# Looking For Advice Dealership Dropped My Truck Off Lift



## FramerGuy19 (Mar 31, 2012)

Hey all,

As the title states took my truck in for service at the dealership and they improperly positioned it on the lift and it lost balance which caused it to drop and shift. The lift arms came into contact with the truck and bent up both running boards and caused damage to the cab. 

Additionally they never checked the truck after lowering it back down and unbeknownst to them they had bent the drive shaft which subsequently tore itself in half when they drove it out of the shop. I still don't know how far or hard it fell but a quick look at things showed the frame could have been minorly tweaked and there damage to a bunch of different things underneath from the driveshaft tearing apart.

They owned up to the the whole thing, however I am looking for advice if anyone else has gone through this before. I have a bunch of concerns about having the truck repaired and then having issues down the road. I kind of feel that since now the truck is depreciated and possibly unreliable they should help me get into something new. 

I have a meeting with the manager tomorrow morning to go over the damage and hopefully options for replacement but was looking for advice or opinions. Obviously this is a huge inconvenience for my business and plan to make it very clear that this is impacting my income.

For reference the truck is a 2017 Chevy 3500 duramax with 90000 miles on it. No accidents, regular maintenance preformed and taken care of with the minor scratch here and there.

As always thanks for the help guys!


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## Kingcarpenter1 (May 5, 2020)

Consult an attorney. They are going to tell you it will be ok with their fix but we know it won’t. A reputable attorney will get you there

Mike


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## Kingcarpenter1 (May 5, 2020)

Take plenty of pics & record your meeting w/the manager or better yet have the attorney contact him. That will get his attention

Mike


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## Ohio painter (Dec 4, 2011)

I feel in no way qualified to offer any suggestion on how to proceed. If i was in this situation and did not like what I was hearing in tomorrow’s meeting I would simply state i am getting a lawyer. 
I would have to accept what the vehicle is accurately worth and then loss of use etc. Also can I get by in the short term without it. 
It sucks, I hope they will do the right thing for you.


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## Half-fast Eddie (Aug 21, 2020)

Picture 233 ... does that mark show they put the lift pad under the running board?


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## FramerGuy19 (Mar 31, 2012)

Half-fast Eddie said:


> Picture 233 ... does that mark show they put the lift pad under the running board?


I was thinking the same thing when I saw it, that's sure what it looked like to me. Lucky no one was killed or hurt.

I did speak to a lawyer who said to involve my insurance agency if they are not going to take care of it properly. Im giving them one shot at taking care of this and making it right otherwise my plan is to get the lawyer or insurance involved.


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## rrk (Apr 22, 2012)

Don't get your hope up especially on getting a new truck, I know 2 people whose vehicles was damaged at the dealer. The dealers insurance company handles the whole thing, depreciation played a big part of it. By chance did you happen to read their insurance policy before hand? The teeny tiny paper that is stuck on the wall in some obscure place. One fixed their 2 year old car but she had to pay deductible other one a Corvette where brake fluid dripped on the paint they gave a check for $900 for a new paint job on a 15 year old car.


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## rrk (Apr 22, 2012)

FramerGuy19 said:


> I was thinking the same thing when I saw it, that's sure what it looked like to me. Lucky no one was killed or hurt.
> 
> I did speak to a lawyer who said to involve my insurance agency if they are not going to take care of it properly. Im giving them one shot at taking care of this and making it right otherwise my plan is to get the lawyer or insurance involved.


You will have to get insurance involved anyway from what I know in NJ.


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## FramerGuy19 (Mar 31, 2012)

rrk said:


> You will have to get insurance involved anyway from what I know in NJ.


Im not sure about in CT, I called and they told me that it falls under the dealers insurance and they only will get involved if I request it. But since the dealer so far has stated they will take care of things the insurance company said to let the situation develop and see how they take care of it.


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## rrk (Apr 22, 2012)

Wait until you see how they value the truck, they find same year and same mileage trucks which sold or are selling in the area ( 40 miles as the crow flies from your house) that tale 8 or 10 of those and average the price. If you dont like what they say you have to hire an appraiser to value it and then they raise their offer a little. 

Hopefully the dealer will just offer to fix it correctly and give you a loaner in the meantime


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## Snobnd (Jul 1, 2008)

I would want the doors fixed running boards replaced new driveshaft output shaft and they need to give you a warrantee for at least a year on the work performed.

lawyers and lawsuits are very expensive, good luck!


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## rrk (Apr 22, 2012)

FramerGuy19 said:


> Im not sure about in CT, I called and they told me that it falls under the dealers insurance and they only will get involved if I request it. But since the dealer so far has stated they will take care of things the insurance company said to let the situation develop and see how they take care of it.


sounds like a good plan and hopefully the dealer does the right thing, the insurance companies many times dont


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## FramerGuy19 (Mar 31, 2012)

rrk said:


> sounds like a good plan and hopefully the dealer does the right thing, the insurance companies many times dont


More of my point to them is that not having my truck with racks and boxes is a huge inconvenience and is going to slow work down or make things difficult. Obviously there are ways to overcome all of this but the point is they are hurting my livelihood. 

I have an equinox as a loaner for now lol


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## We Fix Houses (Aug 15, 2007)

Where are you located ?


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## FramerGuy19 (Mar 31, 2012)

We Fix Houses said:


> Where are you located ?


Im up in New London County CT


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## We Fix Houses (Aug 15, 2007)

Get on YT and study up on this subject. Most of the vids are independent prof shops, nice guys who will take your calls they say. So much muck in the industry, they sort it out. My understanding is the ins co. will pay for the post collision inspection and make corrections if needed. I think you let the adj and repair shop know in advance you will be having it done.

What is a post repair inspection?
A *post*-*repair inspection* is an evaluation performed by a qualified third-party, in which they examine the quality of the *repairs* that have been performed *after* a car accident.


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## FramerGuy19 (Mar 31, 2012)

We Fix Houses said:


> Get on YT and study up on this subject. Most of the vids are independent prof shops, nice guys who will take your calls they say. So much muck in the industry, they sort it out. My understanding is the ins co. will pay for the post collision inspection and make corrections if needed. I think you let the adj and repair shop know in advance you will be having it done.
> 
> What is a post repair inspection?
> A *post*-*repair inspection* is an evaluation performed by a qualified third-party, in which they examine the quality of the *repairs* that have been performed *after* a car accident.


Interesting, I will definitely look into that.


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## We Fix Houses (Aug 15, 2007)

FramerGuy19 said:


> Im up in New London County CT


You'll see in the YT vids and links there are national listings for the third party inspection shops.


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## We Fix Houses (Aug 15, 2007)

This guy and a couple of others have well done vids on the subject.


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## VinylHanger (Jul 14, 2011)

My main concern would be the drive shift and what it was connected to. That's a big hit to do that. That damage to the body is also pretty major. 

I would expect all new rocker panels at a minimum.

I had a dealers car wash guy turn my 24,000 mile new to me truck into a parked car on thier lot.

It crushed the right bed fender panel.

They replaced the panel, but it hasn't been the same since. Tail gate doesn't close right and the pin striping is pealling off. Then the tail light reveals are off.. Besides the fact that hand sprayed paint never looks the same as factory paint.

It looks fine, but the functionality has never been right again.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk


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