What is my recourse if a dealership totaled my car on a drive during a repair service?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What is my recourse if a dealership totaled my car on a drive during a repair service?
I have turned this in on my insurance and the car has since been considered a total loss (frame damage). Other than my insurer going through subrogation, do I have any rights here?
Asked on January 3, 2012 under Accident Law, Tennessee
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
You only have a right to recover 1) the current value of your car; and 2) any direct, out of pocket costs or losses from the car being totalled (e.g. cost to rent a replacement until you buy or lease a new car). To the extent your insurer is paying these losses, you are being compensated. To any extent your insurer is not paying, you may sue the dealership, including potentially in small claims court, to recover the unpaid amounts. For example: say the value of your car (e.g. "blue book" value) was $15k and you spent $500 more renting before getting a new car. Say you have a $1,000 deductible on your collision coverage and no rental coverage. Your total loss is $15.5k; you receive $14k from your insurer; you could sue for the other $1.5k.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.