miaomiao

Hi guys
Today is really my unlucky day!!! I went to Alliance Glass in Boston. Its a window tints place for auto. I left my CLS there whole day because they need couple hours to tint the window. After I pick up the car, I drove it home and everything seems fine but when I turn on the Navigation. Guess what, the nav shows " Navigation device unavialable"" What the hell!!! What did they do to my car!!! I came home and check the Nav DVD in the trunk and there were nothing in it. I called the Alliance Glass right after and they said they dont know anything about it!! Why would someone do things like that?????
Why did they take the Nav DVD from the car????
I have to go to my dealer again to get the DVD!!!!
This is sooo WTF

VelocitE55

Sorry to hear that man, people are just so stupid sometimes. What possible reason could there be for someone to take that?? Theres a possibility that maybe a non-employee(customer) may have taken it, you never know. But how does that happen, the nav unit is in the trunk, they would have no reason to go in there if it was only a tint job. Either way, that sucks. Although theres really not much you can do if they deny knowing anything about it, I would still go back and give them a real earfull. SOB's.

Stiggs

Whenever I bring any of my vehicles in for service or wherever, I allways take everything out of them.......change, CD's....anything that can leave the vehicle.

Trust no one!

E55 KEV

Sorry to hear about your loss. People will steal anything. That DVD is headed for Ebay. I too remove "everything" including the Nav CD's or DVD when in for service. I remove any sunglasses, pens, money, manuals, tire gauges, all music CD's, anything with my name and address on it. etc.

Co 55 AMG

SOBs

adx

BS, I would tell the shop that a police report is going to filed regarding this theft occuring at the shop unless they can find it. I would file a formal complaint with the owners.

RJC

Maybe they took it out to try playing another dvd and left yours out???

BoBcanada

Set them up, get your friends benz with nav cd put a spy cam oposite the cd changer and Sue the ****ers, ppl like that deserve either jail, or broken legs and arms...

BklynMarc

adx is right. The delivery of your car to the auto tinting shop created a bailment, a particular form of contract. Absent any disclaimers to the contrary, the shop (the bailee) had the obligation to return your car (and all the personal property within it) to you (the bailor) at the prearranged time. People create these contracts all the time: when you valet your car, when you take clothes to the dry cleaners, when you check your coat at dinner-- they are all examples of bailments.

What you'll notice is that often bailees try to limit liability by putting a disclaimer on the claim check/ticket (e.g., "We are not liable for lost or stolen items or damage to the property.") This is only partially effective. What underlies this area of law is a duty by the bailee to use reasonable care under the circumstances. For example, a bailee knows that he will be forced to pay for new rims if the attendant who parked your car was doing spinouts in the parking lot -- neither met the duty of care (one to supervise and the other prudence). Same thing when you get your coat after dinner and the coat attendant has spilled food on your coat -- they are clearly responsible. The same argument can be applied here.

You entrusted your car to a window tinting shop. That means you gave them the authority to do whatever was necessary to work on the windows. That was the scope/limit of the authority given to them. Implicit in that, you did not give them (or anyone else, for that matter), the authority/permission to enter any other part of your car. That means you didn't give them the authority to drive your car or even look in the trunk or glovebox. They wouldn't make any argument had your car been damaged by an unauthorized joyride, nor should they be allowed to deny responsibility when someone went in the trunk without authorization and removed your DVD.

My suggestion: (1) get a bill/cost estimate for the replacement Nav DVD; (2) return to the shop with the estimate; (3) stay calm and speak to the manager, explaining how you expect them to pay; (4) if they resist, explain that you've consulted with an attorney who's told you that you'll win the case (list the points above, including bailor/bailee law); and (5) if no resolution at this point, walk out and explain that you will need a decision from them on how they are going to handle it by the next day before you explore other options. The key is making them responsible for their carelessness. They will only do so if you confront them on it.

If that doesn't work, give BobCanada a call and inquire where one can find people that break arms and legs for a fee. : )

VelocitE55

That was a very informative post, lots of useful info for us here in LA. Thank you!

If that doesn't work, give BobCanada a call and inquire where one can find people that break arms and legs for a fee. : ) -Quote

miaomiao

Thanks guys. You guys really help me a lot. I appreaciate every one of you!!

fadedinc

wow, great info marc. i recently took my bent up rim to the rim repair shop and they totally ruined it. they said that they will win if i take them to court. they want me to pay out of pocket. i think i will take your suggestions. thanks man.

