>> No.
 
I just, just did a transmission
 
service on this.
 
>> Tom: That's what I thought.
 
We check our hidden camera
 
tape to see how they sell that
 
one.
 
>> Tom: There's that burning
 
fluid line again.
 
Our expert is appalled.
 
>> It did not smelled burned
 
because it was all fresh fluid.
 
But I mean there's absolutely
 
no way that this service was
 
needed.
 
Good sales pitch.
 
But it's completely false.
 
It's almost like a script,
 
it's almost identical to the
 
service that we had on car
 
number one, the same it's
 
dirty, it smells.
 
>> Tom: So how about that
 
expensive brake flush?
 
They didn't actually do it the
 
first time they charged for
 
it, how about this time?
 
Mark checks and says no.
 
They didn't do a flush?
 
>> They couldn't have done a
 
flush.
 
>> Tom: Two for two.
 
Two flushes paid for that
 
didn't happen.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: Our third and final
 
tester Steve pulls in towards
 
the end of the day to get
 
his oil changed.
 
But will the upsell happen
 
again?
 
The answer comes minutes
 
later.
 
>> Tom: The technician promises
 
to flush out the entire engine
 
block and the radiator, and of
 
course, the braking system.
 
Back at home base...
 
>> Tom: How was it?
 
>> That was the most expensive
 
$19.99 I ever spent.
 
>> Tom: Really?
 
>> Oh, yeah.
 
>> Tom: Let's see.
 
251 bucks?
 
Good Lord, that's the highest
 
of the day.
 
What was the sales pressure
 
like on you?
 
>> They start off sounding
 
like you can choose, but they
 
sort of -- they gradually move
 
it into you really should get
 
it, we can do it for you right
 
now.
 
>> Tom: But did they do it?
 
Mark is interested in the full
 
system coolant flush they
 
charged for.
 
He says this car uses a
 
special coolant called
 
dex-cool which is orange.
 
He shows us what's in the
 
resevoir.
 
>> Look at that, bright green.
 
>> Tom: Bright green.
 
That's not the proper coolant?
 
>> That's not the proper
 
coolant for this vehicle.
 
>> Tom: Is what's in there in
 
here?
 
>> We don't know that.
 
>> Tom: Mark wants to take a
 
sample from the radiator.
 
He says if an actual flush was
 
done, the fluid coming out
 
will also be green.
 
>> That looks orange to me.
 
Oh, yeah.
 
Look at that.
 
Okay.
 
So that's coming out of the
 
radiator.
 
>> Tom: Right.
 
>> That is what is throughout
 
the system.
 
What we've seen changed here
 
is the stuff in the resevoir
 
and it's been changed with the
 
wrong stuff.
 
>> Tom: And what does that
 
mean for the vehicle?
 
>> It can cause damage to the
 
sensors, it can cause damage
 
and premature wear inside the
 
engine.
 
We should really be pulling
 
that stuff out of the resevoir
 
before it causes problems.
 
>> Tom: So not only was the
 
coolant publish not needed, it
 
was not done right, causing
 
cross contamination which
 
means we have to fix it.
 
And yet we paid $250.
 
What do you think about what
 
they've done?
 
>> Certainly not right.
 
Certainly gives us in the
 
industry a bad name.
 
>> And it's certainly time to
 
get some answers.
 
>> Tom: Oh.
 
>> What?
 
>> Tom: He's coming.
 
So after the break, we show up
 
at Economy Lube's warehouse
 
uninvited.
 
Mr. Moxey, Tom Harrington from
 
"Marketplace."
 
(♪♪)
(♪♪)
>> Tom: Our investigation into
 
oil change shops run by
 
Economy Lube takes us to a
 
former investigator himself.
 
>> Let me tell you a little
 
bit about fraud.
 
>> Tom: Mark Simchison used to
 
lead the major fraud division
 
of the Hamilton police.
 
at Economy Lube. we were sold
 
>> Tom: And what our expert
 
mechanic discovered.
 
>> It hasn't been opened.
 
That tells me that the
 
system's not flushed.
 
>> Tom: So what's his verdict?
 
>> I have told people all my
 
life that fraud is theft with
 
a smile.
 
>> Tom: Putting it right out
 
there, you're saying what
 
they're doing is fraud?
 
>> If they are charging for,
 
and accepting, money for and
 
receiving money for services
 
that they did not perform that
 
you paid for in all honesty,
 
that's fraud.
 
>> Tom: And that's exactly
 
what we found.
 
Time to take our evidence to
 
the top.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: We're as close to the
 
lot as we can possibly be so
 
we can see the door.
 
We're outside Economy Lube
 
warehouse in Cambridge,
 
Ontario.
 
>> He's in the car sitting.
 
>> Tom: Is he really?
 
>> Yeah.
 
>> Tom: Looking for some
 
answers.
 
Okay, he's gone in.
 
We've already made repeated
 
requests for an on-camera
 
interview with president and
 
founder Steve Moxey.
 
He's now inside.
 
He backed in with his Range
 
Rover inside that closed door
 
garage door.
 
Given him weeks to think about
 
it.
 
>> So if he sees the camera,
 
I don't think he'll come to
 
the door.
 
>> Tom: Right.
 
More details when requested.
 
>> I don't know exactly how we
 
should proceed because we're
 
across the parking lot right
 
now.
 
-- But Moxey still won't come
 
on camera.
 
>> Tom: Oh.
 
>> What?
 
>> Tom: He's coming.
 
>> Do you want to go get him,
 
Tom?
 
>> Tom: Yeah, why don't we
 
try now.
 
So when we spot the man who
 
greases the wheels at Economy
 
Lube...
 
>> Okay here he comes, he's out.
 
Just go.
 
Just go.
 
>> Tom: We decide to roll.
 
Mr. Moxey.
 
But Steve Moxey --
 
Tom Harrington from
 
"Marketplace."
 
-- doesn't want to talk about
 
why his company is ripping
 
people off.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: A few days later, we
 
reach Moxey by phone and
 
he denies any wrongdoing.
 
>> I have a real hard time
 
believing that you took three
 
cars in and not one of those
 
cars actually had the service
 
done because I'm in stores
 
every day.
 
You know, I could be wrong,
 
you know, it's a hundred
 
employees, anything's
 
possible.
 
If it's in fact the case, I
 
agree with anybody that that
 
is fraudulent.
 
>> Tom: We contact those
 
Economy Lube employees caught
 
by our hidden cameras.
 
This one denies working on any
 
of our test cars.
 
>> There you go, sir.
 
>> Tom: But the other fesses
 
up.
 
>> I'm not proud of it, but
 
that's how we were taught to
 
do stuff.
 
In that company, you are
 
forced to rip people off
 
basically because all the
 
owner's looking for is money.
 
If he's not making money, then
 
you're no use to him.
 
(♪♪)
 
>> Tom: As for lessons learned
 
in all this.
 
Here's a few tips from our
 
"Marketplace" survival guide
 
the next time you need an oil
 
change.
 
Familiarize yourself with the
 
service schedule recommended
 
by your car's manufacturer.
 
They built your car, and
 
probably know best when it
 
needs maintenance.
 
Quick oil change shops are
 
fine for a quick oil change.
 
For anything bigger or
 
unexpected, stick with a
 
mechanic you know you can
 
trust.
 
And finally, be on your toes
 
and know an upsell is coming.
 
That way you won't be caught
 
offguard by any greasy
 
business.
 
(♪♪)
