I think each state has their own laws. I know in NY mechanics use to be able to do that, but it really go abused by unscrupulous mechanics. So NY passed a law to prevent that from happening.
The Michigan lawyer stated in his column response that no state has such a law now. Does anyone here know of a law in any state that allows a mechanic to hold the car? Does anyone here know of any mechanic thatās been sued because they gave a ādangerousā car back to a customer?
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Yeah, and Lehtoās usually correct when he says something about law (or cars, for that matter).
Thatās probably happened, and the customerās probably the one who sued them. But as I think has already been mentioned (probably by you), āIām afraid that I might get sued at some pointā does not translate into āand therefore Iām legally permitted to steal your car.ā
Anyone in here whoās done any work interfacing with customers at all knows that customers will sue at the drop of a hat for the stupidest crap youāve ever heard of. It doesnāt mean theyāll win, and it doesnāt mean you can violate peopleās property rights to try and prevent stupid lawsuits. Sorry @Whitey, I see where youāre coming from but @texases has the right of it.
if the vehicle really was that unsafe to drive, as a mechanic, I would be ok with the customer calling the cops. Iād hand the keys over to the customer as I explained to the cops what is unsafe about it and what my concerns are.
If customer drives off, then cops can deal with the aftermath.
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Exactly. I should have asked if anyone knows of a successful lawsuit over this.
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In NY (and many others) you can be held criminally liable if you knowingly drive a car that is unsafe. Some 20+ years ago my dad was hit by a driver who ran through a stop sign. His excuse to the cops was his brakes were bad and couldnāt afford to get new brakes until next paycheck. He was sited for running through a stop-signā¦then charged with a misdemeanor for knowingly driving an unsafe vehicle.
Yep, the owner/driver should be held accountable. Not the shop.
This may be old but I want to make sure everyone knows. This happened to my wife at a tire shop. They said her tire tread depth was too low and technically they arenāt suppose to let her drive away but they aloud us because it was expensive to replace all tires and we had to discuss how we were going to pay for it. I though the same thingā¦ āare they kidding me? They canāt keep my vehicle hereā
Anyway I looked it up and it depends on state but for Massachusetts this is what it says.
Massachusetts General Laws ch. 90 sec. 7Q ā Tire tread depth regulations; compliance; operation of vehicle prohibited
Section 7Q. No person, knowing that any tire of a motor vehicle fails to comply with regulations promulgated by the registrar relative to the minimum standards for visual and tread depth, shall operate such vehicle upon any way; and no owner of a motor vehicle, knowing that any tire of such vehicle fails to comply with such regulations, shall permit such vehicle to be so operated.
Sooo I guess they can stop you? Still kinda confusing. To me it sounds like they canāt operate your vehicle and if you so choose to operate the vehicle after telling you that, they could call the police on you because you are aware of it. They should give you your keys back though because you own it.
I know this doesnāt answer all vehicular problems but I assume itās pretty close to the same rules.
No. Iāve watched many episodes of that show and seen several instances where the owner did not have insurance or some other mechanical issue where they would not allow them to drive it off the lot. The tow truck simply dropped the vehicle in the street in front of the parking authority lot and the car owner drove off after settling the bill with the tow truck operator. Other than people who catch the tow hookup in process and pay the drop fee, those are the shortest tows ever- 20 ft out of the lot for $100+ā¦
The real question here is not holding the vehicle but why did you let the tires get to the point that they were not safe to use. Also , you donāt have a credit card or you could have used the 90 day same as cash that many tire stores have . Yes tires are expensive but you donāt always have to have the highest price on your vehicle.
No, it means the driver or vehicle owner is breaking the law, not the shop.
Nothing in this portion of the law allows somebody ELSE from preventing you from driving YOUR car. It says the shop is not allowed to drive the car, and that you are not allowed. It does not say the shop can prevent you from driving.
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NOā¦thatās not what that means. It means youāre not allowed to operate a knowingly unsafe vehicle. It does NOT mean a mechanic has any right to prevent you from doing so. They are NOT officers of the court.
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