A third of women drivers say they have been “ripped off” by a garage because of their gender, a new report reveals today. Nearly one in three overall believe that a garage has overcharged them for servicing and repair work done to their car – purely because they are female. And women drivers warn they are prepared to take their business elsewhere if they feel they are being taken advantage of, according to new research by car maintenance service motoreasy. Men are even more suspicious about how much they have been charged for repair or maintenance work by garages, with almost half claiming they believe they have been overcharged. But crucially, they do not believe this was “necessarily because of their gender”. The problem of sexist garage charging is felt most acutely among younger women drivers with nearly 34 percent of those in the 20 to 25 year old age group believing that at a technician has charged them over the odds. But even a quarter of the most experienced drivers have the same concern, with 27 percent of 36 to 55 year olds and 26 percent of 56 to 70 year old women believing they’ve been ripped-off on repairs and servicing. Across the United Kingdom, women in Northern Ireland feel most ripped off and overcharged, followed by Scotland. In 2015 a study found women are charged £45 more than men for the same garage repairs. A standard repair would cost a woman £616 compared to £571 for a man. Only 6 percent of garages charged the same prices for men and women and that a ‘female premium’ was applied in eight of 10 British cities. And a survey by an insurance firm last year showed that among women, brunettes and redheads were quoted up to 20 per cent less than blondes for work on brake pads on the same car. Brunettes were quoted an average £61.54 while blondes were quoted £77.28. Motoreasy says its new “concierge-like service” is different because it provides online customers with their own personal technician who liaises with garages and negotiates lower prices for parts and labour on their behalf.