Some days it just don't pay to get out of bed

[jagdriver727]

Sure, swirl marks and all that, I expect that from an automatic wash. But not the side of my bed caved in.

Oasis Express Wash on W. Tennessee St. (US 90) in Tallahassee, Fla.

Going through the last set of brushes and WHAM, felt like a truck hit me in the left rear. Roll out of the wash to find this:

Attendants on duty were not much help; they said they had no way to access the camera footage as their boss had left for the day. About 5:30 PM. Took photos and wrote a bunch of stuff down, gave me their boss's phone number and told me to call Monday. After they were done with me they went right back to funneling cars through their broken wash tunnel.

I think it's bent too far to just pop out; at the deepest point it's pushed in over two and a half inches. The wheel arch sits an inch further inside in the rear than it used to, is supposed to be flush with the tire front and rear.

I'm not asking for advice... I have comprehensive coverage as well as body shop connections and a pretty good lawyer who owes me favors. Just blowing off steam. I've had no major body damage on this truck since April of '02 when I drove it off the lot. Oh well. It will be repaired as soon as I can get it done.

At least it wasn't my '19... then I'd be posting on Bob is the Bail Bondsman...

 

[Kuato]

So the employees don't know anything about the insurance. Uh huh.

 

[jagdriver727]

So the employees don't know anything about the insurance. Uh huh.

That's the story. I fully expect the manager to tell me to get lost when I go back... I will have estimates prepared by 2-3 shops to discuss in case they admit fault. If I'm not made whole I WILL take them to court, even if I lose money on it, just on the premise.

 

[HyundaiAbuser]

So the employees don't know anything about the insurance. Uh huh.

To be fair a roughly minimum wage carwash employee probably doesnt know much about insurance for themselves let alone from their company.

 

[AutoMechanic]

Man what a nice ranger too. I hope you get something for it. If the place has any type of customer service they will work with you and come to a conclusion heck once we messed up a car at my shop my boss paid for it out of his own pocket because he didn’t want to file with insurance and the guy was fine with that as long as it got fixed.

 

[OilUzer]

Did the car wash roller brush cause that? Did it swing too far?

 

[vw7674]

just get back there & drive through in reverse......ysaep ysae.

 

[Creekside]

In following along with the title of this thread, yesterday I left on a 70 mile round trip tow with my heavy wrecker. It had been stored at my main customers site due to the frequency and urgency of their calls in the below zero temps we had. Never had any issues with it there,me, or any other contractors. Fought fuel starvation issues the entire trip and finished by making the return trip hooked to a class A rv at 40 miles per hour as that’s all it could do. Some investigation found a large amount of sugar added to my diesel tank.

 

[dlundblad]

A big chain of automatic car washes here only covers vehicles up to 20 (I think?) years old on stock parts. Ie no roll bars with KC Daylighters. They have a sign posted.

I can see the car wash trying to pull this on you, but if it wasn’t posted...

 

[Leo99]

Things happen. Why do you think the car wash won't own up to the problem? They have insurance for these types of situations. It's only metal that be easily fixed. Don't get your blood pressure elevated over this

 

[doitmyself]

A good Paintless Dent Removal (PDR) craftsman should be able to make that look like new without having to repaint that entire panel. Probably in the neighborhood of $300 +/-. I believe that it is better to retain the OEM paint when it is in good condition.

Sorry for your aggravation. Most here can empathize with the feelings incurred. Nice truck.

 

[JHZR2]

To be fair a roughly minimum wage carwash employee probably doesnt know much about insurance for themselves let alone from their company.

That was my thought too. While one would hope that someone on site knows something, they probably don’t even have the authority to help. Certainly not to admit fault. And it is very likely that a skeleto crew that keeps things runnng might not know anything at all...

Things happen. Why do you think the car wash won't own up to the problem? They have insurance for these types of situations. It's only metal that be easily fixed. Don't get your blood pressure elevated over this

I was under the impression that car wash places had signs thst said they are not responsible for damage to your car. I suspect they are put there in case an antenna bends, wipers get snagged, etc, but it’s probably able to cover other damage too...

 

[SatinSilver]

Agree with getting estimates from some good PDR techs. Truck looks great esp if it’s the Ranger in your signature with 270k miles.

Edit: Bad reviews on Yelp for this place. Looks like 2 stars out of 5.

 

[jagdriver727]

Did the car wash roller brush cause that? Did it swing too far?

That’s what happened as best I can tell

 

[jagdriver727]

A big chain of automatic car washes here only covers vehicles up to 20 (I think?) years old on stock parts. Ie no roll bars with KC Daylighters. They have a sign posted.

I can see the car wash trying to pull this on you, but if it wasn’t posted...

Those signs aren’t worth the (whatever) they’re printed on

 

[jagdriver727]

Agree with getting estimates from some good PDR techs. Truck looks great esp if it’s the Ranger in your signature with 270k miles.

I know a great PDR shop, the owner is very picky. I’m going to visit him on Monday as well as the body shop he does work with.

 

[Leo99]

That was my thought too. While one would hope that someone on site knows something, they probably don’t even have the authority to help. Certainly not to admit fault. And it is very likely that a skeleto crew that keeps things runnng might not know anything at all...


inwas under the impression that car wash places had signs thst said they are not responsible for damage to your car. I suspect they are put there in case an antenna bends, wipers get snagged, etc, but it’s probably able to cover other damage too...

Not my car wash. They are not responsible for aftermarket stuff that gets broken easily or for antennas. They always remove my antenna and tape down the rear wiper to avoid any damage. But the roller breaking and causing body damage is something they are responsible for. We'll wait for an update on Monday.

 

[SatinSilver]

Just looked up their BBB rating and it’s an F.

 

[JHZR2]

Not my car wash. They are not responsible for aftermarket stuff that gets broken easily or for antennas. They always remove my antenna and tape down the rear wiper to avoid any damage. But the roller breaking and causing body damage is something they are responsible for. We'll wait for an update on Monday.

Sure, it’s a different level or type of damage. But it will end up costing $$ in court to prove. How many other cars go through there a day without damage?

Maybe we will luck out and the owner will be on the up and up.

 

[jagdriver727]

Just looked up their BBB rating and it’s an F.

Not surprised

Sure, it’s a different level or type of damage. But it will end up costing $$ in court to prove. How many other cars go through there a day without damage?

Maybe we will luck out and the owner will be on the up and up.

My thoughts too. It's going to be difficult to prove it and even harder to make them pay. I think the chances are slim to none they admit fault, even when/if we recover the camera footage. Hopefully it's not recorded over by Monday.

I'm sure the employees on site really didn't know how/weren't allowed to show me the footage, it was a skeleton crew on the evening shift. But I have a feeling I'll never see it.