08/26/2026
!!Help make Michael prater famous!!
Now trying to bash my shop on social media
I normally don’t post about situations like this, but as a business owner, I feel this needs to be addressed.
After the recent ice storms, while I’ve been extremely busy renovating and improving the shop, I still made time after hours to help a customer by diagnosing and reprogramming his truck on two separate occasions.
After I completed the diagnostic work, the customer chose to have the actual repairs performed somewhere else. The diagnostic and programming work I performed was never paid for.
Today, the same customer came back to my shop asking if I had a tire. I calmly explained that I could not provide any additional services because there was still an unpaid balance for the previous work.
Instead of handling the situation professionally, he pulled out of my parking lot aggressively, spinning his tires and spraying rocks and gravel onto my motorcycle, my truck, and into the shop—potentially causing damage to personal property and a building that I am currently renovating for my business.
I understand that nobody likes being told “no,” but damaging or disrespecting someone else’s property because you were asked to pay for work that was already performed is unacceptable.
As a small business owner, my time, knowledge, diagnostic equipment, and programming services all have value. I will always do my best to help people when I can, but I also expect my business, my property, and the work I perform to be respected.
There is a right way and a wrong way to handle disagreements. Throwing a tantrum and potentially damaging someone’s property is not the right way.
How would you handle this situation?
Videos of the incident are in the comments.
free to share 👍
