Last December, I went to a Home Depot located in Los Angeles to purchase a PVC pipe connector. When I got into my car and was about to drive off, I hear a noise and a bang. My driver side rear fender was hit by this monster looking metal cart, it just roll down from no where. I immediately got out of the car and went inside Home Depot to report the accident. Well, according to a Home Depot manager, any accidents outside the building is not covered through Home Depot. What the H**L? They gave me a number to call so I called this guy and left several messages and he never called me back! I am really tired of waiting for this person to call back and the driver side rear fender has this nasty vertical line. What should I do? I want to repair this dent as soon as possible. Is there any place in Los Angeles where I can get this nasty dent removed? I don't think it needs any paint job, I just need to pull out the dent.

Thanks,

Peter

 

Either the property owner's insurance or Home Depot(if they own the land) is responsible... I use to be a district manager for a few companies and that was an issue we encountered at least once a month at one of the stores... They are trying the "frustraction" technique... To make you pissed and fx it yourself... Just demand to get an address and take the owner to small claims court. Or claim it under your insurance and your company will go after the proper person...

 

Cool,

How much would it cost to repair the dent?

Isn't it more hassle to go after such a small amount?

Peter

 

I'll go after $1 for the principle of someone or something damaging my ride... Especially if "management" is trying to screw me around... THeir job is not to pay you.. And your job is to take care of your ride...

 

They probably, like most places, have signs up SOMEWHERE on the premises saying they are NOT responsible for cart damage to your car. I have seen this SO many times because the problems are from where customers leave the carts, not where the store personnel leave them. So, legally, they are not liable - it's not worth pursuing - you'll spend as much to chase it as the repair costs.

If your deductible is over $100, don't bother with insurance - it just puts you on the "claim submitted" list (you actually get put in a new category in the computers at the insurance co). Call a paintless dent repair company and have them rub it out. I've had this done a couple times to my SC4 and you'd have no idea whatsoever any work was done. No paint work or anything, and cheap. Find a private guy if you can - better job and lower prices than the drive-in places like DentWizard or DentBusters, and they'll usually do it at your house or job site. I have one guy I go to that does all my cars for me really reasonably. Depending on the dent, you're looking at $60-$150 to repair. If it's just a light dent, not a 1/2" crease, it's probably in the $100 range.

Good luck.

 

Thank you for the update,

I think I will do that, $150 is very good. I pretty much gave up on the idea of chasing after Home Depot to pay for the damage, it's too much headache. If I could get my car back to normal for under $200, I will do that right away. It's good that tomorrow is saturday.

Peter

 

Look on the property appraisors web site to determine the owner of the property - it should give a name and an address. Then mail the owner a certified letter with a list of details (what happened and how much to fix). Give him a time line, like 60 or 90 days to respond. If he doesn't respond do it again. Send 3 letters, then take him to small claims - you will win every time. More often than not, he will ignore the court date and you win by default.


Keith


Been there, done that. Hope it helps

 

The same thing happened to my Mom a few years back in her new Honda,after getting in the Mgr's face and stating exactly what she intended to do(see above post),she got the damage repaired.It was a bit of a hassle,but the parking lot was poorly designed,and it just pissed her off too much to take no for an answer.