Well known car accessories shop stuffed my ST into a sign

[TimewarpUK]

Well I went down today to get a free battery check.

After confirming that the battery was OK, he asked whether he wanted me to check the ignition. So I said yes. He got into the car, couldn't work out how to start it. I said, press the clutch then press the Start button. The guy then starts it and proceeds to remove his foot from the clutch, and my beloved ST lurches forward and careers into the sign behind the canopy.



Not happy!

He also managed to trash the battery test equipment and my battery cover that was on the floor in front of the car when this happened.

Now he hasn't recorded this as an official incident but has offered to repair the scratches using some paint repair kit he's been trained up in.

I didn't want to see him get into trouble, so I took him up on his offer. However, i'm wondering if I should ask him to report this as an incident with the well known chain store where he works. That way the full damage would be covered by their insurance (although it just looks like paint scratches to me). Any thoughts?

I don't want to look like an a** and get him into trouble but I don't want to be in a position with no come back in case his repair is inadequate.

[TimewarpUK]

Al U said:

That's not acceptable IMO. Have you got any proof this happened? I'd be going through the shop's insurance and getting this repaired properly, why should you have to compromise with a smart repair because of his brain malfunction?

You need to think of yourself in this situation. If it's a sackable offense for him then he should be more careful with a customer car.

I think you're right.

I have some proof in the photos I took, the fact that he gave me his number on some paper in his writing, their inventory will be -1 for battery test equipment and his colleague saw the aftermath when he came out to fit a bulb to an Audi.

[TimewarpUK]

I always leave it in gear. Habit I guess.

I didn't explain as such. He asked whether it was clutch or brake to start and I instantly replied 'Clutch' and the next thing he'd started it, so from my perspective everything looked ok. I would have thought he wasn't going to drive it nor leave it running, just start it to check the machine's reading.

[TimewarpUK]

Leptons said:

Was the handbrake not on? FWIW I always leave cars in gear whether it's on a hill or not!

Yes it was. The torque was enough to overcome it, especially if the clutch was sprang up.

Not sure what the ignition test exactly comprised of. I guess his machine would just take readings as it started.

[TimewarpUK]

Now if this was a post about a car rolling down a hill I wonder how many people would have replied with "You should have left it in gear".

[TimewarpUK]

TooMany2cvs said:

Or put the handbrake on properly... or fixed the handbrake so it worked in the first place...

I usually put it enough on to suit the incline that it is parked on. No need to put it on full on a flat surface.

Leaving it in gear is a habit. Driving 101 - the very first thing you learn about driving is checking it is safe to start.

[TimewarpUK]

Rich_W said:

I can't believe that would be a sackable offence for the guy. Unless he has a history of that sort of thing. I imagine that every now and then Currys staff drop a TV and break it. It's what the retailers insure for (aside for theft of course)

Oh and in answer to "Cars that have to be left in Gear"

R Tronic Audi R8 prompts you to "Engage gear. Vehicle may roll"

Same for Volvo:

Volvo said:

When parking the vehicle, always engage 1st gear (for manual gearbox) or put the gear selector in position P (for automatic gearbox).

That's why you have a P on autos so you can leave it parked safely rather than in the N setting which allows freewheeling.

Edited by TimewarpUK on Sunday 29th November 11:38

[TimewarpUK]

frisbee said:

Because its made from various bits of crappy pressed metal that will cost a bomb to replace?

Amused by the people on this thread who haven't driven car hard enough for the handbrake to release when it cools down. Never mind pads welding to disks...

^^ that.

I do put it on firmly, but I don't put it on any harder than needed (discounting the need to protect it against people launching their foot off the pedal when it's in first ).

[TimewarpUK]

Thanks for the advice. I was initially shocked rather than angry, and I could see he was visibly shaken by the experience, otherwise I wouldn't have even considered his offer.

Thinking about it with a clear head today - taking him up makes no sense whatsoever, so I've called and they're putting it through their insurance to ensure it is sorted professionally. I did give him a call as a courtesy too rather than dropping him in it with his bosses first.

[TimewarpUK]

Hungrymc said:

I suspect the chap wasn't meant to drive customers cars. Anyone driving different cars regularly would never do this.

His manager was at a loss to even why he got in the car in the first place rather than getting me to start it.