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From: vtec
So im learning this in law class right now.. you have three choices and dont let them tell you otherwise, lawyer up and let them know what you want to do and make sure you tell your insurance company about what has occured, and dont let the dealership do any work unless you approve of it and let your lawyers know that as well.. but here is a case study we were looking over pretty much same thing as your having
And where did you get that concept???
Presumably, you are trying to argue the concept of 'diminished value' due to the damage. However, that won't fly in Texas.... or many other states.
The Texas Supreme Court resolved that issue in 'American Manufacturers Mutual Insurance Company et. al. vs. Gary Schaefer'.
See: http://www.supreme.courts.state.tx.us/opin...inionID=2000287
and
http://www.abrn.com/abrn/article/art...l.jsp?id=88774
Also, per the Texas Dept of Insurance:
When an automobile is completely repaired to its pre-damage condition, there is sometimes a question of whether an insurer is obligated to pay the first party claimant for the diminished value of the automobile. A policyholder may claim that the automobile
And where did you get that concept???
Presumably, you are trying to argue the concept of 'diminished value' due to the damage. However, that won't fly in Texas.... or many other states.
The Texas Supreme Court resolved that issue in 'American Manufacturers Mutual Insurance Company et. al. vs. Gary Schaefer'.
See: http://www.supreme.courts.state.tx.us/opin...inionID=2000287
and
http://www.abrn.com/abrn/article/art...l.jsp?id=88774
Also, per the Texas Dept of Insurance:
When an automobile is completely repaired to its pre-damage condition, there is sometimes a question of whether an insurer is obligated to pay the first party claimant for the diminished value of the automobile. A policyholder may claim that the automobile
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Joined: Jan 2008
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I don't think a lawyer would be the primary answer to this situation. Everybody is looking at it from a customer's POV. As if everybody doesn't know already...to customers, dealerships=the devil. They only bring the car to the dealership if heavy work is needed, if something is covered under warranty, or if any TSBs, SSMs, or recalls need to be performed.
I give credit to the dealership for taking full responsibility. A dealership's shop foreman or service manager has to be careful when choosing words. He might have mentioned something about your rear tires and you might have taken it the wrong way. BUT...it's YOUR CAR! You decide what you want to do with it. Nobody has the right to tell you what to do and not to do with your car.
Either way, you need to contact your insurance company ASAP and file a claim. From the moment that claim is filed, they will be (should be) conctacting the dealership and telling them to hold any work from being done on the car. They will then send an insurance adjuster to estimate the total damage done and get back to you with the estimate. You need to handle this through your insurance company before contacting ANY lawyers!!! Reasons include:
1. First and foremost, the car will now either have a clean or salvage title. Also, the accident will be filed with the VIN number for vehicle history.
2. Insurance companies WILL PAY to have the car towed to a RECOMMENDED shop. If you don't know the reputation of the body shop the dealership sent it to, you don't know what kind of work will be done. I GUARANTEE the dealership has a relationship with that body shop, which means they get hookups and discounts on parts prices and labor. They are trying to fix it for as CHEAP AS POSSIBLE!!!
3. With an insurance company, you will have direct contact with an accident representative that you can call pretty much 8 hours a day 7 days a week.
4. You will have a claim on file and insurance companies usually guarantee the work done on the car for the life of the car. If anything goes wrong with the car, you can take legal action outright!
5. Body shops have come a LONG way in the past few decades. Unibody frames are almost completely repairable. The car, if fixable, will be guaranteed to be in the condition you left it in, if not better!
If you feel that the work done on the car does not satisfy you, you can sell it right away. You can be honest with the buyer and say that it just came back from the body shop. If your insurance company took care of fixing it, it will NEVER be in better condition than right out of the body shop.
Just my .02, my S2000 is in the body shop for the 6th week after hitting a deer. I expect it to be in top condition. My insurance company guarantees it.
I give credit to the dealership for taking full responsibility. A dealership's shop foreman or service manager has to be careful when choosing words. He might have mentioned something about your rear tires and you might have taken it the wrong way. BUT...it's YOUR CAR! You decide what you want to do with it. Nobody has the right to tell you what to do and not to do with your car.
Either way, you need to contact your insurance company ASAP and file a claim. From the moment that claim is filed, they will be (should be) conctacting the dealership and telling them to hold any work from being done on the car. They will then send an insurance adjuster to estimate the total damage done and get back to you with the estimate. You need to handle this through your insurance company before contacting ANY lawyers!!! Reasons include:
1. First and foremost, the car will now either have a clean or salvage title. Also, the accident will be filed with the VIN number for vehicle history.