BklynMarc

faded,

Your situation is slightly different. To understand, you have to appreciate the nuance. In miaomiao's situation, s/he asked the contracting individual to work on one part of his/her car (Part A) that resulted in loss or damage to another part (Part B). Since miaomiao was unable/unwilling to just bring his/her windows in for tinting, s/he left the entire car. Miaomiao's written contract/agreement was for the windows, the rest of the car being "attached" for the sake of the contract. Miaomiao's claim is that there was damage to Part B, which the parties IMPLICITLY agreed would be safe from harm.

In your situation (if I understand you correctly), your contract was that they would work on your rims (Part A) and they damaged the same part (Part A). Under that situation, it's not as clear-cut as to who bears the risk that the repair is not done properly. Most repair shops are savvy enough to state that they are only required to use best efforts and therefore, do not guarantee their results (i.e., they have not made any warranty on their work). (Think about it, they could say that the rim was damaged worse than they initially thought, on first inspection, and that they did the best that they could in repairing it. That is a tough argument to refute.)

Make sure you read the invoice carefully and the release on the bottom/back (usually the very small print). If you find that language of limitation ("no warranty as to repaired goods"), chances are that they will be entitled to payment. If it goes to court, you may be entitled to an offset (reduction in contract price) because of the damage done to your rim, but it is not a clear winner as in miaomiao's case.

Good luck. Let us know what happens.

fadedinc

actually the invoice they gave to me was just a plain print out. no disclaimer or anything. the guy claims there is one when u step in the office. never noticed any nor did the guy point it out to me. when he called me letting me know what happened he was ****ting his pants saying he ****ed it up. then his manager called me, saying that its my responsibility. what do you think? hes had this since january 4th. and ive been trying to get a new one, hes been trying to help me out. it seems like hes hiding something? i came down there once, he gave me the wrong wheel which i was gonna pay $900 for it.

allenjdmb

but I've got a pretty good idea... down here, about all we can bill for stuff like that is around $150 or so an hour. So, assuming that it's more like $250 an hour in Boston, exactly how much are you willing to spend to get this $75 ish disc back? Don't get me wrong, I agree that you need to call them on it. Just don't get so hung up on the theory that you lose good sense. A reasonable, non-emotional request as mentioned before is the right idea. But now that I'm an "old guy", I find that just as many people slam the door and grab an attitude when the word lawyer is mentioned.That just takes more time and that = more money. Contrary to popular belief, we'd rather get a good result for the client quickly and more cheaply.Maybe you've got a lawyer friend who'll write a cheap or free letter for you. (If you do, send him a nice restaurant certificate--always works for me!). If you can't get any results, and the principle is that important to you, fire away. Just my .02...

BklynMarc

faded,

In CA, your situation would fall under the jurisdiction of the small claims courts, because the amount in controversy is less that $5000. This means that you couldn't use a lawyer at the hearing (although you could consult one prior to the hearing), but neither could the defendant (the wheel shop). For $22, you could file a claim, which would certainly open their eyes and get their attention that you're serious about this.

There are also several other facts/factors working in your favor: judges in small claims court tend to favor the plaintiff, especially in consumer cases such as yours. It's like they expect the defendant corporation to be more sophisticated than the average consumer (which may or may not be true) and thus give the consumer the benefit of the doubt. Secondly, your invoice contains no disclaimer, which is a plus. Finally, (and perhaps most importantly, if you do go to court), the defendant ADMITTED that they messed up your wheels. Make sure you request that the service guy who said this is there in court as a witness, so that he can explain to the judge what he meant by he "****ed it up." That will be interesting testimony and could win the case for you. But, keep in mind that the shop will have an argument that they did not guarantee results, merely their best efforts.

Overall, allenjdmb is right. Time is money and life is short. It's ALWAYS better to resolve things without getting the courts or lawyers involved. Good luck.

Marc

LS6V

Honestly, you can take them to court but it's just your word against theirs... How can you prove that the nav dvd was in the car when you left it there? Unfortunately, it looks like a window tinting thief made a few bucks at your expense.

The only way to catch someone like that is to set up a sting, do you have any friends with expensive nav dvd's that want tint? Put a fake disc in the unit when you drop the car off and / or mount one of those tiny cameras in the corner of the trunk... I'd rather spend my time trying to set that up, instead of spending time in (small claims) court... The best part about it is, if you catch the ******* not only will you get reimbursed but he'll get arrested.