SAFETY HARBOR, Fla. — There are a group of mechanics out there that don’t have a shop or a garage, they work solely on house calls.
Paul Richards goes to about 10 to 15 homes a week doing everything from shocks to breaks to oil changes and the owners of these cars never even have to leave the house.
“I felt safe in general not having to go to a shop and leave the car there and having to interact with people and wait in the waiting room, they’re coming to your home,” said client Michael Cvihun, of Safety Harbor.
“A lot of people I find they didn’t know that this was a service,” said Richards.
Richards worked in a regular auto repair shop for almost 20 years until he decided to be his own boss and make house calls through Yourmechanic.com.
“And they still get the same service, the quality that you would at a shop, a dealer,” said Richards.
Before each stop, Richards knows exactly what type of job he’s going to face and he loads up his SUV with the parts and tools necessary.
“You can choose your skill sets to say, ‘I can do this, I have the equipment to do this,’ and they will only give you the jobs that are in the realm of your skillset,” said Richards.
Despite more people staying home, he said the work has remained consistent throughout the pandemic.
“This is a way more viable option for people right now because you know post-pandemic the awareness is out there,” said Richards.
According to autonews.com, it’s a profession in demand. They predict by 2026, the U.S. will need more than 46,000 new technicians. Richards said it’s getting to the point where clients are asking for him by name.
“So they can say, ‘I just want this mechanic, I trust him, I’m comfortable around him, I want him to do the work on my car,’” said Richards.
For more information go to Yourmechanic.com.
