Hello All,
First, a little background, and then my legal question:
Here’s the background
I had a classic car inspection done late last year. For anyone not familiar, these inspections are usually done when you buy an older car sight-unseen. They are intended to provide information on any repairs the car needs. It is understood that these inspections cannot identify every possible repair, but should certainly identify repairs that become evident through a visual inspection and a test drive.
The inspection was done, and a few key things were missing: For starters, the inspector never put the car on a lift, the pictures of the undercarriage of the car were taken when he knelt beside it and stuck the camera under. Next, the car was never taken for a test drive. After I got the car, I had to replace bushings, shocks, an oil leak, and other stuff, that the mechanic identified by getting the car on the lift and taking it for a test drive. All in all, I wound up paying around $5,000 in repairs after I got the car.
On the company’s website a disclaimer states that it:
“strives to provide the most comprehensive and current inspection of a vehicle’s cosmetic and mechanical condition. The inspection serves to provide the client with as much information as possible. Many conditions and failures are able to be identified with a physical inspection but many are NOT. “
The disclaimer goes on to say that the company is:
“NOT guaranteeing that every possible vehicle condition or failure will be identified, and is in NO way guaranteeing the future performance of the vehicle.”
Lastly, the company states it will:
“not be held liable for any future mechanical or electrical failures that may occur after the inspection.”
The repairs the car needed existed during the time of the inspection, and were overlooked due to the incompleteness of the inspection. In my view, the company was negligent in this regard. Their negligence resulted in repair costs for me that I would like to take them to court to recoup. The company is based in Texas, the inspection was done in St. Louis, MO, and I live in New York City.
Which brings us to my question
What do I need to show in order to win this case, and where should I file it?
First, a little background, and then my legal question:
Here’s the background
I had a classic car inspection done late last year. For anyone not familiar, these inspections are usually done when you buy an older car sight-unseen. They are intended to provide information on any repairs the car needs. It is understood that these inspections cannot identify every possible repair, but should certainly identify repairs that become evident through a visual inspection and a test drive.
The inspection was done, and a few key things were missing: For starters, the inspector never put the car on a lift, the pictures of the undercarriage of the car were taken when he knelt beside it and stuck the camera under. Next, the car was never taken for a test drive. After I got the car, I had to replace bushings, shocks, an oil leak, and other stuff, that the mechanic identified by getting the car on the lift and taking it for a test drive. All in all, I wound up paying around $5,000 in repairs after I got the car.
On the company’s website a disclaimer states that it:
“strives to provide the most comprehensive and current inspection of a vehicle’s cosmetic and mechanical condition. The inspection serves to provide the client with as much information as possible. Many conditions and failures are able to be identified with a physical inspection but many are NOT. “
The disclaimer goes on to say that the company is:
“NOT guaranteeing that every possible vehicle condition or failure will be identified, and is in NO way guaranteeing the future performance of the vehicle.”
Lastly, the company states it will:
“not be held liable for any future mechanical or electrical failures that may occur after the inspection.”
The repairs the car needed existed during the time of the inspection, and were overlooked due to the incompleteness of the inspection. In my view, the company was negligent in this regard. Their negligence resulted in repair costs for me that I would like to take them to court to recoup. The company is based in Texas, the inspection was done in St. Louis, MO, and I live in New York City.
Which brings us to my question
What do I need to show in order to win this case, and where should I file it?
