Dealership ruined my brand new car

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Dealership ruined my brand new car

I just purchased a 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee a week ago, took my car to the delarship to have a clear coat put on the paint and my entire car is scratched. My headlights have water in them, the black trim around my windows is scratched and much more. Can I legally make them buy me a new car, or return the car?

Asked on December 22, 2016 under Accident Law, Washington

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 7 years ago | Contributor

No, you can't force them to take the car back or to buy you a new car. When soomeone damages your property, their obligation is to pay the repair costs, not to buy you a new item, if the existing one is repairable (the law minimizes damages and compensation, and requires only the minimum to correct the situation; it does not give you a new item when the old one can be fixed). Therefore, if they are willing to repair it, they are doing what they are legally required to do, and you can't force them to do any more than that.
You can, however, also recover the cost of your rental, since in addition to repair costs, you can also recover other foreseeable, or logical and reasonable predictable, costs flowing out of the damage. Since it is reasonable that you'd need a rental while your car is being repaired, you can  recover rental costs.


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