Body Shop Installed Parts Incorrectly

[JuJuBe]

My question involves a consumer law issue in the State of: Oregon

I recently had my vehicle repaired at an auto body shop, paid for by an insurance claim. The body shop did not re-install the radiator correctly and I was subsequently stranded with an inoperable vehicle far from home. I ended up losing 10 hours of my time between having the vehicle towed to a dealer, (tow was covered by roadside assistance), to be repaired, (covered by warranty), and driving back to get my vehicle the next day.

Do I have any right to take the auto body shop to small claims courst to be compensated for my lost time and also can I be compensated for "suffering"?

What do I need from the repairing dealer to show that the radiator was installed incorrectly?

TIA

[jk]

You can try to make such a claim, at least for actual damages. The loss of time from work may or may not be seen as reasonable based on all the facts of the situation. If you do attempt to make that claim, bring proof from your employer that you were not at work during the time you are claiming you weren't there and proof of your losses (wage statements showing what you earn per hour). You will be required to explain why you could not find some other means to get to work during that time though. If you could have gone to work by using some other means of transport, you will be denied your claim for lost wages as it was you who failed to mitigate your damages and as such, the extent of the lost wages was due to your actions and not the mechanic's faulty work.

You aren't going to be given any compensation for "suffering" though.

What do I need from the repairing dealer to show that the radiator was installed incorrectly?

a witness to testify that the error is what caused the damage.

[JuJuBe]

OK. So when I said "Do I have any right to take the auto body shop to small claims court to be compensated for my lost time..." I meant my time and not work hours. Although some of the hours I spent going between getting my vehicle, waiting for tow, etc... I should have been at work, I am salaried and missing these hours didn't change anything.

I assumed that since my time is valuable to me that there would be a preset legal $ amount that I would recoup for these hours I wasted due to the auto body shop's error.

[jk]

no, you cannot "charge" the body shop for time it took you to do whatever in getting your car fixed. You can only claim actual money losses and that is not a money loss.

[JuJuBe]

no, you cannot "charge" the body shop for time it took you to do whatever in getting your car fixed. You can only claim actual money losses and that is not a money loss.

Thx jk, I assumed that from your previous post but thank you for clarifying.

If I did take the shop to small claims anyway, would they be able to file a countersuit against me to cover the legal fees associated with defending themselves in small claims? They have been real jerks throughout the entire ordeal and just making them show up to small claims court to defend themselves would give me some satisfaction.

[jk]

sure they could ask for them but contrary to popular belief, attorney's fees are generally not recoverable in most situations. It is simply a part of having to deal with life.

a couple situations where attorneys fees are possible:


If there was a contractual agreement that would apply here, they could recover them. I wouldn't think there is as that is generally for when they must sue a customer for payment of a bill.

If the other parties suit is simply to harass, then attorney's fees are more often available. Basically, the suit would have to obviously have no merit and was filed merely to harass.