National Tire & Battery DESTROYED my Jeep engine while in their shop and will not accept responsibility for the damage... Monday evening, Jan 3rd … I had the oil and air filter changed at Jiffy Lube at 4592 Manchester Road, the Jeep engine was running fine …
Tuesday evening (Jan 4th) on my way home from work, I noticed light steam coming from under the hood, I checked the temp gauge and it was fine, but I thought that maybe during the oil change, they might have poked a hose or knocked something loose, and it was leaking … I was very close to the Jiffy Lube and I pulled in to have them check it out. They notified me that it was the water pump and the Jiffy Lube technician showed me with a flashlight. We topped it off with coolant and since my house was close, we decided I’d try to make it home, I went just a few blocks and pulled over in a Big K parking lot to prevent it overheating. I parked it there and called my wife to come pick me up … this was around 5:30 – 6:00 in the evening… the vehicle did not overheat.
I had used the NTB on Manchester a few times before for tires / shocks, etc. And called them to see if they did water pumps… Brandy (the manager) told me that they do and she quoted me about $ 330.00 - $ 350.00, I told her that I would have AAA tow it in that evening and she agreed.
I then called AAA and had them meet me at the Big K parking lot on Manchester and the vehicle was towed to NTB at approximately 6:30 – 7:00 Tuesday evening…
I then went home. I received about 9:05 or so from NTB manager Brandy telling me that “ my vehicle was ready to go! “ she said “ now you don’t have to rent a car for tomorrow, we stayed late to fix it … “ I had my wife drive me to the NTB (about 20 – 25 minutes) and I walked in and spoke with Brandy, she then informed me that the mechanic was still working on it, he was having trouble getting the fan to come on and that it was probably a temperature sensor or fuse … (I stood with him and we looked at the fuse box under the hood, and no fuse was present – I ask him if he checked anywhere else on the vehicle for fuses and he told me not yet but would look into it) by the way – the fan had always worked and was working fine despite the fuse box issue prior to this time – this is what prompted the comment about a possible temp. Sensor …
We stood there for approx. 10 minutes, the engine was running fine, smooth and no problem what so ever other than the fan, no rough-ness or loud noises … for example, Brandy had called me to come and get it.
We agreed that it was too late to continue, and no parts could be obtained at that hour anyway, so they told me that they would get a temp. Sensor in the morning and finish the repairs … this was about 9:45 or so …
(from the time Brandy called me at 9:05 until I left the NTB shop, the Jeep had to have been running for at least 40 minutes without any problem what so ever)
Wednesday morning (Jan 5th), my wife dropped me @ the Enterprise Car Rental on Manchester and I rented a Ford Fusion for the day, thinking I could drop it off later that afternoon … I called NTB at 11:40 AM to check status on the Jeep, and I was told that the mechanic came into work that day at 11:00 AM and was working on it … NO MENTION of any overheating problems, noises or issues … he said they would call me later in the day when it was ready. Either I called NTB, or Brandy called me at about 3:00 and told me that it wasn’t ready … she admitted to me that “ the Jeep was running fine until it overheated while the mechanic was working on it and now it is making a loud noise“. (those are her exact words) I have no idea how long the mechanic had ran the Jeep during the day, but the call was at least 3 or more hours since I called that morning.
I immediately drove to NTB and when I arrived, about 4:00PM – 4:30 PM, the mechanic had pulled the Jeep out to the parking area in front of the shop (approx. 30 – 35 feet) as if it was ready to go… I asked if it was
O K now, the mechanic and Brandy both told me no it wasn’t and it was making a very loud noise and running rough … I asked why it was sitting out of the bay and they said they didn’t know what else to do.
The mechanic told me that it was making SUCH a loud noise and running SO rough, that he was afraid to drive it any further. I then set down with Brandy and discussed with her that they (NTB) needed to continue and find out what they’ve done and she assured me that “ they would make it right. “ I suggested that they call the dealership to see if they knew what the next move was and the mechanic called but claimed he wasn’t able to speak with anyone… I urged Brandy to call, which she did, and she told me that the dealership said it’s probably a faulty water pump and she should get a new one from the dealer and put it on, and that it would fix it … I told her I doubted that was the case, but she insisted that they told her it’s common and happens all of the time. I then left to go home at about 5:30 or so to wait for her call, she got a new water pump and had the mechanic install it. She called me later in the evening and told me that it didn’t make any difference and that she was going to have the dealer take a look at it. She ask me for authorization to have the dealer “ tear down “ the engine and I refused … I told Brandy that it was NTB’s responsibility and I would not make that call. She agreed to take it to the dealer that evening and would call me with results the next day …
Thursday morning early (Jan 6th), about 6:00 AM, Brandy called and left a voice mail for me to call her. I called a little later in the morning and she said they hadn’t torn the engine down, but they thought it was a Timing Chain making the noise, again … I questioned that and asked how they knew that and she said that’s just what they had told her. I then requested that she have “ her “ manager contact me about the vehicle’s status.