2. Insurance companies WILL PAY to have the car towed to a RECOMMENDED shop. If you don't know the reputation of the body shop the dealership sent it to, you don't know what kind of work will be done. I GUARANTEE the dealership has a relationship with that body shop, which means they get hookups and discounts on parts prices and labor. They are trying to fix it for as CHEAP AS POSSIBLE!!!
3. With an insurance company, you will have direct contact with an accident representative that you can call pretty much 8 hours a day 7 days a week.
4. You will have a claim on file and insurance companies usually guarantee the work done on the car for the life of the car. If anything goes wrong with the car, you can take legal action outright!
5. Body shops have come a LONG way in the past few decades. Unibody frames are almost completely repairable. The car, if fixable, will be guaranteed to be in the condition you left it in, if not better!
If you feel that the work done on the car does not satisfy you, you can sell it right away. You can be honest with the buyer and say that it just came back from the body shop. If your insurance company took care of fixing it, it will NEVER be in better condition than right out of the body shop.
Just my .02, my S2000 is in the body shop for the 6th week after hitting a deer. I expect it to be in top condition. My insurance company guarantees it.
Joined: May 2002
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[QUOTE=Chi-CityAp2,Jan 23 2008, 03:44 PM] Presumably, you are trying to argue the concept of 'diminished value' due to the damage. However, that won't fly in Texas.... or many other states.
The Texas Supreme Court resolved that issue in 'American Manufacturers Mutual Insurance Company et. al. vs. Gary Schaefer'.
See: http://www.supreme.courts.state.tx.us/opin...inionID=2000287
and
http://www.abrn.com/abrn/article/art...l.jsp?id=88774
Also, per the Texas Dept of Insurance:
When an automobile is completely repaired to its pre-damage condition, there is sometimes a question of whether an insurer is obligated to pay the first party claimant for the diminished value of the automobile. A policyholder may claim that the automobile
The Texas Supreme Court resolved that issue in 'American Manufacturers Mutual Insurance Company et. al. vs. Gary Schaefer'.
See: http://www.supreme.courts.state.tx.us/opin...inionID=2000287
and
http://www.abrn.com/abrn/article/art...l.jsp?id=88774
Also, per the Texas Dept of Insurance:
When an automobile is completely repaired to its pre-damage condition, there is sometimes a question of whether an insurer is obligated to pay the first party claimant for the diminished value of the automobile. A policyholder may claim that the automobile
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Joined: Aug 2005
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Hey bud, sorry to hear your sotry. This happened to a guy here in Houston. read what they did for him.
http://bad-car-dealer.blogspot.com/2006/08...mith-honda.html
http://bad-car-dealer.blogspot.com/2006/08...mith-honda.html
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Joined: Feb 2007
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Please please listen to these people. Call a lawyer, get the must ruthless lawyer you can find. The dealership will always, always, always do what is in their best interest, not yours. DO NOT TRUST THEM IN ANY WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM. Consult an attorney right now. You may not be able to sue them anyway due to most of them having an arbitration clause. If you don't know what arb is, PM me and i can give you insight as i file them all day long. Honestly, if you have a good case, arb is much faster than going through litigation and with the same outcome, minus the attorney fee's. If there is ANY way i can help you, please don't hesitate to pm me, ive got a good bit of resources with arbitration. Good luck and keep us all posted. I may be in a similar situation as you soon.
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Joined: Apr 2007
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From: allentown PA
why was there 2 PEOPLE in your car???? Joy ride??????? Sue the hell outta them and you will win. I work at a dealership and you will have no prob winning this! I wouldn't even take the car back no matter what! This is why I will never let my car at a dealership and sorry to see this happen to anyone
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 11,399
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Originally Posted by DDSracer,Jan 23 2008, 04:01 PM
Hey bud, sorry to hear your sotry. This happened to a guy here in Houston. read what they did for him.
http://bad-car-dealer.blogspot.com/2006/08...mith-honda.html
http://bad-car-dealer.blogspot.com/2006/08...mith-honda.html
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,210
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From: San Diego
Pressure the dealership. Try and find someone somewhere, maybe a local paper, better business bureau, etc. who would run a story about how this dealership trashed your car taking it out for a drive in crappy weather. How they're trying to fix it cheap and give you salvage title car, and how they tried to pin the blame on you, etc.
PRESSURE. The dealership would rather throw money at you than have their name smeared among the public, which is full of potential customers. And let them know you're gonna pass out flyers letting people know what the dealership did, etc. . . . scare tactics work in these cases. Hell, bring in a few flyers you've already made . . .
PRESSURE. The dealership would rather throw money at you than have their name smeared among the public, which is full of potential customers. And let them know you're gonna pass out flyers letting people know what the dealership did, etc. . . . scare tactics work in these cases. Hell, bring in a few flyers you've already made . . .