20 Complaints & Professional Conduct Practice Questions & Answers

Every Complaints & Professional Conduct practice question from the ASE C1 Service Consultant Practice Test, with the correct answer and a short explanation.

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1. A customer returns to the counter and begins describing, at length, a problem with the service performed last week. What should the service consultant do first?
- A.Interrupt politely to correct the points that the signed repair order plainly contradicts.
- B.Describe the shop's usual procedure right away so the customer can see the work was done properly.
- C.Let the customer finish the account without interrupting, then restate it to confirm the facts.✓ Answer
- D.Bring the technician who did the work out to the counter to answer the account directly.
A complaint is handled by listening to the entire account first, because interrupting to defend the shop stops the flow of facts the consultant needs; restating the complaint then verifies that the consultant heard the same thing the customer said before any remedy is discussed.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Customer Relations Task A15 (handle customer complaints)Report a problem with this question
2. At the counter a customer says, "Your oil change last week is what turned on my low-oil warning lamp." What is the consultant's best response?
- A.Assure the customer the lamp cannot be related, since the level is always set to specification.
- B.Record the lamp and the conditions the customer observed, then have a technician verify it.✓ Answer
- C.Write the customer's own conclusion on the repair order so the technician knows the claim.
- D.Offer another oil change at no charge right now so the customer leaves the counter happy.
What the customer experienced (a lamp came on) is a fact to document; what the customer concluded (the oil change caused it) is an opinion the consultant is not qualified to confirm or refute from the counter, so the observation is written down and a technician establishes the cause.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A2 and A15 (document the concern; handle complaints)Report a problem with this question
3. A customer at the front counter is raising his voice about a repair while several other customers wait in the lobby. What should the consultant do?
- A.Invite the customer into a private office or a quiet area and go on listening to him there.✓ Answer
- B.Take care of the waiting customers first so the upset customer has time to cool off.
- C.Keep the discussion at the counter so the others see complaints are taken seriously.
- D.Ask the customer to lower his voice because the other waiting customers can hear him.
Moving an angry customer away from the counter protects his privacy and keeps the other customers' impression of the facility intact, while the consultant keeps listening rather than cutting the complaint short; telling him to lower his voice or making him wait escalates the situation instead.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A12 and A15 (professional image; handle complaints)Report a problem with this question
4. The remedy a complaining customer demands is larger than the consultant is authorized to approve, and the manager will not be back for an hour. What should the consultant do?
- A.Approve the remedy now and explain the decision to the manager as soon as he gets back.
- B.Tell the customer the shop will not do what he asks and offer him the manager's phone number.
- C.Tell the customer who must decide, gather the paperwork, and give a time for an answer.✓ Answer
- D.Ask the customer to come back on a day when the manager is at the shop to decide it.
A remedy beyond the consultant's authority is escalated, but escalation is not a place to park the customer: the consultant says who decides, prepares the repair order and history so the decision maker has the facts, and commits to a specific time to respond, which is a promise the consultant can actually keep.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A15 (handle complaints, including referral to management)Report a problem with this question
5. Why does a service consultant restate a customer's complaint back to the customer in his own words?
- A.To show the customer that the consultant was listening closely to everything.
- B.To confirm the concern was understood the same way the customer described it.✓ Answer
- C.To put the complaint into the shop's own terms the technician will recognize later.
- D.To slow the conversation down so an upset customer has time to settle down.
Restating is a verification step: a complaint acted on from a misunderstanding produces the wrong remedy and a second complaint, so the consultant reads the concern back and lets the customer correct it before anything is promised or written.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A2 and A15 (verify and document the concern)Report a problem with this question
6. The technician's notes say a front wheel bearing has excessive play. How should the consultant present that finding to a customer who has no mechanical background?
- A.Read the technician's note out loud word for word so that nothing gets changed.
- B.Say the part is unsafe and that technical details are best left to the technician.
- C.Compare the part to something familiar and add that specifics need not concern him.
- D.Say what the part does, what the measurement showed, and what happens if it is left alone.✓ Answer
Plain language means translating the finding into function, evidence and consequence so the customer can judge it himself; reading jargon aloud leaves him unable to decide, and telling him the details are not his concern is condescending and takes the decision out of the owner's hands.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A12 and A19 (communicate findings clearly, without jargon)Report a problem with this question
7. Read the entire question before answering. All of the following support a professional image at the service counter EXCEPT:
- A.keeping the counter and the waiting area clear of other customers' paperwork.
- B.discussing another customer's unpaid invoice with a coworker while a customer waits.✓ Answer
