Getting into side work

[Steven Rorrer]

Hey all,

I’ve been wanting to get into side work lately for some extra cash. I started scrapping but don’t have enough weight in scrap for it to be worth any decent cash yet.

So I was wondering how to go about working on people’s cars on the side. Can you just work on them in a driveway or do you need a dedicated garage + insurance to protect yourself? And how to avoid getting pep boys/chain store etc. rejects which I am afraid I would get from posting on Craigslist.

Thanks for any and all help,
Steve

Topic

[Justin]

All starts by word of mouth. Nice thing about side work is you can pick and choose your jobs also! I’m just getting started into it also. Just did a rear main, oil pan, and front shocks on a friends Silverado last night. I’ll do those all day long lol.

But the gf’s father and his buddy do a fair amount. It’s not uncommon for them to clear anywhere from 150-600$ a weekend each. I would start by just talking to family/friends and branching out from there. Posting on Craigslist can get you in trouble with the wrong people, not having insurance and whatnot. All it takes is one person that’s pissed off to report you and it starts a bunch of trouble. So also be careful of who’s stuff your working on aswell.

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[Steven Rorrer]

So you’re saying it would be a good idea to just stick with family/friends for now since I wouldn’t be a dedicated shop for insurance? And when you do your side work do you just undercut what a local shop’s labor rate is? I don’t really know what would be fair pricing but don’t want to charge to little like one of my buddies does

[zero]

I think what Cammed is implying, and correct me if I’m wrong, is that as soon as you start elaving any sort of a paper trail you really have no choice but to properly set up. By that I mean you would have to collect and pay taxes at all levels. Making sure you’re adhering to any bylaws, so you probably couldn’t use your garage at home. Workplace safety regulations. And most importantly every red cent would have to be claimed as income and have taxes paid on it. If you start and fail to do so and then decide to start doing it properly, you would open yourself up to the possibility of the tax man looking at you.

Charge whatever you want. Just remember that by doing work on the side, you are effectively taking business away from a shop.

Here’s a related story about people not paying taxes on second incomes. I worked at a sports facility where according to the law the official didn’t have to be technically “employed” in the sense that their income could be in cash with no deductions and the responsibility was on them to claim it. For years, nobody claimed the extra money and some of them were probably making over $500 a week easy. The guy that ran the league, which was an official job with a paycheck, also officiated on the side. Then he went through a very nasty divorce, during which the taxman decided to investigate the money that all these guys were making. One can only imagine how much some of them must have had to pay in back taxes, it was enough that many of them had no choice but to keep working just to pay off their tax bill. I’ve had to deal with them myself and they just fucking take it when they decide to.

[Greg]

A lot of times I will barter my skills for someone else skill. Most recent trade was with a tile setter. I did a 4wheel brake job on his work truck and he did a nice tile backlash in my kitchen. We each bought our own materials and it worked out great.

[Bluesnut]

There’s a few nasty downsides to doing side work.
One is that many people looking for someone to do side work also expect a dirt cheap price and may be quick to blame you for every ill the car has even if you never touched what they’re complaining about. You touched it; you own it.

Another issue is that if you’re employed by a dealer or independent garage and someone gets upset with you for whatever reason they may march into your regular place of employment and try to tie your side work into your day gig.
Granted, what you do on your own time is your business IMO but some employers do not look at it that way.

[Steven Rorrer]

So essentially side work is risky and not worth itunless you properly set up or only work on family/friends stuff?

[Bluesnut]

The main thing is to try and cover all your bases (including your hiney) even if you’re working on friends and relatives cars. That can lead to ex-friends and family problems all depending.

Some years ago a now ex-brother in law trashed the engine in his Chevy pickup. He had just started a new job and I felt sorry for him so I said I’d try to track a motor down for him. I found one at an obscure salvage where I knew the owner. He had just gotten a beater in that was running and driving with the same engine. The brother in law went by, drove the car, and bought the engine complete for 250 bucks with all accessories and pulled.

I installed the motor for him free of charge while he provided oil, filter, and coolant. The truck ran like a top and off he goes. Not only did I never see the guy again I found out that he was badmouthing me to all of the other family members and claimed that I “ripped him off”.
How does that work; find an engine on the cheap, labor free of charge, and I’m the bad guy…….

[zero]

No good deed goes unpunished.

