Any RAM reps here? New truck was stolen at the dealership

[RCFiddyOne]

Insurance hasn't been involved which is very curious to me. Since they found and recovered and "repaired" the truck they are calling everything good. They are running the show and told me I can pick it up.

This is all under the radar with the exception of the police report which I have not been allowed to see.

That sounds super fishy to me. Did they tell you what "repairs" were done? In my area, police reports are public record so they can stop you from requesting one from the police station. This may cost you money but I would get a lawyer and discuss your legal options before taking the keys. You may not believe this but businesses get "motivated" to solve problems once they get something in the mail with a law firm letterhead. Good luck.

 

[Hockeydad55]

Not only would I talk to a lawyer I would talk to the supervisor of the person you talked to at the 800# and if no luck with them then keep going up the chain of command and let them know you will be contacting a lawyer and if you can't get a new truck at least a lifetime warranty.

 

[DaKing]

I would not take the truck back. Don't EVEN touch it. As soon as you drive it, they will be off the hook.

get the police report. Call your insurance company, and file a claim. Your insurance company WILL protect you in this case. Its in their best interest to insure the value of the truck they are insuring is maintained. I'd also request a list of the repairs and damage. Your insurance agent should work with you and the dealer.

At the very least, have YOUR insurance adjuster inspect the truck. Request it be towed to another dealer for inspection. DO NOT DRIVE IT!!

I'd demand a new truck from the dealer, as they are most likely incompetent.

Sadly, I really doubt it could or would be totaled. If the dealer refuses to replace the truck with something equal to or better, and you want that, you may need a lawyer.

 

[Hockeydad55]

I agree with Daking

 

[kcbigbadram]

I get that it sucks for your truck to be stolen, but I think expecting a new truck is nuts. If it had been stolen from in front of your house then your insurance wouldn't buy you a new truck either.

I think the main gripe would be that the dealer didn't tell you what they fixed.

 

[Ol' Dirty]

I get that it sucks for your truck to be stolen, but I think expecting a new truck is nuts. If it had been stolen from in front of your house then your insurance wouldn't buy you a new truck either.

I think the main gripe would be that the dealer didn't tell you what they fixed.

I understand your view, but they were the custodians of my truck and they had the keys. They screwed the pooch big time. I'm not totally against splitting the difference on the depreciation of my truck to get into a new one. I'm not

They screwed up, I'm mad, but not totally unreasonable.

 

[DaKing]

Well you could request them to do a trade in, then buy another truck. But I could see it now...

"This is our offer for trade in $*****.**"

"Why so low in the trade in?"

"Well, sir, your car fax shows this truck was stolen, so I can't offer you much better.."

 

[Ricks Ram]

I think what a lot of people are missing is that no one knows what was done to this truck! The dealer isn't being very forthcoming with any information. The other truck was driven through a fence so I am assuming they weren't on a Sunday drive. Your right it's a truck and trucks are made to get dirty we all know that. This truck has 900 miles on it. The engine isn't even broken in yet it hasn't even had the oil changed! Do you think whoever stole it and got it stuck let it warm up and drove it in a normal manner? I guarantee he didn't and they probably beat the hell out if it trying to get it out and who knows how long they tried before they gave up.There could be damage done to the engine and drive train that won't show up for some time and there is no way to tell unless you took it all apart and inspected every part. and if and when it does finally show up I doubt they are going to stand behind it then. It was probably slammed from reverse to drive several times. Contact YOUR insurance and a lawyer. If it was my truck I wouldn't want it back. Maybe if they offered a free lifetime warranty and that's a strong maybe. You buy a new truck so you know every Mile that has been put on it not to have a truck that some punk beat the hell out of. If you saw someone beat the crap out of a new truck trying to get it out of the mud on a test drive would you buy it? You deserve the right to have the peace of mind you had when you paid thousands of dollars for your NEW truck that you know hasn't been abused.

 

[iRamYou]

The dealerships' liability in this will never rise to the level of providing you a new truck. If you cannot establish legally (because at this point it seems they are playing hard ball and the only way you stand a chance at getting anything you seem to expect is through the courts) that they did not act reasonably in securing your truck, then you are out of luck. Good luck proving by a the greater weight of the evidence that when they locked up at night, they didn't secure your truck. You aren't convincing a service guy to admit he screwed up, or a manager to admit they left the keys in the truck (if they actually did mess up, it could've just been an old fashioned break-in and auto theft). Simply put, they are not strictly liable to you for a unforeseen third party attempting to steal trucks of their lot beyond any ACTUAL damage that occurred. Here is some food for thought: even if you can establish some negligence on their part, is does not entitle you to an entirely new truck, but may be worth something more than they have already provided.

