Dealership Forgot to put lug nuts on tire

[Tetrus]

I took my truck to a dealership for a simple tire rotation and transmission fluid flush. They had to send me to their Commercial maintenance shop for F250+ size vehicles as my truck was too large. Well, long story short, they forgot to put the lug nuts on the front driver-side tire. It fell off when I was 5 minutes away going down the highway. Luckily no other vehicles were hit when this happened, but it damaged the front end of the truck significantly.

I immediately called the dealer to tell they F'd up. They sent someone to pick me up and get me in a loaner right away as well as pick up the truck. They have promised me to make it right and repair all of the damages. The issue is with all of the custom work, I need to verify that the repairs are adequate and everything is fixed properly.

Has anyone ever experienced something like this? Should I file a claim on my insurance or get a lawyer? I will post up pictures soon.

 

[JohnyPython]

That sucks big time!!! Maybe a lawyer is a good idea. Main thing is that everyone is ok.

 

[CoronaRaptor]

I'm not sure how your insurance works, but here that's what I would do, that way my insurance would bill them for the repairs and done properly, saying that, I had a brand new van jacked up wrong and dented the floor, by the dealer and they repaired it properly and gave me a free loaner. waiting for the pics.

 

[Donovan]

ooof.

That is pretty wild. It wont show up on insurance right?

 

[goblues38]

Maybe the tech was sick on LUG NUT DAY!

 

[CoronaRaptor]

Looks like a new fender, door repair, new wheel, what's wrong in the rear suspension shots? That's a major f/up.

 

[DINOZR]

I'm unsure whether filing an insurance claim or just lawyering up is the right answer, but I know the right answer is not, "Give it to the dealership and let them fix what they consider to be the damage." If an adjuster looks at it, there is a chance it could be totalled.

My first preference would be they buy the truck (at a premium) and you put the credit towards a truck of your liking.

If you go the repair route then I would want an independent estimate on what was affected by the incident. Don't let the dealership determine what they need to replace.

I could be wrong, but at least in my mind, there is a chance that the truck will never be the same. Who knows what forces get put through what parts when a truck falls onto a rotor at speed. Identifying all the affected items will be a painstaking process, and I wouldn't trust the dealer that caused it to do a satisfactory job.

That's why I advocate you have them buy it. Then they can fix it to their satisfaction and sell it.

 

[Sozzy12]

See if the dealer will fix it right first. If they balk at anything, file a claim on your insurance. They would then subrogate on your behalf against the dealer to recoup your deductible. No lawyer needed yet.

 

[Reaper308]

I had that same thing happen years ago on my F150 it was a oil change shop that decided they would rotate the tires because they had them off to check my brake wear even though I hadn’t asked them to do so! They took the truck around the block and it was forever until it came back so I had asked what was taking so long and they all were standing around on the drivers side looking at the wheel? Turns out they said the tech put three lugs on and they came of around behind the building (uh no he didn’t put any of them on because they all were right there unscratched at his work station) so actually they said they would make it right and about two weeks later and a rental on their dime truck was done right you couldn’t even tell there had been an issue! So good luck be completely involved and follow up but if at any time you feel like your getting the run around a lawyer sending a letter on your behalf never hurts!

 

[GordoJay]

One word. Carfux. Two words. Diminished value. Three words. Get that compensated.