Claim Denied on Battery Replacement
Jimmy
Submitted this review about
Dependable Auto Shippers
Review made Live: 11/3/2012 11:45:00 PM
Car was delivered inoperable, as noted on the bill of lading. Car battery had to be replaced, as well as two fuses, one for the ignition system and one for the radio. The mechanic who repaired the vehicle for me told me it was not possible to determine the cause of the battery failure: it could have reached the end of its life or something could have occurred during the shipment. He also said the fuse for the ignition system appeared to have been caused by someone attempting to jump start the car improperly (i.e., putting the jumper cables on backwards). The total cost of the repair was approximately $240, not including towing.
DAS denied the claim, stating that "the damage was mechanical and not related to transit." I was told over the phone by Ms. James that the agreement I entered expressly states that DAS is not responsible for any "mechanical" damage to the car. Interesting to think that the company won't be held responsible for any broken components on the car, even if they were the ones that broke them. Anyway, returning to my story, both Mr. Chapman and Ms. James referred to a pre-existing condition of the car, which requires the hazard lights to be turned on in order to start the car.
To be fair, I cannot prove that DAS (or, more precisely, the shipper that they subcontracted the job to) broke the battery. What I can say with certainty is that I gave them a car that ran and they gave me back a car that did not run. The need to depress the hazard-light button in order to start the car, moreover, is irrelevant, except to the extent that it may have caused one of their employees to mistakenly believe that the battery was dead (leading to the improper jump start). I'll admit that I had little hope that they would honor the claim, but I thought I would give them the chance to do the standup thing and take responsibility for something that happened on their watch. If they had, I would be writing a very different review right now.
Otherwise, the shipment was okay. Delivery was delayed because one of the original subcontractors failed to pick up the car in New Jersey, or something like that. Wasn't a big deal because we weren't in desperate need of the car. The car was also dirty. Also not a big deal, notable only because they told us that they had washed it before delivery. Maybe they did, but I couldn't have said the same with a straight face. As for denying our claim, I expect that nine out of ten shipping companies would have done the same. Even so, I feel compelled to take my business elsewhere next time.
