The simple oil change?

I had a conversation with a friend a few months ago regarding basic maintenance of any vehicle.  We pretty much glossed over them: oil change, air filter, belts and brakes seemed to the ones that people can do at home with some hand tools.

When it came to the oil change however, for convenience's sake my friend said he always opted to go to the quick lube places since the price of having someone else change the oil was about the same if he were to buy the parts and do it himself.  He also happens to live in an area where doing car work is frowned upon by the local housing manager. 

His main concern when going to these places were if his old oil filter was actually being replaced.