The woman shared how her diligent car maintenance log became her secret weapon, saving her both time and money.
Taking care of a car requires a person to be responsible and organized. As an adult, owning a car has become a necessity, so it is only natural that people get used to taking proper care of one. It is even more critical to keep track of your car's service history. A TikTok user named Jane - who goes on the platform by @fat_biscuit - recently shared a video that highlighted why it was essential to do so.
She starts the video by saying that her dad compelled her to keep a small notebook when she got her first car. He then asked her to write down the details of every single service she got for the car. Everything from an oil change to a set of new tires. She says, "I used to think it was so annoying and that my dad was like such a boomer for making me write everything down."
According to Jane, she believed she would never end up needing the notebook and the entire thing seemed useless. But she was about to change her mind when her car battery died one fine morning. She was not really worried about getting it repaired as she had handled the problem before. She says, "So I called the O'Reilly that I purchased the battery from to see if I was still within warranty."
She had chosen that particular store, as she had a bad experience with another manufacturer before. The woman had purchased a battery, which died sometime later. However, the company claimed they had no record of her buying anything from them. She says, "My name and number were not in their system." So, she had to look for an affordable battery in the area.
Fortunately, she found an O'Reilly that happened to have very friendly staff. The sales representative assured her that if the battery died and she called, they would be able to find her in their system. But this was just a ploy to make a sale because when she called about her dead battery, they could not find her name in the system.
Determined not to back down, the woman tried to find the receipt of the battery purchase but couldn't find it anywhere. She then used her notebook and turned the pages to find the day she purchased the battery. Using the date she found, she cross-checked with her bank statements online and found proof of the purchase.
She called the store and informed them that she had gotten proof. She says, "The guys basically couldn't argue with me and was like, okay, bring the car in." The woman ended the video by saying she got a battery worth $260 for free because she was still under warranty. The store attempted to cheat her out of it by making her buy a new battery. Her father's suggestion to record everything helped her find the bank statement, which ultimately helped save her quite a bit of cash. Users on the site appreciated the useful tip and put down their thoughts in the comments.
@briangainsworth commented, "When you sell your car, those are gold to a buyer!" Another individual, @kistarr96 shared, "I call the receipts 'medical records for the car' and keep them in the glove box." @parnian1111 said, "I just bought my first car. I am gonna definitely do this."