- C.wearing a name badge and giving your name and your role when greeting a customer.
- D.setting the phone down and making eye contact when the customer steps up to the counter.
A customer who hears another customer's account discussed at the counter concludes that his own information is handled the same way, so confidentiality is part of professional image; the other three actions all tell the customer visibly that he has the consultant's attention and that the facility is orderly.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A12 (demonstrate a professional image and conduct)Report a problem with this question
8. A complaint about a repair was resolved two days ago and the customer left satisfied. What should the consultant do now?
- A.Close the file, since another call may only remind the customer of an unpleasant experience.
- B.Wait for the customer's next visit and ask about the repair during the write-up then.
- C.Call the customer to confirm the concern has stayed fixed and note the call in the file.✓ Answer
- D.Send the customer a request to post an online review of the service department.
A complaint is not closed when the customer walks out; the follow-up call confirms the remedy actually held and gives the customer a chance to raise anything still wrong, and logging it puts the outcome in the record for whoever serves that customer next.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A13 (customer follow-up and satisfaction)Report a problem with this question
9. A customer asks for a repair that needs equipment and factory information this shop does not have. What should the consultant tell him?
- A.That the shop will try the job and will not charge if the attempt fails.
- B.That the shop cannot perform this job, and where or how it can be done instead.✓ Answer
- C.That the job is not really needed and other work the shop does will help.
- D.That the shop can do the job, and then send it out without telling him.
Describing the facility's capabilities honestly includes naming its limits: a consultant who accepts work the shop cannot perform trades one sale for a comeback and a lost customer, so the honest answer states the limit and still helps the customer get the job done.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A7 (promote the facility's procedures, benefits and capabilities)Report a problem with this question
10. A customer is at this shop for the first time. Along with the concern and the vehicle information, what does the consultant most need to establish about the customer?
- A.Which shop he used before this one and what it was that made him stop going there.
- B.Whether he plans to wait in the lobby or would rather be driven home by the shuttle.
- C.The amount of money he is willing to spend before the vehicle goes into the shop.
- D.Contact information, how he prefers to be reached, and who will pay for the work.✓ Answer
Customer type and source of payment decide who may authorize the work and what paperwork must exist before it starts, and the contact method decides how authorization and updates will reach that person, so both are established at the first contact rather than discovered later.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A11 (identify customer type and source of payment)Report a problem with this question
11. A customer says the repair should be covered by an extended service contract he bought. What has to happen before the repair is performed?
- A.The administrator must authorize the claim, and that authorization must be documented.✓ Answer
- B.The customer must pay for the repair himself and then ask the administrator for reimbursement.
- C.The shop must finish the repair and send the invoice to the administrator afterward.
- D.The consultant must check that the contract has not expired and then start the work.
On contract work the payer, not the driver, approves the repair, so the claim is authorized by the administrator before any work starts; a repair performed first may be paid at a rate the administrator never approved, or not covered at all, and the shop then has no authorization to point to.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A11 (source of payment: service contracts and warranty administrators)Report a problem with this question
12. A driver arrives in a vehicle belonging to a fleet account and asks to have a repair done today. Who authorizes the work?
- A.The driver, because he is the person operating and presenting the vehicle.
- B.No one else, because a fleet account carries blanket approval for repairs.
- C.The fleet's designated contact, by purchase order or other documented approval.✓ Answer
- D.The shop's manager, who bills the account at its negotiated labor rate.
On a fleet account the owner of the vehicle and the payer is the company, so authority rests with the contact the fleet designates and is evidenced by a purchase order or equivalent record; the driver can report the symptom but cannot commit the fleet's money.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A11 (identify customer type and source of payment: fleet accounts)Report a problem with this question
13. A customer says the part that failed was installed at this shop several months ago, so the repair should cost him nothing. What must the consultant confirm before writing the order?
- A.That the same technician who did the earlier repair is available to do this work today.
- B.That the customer still has his own copy of the original invoice with him today.
- C.The earlier repair order, the part that was installed, and the terms that covered it.✓ Answer
- D.That no other shop has worked on that system since the earlier repair was done.
A claim against the shop's own prior work is a source-of-payment question answered from the shop's records: the earlier order shows what part was installed and under what terms, which determines who pays before anything is promised at the counter.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A6 and A11 (review vehicle service history; source of payment)Report a problem with this question
14. A customer says her insurer will pay for repairing damage found on her vehicle. What does that change for the consultant?
