Repeat offenders and the Kia Optima

[Earl Weiss]

................. A lot depends on the judge if you take it to small claims court. .

True classic quotes from small claim judges:

"I know how them washes can do. They can throw you off the track and throw you back on again. " Damaged wheel claim I lost.

"You take the car as you find it...You could have inspected the car before it came in" - Van had come off the track. I immediately checked the air pressure and found one front had 15 psi, the other 50 psi, and repair bill had wheel alignment (and body damage repair on all 4 sides) even though driver testified wheel alignment was fine and no wheel alignment issues cause by wash. He also testified only one side was damaged by the wash.

The "Take them as you find them legal principal apples to what is often called the "Egg shell Skull " plaintiff whose injures are more severe than would happen to the average person from the same occurrence. It does not apply to liability. Judge awarded 50% of the amount claimed by State Farm, on this subrogation claim.

 

[rph9168]

We had an old, beat up Chevy Blazer jump the conveyor and took out two arches in the process. The owner was a doctor. He sent us a $4,000 repair bill for the Blazer and another bill for $1,000 for his time involved - which really ****ed me off. (He was a very arrogant SOB that said his time was so valuable that he had to bill us for his time away from his practice.) Noticed on the repair bill among other unrelated damages new u-joints and alignment. We knew the repair shop so we called him about the bill. He said the u-joints were so bad he was surprised the vehicle was driveable due to the fact that the front wheels wobbled. We told the doc that not only would we not pay but we would counter sue for the damage done to our wash by his POS Blazer if he pursued his claim. After a bit of lawyer talk he finally gave up.

 

[sudsurfer]

Well after almost a month, the dude is back asking what we are going to do about his damaged wheels. I am refusing to pay, so will probably end up in small claims. Anyone have experience and advice when this happens?

 

[MEP001]

He may have to prove negligence on your part. If you aren't scratching rims on a daily basis, he'll probably lose. Did you get good images of the scratches? See if they're sharp like they would be if metal shaved off aluminum or rough from a concrete curb.

 

[mrfixit]

The cost of a little Kia wheel is hardly worth his trouble. Plus he can probably get it at cost from the dealer.. (half of what they quote probably)

Be straight up with him next time.. "I'm sorry you scratched your rim but there is No evidence whatsoever that our wash caused the scratches. You could have easily rubbed a curb at anytime and not noticed"

 

[rph9168]

I would tell him that you have washed thousands of vehicles, probably many Kia's and have never damaged any rims like that. It must have either occurred somewhere else and you weren't aware of it. I am not responsible for that damage and will not pay for any repair for damage that I did not cause. While I doubt this guy will go to court but if he does I would use a similar defense and bring in any records you have that prove the number of washes you have done. Maybe even a video of your wash process that shows how well it works.

 

[Earl Weiss]

1. You cn check e-bay for a replacemet wheel. Sometimes they are 1/3 the cost of new. Then offer to pay for wheel only and he foots install bill.
2. I take a hard line if I am not responsible. Particularly with insurance subro BS. I want them to know I am not an easy target.
3. On these as always if not more so than normal, judges can be unpredictable.

 

[rph9168]

I agree with Earl on the judges. There is no real guarantee that they will rule in your favor. I know it is far from scientific but in the several cases I have been involved in and watching others while waiting for our case I made some observations. Judges don't like smart a$$es. Be as brief and factual as possible and avoid emotions when presenting your evidence. These judges see a lot of cases and their attention span tends to be short. They may get annoyed if you take too long or are overly dramatic or make disparaging remarks about the other guy. If you have a wash shirt or uniform wear it. Makes you seem more involved in the case and identifies you as the average worker, not some owner that is trying to get out of the claim. Woman seem to get a better break than men but I only saw male judges. Even after all this it is something of a crap shoot. We only contested claims that were expensive and we thought we had a good chance of winning. It is not worth going to court over small stuff. We always tried to negotiate a settlement even when we knew we were in the wrong. In this case I would probably risk court since it is fairly costly and the guy seems like he is scamming you.