A $42 million award has been given to a couple who sustained severe crash injuries after their body shop glued on a replacement roof. Bad repair may lead to catastrophic accidents or make injuries in an accident that much worse.
A Texas jury awarded the $42 million to the couple who argued that a repair center glued, in private, a replacement roof onto the top of the car rather than welding it per the manufacturer’s instructions.
The couple states in their lawsuit that if it were not for the bad repair, they would have been able to walk away from the accident with minimal injuries.
In 2013, when a pickup truck hydroplaned coming towards them and struck the 2010 Honda Fit with the couple inside, an engineer was used in the bad repair lawsuit to share that the crash was nearly identical to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s crash test for moderate overlap.
The 2010 Fit vehicle received a good rating in that test result. However, the force in that particular accident caused the roof to separate from the vehicle, leading to a number of structural issues that caused the fuel tank to ignite and slam and lock the doors shut.
The couple inside were trapped for a few minutes until witnesses pulled them out of the wreckage as it was burning. A number of different severe injuries including internal bleeding, bruising, fourth degree burns and broken bones were named in the bad repair lawsuit.
Many of the injuries caused the husband to spend a great deal of time in the hospital across the previous four years affecting his ability to earn a living. None of the information about the bad repair and the glued-on roof was ever provided to the couple in the vehicle history report when they made the purchase of the car.
According to the lawsuit, the prior owner of the vehicle brought it to a collision center after the roof had sustained hail damage. Honda requires that the shop weld a new panel to the top of the car, but instead a epoxy adhesive was used. The couple argued in the lawsuit that if they had known about the issue, they may not have bought the car.
Bad Repair Lawsuits
Accident and damage reports are popular tools for used car buyers to determine what they need to know about past incidents with the vehicle. A vehicle history report, however, might not detail how a repair shop fixed a problem, leaving the new owners of the vehicle without the information needed to make an informed decision.
If you or someone you know has been injured in an accident or has sustained severe injuries because of a bad repair, you may have grounds to pursue a personal injury claim..
Contact the lawyers at McDonald Worley today to learn more, the consultation is free.