Almost two-thirds of British women are calling on the Government to introduce new laws to crack down and penalise sexist mechanics who charge inflated prices.
New data has found that 61 per cent of British women support new regulations to be put in place for mechanics and garages to receive penalties if a woman can prove she has been ripped off.
Less than one-quarter of female motorists fully trust a garage to be fair and correct when taking their vehicles in for a job.
The remaining 77 per cent feel they are unable to fully trust the prices an MOT garage will charge.
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There have been strong calls for garages to face sanctions if they rip customers off
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It comes as half of women feel they have been mis-sold or deceived about the necessity of repairs at some point, while a further 45 per cent say they are not wholly confident that the charges from garages are accurate or fair.
This has been dubbed as "pink pricing" where women are charged more than men for the same product simply because of their gender.
Penelope Silver said she had previously been taken advantage of at a garage and explained how it can be "anxiety-inducing" to get a repair.
She added: "We're still profiled and taken advantage of because we're perceived as lacking knowledge. We shouldn’t have to fight twice as hard just to be treated fairly and honestly."
The research, from Carly, also found that one in four women said they find nothing more stressful than visiting a car garage.
Commenting on the data, Carol Hughes added that she risked her mental and physical health when visiting a garage since she relied on her vehicle to get to vital hospital appointments.
She said: "When my newly purchased car broke down on the way home, the garage wouldn’t take me seriously until I had a male mechanic repeat exactly what I had told them.
"I lost so much money and risked my health because they would only listen to a partner."
Carly has recently launched its Repair Costs AI tool which allows motorists to estimate any issues with their vehicles and get a correct cost prediction for the repairs needed.
It is hoped that motorists will now have the information they need to openly chat with mechanics at garages to ensure they are not getting ripped off.
Daniel Meeghan, UK country manager of Carly, said: "The fact that women are still being treated unfairly in car maintenance is shocking, but it's a reality we aim to change by increasing industry transparency.
"If more women—and all drivers, for that matter—have access to accurate, real-time information about their cars, they can feel empowered to question their mechanics, leading to long-term, trustworthy relationships with car garages."
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Millions of drivers could scramble to book an MOT test in the coming weeks and months
GETTYIt comes as Britons prepare for a busier period at garages across the country as drivers attempt to renew their MOT tests before it runs out.
Last year, the AA warned of a "nutty November" as millions of drivers scrambled to book an MOT test following a backlog of deferrals during the pandemic.
