Denial of Liability for Car Damage

kltoddie

Hello all,

Towards the end of last year I bought a VW Passat from an independent dealer. A fortnight ago I fell victim to the notorious electronic steering lock problem and the car broke down at Tesco (keys not recognised, so car wouldn't start, or lock).

I contacted the company I bought the car off and they arranged for a recovery company to take it to a VW dealer for repair under warranty.

I picked the car up direct from the VW dealer who kept me waiting for ages while they faffed about trying to sort out the invoices (even though I wasn't paying for the repair I was going nowhere without a copy so I have a 2 year warranty on the (very expensive) repair).

When I saw my car, as well as it not having been cleaned, the stuff from the boot was lying all over my car with the boot carpet thrown on top of it. It took me ages to sort it all out and I was late picking kids up as a result (had to sort stuff out so as to be able to put car seats back in), and obviously in my rush I never thought to fully inspect the vehicle. VW dealer claimed they never wash cars for the company I bought the car from (obviously they don't seem aware of Point 10 in VW's service promise) although that is the least of my worries, and they also claimed they never touched the stuff in the boot.

So onto the company I bought the car off and they claimed the recovery company must have needed to get the towing eye from under the carpet and had to get to it by taking seats down and getting stuff out of boot. Fair enough, but they should have left it back how they found it, and actually they didn't even need to do this because there is a manual boot release lever on the inside of the boot lid.

Then the next day as I'm getting my daughter out of the car, I notice a massive gouge on my alloy wheel (rear passenger side). I'm a chartered mechanical engineer and from the shape of the mark there is no way it was caused in the normal course of driving the vehicle - the recovery company has done it with the buckle of a ratchet strap.

So I immediately go to the company I bought the car from and whilst they don't say so, they know as well as I do that it's been the recovery company, although they say it's not helped by me not noticing it when I picked the car up (as I said above, I was in such a rush trying to rearrange the boot stuff to get the car seats in to go and get the kids). They say that they'll contact the recovery company to see what's said who will no doubt deny liability, but in any instance there is a place where they can get the wheel fixed for me.

So a week goes by with excuse after excuse from the company I bought the car from and being passed from pillar to post. Finally one of their salesmen basically said that unless I can prove who damaged the car and how, I can go and get stuffed! He also claims he doesn't know who the recovery company that they use are!

So I rang Trading Standards (or whatever they are known as now) and they said to go after the VW dealer as they are the last person in the chain and let all 3 insurers (VW dealer, recovery company, dealer I bought the car from) quibble about liability.

I asked Tesco to review their CCTV footage as I know roughly when the car was uplifted but it shows nothing.

I don't want to claim on my car insurance and I'm not sure alloy wheel damage is covered anyway. The dealer I bought the car off won't give me the name of the recovery company. If I take anyone to the small claims court they probably won't pay up.

I'm just so peeved at what the recovery company did to my car, how rude the place I got my car from have been and that they won't give me details of the recovery company or arrange to have the wheel fixed as they initially suggested they would, and I can't really afford to fix the damage myself as I've been made redundant, and I don't want to claim off my car insurance (if it's even covered) as that'll bump my premium up. :mad:

Is this one I just have to take on the chin?

Thoughts/advice please?

KT

aheaton46

It appears to be your word against theirs. You can't prove the damage wasn't already on the car, or caused later.

You could keep trying to get the name of the recovery company from the dealers, and try to hassle them, but they'll just say that they didn't cause it.

kltoddie

That's as I thought.

KT

kathy206

Just a thought, re claiming from the Recovery company. Every time I've had to have my car recovered, the recovery driver went around the car and highlighted any damage,dents/scuffs/scratches to wheels and body work. Did the company concerned not do that? IIRC I had to sign a form, which stated that I agreed the damage to the car that was noted on the form was present before they recovered it IYSWIM, and they wouldn't take the car without me signing this form and inspecting the car with them.

kltoddie

I know exactly what you mean, but I very much doubt it - I'm guessing that this is not exactly a professional recovery company.

The place I bought my car from told me that they got a bill for £80 instead of £50 to recover my car because apparently when they came to recover my car they then had to go and get plates and jack my car up to recover it :eek: - I would have thought that they should carry this stuff with them anyway and if I was the place that had contracted them to do the recovery I wouldn't have paid it (on the basis that it was a fixed price/quote rather than an estimate).

Other things that alarm me are:
1) When I said to the place I got my car from about the recovery company leaving my boot stuff all over the place they said, "Yeah, they've been known to do that"; :mad: and,
2) The place I got my car from also said, "We get people telling us all the time that the recovery company has damaged their car". :eek:

So I'm not sure why the place I got my car from is protecting them and won't give me their details, considering things like how they've invoiced them for more than they said they would do the job for, the fact that they've damaged my car, and that they don't appear to be the most careful/professional recovery company given what they apparently do to other customers cars too...

I think if I was the place I got my car from I'd arrange for the fixing of my wheel (like they originally said they would do), and deduct the cost from the payment amount of the recovery company's next invoice :cool: I did suggest this but I don't think they liked me telling them how to run their business.

I'm a believer in what goes around comes around, and I don't expect that 2011 is going to be a spectacular year for used car sales. Indeed during my recent visits to them I noticed lots of vehicles that were there when I'd bought my car in October still sitting there...

It really p****s me off though, because I'm an honest person. When they lent me a company car there was a seat cover on the driver's seat and I thought I had ripped it, and I spoke to the guy whose car it was and said, "Listen, I think I've ripped your seat cover" and he said, "Never worry, it was already ripped" and I said, "Well, in case it was me, I've got you another one" :A

Belinda22

The problem is you have pointed out the damage when collecting the vehicle. Even if you had the recovery company details they will turn around and said you have done it since collecting the vehicle. Wheel damage is covered by comprehansive insurance however your accident damage excess will apply however in this case they will refuse to indemnify you as the damage happend while in possesions of the garage who's insurance have a the higher duty and they are the ones who have to pay out.

sunnysea83

Its your car, your responsibility to check it over before leaving the garage.

I have broken down several times in the past and always had to go to the garage with the driver of the recovery company and go over all the marks on the car, this was also done before towing it away from the breakdown site, i then had to sign the car off to the garage as well.

Its your word against theirs!

kltoddie

sunnysea83 wrote: »

Its your car, your responsibility to check it over before leaving the garage.

I have broken down several times in the past and always had to go to the garage with the driver of the recovery company and go over all the marks on the car, this was also done before towing it away from the breakdown site, i then had to sign the car off to the garage as well.

Its your word against theirs!

I wasn't even there when they recovered it - they left it sitting for over a day at Tesco and I only know when they roughly uplifted it because I go to Slimming World at a place beside Tesco and when I went to SW the day after my car broke down it was still there, but when I came out of SW they'd it lifted.

And no sign-off/inspection process whatsoever.