Keeping Records of Car Damage

Did you recently buy a new or used car and now you are experiencing problems?  Maybe your transmission is slipping, the car is making a weird noise, or a mechanic found frame damage?  These are all potentially legal issues and you may have a case against the dealership who sold you the car.  However, going to court and telling a Judge or Jury that your car has problems isn’t enough to win your money back.  You have to be able to tell the court what the problem is and prove that it exists.  The easiest way to do this is to have a mechanic look at your vehicle and write a report of damages and estimate the repairs.

We receive calls all day every day from people who bought used vehicles with problems, or defects.  We hear their stories about the problems they experience and how the dealership doesn’t want to help.  However, when we ask, “What’s actually wrong with the car,” the potential client can’t tell us.  And that is a problem.  Similarly, we may ask, “Did the mechanic provide you a written report of the issue and how much it will cost to repair them,” and the potential client will have nothing.

Keeping records of what’s wrong with your vehicle is one of the most important things you can do to help you win a lawsuit against the dealership.  We will need items like:

1. The Purchase Contract
2. A written report of what’s wrong with the vehicle
3. A written estimate showing the cost of repairs
4. Pictures should issues like frame damage
5. The name and number of someone we can contact who looked at your vehicle

As long as we have these items for starters, we can take over the case and give you a full evaluation of your chances of recovering.  Sometimes, we have to send potential clients to a mechanic for an estimate only to discover the cost of repairs are under $500.00.  We may have a talk with the potential client at that point about the time, money, and effort a lawsuit will take to fight over $500.00.  Other times, we discover that the cost of repairs exceeds the cost of the vehicle itself.  Then, our discussion with the client focuses more on the amount of possible damages and the limits the law may have.

The more information we have in the beginning, the better we can assess your case.  You can never have too much information, but if you don’t have enough information, we won’t be able to help you until we have more.  Ask for reports, estimate, printouts, proof, and keep your records.  Those records may be your ticket to getting your money back.