Monitech (Ignition interlock) fried my vehicle. Is there anything I can do?

[Blondyz]

North Carolina -

After installation of interlock by Monitech, my alt went bad (or so I thought) had it replaced. Gremlin's in dashboard telling me charging issues flashing, staying on etc. Went bad again and took out battery this time. Had both replaced again. Battery was new. Wiring checked. Battery died, replaced again, wiring checked again. 3x because of flashing lights on dash. Mechanic said only thing it could be was interlock and they were not authorized to touch it.

Noticed that when I would grab the interlock to start car I was getting popping noise from under the dash. Car is not on. Only thing touched was the device. Called Monitech, they said not them. Asked installer to check work in november. He did not do it. Asked again in December. He went outside to car for 5 minutes. Came back in and grabbed his tools and was out there for 25 minutes this time. Came back in and said all tight. And guess what, it was. So $7000 in Tows, parts, labor and ubers, car seemed to be fine.

Waited a few weeks to make sure. No issues. So file a case with Monitech for the repairs and towing as it was obvious it was installer fault as it was fixed when he finally went over his own work… 4 months later. They did nothing. Not even a call.

Sensor went out 1.5 months later. Car was taken to transmission shop first, they said transmission was fine. They started and drove the car and it was throwing a few codes. But they did not do that kind of work.

I called an auto repair shop around the corner from them. Mechanic drove car to his shop. Informed mechanic what happened with device prior. He called me the next day and said I was looking at chasing electrical issues since my car had the short in it so long. Other components would start to go that were electrical because of what electrical short do to connected electrical. He stated the car was not worth fixing.

Filed another claim for loss of car. Received a call from mechanic saying Monitech was there adn they were going to tow the car. I was told nothing by Monitech. I said do not let them tow the car. 1.5 hours later Carl from Monitech calls me. He and his technicians were there and could not find fault in the wiring from their device. I explain the story to him as I did above and said that was fixed by the installer finally in December but the damage had been done. He said I should replace my battery. I said he may want to look at the battery as it had been replaced 2x already in last few months and was only 2 months old. He said he understood what I was saying and would call me back. Never heard from him again.

His supervisor called me. Would not allow me to talk. Just kept trying to explain electricity to me. Something about a person sticking a fork in a light socket and dying. I was like what? After listening to him for 5 minutes, I asked him if he read any of the emails I had been sending regarding the electrical issues and what had been happening. I said Carl seemed to understand. He seemed mad and said I will talk to Carl and get back with you and hung up. Never heard from him again.

The following monday I went to the shop to get my belongings out of my vehicle. Vehicle hatch would not unlock. I thought odd. Opened drivers door and the Interlock device was gone. Tried to start car and it was completely dead. Not even a light would come on. The mechanic came out with booster/diagnostic box. We started the car. He said the Alternator is shot as well. Both were only a few months old and remember the car was driven by 2 mechanics before Monitech got there. No one told me they were taking my device. No one called me. Nothing.

Knowing not having device in my car would cause me to lose my license I immediately called Monitech. They had no record the device was removed. I received a call from another supervisor the next day. I told them my story and that because they again messed with my car by uninstalling the device my alternator and battery were yet again shot. He said "prove it". I was like It drove there with no issues. I had no issues since the installer fixed his work in December. It was now late February. There were no battery or Alternator issues until they touched my car and took that thing out. He said was on me to prove it.

Needless to say not too long after I received a notice from DMV that my license is revoked because I do not have interlock installed. I called the DMV Interlock division and they said there is nothing they can do. That I surrendered the device. They said per Monitech it was voluntarily removed. I told him it was not and that I had also contacted my DMV hearing officer prior to that and she said whatever I do, do NOT let them take out the device. Why would I let them remove the device as I knew what would happen.

So now I am out $7000 in repairs, $9000 vehicle, and my license. DMV gave me less than a month to get another vehicle and get Interlock installed again and I have to pay another $120 to get my license reinstated or it will be revoked permanently. I am truely screwed for trying to be law abiding. Is there anythind I can do?

 

[Taxing Matters]

See a California attorney who practices DUI law as a starter. You may have a time period to appeal the revocation and if you do, it won't be very long. Avoiding the permanent revocation is something you want to avoid as much as possible. That seems to be the most pressing issue at the moment.

You may sue the interlock installer and the repair shop. The interlock device installer would appear to be the main cause of your problem, if you can prove the device was improperly installed and that it wasn't something else that led to frying your car's electrical system. The car repair shop might have some liability as well for allowing the interlock installer to remove the device, but the damages for that may be too speculative for a court to award anything. From what you put in your facts there doesn't seem to be any claim that the repair shop was responsible for the damage done to your car; that was apparently already done by the time the shop mechanic looked at it, and I don't see anything suggesting the mechanic did anything to contribute to the electrical problem.

But I don't have all the facts and haven't seen what evidence you have, so perhaps there is something more that would give you a solid case against the repair shop for something, though I don't see how the damages would be computed.

California small claims courts may award you up to $15,000. In order to recover more than that, you have to pursue it in another CA court. Doing it yourself in a court other than small claims court is more difficult because the rules of procedure are more formal and detailed than small claims. That means you'd likely need a lawyer for your best shot to win the case.

