Carwash carnage.. Need legal advice

[z28up]

I went through a local automatic carwash a week ago (not a points show car so I was comfortable going through it) and as I went through the machine malfunctioned and the rollers got tangled up putting large dents on the top and quarter, scratched the door and trunk.. And pulled the rear spoiler loose... I requested and received the copy of the surveillance video.. They are at fault 100% the regional managers was apologetic and assured me it will get fixed.. I went to a body shop and the quoted me a "patch job" where the would fill the dents and flash the paint in.. I'm very familiar with body work and paint and I'm not happy about just patching in places.. The insurance company was wanting me to let them cut a check for the patch job and said if I feel I need a "loss of value" check I would need to write up the reasons why and it would have to go through many approvals from managers AFTER I get it repaired.. That seems shady to me..

I've already had to miss events and take off work to get the estimates..

What should I do?


1987 Grand National
Stock turbo ,Red 93 street tune chip, 206/206 comp cam, valve spring upgrade, Melling hv oil pump
37lb injectors, Ls1 maf with translator, Oil filter adapter upgrade
K&N filter

Sitting at home not installed yet:
AlkyControl "Razor" injection with 3 bar map, Hot wire kit, walbor pump upgrade, RJC Racing Airflow Distribution Power Plate

15x9 4.25 bs weld prostars 275/60
15x7 weld prostar

 

[bison]

What about getting your insurance company involved? Id go and get more estimates. Sounds like several thousand dollars in damage. The entire car needs to be repainted.


BPE2013@hotmail.com

 

[DCVING 6]

I agree with Bison. I'd rather pay my deductible and get it done right. Let your company fight them for the $.

 

[TurboBuRick]

I own a automatic car wash. I would like to see this video.

As far as your car getting fixed, Brian has good advice.

Rick

 

[Chuck Leeper]

1-800- my lawyer..That's a start.

 

[DCVING 6]

Also, don't take a check from them until the work is done and you are happy with it. You should just sign the check to the body shop when you are done.
They will try to cut you a check beforehand incase there is any additional work that needs to be done that wasn't on the initial estimate, you are going to be stuck paying out of pocket.

 

[hiboom]

I can tell you roof damage can be some of the hardest to fix because of the size of the area I've seen times when the metal was stretched and ended up chasing the damaged area all over the roof trying to get it repaired because of the size of the roof and the outer skin flexing


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MAK507]

DO NOT accept a check. It can be argued later that you "accepted the settlement." Them telling you that you can come back to get regional approval for losses is bullshit. Word is nothing in business. Black on white with notarized signatures is the only way to go if they're making promises - which you would still have to take to court through small claims. It can take forever. @bison said it perfectly. Go through your insurance with the video, have them fight it with the carwash.

 

[Phoneguy]

Yup, they are being shady.....That is what insurance companies do !!!! As was posted already, call your insurance company and let them get involved, that is why you pay them. Do not take a check from the car wash insurance company, you will regret it. The paint will never match and without stripping all of the original lacquerer and primer the new paint will not last long . My car had 43k miles with factory paint....check my sig for the paint thread.Good luck

Bryan

 

[TurboBuRick]

Yep, the entire car needs to be stripped down to bare metal and repainted. Also needs new bumpers, mirrors, motor, tarns, rear end and wheels. Don't forget you will need a rent a car and room at the holiday inn. All the pain and suffering, time off work, missing the kids ball game and dentist appointment. etc, etc....

I'm not in any way defending the car wash that did the damage but I been in the business over 20 years and never once was a entire car damaged requiring a complete paint job.

Call your insurance company..

Rick

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

This is one of those deals in life just drain a person. The car will never be right with a patch job and depending on the roof damage I would be very cautious how that was repaired.

I deal with this type of thing on a regular basis. People total their cars and come to me to buy a new on the middle of the settlement process with the insurance company. Some Insurance companies do them right and some play games. Their main goal is to get the case settled at minimal cost. That's to be expected. Refuse the offer and demand a complete paint job and proper metal repair. Depending on your state small claims may be out of the question because of law suit limit's $$$ wise. I wouldn't waste any money on a lawyer yet. Get the estimates to repair the car right and turn them in. Explain that that is all you will accept and hold your ground. If your paint was decent and uniform when you went in then this is reasonable. If the paint wasn't so nice then what would be reasonable and fair? There will be other parts of the car that are undamaged that will tell the story so if you had fairly nice paint stand your ground.

Talking with your insurance company would be a good idea too. This is one reason I use a local agent instead of one of the internet companies. I want a face to talk to and a chair to sit in if I have a problem like this.

Good luck with this and it sucks it had to happen.

 

[psycho6cyl]

also gather any pics you have of the car before hand so company can see what overall condition of car was like b4. also make copies of everything
.

 

[87GNSteve]

AND never take a car you care for to an automatic car wash.

 

[TurboBuRick]

AND never take a car you care for to an automatic car wash.

It's a urban myth that the cloth automatic car wash randomly scratches cars. Better chance of getting a scratch at a hand wash by a sponge.

When stuff like this comes up, everyone is a expert in the field. I'll put it to the test any day of the week. My GN is a black mirror and it goes through the automatic car wash all the time. Anyone wants to see it, come on by. I'll even shut all the water off and run it through dry.

The op states there was a malfunction. Thats a different story....

Rick

 

[87GNSteve]

Hand and sponge, "malfunctioning" doesn't cause dents..... why risk it?

 

[Rafs-T-Type]

Hand and sponge, "malfunctioning" doesn't cause dents..... why risk it?

Driving your car on the street may get you rock chips. Why risk it?

 

[87GNSteve]

Driving your car on the street may get you rock chips. Why risk it?

That would be classified as Moderate risk with negligible outcome. The car wash risk is rare with catastrophic outcome.

 

[Rafs-T-Type]

That would be classified as Moderate risk with negligible outcome. The car wash risk is rare with catastrophic outcome.

Ok, driving your car on the street may result in a catastrophic accident, why risk it. The point is there's risk in everything we do, and I'm sure the odds of your car getting mangled in a car wash are low enough to ignore.

 

[87GNSteve]

Then there is unnecessary risk is which what going into an automatic carwash is.

 

[trixdout]

You shouldn't this unlike any other car accident that may have occured on the road. Your car got damaged due to their equipment. Have a shop you know and trust to do the work, inspect and give you a quote. And have them hash it out with the place's insurance. Get your car fixed the right way. Do not let them dictate the terms. You are the victim not them.

Rafs, really unnecessary risk? Hand wash it and be done with it. Just like doing the work on the car yourself because trusting others is out of the question same goes for taking care of it.

Side note, using a two bucket system to washing the car with a wool mit will yield spectacular results. Try it.