[Bluesnut]

I’m certainly not saying that you should avoid side work as I’ve done it myself. I’m just saying that you have to walk on egg shells a bit because on Craigslist you will attract a certain amount of bottom feeders who feel that 20 bucks is too much for a complete brake job. Some will try that “I left my checkbook at home….” and “Can I pay you 20 bucks now and the rest next week….” type of BS.

One co-worker of mine at a new car dealer where I worked was approached by someone to do some work on a car that was of the same brand as the dealer where we worked. He did not solicit this job; someone had referred the customer to him as they knew he worked on that particular make.
He did the work for a fair price (1/2) and thought all was good. This customer had another problem a few weeks later and tried to associate this totally unrelated problem to the previous repair. The co-worker explained that those issues were not related on an aged, high miles car and the customer got upset.

The following week the customer approached the service counter at the dealership to complain about the co-worker’s repair job. This led to the dealer thinking that the co-worker was out soliciting work on those makes and in essence indirectly stealing from the dealership. They did not fire him but did put the squeeze on him by doling out nothing but .2 warranty work and oil changes. His paycheck took a big hit and he soon quit working there.

Sidework is ok as long as you’re very, very careful. Just another example of how people can be. A guy did some sidework and called the car owner when done. A couple of days later the car disappeared during the night and it was discovered the car owner had left a duplicate key when he dropped the car off and used the original key to come back at night and take the car without paying the bill.
Some people can be very innovative….

[wafrederick]

Problem is people finding out and calling the state on you.In Michigan,people can do this and report people doing this at their place since it is not registered

[Bluesnut]

Very true. I had forgotten that some states legislate licensing for anyone doing repair work. Another potential issue is city code in the neighborhood where you live.
Some municipalities, along with some not so understanding neighbors, can cause you a lot of grief also.

Some years ago a now deceased friend of mine got in trouble doing this. He was a mechanic and custom car guy. He would take in some of that customer car work and even though he did it in the confines of an attached garage of a nice house with the garage door down, some neighbors got wind of it and turned him in. The code enforcement officer paid a visit and luckily he got a warning and not a fine.

Sidework is doable; you just have to stay on your toes about what is legal and the people you deal with.

[Steven Rorrer]

Wow people truly suck! That guy that showed up in the middle of the night to take his car back without paying for work is especially awful. From what I am hearing I think I’ll just stick with family/friends at least for now and see how it goes.

Thanks everyone

Steve

[Jason White]

Here is another aspect. OP (02Taco) you don’t sound like you know much about the business, and I’m doubting you have had professional training or any certification. There is a strong liability aspect. When you accept money for a service, you are legally doing it professionally, and not actually having knowlege or certification will go against you more than anything. I have a friend that is in a law firm. Recently took some handyman mechanic’s house off of him. He did a brake job, didn’t have a lathe so he just replaced the brake pads with aftermarket pads. A month later they slammed into the back of another car when traffic came to a stop. It was determined the vehicle should have stopped in time but they claimed it just wouldn’t stop in time. On inspection found that there were issues with the rotors which inhibited their stopping ability, and since he took money for the job, it made him liable for the accident. He wasn’t held at 100% libility, but partial and that was enough to bankrupt him.

Personally I don’t even feel sorry for him because as a professional technician held at what seems like higher and higher standards, I’m tired of these hacks running around giving us a bad name so they can make a buck.

[Justin]

Dafirnz pretty much hit what I was trying to
Convey. Basically, you could possibly piss off the wrong person you do side work for and they have the potential to report you, then the state gets involved and all that fun stuff. You shouldn’t have to deal with that, but there is always the possibility. We have had code enforcement called on us a few times from the neighbors due to we would have 10+ cars lined up outside the shop next to the house on a Saturday from time to time lol.

Don’t get me wrong side work is awesome. I love the money, and you get to pick and choose what you want to do. I use it for racing money so I try to get all I can lol. Just make sure you can trust the person your doing work for is the final thing I will mention. Good luck man

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[zero]

I only do side work on a few friends and family’s cars. I take care of my peeps when I can and they take care of me. I actually had to tell 2 people that I couldn’t do anything because they were customers of where I worked and had been there in the last 6 months.

I don’t really have the room or ambition to be working on more cars than my own on my time off. The money would be nice, but working on the floor sucks balls and half the year it’s just too cold to be in an unheated garage.

[Author]

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