Legal Question in Consumer Law in Virginia

damage to personal property

i took my car to a muffler and brake shop to get an alignment they put my car on alift started it and nocked it into gear it shot forward off of the lift the front end came to rest on the alignment machine damaging my bumper hood left fender and drivers door do i have grounds for a suit. the parts nedded are discontinued


Asked on 2/18/02, 3:05 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

Re: damage to personal property

You can sue in small claims court(general district court in most Va. jurisdictions) for your

compensatory damages incurred as a result of the

muffler shop's negligent handling of your vehicle.

These damages are your reasonable out of pocket expenses that would be required to put the vehicle back in the condition it was in(more

or less) prior to your bringing it to the shop (to the extent that they can be reasonably determined).

The fact that certain parts may not be available to effect the repair is of little or no relevance to your lawsuit. You can still recover monetary damages denominated in the cost of similar parts plus the cost of their installation.

Read more
Answered on 2/18/02, 7:02 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Consumer Law questions and answers in Virginia