Dealer wont admit to denting my fender...PICS ADDED..

[ShirkitC]

Is it normal practice for dealer to at least take a picture or state what body damamge is on the car before they take it in?

I picked up my car today and saw a nice big dent on my fender right by the headlight. THe headlight housing is a little cracked too.

As soon as I walked out to pick up the car I saw it and went straight back in and told the service rep. He goes out, takes my car to the back to inspect.

He states that the mechanic who was working on the car said the dent was already there!. I was sooooo mad, and told me it definately was not there. You can even tell it's a fresh dent.

I would expect a dealership like audi to mark body imperfections on the car or else anyone can just say "that dent wasn't there, that scratch wasn't there".

Now they tell me they're going to have to review their security tapes to see if the dent was there when I first brought the car in. That's going to take a few days. I have to wait till monday to get a phone call.

What kind of lawyer should I be looking for here in NYC if they do not admit they are at fault? Would i get compensated for my lawyer fees too?

[nemesisa6]

sorry that sucks.

[frankie@work]

I take it in, notes any "damages" (like scuffed wheels, rear bumper scratches, etc..) and has me sign the paper listing it all. I assume you're talking about Zumbach? Let's wait and see what the "security tapes" show before you contact any attornies. I might also place a call to the GM for a "heads up" that someone's lying and better come clean or there's gonna be trouble on 11th Ave.

[saakey]

[nemesisa6]

[saakey]

there before, cause you look for things like that when you wash the car, or whatever. I didn't go back as i know it would just be my word against theirs. These dealership mechanics are so careless, it kills me. I now look my cars over very well before i drop them off...and especially when i pick 'em up. good luck.

[saakey]

[carbonLORD]

...they always note my scratched up rear bumper.

[ShirkitC]

They're usually very good about a lot of things.. Very professional, that's why i keep going to them, but this time, it just really pissed me off that they're not admiting to it. You can even seen from the dent that it's fresh... I'll upload pics later..

[Archimedes]

If they don't own up to it, take them to small claims court. You can testify that you KNOW there was no damage. They have no way to KNOW that the dent was there when the car was taken in and without documentation there is no way they could testify to it. I'm sure the tech that worked on the car was not the guy who wrote you up and parked the car on their lot, nor did he watch it the entire time it was parked. That's when the damage was likely done, and the dent could very well have been there by the time the tech got the car.

It is up to the dealer to do a walkaround and note any damage when they take a car into their business. If they didn't document it, then they have no evidence that it was there and you will win a small claims case.

I also think it's ridiculous of them to think you would actually scam them. They should simply own up and get it fixed.