Dave Johnson called me and I explained what had happened (just as written above) and he agreed that what I had told him was pretty much on track with what Brandy had told him, except … “ I “ had provided more details. He said he would look into what was wrong … I thanked him and reminded him that I was soon to be on my 4th day without my vehicle, he told me he understood and would see what he could do. I then called Brandy to let her know that I’d spoken with Dave and I asked her how my Jeep was delivered to the dealer … her reply was “ the mechanic drove it “ … this is the SAME mechanic, that just the day before told me that “ he was afraid to drive it any further “ … yet, HE drove it down the road to the dealership (it's 1 1/2 miles away). I called Dave back and told him that I had lost all faith in his mechanic’s integrity and ability to make a qualified decision about the vehicle, and that I was very worried about what he may have done to the vehicle … I have NO IDEA what the mechanic did and what damage he had caused to the engine.
Dave agreed to have the dealership “ tear down “ the engine to see what the damage was and told me he’d call me back when he knew.
Friday (Jan 7th), I spoke to Dave and he had not yet heard from the dealership … he agreed to call me Saturday.
Saturday (Jan 8th), Dave called me and informed me that the dealership found that the #2 cylinder was broken and the spark plug was “ smashed “ … he then informed me that he would have to contact his insurance company and let them handle it from here. I didn’t speak to Dave on Sunday …
Monday morning (Jan 10th), I called and left a voice mail for Dave @ about 8:30 to telling him I had to rent another car and I was concerned about the status of my vehicle, since I was now going on my 7th day with no satisfactory results in the matter. Dave called back and left me a message that he had called, I called Brandy @ about 12:00 noon to see if she had an update and she told me that they were waiting on the insurance adjuster. This is where Kim Bernal with Gallager-Bassett Insurance Adjusters enters the picture… she contacted me and I explained to her what had happened, just as I had explained to Dave, and she told me that the insurance company would send an inspector to evaluate the damage and review the findings – then, they would decide who was liable … we spoke throughout the week and I explained my dissatisfaction about the time it was taking, and that I had rented another car… Kim and I started communicating via e mail and she informed me that it could possibly take a week or more to decide, I then called Dave Johnson and requested he intervene to try to speed up the process due to my car being in limbo. Kim had also requested the Jiffy Lube receipt and my rental car receipts when we first spoke, I provide them to her, and informed me that if NTB was found liable, they would pay for the rental car, but they would not pay for gasoline or extra insurance that I had purchased for the rental car. I then took the current rental car back and traded it for a vehicle with better gas mileage and dropped the extra insurance as per Kim’s e mail… all done in good faith pending the outcome of the inspector’s findings.
(the e mails between Kim, Dave and I were during the week of Jan 10th – Jan 14th …)
Friday (Jan 14th), I had received a letter in the mail from the insurance company (Kim) stating that I needed to grant permission for the engine tear down (Kim and I had already discussed this and I declined granting approval) and I in turn left her a voice mail that I had received the letter, and that we had discussed the matter and that I would be traveling and may not have phone reception for the rest of the afternoon, or during the weekend, but she could leave a message if she needed to.
Monday morning (Jan 17th), I logged onto my e mail and found Kim’s message about the inspectors / review board’s opinion was that " there was no problem with the installation of the water pump ". I called Kim and explained to her that the “ water pump installation “ was never the issue at all … it was the negligence of the mechanic letting my vehicle overheat while working on it in the NTB shop, and his poor decision making by driving the Jeep to the dealer after knowing the condition of the vehicle … “ that “ is the issue. That is what prompted this letter stating ALL of the facts that I am aware of … I have NO IDEA what all happened while my vehicle was at the NTB shop …
In summary, something happened to my vehicle while the NTB mechanic was working on it, at the NTB shop and they will not accept responsibility, even though they admit that it happened while at their shop, authorized the engine tear down to see what had happened, and now... My Jeep is sitting at the dealership - DEAD with the cylinder head sitting in the back hatch. It hurts to take your vehicle in for a minor repair and then within a day - POOF! Your car is destroyed!
I've given the NTB 4 chances to review the facts and overide the Gallagher - Basset decision and NTB will not claim fault.
I have found at least (4) similar complaints involving the same type of scenario and Gallagher - Basset denying the claim, it's a very bad pattern and I am seeking legal advice to bring suit against NTB.
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