QuestionQUESTION: On Tuesday, April 28, 2009, the driver and passenger side curtain airbags deployed on our 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer without warning or cause. Within 2 hours our truck had been towed to the local Chevrolet dealer for inspection and repair. We gave permission for them to try and diagnose the issue, however, they called the next day and said they could find no defective parts or problems and the vehicle had no damage on it. They suggested we file a case with GM Product Allegation- which we did immediately. GM sent an investigator down to run diagnostics on the "black box" on May 7, 2009. On Tuesday, May 12, 2009, the GM Product Allegation representative called and stated that the truck had damage to the undercarriage and the vehicle sensed a "rollover situation" and responded accordingly. After researching online some, this seems to be the standard response to many cases of airbags deploying. We were on new flat pavement approaching a stop sign going 19 miles an hour. At this point, we were looking at a $3200 bill that our insurance company may consider mechanical and our extended warranty would not cover because there were no defective parts involved. On Saturday, May 16, 2009 I called the dealer and tried to give authorization to start repairs, however my rep wasn't there and they stated she would call on Monday, May 18, 2009. On Tuesday, my rep from the dealer called and stated there was a problem and the body shop had left some items off the original estimate and that the new amount was $6,500. Of course I was very upset with this and stated we would not pay this. I knew I had gone off the pavement of my driveway a few months ago and most likely caused the damage to the undercarriage. I called my insurance company, Allstate, and filed a claim and explained all of this to them. On their advice, I then proceeded to move our truck from the dealer to a preferred shop so the repairs would be guaranteed 100%. When the new shop got the vehicle, they called Allstate and me and said we all needed to come see the condition of the vehicle. The GM dealer had completely dismantled the interior including the carpeting- unbeknownst to us- and piled all the parts on top of each other in the rear of the vehicle. As it sits now- not only is there no visible signs of damage to the undercarriage, our vehicle is a total loss. Because there is not any damage underneath, Allstate will most likely deny the claim and consider it mechanical. The warranty company will still be out because the dealer told them the damage was caused by undercarriage damage and they denied the claim, and we are stuck with a vehicle we are still paying for that no one can even tell us why it is damaged in the first place. We are Platinum Allstate customers, have another 5,000 miles on an extended warranty and GAP coverage should we need it and it looks like we will have to face a financial hardship to pay for this out of our pocket. Please, any insight would be much appreciated.
ANSWER: Well, it seems as if you are getting screwed from both ends. I think the existence of the undercarraige damage needs to be ascertained, which will determine the payor of the damage repair costs. If there is no sign of any undercarrairage damage, then the responsible party would be the warranty company, which have historically been shown to be difficult to deal with. Shall I assume the extended warranty provider is not General Motors?
In any event, you purchased coverage for just such a loss, and one of these entities must pay the costs of repair. I would send a certified letter to each party demanding that they pay for this damage. Give them each 10 days for a response, and let them both know you will take legal action against them both. I would expect Allstate to cover the loss, but also for them to subrogate the loss with GM or the extended warranty company. In any event, you should not be forced to bear the burden of this loss.
If the dealer misinformed the warranty company with respect to the undercarraige damage, I would send them a certified letter as well and name them as potential defendants in the lawsuit.
The Allstate PRO shop has a relationship with the insurer, so their opinion is not necessarily unbiased. You may want to have the vehicle taken to an independent shop for analysis.
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QUESTION: Thank you so much for your response, Mr. Barone. I think you;re right that the warranty company is just for instances like this; but if there is no undercarriage damage, is this type of claim one that an auto insurance company should be expected to cover? The extended warranty stated that they needed a defective part. The truck was purchased used from CarMax in november 2007. It still shows a clean Carfax report and the extended warranty is through their Max Care extended plan.
ANSWER: I would submit a claim under your comprehensive coverage with Allstate, giving them the name of the warranty company. It was clearly a casualty loss, which should be covered. Comprehensive coverage will cover any loss the insured vehicle sustains, subject to the named exclusions from coverage in the policy. Let Allstate pursue the warranty company while they repair your Trailblazer.
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QUESTION: Hello Mr. Barone! I have an update on my situation for you. Allstate has since
denied my claim based on the fact that there is no body or undercarriage to my
truck. They have deemed it mechanical failure which they state is not covered in
the state of Virginia or my policy. I have since requested a copy of the report
from GM showing where they found damage that caused the deployment to which
they responded by saying they own the report and are not at liberty to share it.
They told me I have no claim against GM because there was damage to the sway
bay that caused the deployment. The vehicle is 5 years old and truthfully I could
have done more damage to the sway bar with my fingernails.
The extended warranty company sent out a third party inspector at the request of
the body shop and the inspector stated that, just as previously stated, there was
no damage to cause the airbags to deploy and it was a system failure. The
warranty company has stated that they will pay for anything related to the
airbags, modules and sensors, but will not pay to have the vehicle put back
together from what the GM dealer did to it. They stated this was above and
beyond and completely unnecessary for the dealer to dismantle the vehicle the
way they did. I have been in contact with the owner of the dealership who states
they should have been more clear about what diagnostics entail- to which I
replied I know exactly what it entails and it doesn't include dismantling a vehicle
to include taking out the carpet and seats. I truly believe they were trying to run
the bill up with the expectation that the extended warranty would cover it.
My question to you is- do you think it would be possible for me to attain another
inspection of my own in an attempt to get the dealership to pay for what they've
done and to also possibly get a diminished value claim against GM for this? Of
course I know their current state of bankruptcy, however, I have one independent
inspector, Allstate and two body shops who have stated there is no damage to my
vehicle and therefore no reason for the side curtain bags to have deployed.
However, this is now, I'm sure, going to show up on a Carfax and will kill our
value even more. The trade in value on the truck is currently around $8,000 and
we owe $15,000. Prior to the our relationship with the dealer going south- they
had offered $3,000 for the truck since there had been an airbag deployment.
Thank you for your time!
AnswerLynda,
It sounds like you need the help of a good lemon law attorney, one who will hire a local expert to evaluate the car and determine who is liable for the damage it sustained. If you want to retain one ahead of that, go to www.ICAN2000.com and look for local DV help and find one near you.
With the deployment of the airbags, there is a permanent code stored in the on-board diagnostic system, one that any new car dealer can see with its diagnostic equipment. So yes, you have a claim against GM for the DV loss, but collecting on it is another matter.
Charlie
