Owner of Jeep left at dealer for oil change is sued after tragic accident

[IamPro2A]

WTF? Guy brings his manual trans Jeep to the dealership for an oil change (Probably his free WAVE change). 19yr old tech with no drivers license and who doesn't know how to drive a stick tries to drive it anyway. Ends up running over another mechanic. Tragic. So now, apparently under Michigan law, the Jeep's OWNER is at fault is is getting sued for $15mil?
Again, WTF?

https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/wh...lership-employee-was-killed-during-oil-change

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[SpeedNeed]

This is crazy!

 

[mert34]

Yeah, kind of messed up, but the judge has ruled that all the liability for the amount the owner owes comes from the dealership. Still they failed to properly train the person and someone died as a result, how is that any way the owners fault.

 

[Jefe1018]

That is a very tragic incident.

The liability I believe has something to do with Michigan's insurance laws. I remember listening to a podcast type YouTube video (Letho's law) stating that Michigan (or was it Wisconsin?) doesn't do 'at-fault party'. When there is an incident the vehicle's insurance covers its own costs. It sounds like they have to sue the company that insures the JT vs the dealership or the individual behind the wheel directly?

Disclaimer: the above is just my reasoning, not 100% certain on any of it to be fair

 

[Charles 236]

It was a tragic accident. The dealership should not have hired a technician at any level of qualification without verifying that he could drive the vehicles he would be expected to work on. Still, I understand that in this day you hire whoever you can get that wants to work, but that doesn't mean you don't need to check out the skills and driving record. I work in a dealership, and have seen some people who should not have been hired, but they were quickly sent on their way.
I of course will be interested to see what happens in this case.

 

[ecidiego]

The lawyer should be burned at the stake. Just LOL @ laws today....

 

[I_Reckn]

What a BS law, name one business or car dealership/company dealing with automotive that will allow non employees to enter into a work area and drive or work on a vehicle? I can't even go into the tire shop past the waiting area when getting tires done due to liability.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

That is a very tragic incident.

The liability I believe has something to do with Michigan's insurance laws. I remember listening to a podcast type YouTube video (Letho's law) stating that Michigan (or was it Wisconsin?) doesn't do 'at-fault party'. When there is an incident the vehicle's insurance covers its own costs. It sounds like they have to sue the company that insures the JT vs the dealership or the individual behind the wheel directly?

Disclaimer: the above is just my reasoning, not 100% certain on any of it to be fair

Michigan is no-fault insurance.

 

[ilovebikes99]

It's Michigan. Florida's northern brother

 

[Jefe1018]

I always laugh when people are too lazy to change their oil and put their expensive vehicle in the hands of complete idiots.

I don't know that lazy is the right word.

Some people don't have the proper place to do it, tools or even the mechanical know-how.

I know I am sometimes too busy to do it myself and will ask my wife to drop her car to have it done. I am also taking advantage of the Jeep Wave program as well.

 

[Wageslave]

I always laugh when people are too lazy to change their oil and put their expensive vehicle in the hands of complete idiots.

My forever powertrain warranty states that it has to be changed by a dealership to be valid. Even if that wasn't the case, my time is worth enough that I don't change my oil for practical reasons. Laugh all you want but laziness isn't the problem here.

 

[Zybane]

I don't know that lazy is the right word.

Some people don't have the proper place to do it, tools or even the mechanical know-how.

I know I am sometimes too busy to do it myself and will ask my wife to drop her car to have it done. I am also taking advantage of the Jeep Wave program as well.

IMO then people cannot complain when the dealer messes something up. The service industry is abysmal in this country now. Virtually no one has pride in their work anymore, they all think they are "underpaid" so don't give a sh*t, and aren't held accountable when they do mess something up because the dealer cannot find someone else to do the job when they fire them. That's the people changing your oil...

My forever powertrain warranty states that it has to be changed by a dealership to be valid. Even if that wasn't the case, my time is worth enough that I don't change my oil for practical reasons. Laugh all you want but laziness isn't the problem here.

Those third party "Warranties" are 100% scams, you'd never get a serious payout.

 

[FLGladiator]

Do hiring practices get any worse these days. My last call to my dealer to set up an appointment was like thug central, pulling teeth. A huge difference from a year prior. How does a dealer hire a mechanic that doesn't know how to drive?

 

[Jefe1018]

IMO then people cannot complain when the dealer messes something up. The service industry is abysmal in this country now. Virtually no one has pride in their work anymore, they all think they are "underpaid" so don't give a sh*t, and aren't held accountable when they do mess something up because the dealer cannot find someone else to do the job when they fire them. That's the people changing your oil...

Well that's a whole lot of assumption and generalization about people and their work ethic... but let's see if we can't speak the same language.

When a company you have contracted to do something does it wrong, you have every right to raise concerns and ensure they are held accountable. If you choose to do your own work to every avoid any sort of inconvenience, good on you. Self sufficiency is important and something to take pride in.

I have had great experiences at my local service centers, however.

I personally find that most people do want to work and take pride in their craft. However, if you want to talk about an individual's level of compensation there are a myriad of statistics that can be cited showing how the cost of living has exponentially over inflated the rise in wages.

I couldn't help but read your comment as overly negative and even angry. Live a little buddy, life is short and summer is upon us. Happy wheeling.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I always laugh when people are too lazy to change their oil and put their expensive vehicle in the hands of complete idiots.

Why does it have to do with lazy? And where are all techs complete idiots?
Wow, that's sort of judging every human based on your personal standards, knowing nothing about them.

Frankly, having been a mechanic for 50 years, I'll tell you now, there's a hell of a lot more owners, including JEEP owners - who absolutely scare me when they touch their own vehicle to work on it.

I've seen some scary crap, including some of the "experts" showing others on YT how to do things. There's a case of YT needing to control content LOL

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