- A.Nothing changes at all, because the owner is here in person and can approve the repair.
- B.The shop may begin the work and bill the insurer for whatever the repair costs.
- C.The repair order no longer needs her signature, only the insurer's claim number.
- D.The insurer becomes an approving party, so its authorization is needed and documented.✓ Answer
When a third party pays, that party's approval is part of the authorization chain and has to be obtained and documented alongside the customer's, because work the payer never approved may not be paid for, and the vehicle's owner still authorizes work on her own vehicle.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A11 (identify customer type and source of payment: third-party payers)Report a problem with this question
15. A customer comes back saying the noise the shop was supposed to fix is still there. What is the consultant's best reply?
- A.Apologize for the trouble and arrange for the vehicle to be checked to find the cause.✓ Answer
- B.Explain that the repair performed was the right one, so the noise must be a new one.
- C.Accept that the shop was at fault and promise the job will be redone free.
- D.Point out that the order the customer signed covered only the work performed.
Acknowledging the customer's experience is not the same as admitting fault or denying it: the consultant apologizes for the inconvenience, which costs nothing and is honest, and then has the condition verified, because neither the shop's liability nor the cause is known at the counter.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A15 (handle complaints: acknowledge without assigning blame)Report a problem with this question
16. A part the shop installed has failed after a few weeks and the customer is angry at the counter. Which reply is appropriate?
- A.Take responsibility for settling the problem and tell the customer the next step.✓ Answer
- B.Note that the technician who installed the part no longer works at this shop.
- C.Explain that failures like this happen with any part and cannot be prevented.
- D.Point out that the part came from a supplier whose quality has been slipping lately.
The customer bought the repair from the facility, not from its supplier or its technician, so shifting blame to either one tells him the shop will not stand behind its work; owning the resolution and naming the next step is what actually moves the complaint toward a remedy.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A12 and A15 (professional conduct; handle complaints)Report a problem with this question
17. A customer asks the shop to do something it does not normally do. Why is "that is our policy" a poor answer?
- A.It binds the shop to a position that the manager may well decide to overrule later on.
- B.It implies the consultant holds an authority that really belongs to the owner.
- C.It invites the customer to ask for the written policy, which few shops keep.
- D.It leaves the customer without a reason or an alternative, so the conversation ends.✓ Answer
Professional communication answers the question that was asked and offers a way forward; a bare appeal to policy supplies neither, so the customer hears a refusal he cannot discuss, which is how a routine request turns into a complaint.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A12 and A15 (professional conduct; handle complaints)Report a problem with this question
18. A customer asks what the consultant thinks of a repair another shop did on his vehicle, and the workmanship is clearly poor. What should the consultant do?
- A.Give the customer his own opinion of that shop so that he can avoid it in future.
- B.Explain that the work the other shop did is the reason the vehicle is giving him trouble now.
- C.Avoid the subject, because commenting on another shop's work is never appropriate.
- D.Describe what was found and what correcting it takes, without running the other shop down.✓ Answer
The customer is entitled to the facts about the condition of his own vehicle, and reporting what was found is honest; volunteering a verdict on another business or a cause the shop has not established is opinion, and refusing to describe the condition at all withholds what the owner needs to decide.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A7 and A12 (describe capabilities and findings honestly; professional conduct)Report a problem with this question
19. A customer telephones, upset, saying the vehicle is worse than when he brought it in. What should the consultant do before offering any remedy?
- A.Offer to refund the diagnostic charge so that the customer will calm down.
- B.Ask what changed, when it began, and under exactly what conditions it happens.✓ Answer
- C.Tell the customer the vehicle was road tested before it was delivered.
- D.Schedule the vehicle in and have the same repair performed a second time.
"Worse" is a conclusion, not a symptom, and a remedy chosen before the facts are gathered is a guess: fact-finding questions turn the complaint into a specific, repeatable condition a technician can duplicate, which is what any remedy has to be built on.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Tasks A2 and A15 (obtain symptom detail; handle complaints)Report a problem with this question
20. To end a tense conversation, a consultant is tempted to promise that the shop will cover the repair whatever it turns out to involve. Why is that wrong?
- A.It commits the shop to something he cannot deliver, which worsens the complaint.✓ Answer
- B.It tells the customer that the shop has already accepted the blame for this failure.
- C.It sets an example other customers will hear of and expect for themselves.
- D.It takes away the customer's reason to have the vehicle diagnosed at all.
A promise made to end a conversation rather than to solve a problem exceeds the consultant's authority and the known facts, and when it is not honored the customer has a second, larger complaint about being misled on top of the original one.
Source: ASE C1 Task List, A. Communications — Task A15 (handle complaints: commit only to what can be delivered)Report a problem with this question

