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Just wanted to get some input on this. I'm parking my car in a garage at a short term apartment I'm staying at in Philly. I don't drive it every day, maybe once a week while I'm here. This morning I noticed about 18 extra miles were on the car than when I last drove it, and I did the math to make sure.... I have no way of proving this at this point, but when I returned the car, I made sure to take a picture of the dash (mileage) with my phone, just to have a baseline.
What can I do if they are driving the car around? Doesn't this fall under car theft? They don't have a right to joy-ride whenever they please.
Now I'm paranoid, what if they go on a ride and damage the car without me knowing? Is there any way I can legally prove my case if something were to happen?
My uncle dropped off his S class Mercedes for a/c replacement and asked me to pick up the car. The gas light was on (odd for him to leave it empty). So I called to razz him about it and he said that was impossible since he filled it on the way to the shop. He then pulled a Ferris Bueller moment on me and said.....How many miles are on it now? The car had just turned 40,000 miles on it when he was driving it to the shop (car was 10 years old so odometer flips happen infrequently). I read 40,8XX. I had the car in my possession less than 2 miles, picked it up the day they called to say it was fixed/done but there was 800+ miles on it. Apparently the shop owner's daughter drove her kids to Disney World and back. My uncle demanded $850 to be credited to his credit card that day ($1 per mile and $50 for gas to refill the tank) or he was going to call the state. $850 credit was given and he never used the guy again.
^ Jeez. Had the shop owner just refilled the tank like any thinking person who borrows a car without permission would, your uncle probably never would have guessed that the car was being driven while not in his (or your) possession.
Of course, it does sound like your uncle has good awareness, since he knew he filled up the tank beforehand and the number of miles on the odometer. He probably would have put two and two together, asked you why you decided to drive 800+ miles after picking up the car, and upon receiving your answer would have questioned the shop owner about it.
I guess that goes to show you. If you're dropping your car off for repairs/maintenance or with a parking valet, and you own a sporty/luxurious car that someone probably wants to drive, always record your odometer miles before you leave.
A buddy and I have a mutual friend who owns a shop. Good guy, knows his stuff, and we get repairs done cheaply. Recently I dropped off a Tahoe my buddy had just bought for some work at the mechanic's shop. The fuel light was on, so I called my buddy to ask how much gas he wanted me to put in. He said "none, I ran it that low because every time I drop off a vehicle it comes back nearly empty". Apparently our mechanic buddy drives the cars my buddy drops off as if they were his own. We're all friends, so it's not a big deal.
I always stay with my car if I take it there.
I would say to take pics or video of the odo with a paper or other date/time verifying media. See if the garage has a recording system. If the problem persists, threaten action with management, citing their recordings as proof that the car is being driven without your permission.
Regardless of the "wear and tear" on the vehicle which is definitely bad enough, what about the legal ramifications if the scumbag thief has a serious accident?
Granted it would probably be considered car theft . . . or would it? An unscrupulous "ambulance chaser" could claim it was an "authorized loan" and the legal hassles could be very expensive and time consuming.
Personally, I would contact the police immediately and file charges.
^ Jeez. Had the shop owner just refilled the tank like any thinking person who borrows a car without permission would, your uncle probably never would have guessed that the car was being driven while not in his (or your) possession.
Of course, it does sound like your uncle has good awareness, since he knew he filled up the tank beforehand and the number of miles on the odometer. He probably would have put two and two together, asked you why you decided to drive 800+ miles after picking up the car, and upon receiving your answer would have questioned the shop owner about it.
I guess that goes to show you. If you're dropping your car off for repairs/maintenance or with a parking valet, and you own a sporty/luxurious car that someone probably wants to drive, always record your odometer miles before you leave.
Correct on all accounts........ I sold that car a few months later and had it for about a month, don't think I put 100 miles on it (didn't want anything to break on my watch!). I sold the car for about 8k more than the dealer would give on trade to a guy that came from Maine via greyhound bus. I picked him up at the bus station and after dropping me off at home he stuck a plate on it and drove it 1500 miles back to Maine!
Depends on where you take the car. Some places you can trust, and some you just can't. I only valet if I know I don't have the best car there. If I know I do, I park it myself somewhere. I figure if there's a Lambo or a Ferrari with my Porsche, if someone is going to run the risk of taking a car for a joyride, they'd pick either the Lambo or Ferrari over mine.
Correct on all accounts........ I sold that car a few months later and had it for about a month, don't think I put 100 miles on it (didn't want anything to break on my watch!). I sold the car for about 8k more than the dealer would give on trade to a guy that came from Maine via greyhound bus. I picked him up at the bus station and after dropping me off at home he stuck a plate on it and drove it 1500 miles back to Maine!
Since it sounds like you live pretty close to Florida, I'm guessing the new owner from Maine wanted an S Class that didn't face the ravages and salt of northeastern winters. He certainly seemed to prefer putting 1500 extra wear-and-tear miles on the car.
The reason I've always been slightly suspicious about this is, I knew a Russian guy who owned a body shop (I'm sure that this will come as a great surprise) who got busted for giving out customer cars as loaners to other customers. He advertised "Free Loaners!!!" in his advertisements. They're free all right. Free to customers, free to him, free to everyone except the owner! He got busted on it though, along with other things.
There might have been a thread about this before, but some news station busted a parking lot owner driving their car.
Just wanted to get some input on this. I'm parking my car in a garage at a short term apartment I'm staying at in Philly. I don't drive it every day, maybe once a week while I'm here. This morning I noticed about 18 extra miles were on the car than when I last drove it, and I did the math to make sure.... I have no way of proving this at this point, but when I returned the car, I made sure to take a picture of the dash (mileage) with my phone, just to have a baseline.
What can I do if they are driving the car around? Doesn't this fall under car theft? They don't have a right to joy-ride whenever they please.
Now I'm paranoid, what if they go on a ride and damage the car without me knowing? Is there any way I can legally prove my case if something were to happen?
I would make the valets aware that you know that they are doing more than just moving your car around the garage. I would also call the valet company and let them know you know what is happening and if it happens again, you'll take action.
You can go to the homeowners/co-op board and I'm sure they would be pissed to know this is happening and contract with another company.
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