I took a quick look at used car prices and they suggest that your AMC Gremlin (which is what I assume you were referring to) may sell for even more than $9,000, depending on the condition of the car. Used car prices today are high (IMO much too high) so there is an issue of just how much that car was worth before these problems. How did you get to $9,000? Note that the general rule for claims of damage to property is that the court will award you the lesser of the value of the item immediately before it was damaged or the cost repair it back to the same condition it was. That means you won't win both what you've paid out to try to fix the problem and the value of the car too. The attorney you consult about the revocation may have some useful information about what to about the damage to the car and any consequential damages you incurred as a result or at least may know a good litigator to refer you to for analysis of what you could pursue in a lawsuit.

The problem with any lawsuit is that it takes time unless the defendant is willing to settle right away. So pursuing the civil claim likely won't help you at all with the revocation problem. If you don't appeal the revocation determination now you might not be able to challenge it later. That's something to discuss with the attorney you consult.

 

[quincy]

North Carolina -

After installation of interlock by Monitech, my alt went bad (or so I thought) had it replaced. Gremlin's in dashboard telling me charging issues flashing, staying on etc. Went bad again and took out battery this time. Had both replaced again. Battery was new. Wiring checked. Battery died, replaced again, wiring checked again. 3x because of flashing lights on dash. Mechanic said only thing it could be was interlock and they were not authorized to touch it.

Noticed that when I would grab the interlock to start car I was getting popping noise from under the dash. Car is not on. Only thing touched was the device. Called Monitech, they said not them. Asked installer to check work in november. He did not do it. Asked again in December. He went outside to car for 5 minutes. Came back in and grabbed his tools and was out there for 25 minutes this time. Came back in and said all tight. And guess what, it was. So $7000 in Tows, parts, labor and ubers, car seemed to be fine.

Waited a few weeks to make sure. No issues. So file a case with Monitech for the repairs and towing as it was obvious it was installer fault as it was fixed when he finally went over his own work… 4 months later. They did nothing. Not even a call.

Sensor went out 1.5 months later. Car was taken to transmission shop first, they said transmission was fine. They started and drove the car and it was throwing a few codes. But they did not do that kind of work.

I called an auto repair shop around the corner from them. Mechanic drove car to his shop. Informed mechanic what happened with device prior. He called me the next day and said I was looking at chasing electrical issues since my car had the short in it so long. Other components would start to go that were electrical because of what electrical short do to connected electrical. He stated the car was not worth fixing.

Filed another claim for loss of car. Received a call from mechanic saying Monitech was there adn they were going to tow the car. I was told nothing by Monitech. I said do not let them tow the car. 1.5 hours later Carl from Monitech calls me. He and his technicians were there and could not find fault in the wiring from their device. I explain the story to him as I did above and said that was fixed by the installer finally in December but the damage had been done. He said I should replace my battery. I said he may want to look at the battery as it had been replaced 2x already in last few months and was only 2 months old. He said he understood what I was saying and would call me back. Never heard from him again.

His supervisor called me. Would not allow me to talk. Just kept trying to explain electricity to me. Something about a person sticking a fork in a light socket and dying. I was like what? After listening to him for 5 minutes, I asked him if he read any of the emails I had been sending regarding the electrical issues and what had been happening. I said Carl seemed to understand. He seemed mad and said I will talk to Carl and get back with you and hung up. Never heard from him again.

The following monday I went to the shop to get my belongings out of my vehicle. Vehicle hatch would not unlock. I thought odd. Opened drivers door and the Interlock device was gone. Tried to start car and it was completely dead. Not even a light would come on. The mechanic came out with booster/diagnostic box. We started the car. He said the Alternator is shot as well. Both were only a few months old and remember the car was driven by 2 mechanics before Monitech got there. No one told me they were taking my device. No one called me. Nothing.

Knowing not having device in my car would cause me to lose my license I immediately called Monitech. They had no record the device was removed. I received a call from another supervisor the next day. I told them my story and that because they again messed with my car by uninstalling the device my alternator and battery were yet again shot. He said "prove it". I was like It drove there with no issues. I had no issues since the installer fixed his work in December. It was now late February. There were no battery or Alternator issues until they touched my car and took that thing out. He said was on me to prove it.

Needless to say not too long after I received a notice from DMV that my license is revoked because I do not have interlock installed. I called the DMV Interlock division and they said there is nothing they can do. That I surrendered the device. They said per Monitech it was voluntarily removed. I told him it was not and that I had also contacted my DMV hearing officer prior to that and she said whatever I do, do NOT let them take out the device. Why would I let them remove the device as I knew what would happen.

So now I am out $7000 in repairs, $9000 vehicle, and my license. DMV gave me less than a month to get another vehicle and get Interlock installed again and I have to pay another $120 to get my license reinstated or it will be revoked permanently. I am truely screwed for trying to be law abiding. Is there anythind I can do?

I am a bit confused. Did you take your vehicle to the authorized Monitech installer when you first experienced problems? Or did you fix the alternator and replace the battery before considering it might be the interlock device?