Need some advice. Was having some work done on the car at a local - very well respected body shop. They tore the leather dash right in front of the steering wheel and the white stitching as well. Very small but a tear none the less. They said they would fix it. Got to pick it up and they simply glued it down and sanded where it was scratched. I showed them this was not really fixed to the state in which I dropped the car off and they said that they would see what they could do but would not replace it... You can see a hack repair job but clearly not FIXED.

Advice? What is my recourse?

 

Small claims court.

You have to find out how much it would cost to fix properly by someone else first.

 

I would got to an interior auto upholstery shop and get an estimate. You want it repaired to the level you took the car in. If not repairable then a cost for replacement. I would also request the insurance contact for the body shop and once you have the estimate put in a claim. I would also call your own insurance company and explain what happened just to keep them on board. First before pursuing I assume you talked to the owner of the body shop and told him you wanted it repaired to "as new" condition which means you can not see the defect when repaired.

 

I certainly would follow up and try to have the body shop give you an allowance to have it done at a repair shop of your choice. This sort of thing happens at repair shops all the time and they respond in a certain order depending upon the customer they are dealing with. I would not contact your insurance company as you don't want this type of claim to raise your premium. Wait for the big stuff for your insurance claims. Small claim's court may be applicable and the best way to go in your state if all else fails. Take pictures and keep a paper trail going.

 

I would disagree with this. I would contact my insurer and explain what happened.

Someone else has damaged his car; no different than when someone crashes into you. I can only speak from MA insurance laws, but my insurance company would go after the shop's insurance with no points or penalties awarded to me.

 

Once the leather is ripped, it is ripped, and will be very hard to make a "repair" that will look like new or not torn.

I would speak to the owner of the body shop. I am sure that he has some sort of "liability" insurance for unseen damages caused by his workers. If he cannot repair the damage to the same "condition" as when the car was delivered. I would make sure that you inform him, that this is a rare car, and that you will make every effort to collect for the damages that were done by his staff.

Small claims court is usually quick and a very good means for collection. It appears that you have a solid case. Filing is very cheap, and just takes a bit time out of your schedule to appear in court. Most likely the "defendent" (body shop) will NOT want to take the matter to litigation, and will most likely settle.

Then you can take the car to a specialist as mentioned above to have the dash leather repaired or replaced properly.

I would not stand for anything less. You own a premium Jaguar not a Toyota where a botched repair may not make a difference. With a Jaguar it does.

 

As said, contact your insurance. This is not your fault and will not go against you.
Yes your insurance will pay for the (correct) repair, but then they will go after the body shop owners insurance company for reimbursement. Keep your hands and temper out of the Frey. Their service and legal staff are what you pay for all your life.

2cents
V

 

I agree with most of the others about calling your own insurance and getting a claim started. And I would speak with the owner of the body shop giving him the opportunity to take responsibility. Good luck. Recently, when I was having dash "shrinkage" and bubble issues, I found a custom interior body shop that would re-upholster the existing dash with all new leather and match the stitching for $1300.00, which I thought was a great price. I made an appointment to do it, but when we pulled the dash out, it was a much simpler repair than I expected and my regular upholsterer was able to do it in an hour or so for nothing. I'm sure the owner would rather cover that amount than be hit with $4800 from Jaguar or a small claims lawsuit which he is sure to lose.

 

I've also thought about contacting the media people that are supposed to go to bat for you... Bad press like that is worse than a lawsuit IMO.


My fear is that in court I would have to prove it was perfect before I dropped it off.