1. A customer returns to the counter and begins describing, at length, a problem with the service performed last week. What should the service consultant do first?

2. At the counter a customer says, "Your oil change last week is what turned on my low-oil warning lamp." What is the consultant's best response?

3. A customer at the front counter is raising his voice about a repair while several other customers wait in the lobby. What should the consultant do?

4. The remedy a complaining customer demands is larger than the consultant is authorized to approve, and the manager will not be back for an hour. What should the consultant do?

5. Why does a service consultant restate a customer's complaint back to the customer in his own words?

6. The technician's notes say a front wheel bearing has excessive play. How should the consultant present that finding to a customer who has no mechanical background?

7. Read the entire question before answering. All of the following support a professional image at the service counter EXCEPT:

8. A complaint about a repair was resolved two days ago and the customer left satisfied. What should the consultant do now?

9. A customer asks for a repair that needs equipment and factory information this shop does not have. What should the consultant tell him?

10. A customer is at this shop for the first time. Along with the concern and the vehicle information, what does the consultant most need to establish about the customer?

11. A customer says the repair should be covered by an extended service contract he bought. What has to happen before the repair is performed?

12. A driver arrives in a vehicle belonging to a fleet account and asks to have a repair done today. Who authorizes the work?

13. A customer says the part that failed was installed at this shop several months ago, so the repair should cost him nothing. What must the consultant confirm before writing the order?

14. A customer says her insurer will pay for repairing damage found on her vehicle. What does that change for the consultant?

15. A customer comes back saying the noise the shop was supposed to fix is still there. What is the consultant's best reply?

16. A part the shop installed has failed after a few weeks and the customer is angry at the counter. Which reply is appropriate?

17. A customer asks the shop to do something it does not normally do. Why is "that is our policy" a poor answer?

18. A customer asks what the consultant thinks of a repair another shop did on his vehicle, and the workmanship is clearly poor. What should the consultant do?

19. A customer telephones, upset, saying the vehicle is worse than when he brought it in. What should the consultant do before offering any remedy?

20. To end a tense conversation, a consultant is tempted to promise that the shop will cover the repair whatever it turns out to involve. Why is that wrong?

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