DealershipRecruiting.com is a trade name of Sherwood Recruiting LLC ("Sherwood Recruiting", "we", "us"). These terms apply to every order placed on this site. By checking out, you ("Client") agree to these terms.
1. What you are buying
Each position in an order is a search to fill one opening at the Client's dealership. The flat fee shown at checkout is the full recruiting fee for that one hire.
2. How a search works
After payment we contact the Client within one business day for an intake. We then source, screen and present candidates. The Client makes every hiring decision, extends the offer and is the employer of record.
3. Technician levels
There is no single national standard for technician levels. Dealers, labor guides and manufacturers use letter grades such as A, B and C in different ways. We define our six technician positions by verifiable credentials and work history so the Client knows exactly what each order covers, and at intake we match them to the Client's own titles and pay plan.
- Lube Technician. Entry level. Holds little or no ASE or factory certification but shows a desire to learn and build a career in the shop. May hold ASE Entry-Level certification, a student credential that requires no work experience,26 or ASE G1 Maintenance and Light Repair.25 Typical work: oil and fluid service, tires and rotations, batteries, wipers and multipoint inspections. Many technicians begin as trainees, helpers or lubrication workers.31
- Qualified Technician. Not currently ASE or factory certified, but able to document a track record of successful paid automotive repair, generally two years or more, the same experience ASE requires for most of its certification tests.24 A technician whose certifications have expired is a Qualified Technician until recertified. Typical work: brakes, steering and suspension, alignments and routine repair to factory procedures.
- Certified Technician. Holds at least two current ASE automobile certifications from tests A1 through A8,23 or the manufacturer's mid-level factory certification for the Client's brand. The two-certification minimum mirrors Toyota's Repair (Expert) tier, which requires any two of A1 to A8.27 Typical work: diagnosis, electrical, heating and air conditioning, warranty and major repair within the certified areas.
- ASE Master Technician. Holds current ASE Master Automobile Technician status, which requires current certification in all of A1 through A8.23 ASE certification is brand-neutral, so this level travels to any franchise. Typical work: the store's hardest diagnostics across systems and brands, and mentoring other technicians.
- Factory Master Technician. Holds the master-level factory certification of the Client's brand, earned through that manufacturer's own training and dealership tenure. Examples: Toyota Master, which requires A1 to A8 and 36 months,27 and Ford Master, which requires all required courses in one specialty and five years at a Ford or Lincoln dealership.32 Honda, Stellantis and other manufacturers' master-level certifications are treated the same way. Typical work: brand-specific diagnostics, programming and warranty repair.
- Factory Elite Technician. Holds the highest technician designation the Client's brand offers. Examples: GM World Class Technician, which currently requires 8 of 9 GM Master certifications plus the matching ASE certifications;28 Toyota Master Diagnostic Technician, which requires A1 to A8, L1 and 60 months;27 and Ford Senior Master.3233 Typical work: the brand's most complex diagnostics, hybrid and electric vehicle work, and leading the shop.
Factory levels are brand-specific. A factory certification counts at the Factory Master or Factory Elite level only when it matches the brand the Client is hiring for, or a brand within the same manufacturer's certification program. A factory-certified technician presented for a different brand is priced at the level that the technician's current ASE certifications support: ASE Master Technician with all of A1 to A8, Certified Technician with two or more, otherwise Qualified Technician.
The fee follows the level hired. Each technician position is priced by level. If the Client hires a technician we present whose verified level is lower than the level ordered, we refund the difference in price for that position. We will not charge for a higher level unless the Client approves the higher price in writing before the offer is made; otherwise we keep searching at the level ordered.
How we verify. Before presenting a Certified, ASE Master, Factory Master or Factory Elite Technician, we ask the candidate for a current ASE status report from myASE and, for factory levels, the manufacturer's training transcript, and we confirm the certifications listed are current. ASE certifications must be renewed every five years, and Master status lapses if any required certification expires.2324 For a Qualified Technician we review documented work history, such as flag-hour or pay records and references, and the Client may add its own hands-on assessment. A candidate's level is based on credentials current on the date we present the candidate.
Licenses and certifications required by law. These apply at every level. Some states license mechanics. In Michigan, for example, anyone who repairs vehicles for pay must hold a state mechanic certification under the Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Act; ASE certification alone does not satisfy it, although eligible ASE categories may transfer, and a trainee may work under a supervised permit.29 Federal rules require anyone who services a vehicle's air conditioning system for payment to be certified under EPA Section 609.30 We will tell the Client what we learn about a candidate's licenses and certifications, but the Client remains responsible for confirming that each hire holds what its state and the work require, as part of its compliance under section 8.
What a level does not promise. A level describes a technician's credentials and work history when presented. It is not a guarantee of production, billed hours or future performance; departures are covered only by the replacement guarantee in section 4. Manufacturers set and change their own certification programs, so where a manufacturer's current requirements differ from the examples above, the manufacturer's requirements apply.
4. 90-day replacement guarantee
If a hire resigns or is terminated for performance or conduct within 90 days of the start date, we will search for and present a replacement for that position at no additional fee. The guarantee is one replacement search per hire. It covers our search, not hiring outcomes: we will present qualified candidates, and the Client still makes the hiring decision. To use the guarantee the Client must notify us within 10 days of the separation, and the fee for that position must be paid in full and not in dispute. The guarantee does not apply when the separation results from a layoff, a restructuring, a closed or sold store, a material change to the pay plan, hours or duties described at intake, or a failure to pay the hire as agreed.
5. If a position cannot be filled
If we have not presented a qualified candidate for a position within 45 days of the intake, the Client may cancel that position and receive a refund of that position's fee. Once a candidate for a position has been hired, that position's fee is earned and is not refundable except through the replacement guarantee.
6. Candidates hired later
A candidate we present who is hired by the Client, or by any store under common ownership, within 12 months of presentation counts as a filled position. If that hire was not part of a paid order, the Client agrees to pay the published fee for that role.
7. Payment
The full fee for every position in an order is due at checkout and is paid through Stripe by card or bank account. If you have a question or a problem with a charge, contact us at support@dealershiprecruiting.com or (574) 213-7122 before disputing it with your bank or card issuer, so we can resolve it directly. Refunds are made only as described in these terms.
8. Equal opportunity and compliance
We recruit without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran or military status or any other characteristic protected by law. The Client makes the same commitment and agrees not to ask us to screen for, prefer or exclude candidates on any protected characteristic. The Client is responsible for its own employment decisions, background and MVR checks, drug testing and compliance with employment law.
9. Candidates and the jobs board
We never charge candidates a fee. Submitting a resume does not guarantee an interview, an offer or a hire. Job listings on our jobs page are posted by the dealer groups named on them, may change or close at any time and link to sites we do not control, which have their own terms and privacy practices. Candidates confirm that the information they give us is true and complete, including their eligibility to work in the United States.
10. Estimates on this site
The position math, articles and calculator use published industry benchmarks, example inputs and figures from our recruiting experience. They are estimates for planning, not a promise of results at any store.
11. Limits
Our total liability for any claim relating to an order is limited to the fees paid for that order. We do not guarantee a hire's future performance beyond the replacement guarantee above. This limit does not apply to fraud or to any liability that cannot be limited under applicable law.
12. Governing law and disputes
These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Indiana. Any dispute relating to these terms or an order will be brought only in the state or federal courts located in St. Joseph County, Indiana, and both parties consent to those courts. Any claim must be filed within one year after it arises, unless applicable law requires a longer period.
13. General
We may update these terms for future orders; the terms posted when you check out apply to that order. Questions: support@dealershiprecruiting.com.