Car Improperly Towed, Now Transmission is Shot

My question involves a traffic citation from the state of: Illinois
I got into an accident August 10th. I was hit from the back of my car, and it bent a lateral bar or something like that in my rear tire, so I had to get it towed. I have a 95 Mazda Protege, so it is front wheel drive. I got it towed all the way from the scene of the accident to my house, which is about 13 miles. I have had the car sitting up until today, which I went to move it to fix the issues from the accident, and the transmission is completely shot. I didn't get hit anywhere near the transmission, and it worked perfectly fine before. I even moved my car after the accident to get out of the street, and I have witnesses saying so. The towing company lifted it from the rear, so it was on the front tires. I have front wheel drive as i mentioned before, so he should've used a flat bed (if i'm correct). It says on the reciept he wrote me he used wheel lift. I called the company and they were very nasty about it saying it has sat too long and they assure me it is not their fault. There is no way this damage is not from them. What do I need to be able to go after their company for my damages?

You would need to be able to prove that the transmission was damaged as a result of their negligence in performing the tow -- which will realistically involve your proving that the damage did not arise prior to the tow, and that it did not occur after the car was delivered to your home.

If you have insurance coverage for the collision damage, I suggest letting your insurance company deal with it.

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Quoting Mr. Knowitall

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You would need to be able to prove that the transmission was damaged as a result of their negligence in performing the tow -- which will realistically involve your proving that the damage did not arise prior to the tow, and that it did not occur after the car was delivered to your home.

If you have insurance coverage for the collision damage, I suggest letting your insurance company deal with it.

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I drove my car a little after the accident to get out of the street and it clearly ran and I have witnesses to prove it. I don't know how else I could prove it besides the people I know that knew I was driving it around and stuff. I contacted my insurance company (I only have liability) and they said they are going to talk to their adjuster and have them call me back. How else could I possibly prove that it was perfectly fine before? My car's front wheel drive and they lifted it by the back wheels, and on the receipt I have it says that they didn't use a flatbed, but only a wheel lift.

You will prove it with whatever evidence you can pull together in support of your case. You should have a mechanic examine your vehicle to try to determine how the damage was caused or to advise as to whether your theory is plausible. We have no way of investigating your case for you, so you will need to do some brainstorming about your evidence.

I would start with researching to discover whether towing it the way they have would cause the problems you are experiencing. I read in this site:

http://www.manualslib.com/manual/454...age=250#manual

it says that you can tow the vehicle for up to 50 miles if towed in a forward direction

I would surmise from those directions that towing it backwards, which is the direction of travel in your incident, could cause damage to the trans. How quickly it would damage the trans is something you would have to research.

The towing company DID cause the damage to your transmission. A flatbed should have been used when towing a front-wheel drive vehicle that has damage to the rear.

Look at it this way. When your motor is running and the tires and wheels are spinning, the transmission is moving all its gears. When all the gears are moving, they get HOT. When the motor is running, the transmission fluid pump is running and it is that transmission fluid that lubricates the gears and cools those gears down. When a FWD vehicle is towed from the rear, (assuming the motor is off) the transmission gears are spinning as the front wheels turn. If there isn't any transmission fluid cooling and lubricating the gears, the transmission gears get so hot, they burn and that causes transmission failure.

On your receipt from the towing company, they should have put the mileage from the time they towed the vehicle, what is the difference in mileage from that receipt and that's currently on the odometer now?

Talk to the tow company once again and let them know your next step is small claims court.

take it to a mechanic and get a report, ideally a mechanic wiling to testify in court if needed.

any mechanic should be able to tell the difference between "this transmission was wrecked by improper towing" and "this transmission was damaged by a collision"

There's honestly no way they didn't cause the damage, because even after the accident I started my car back up again, and moved it a little to get out of the way of traffic. It has been sitting in my driveway since the towing company put it there, because it cannot move. The rear lateral line (or something like that, my dad knows more about) is broke so there's no way I could even drive it if I wanted to. They didn't put the mileage on the receipt, it's left blank. But they did mark a wheel lift instead of flat bed. When I called they tried accusing me of damaging it after, but I don't understand how I could possibly damage it when I can't even drive it. I haven't even tried to start it until yesterday because my dad was GOING to fix it, but it's pointless now If the transmission is trash. The towing company hung up on me after I told them the damage was due to them improperly towing my car, so I emailed them and told them that i'd be contacting my insurance.

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Unfortunately I only have liability. I'm 16 and I paid for my own car and I pay for my own insurance and everything I need so I can't really afford collision. So I guess i'll have to file a small claim and go from there

As a minor, you're going to need a grown-up to commence a lawsuit as your "next friend" and participate in any court proceedings alongside you.

You're also going to need evidence, including somebody competent to testify about causation based upon an actual inspection of the vehicle and transmission.

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Quoting alexisjaneen99

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There's honestly no way they didn't cause the damage, because even after the accident I started my car back up again, and moved it a little to get out of the way of traffic.

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Ok, O'll give you one way:

the accident caused the transmission fluid cooler line to be cracked. When you started the vehicle and moved it you actually caused it to dump trans fluid so now, when you attempt to drive it there is an inadequate amount of fluid and in fact, you damaged the transmission.

so, either obtain a qualified mechanic to inspect the transmission to determine what the cause of damage is or plan on losing. You have to realize; the tow company does not have to prove they didn't damage your transmission. You must prove, beyond a preponderance of the evidence (over 1/2) that they did cause the damage. At this point you are not going to win your suit because all you have is an allegation they caused the damage.

Will it even be worth it after court costs, a lawyer, etc?

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Quoting jk

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Ok, O'll give you one way:

the accident caused the transmission fluid cooler line to be cracked. When you started the vehicle and moved it you actually caused it to dump trans fluid so now, when you attempt to drive it there is an inadequate amount of fluid and in fact, you damaged the transmission.

so, either obtain a qualified mechanic to inspect the transmission to determine what the cause of damage is or plan on losing. You have to realize; the tow company does not have to prove they didn't damage your transmission. You must prove, beyond a preponderance of the evidence (over 1/2) that they did cause the damage. At this point you are not going to win your suit because all you have is an allegation they caused the damage.

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How can a mechanic tell if it was damaged from towing? Thanks for the honesty it helps a lot :) I'm trying to determine if going to court is even worth it. I don't know what i'm going to do without a car though