Another example of the wrong fluid being changed on a Subaru. That’s why I’d either use the dealer, or a Subaru specialist shop.
This is as common a story as a quickie lube screwing up an oil change.
At least this lady had the presence of mind not to drive away. She needs a lawyer ASAP. A mean, hungry, bastich of a lawyer since the place is blowing her off.
Did I read it right? She’s only out around $500- that’s small claims territory. Might be worthwhile to have a lawyer craft a demand letter and include those expenses in the sum total… They already blew off the news organization so getting satisfaction may take some patience and up front legal fees hoping to recover them. Personally, if they blew off the demand letter I would besmirch them on every public forum I could find and maybe even take the day to sit in front of the store with a big sign… 
Like those signs that say they are not responsible, they are meaningless and responsible. You don’t need a lawyer, for the few hundred for towing and fluid changes, small claims is the place to be, but try putting a claim in to their insurance company first to show good faith. Should take the judge about five minutes, next.
I expect they’ll cover the expenses that resulted from their staff’s mistake . There’s apparently no dispute who made the mistake. Just will take some time to get all the necessary corporate & insurance company approvals. She’d be wise to put everything said to her in writing, time & dated, send a copy to the oil-change place.
If she asked my advice what to do for future oil changes, develop a long term relationship w/a well-recommended inde shop and use them, rather than chain shops, even if the inde shop charges more.
The oil change place should review their minimum qualifications for hiring and figure out how to make sure the staff doing the job has been properly trained. If they have to increase the price of an oil change to make that all work, up the price.
It is an easy enough mistake to make, but one you should recognize right away. I was helping my son change his wife’s oil on her Saturn and I removed the transmission filter since it resembled an oil filter. But we knew right away we didn’t drain oil, but transmission fluid. Down to the auto parts to buy transmission fluid and a new filter before we made any attempt to start the car.
That has been happening ever since they stated putting drain plugs on transmission pans…
I remember my buddy’s son did that on a Mitsubishi (IIRC) back in the late 90’s, he drained the transmission and added 5 (whatever) quarts of oil to the engine and never pulled the dipstick to check for proper lever and then returned the vehicle to the customer, yeah they fired him… 
I just happened to catch a new guy we had just hired, from across 7 bays, draining the trans on a Subaru by noticing the oil was draining a little further back then it should have been, and I stopped him, we made it right…
You would probably be surprised how many times this happens, but caught before the vehicle is moved and taken care of without the customer ever knowing it happened…
Part of the issue (not all) is the computers/internet giving the specs and the younger generation doesn’t know how to pull a freaking dipstick to check the fluid level before and after starting the vehicle, if you don’t do your job and double check the oil level then you will not know you screwed up until you find out the hard way…
Like I said the transmission drain plug on the Acura takes a 3/8” square drive instead of a 15mm bolt. So not hard to figure it out if awake. Plus the pan has engine oil stamped on it. Only in one language though but I do it myself anyway. Seems like this should be standard practice.
Yeah, and you would think that RED ATF coming out of the engine oil pan would through a RED flag, but not to some people… 
CVT fluid isn’t always red.
$500 a “disaster”? Take 5 Oil told to save her receipts and they would file a claim. Hire a lawyer for $500? Why did this even make the news? Slow news day. Move on, nothing to see here.
It sounds like this woman got off cheap. We hear stories all the time about people using quick-oil-change places, and a mistake was made, resulting in a ruined engine, and the customer is stuck with the bill. $500 for a tow, and refilling of the transmission fluid, without permanent damage to the transmission is a cheap lesson to never use these kind of places. Either DIY, or take your car to a real mechanic, not a quick-oil-change place.
You are correct sir, and old worn dirty and or overheated fluid is not red anymore either, that was NOT the point, the point was that I have seen MANY times red ATF being drained and the idiot draining it didn’t realize he was draining ATF instead of engine oil…
They did not drain oil? So, they added more oil. Now car is overfilled with motor oil?
And unfilled with ATF… Yes, double the original amount if full before it was drained…
+1
Parking garages frequently have that wording on their entry ticket, and although some people might believe it, the bottom line is that parking garages and maintenance facilities ARE responsible.
Folks having work done on their car are wise to supervise the job-results themselves. For example, when the car is presented as “finished”, don’t just drive away trusting that’s an accurate statement. Before even starting the engine check the oil level on the dipstick and look under the car for leaks. Then start the engine, let it idle a few minutes while looking under the car for leaks again before driving away. Then do the same checks again, as part of starting the car the next morning. You are paying for the work so you should be able to trust the staff to do it correctly, but still double-check.
That only works if the parking lot is level where the vehicle was put after service… trust me, I have had to deal with idiots that checked the level sitting on a steep hill sideways and they said we either way overfilled it or way underfilled it… The laws of physics do not seem to apply to some people for some reason…
In addition to a prior axium, “The cheapest guy always ends up spending the most”, you can add, “Do you want it done, fast or cheap or correctly? Chose one!”