on friday, feb 12, my hubby and i were travelling at low speeds (50 - 60km/h) on a slushy road. conditions were relatively clear and we were being cautious. I should add that our Vibe is a 2009 AWD with approx 24 0000km mileage. (kilometreage?)we hit a skid and ended up in a snowbank, nearly on our side on the side of the road. the car was absolutely NOT damaged. There was ONE dent on the driver's side bumper, but other than that, there wasn't even a SCRATCH on the car (they're tough buggers, aren't they?)We called roadside assistance, and they arrived almost two hours later.I have to speculate on what happened when the tow truck arrived as I was not present to see the tow. My husband was there and he tells me that the tow truck driver decided to pull the car out from the towing hooks underneath the front and NOT from the back (as would seem logical, even though there are no hooks underneath the back). They dug out the snow from underneath the car and pulled once. Snow built up in under the car, so they stopped the tow and shovelled out the snow once more. On the second tow, the tow truck caused the damage in the pictures below. The estimate is about $4500 - $5000 for repairs. There may also be damage to the control arm from towing it out AFTER the chassis had come apart. any thoughts? any other similar stories? should the car have come apart like this? any advice? we're really really unsure about what we should do about this. It seems like no matter what we do, WE end up being screwed for doing the right thing and not trying to get the car out on our own (by calling friends with trucks to help)The Skid ^^The final resting position 1 ^^Final Resting place 2 ^^Damage after towing 1 ^^Damage after towing 2 ^^Damage after towing 3 ^^Damage after towing 4^^Damage after towing 5^^Damage after towing 6^^Is this a defect in the chassis? Should towing the car by the provided hooks have done THIS to it? we're confused about what we should do. It seems like we're going to be screwed over for doing the right thing (calling roadside assistance instead of getting friends with trucks to come help us out)any advice?
wow you are lucky that didn't roll.first off those are not tow hooks they tie downs for car haulers when the vehicle gets shipped. to fix that you will need a new lower core support, the tow truck driver should of known that . i would think they would be liable for the damage. good luck
2003 VIBE GT, CONVERTING TO RALLY CAR. http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=463112004 vibe gt magnaflow catback exhaust (bought totaled 9/06 with 1600 miles, fixed it and in love ever since2004 HONDA CBR1000RRASE Master certified mechanic
You probably need professional legal advice, either from your insurance company, or a lawyer, or both. I don't know how the liability laws or auto insurance works in Canada. These comments are based on my experience in the U.S.1. Was it a 'motor-club membership' or Pontiac 'Roadside Assistance' that you called to get the tow? They might have insurance coverage for such additional damage resulting from a 'contracted tow'.2. What does the towing company say? Do they accept or deny responsibility for the damage? They should carry liability insurance for this. In spite of their insurance, they probably don't want to pay or have you file a claim against them. That's when you absolutely involve your insurance company and/or a lawyer.3. Have you reported the accident to the police? To your insurance company? In the U.S. there are often legal limits on the amount of time in days you have to report accidents. 4. What does your insurance company say? Your claim is that the extensive damage was not caused by the original crash, but by the towing company. Your 'before and after' pictures help prove that. The liability for the original crash is yours. The liability for the towing damage could be a difficult issue. It was caused by the towing out, BUT if your husband was there and verbally authorized them that it was 'OK' to keep pulling the car WHILE the really extensive damage was occurring, you might not get any sympathy (or a favorable settlement) from either the towing company or your insurance. The fact that they stopped pulling once, and continued shoveling out before pulling the second time would indicate that they were trying to use caution. What happened after that to suddenly cause all the damage?5. Obviously, the car needs to be repaired before you can drive it. Check to see if your auto policy provides payment for a rental while your car is being repaired, regardless of who is determined to be at fault for accident or the towing damage. In the U.S. it is an optional-cost coverage, and is usually not covered in standard auto policies.Good luck.
My 2003 Vibe Base Auto 2-tone Salsa "SalsaWagon" was built in May 2002. I acquired it in Feb 2004/Traded it in on a 2016 Honda HR-V in Feb 2018.
the only damage done to the car was the dent in the front bumper seen in pic 3. The tow truck driver and two other people who helped dig the car out verified this. The rest was done once the tow truck began towing!
An additional question:If the hooks underneath weren't meant for towing the car out, what was the proper method of pulling the car out? Would it have been correct to pull this or any other Vibe out by hooking on to the control arms/frame of the car?so much to consider here.Thanks so much for the quick responses
My friend owns a garage and towing company. According to him the towing company is not responsible for any damage incurred in removing a car from a ditch. Their responsibility begins when the car is on the deck of the truck or ready to be towed away. If it were not this way, towing companies would simply refuse any towing job that looked risky or dangerous. Looks like an insurance job to me. It's up to them whether they try to recover their losses from the towing company.
makes sense, i guess. though it does seem unfair that if the driver was indeed negligent by putting the tow line through hooks not meant for towing and that resulted in our car being severely damaged, that we have to pay for that. seems that the guy should have known better. he said (when he brought us and the car back to the dealership) that this was the first time he had ever seen that happen in the hundreds and hundreds of cars he has pulled out.lots of stuff to consider. thanks, folks
This is the only tow hookGood luck with it... towing companies (around here anyways) have lots of disclaimers on what, when and how it's responsibility begins and ends.What tires were you running on the car?