Express Oil Change

On or about November 27th, 2019, I brought my car into Express Oil Change on Robinhood Rd. in Winston Salem, NC for a synthetic oil change about an hour or so before they closed that day. After my car was inspected for other needed services, a free check that they offer, the technician said I needed a new engine air filter. I agreed to have the engine air filter replaced and when all services were completed, I paid and left. Sometime later that evening, after Express Oil Change had closed, I returned home and three lights appeared on the dash of my car: check engine, TRAC OFF and 4WD, and I had never seen these lights before. Without the option to return to the Express Oil Change location since they had already closed that evening, I *** the meaning of the illumination of the lights, which suggested that the lights were trigged by a dirty gas cap or another minor issue. With the Thanksgiving holiday and an incredibly busy work schedule in December and January, which required out of town travel, I did not have time to look into this issue further. On February 15th, 2020 I was driving away from my house and the car completely stopped functioning, it stalled and would not drive. Many more lights illuminated on the dashboard, and I was forced to call a tow to a nearby auto repair shop. At the shop, they informed me that my car would require a $99 diagnostic code test due to the amount of lights illuminated on the dash. When the technician ran the diagnostic test, the codes revealed that the system was too lean and there was a mass or volume air flow circuit range/performance problem including stall history. The technician explained that the air intake tube became disconnected when my new air filter was replaced, and did not properly reattach the air intake tube. Additionally, this is the reasoning that the initial dashboard lights illuminated the night of the filter change at Express Oil Change on Robinhood Rd. Consequently, because the hood of the car was never lifted after the filter change on November 27th, 2019, there would be no other reasonable explanation for the disconnected intake tube. Because Express Oil Change did not properly reattach the air intake tube when they replaced the engine air filter, my car went into safety shutdown and I was required to both tow it and pay a $99 diagnostic fee to get the car running again. Since the problem was caused my Express Oil Change technician’s negligence in failing to properly connect the air intake tube, I verbally requested that the $99 diagnostic fee be refunded to me by Express Oil Change. This problem was no fault of my own and should not have occurred. And I put my trust of the proper maintenance and the safe operation of my car in the hands of the Express Oil Change technician. Thankfully, my car did not shutdown on a busy interstate. I’m not seeking compensation for my time or inconvenience, I’m just seeking a refund for the diagnostic test of my car’s problem.