Auto Insurance Claims: Bad body work to car - whats my recourse?, statute of limitations

Question
Hi, Justin. I was recently rear-ended and when repairing my car, the body shop made me aware of some previous sub-par body work done to my car 5 years ago in which the quarter panel had to be replaced. As a result of the quarter panel not being replaced exactly right, they say, the new repair work which involved replacing my bumper cannot be done correctly - meaning the seams of where the bumper meets the quarter panel do not line up and things are noticeably not right. To make matters more complicated I have a different insurance company now than I did when the quarter panel work was done - do I have any recourse with anyone at this point - the body shop which was the Audi dealer or the insurance company? Thanks very much. Anne

Answer
In California, the statute of limitation on a contract (repair agreement) is 4 years.  That means you have four years to sue if you have damages, and if you don't sue in time, you forfeit your right to sue later.  If it has been more than 4 years since the shoddy workmanship, then it seems you have waited too long to take action.  Now, since the shoddyness was hidden and not discovered till recently, there could be some help there, but you need an attorney to tackle that issue.

At this point, I am sad to say that you are in a position with no good recourse.

If you need to discuss further, information is always free at Petty Details, LLC.

I hope this helps.