If you get t-boned by a drunk driver and your brand new truck isn't totaled, the insurance company will fix it. Restitution laws do not allow you to recoup the lost value of your truck. For example: Your truck is worth $40k, after accident (and being fixed) it is now worth $35k as a result of the additional depreciation, neither the insurance company or the at fault driver owe you that $5k. It just doesn't work like that, at least here in Florida.

You can huff and puff all you want, and maybe Texas laws are slightly different than here in Florida, but there is next to no chance they will ever have to (or voluntarily will) give you a new truck. Does it suck? Hell yea man, this situation blows. However, unless they decide to do it out of the goodness of their hearts, you aren't getting anything more than some conciliation fringe benefits like oil changes or a warranty.

I cannot fathom a situation where you will be able to establish that they were negligent in some way in dealing with your truck while it was in their possession.

A previous poster hit the nail on the head when they compared this to someone stealing the truck out of your driveway, the insurance company isn't liable to give you a new truck. A lot of people on this thread seem to think that having custody of the truck (be it a dealership or being loaned to a friend or family member) establish strict liability above and beyond and real damage that occurred. Sadly, you are not legally entitled to a new truck.

I wish you the best of luck, but this will likely be all for naught and you are simply delaying the inevitable of retaking possession or your truck. Before you waste money on a lawyer, talk to your insurance company. I imagine they will do some leg work and ultimately tell you something very similar.


EDIT: On a side note, there seems to be some serious concern about how hard the truck was revved while the thieves drove it. If the truck was beyond the factory recommended break in of 300 miles (OP said 900 mils on truck), 5-10 min of revving or whatever it was is not going to damage the engine. The truck was found on an adjacent property, how far could they have gone?

 

[RCFiddyOne]

I'm with everyone here in saying that it is doubtful that you will get a new truck from them out of this but you do want to make sure that all the facts are on record as to what happened. The secrecy of the dealer would be my biggest concern since it seems as though facts are intentionally being hidden.

Protect yourself - call your insurance, get a copy of the police report and talk to a lawyer to discuss your options moving forward. At best, I see them offering you a warranty to cover any future related problems because of this. Good luck pal and keep us posted.

 

[J Rod]

Wow, what a ****** deal. I couldn't even imagine. I once bought a (used) car that was leaking coolant. The dealer put it up on a lift and told me it was just a bad hose. I was young and stupid so I took their word for it and signed the papers. After 2 weeks of waiting on them to fix the "hose", they finally confessed that it was a blown head gasket. They offered to fix it but I was at least smart enough to know you don't want a car with an aluminum Northstar V8 that had a blown headgasket. I pitched one hell of a fit and even talked to the owner of the dealership. The best deal I got out of them was to put my money towards the price of a different vehicle. That was on a used $10k car though, not a brand new $40k truck. I doubt you'll get the same offer unfortunately. On the bright side, if all else fails and you do get stuck with it at least you've got a 100k warranty on the drivetrain and a really good excuse to prove your innocence if something does break on you. I would trade that thing in as soon as you hit 100k though. Good luck!

 

[SlowRoller]

The way folks think never ceases to amaze me,,, The 'emotions' involved over inanimate chunks of steel,, The perception of a 'violation' of your dreams,,,,

Realistically, all that happened was your truck was driven into the mud and got stuck. The chance of any 'real' damage to the truck is virtually nil,,, IMHO,,, getting your feelings hurt is really the biggest problem here,,, Not the truck,,, YOU.

I can think of far worse things that could have happened,,,

To me, sittin around all pissed off w/o a truck while yours sits at the dealer ready to go doesn't make a lot of sense, but, hey, it's your blood pressure, not mine.

 

[ohengineering]

OP, I worked in dealerships for a long time. I understand your frustration, but you're not getting a new truck. Now, I'd ask for the repair records, and call your local police department for the report (may cost a buck or something to get it printed). As long as there is nothing incorrect or fishy on those, the dealership's liability ends there.

Without being a ****, I would simply negotiate the cost of one of their Extended Warranties. Margin is typically 35-50% on those, and they should eat that for you. Besides that and some good faith, you aren't owed anything as long as everything has been fixed.

 

[kg93]

So does this dealership not have cameras? I would really want to see the police report before anything to see if there is mention of cameras or and inside job.

Other than an inside job or some extreme negligence from the dealer don't expect a new truck.

Just maybe if your lucky you'll get an extended warranty but that's about it.

You would have to legally prove that the dealership was not providing adequate security to protect your truck and those keys. Other than that its no different then someone breaking into your house taking your keys and driving that truck into some mud. The insurance company wouldn't be paying for anything unless it broke.

 

[SIhemi]

If it was reported to car fax or something similar than you can sue for diminished value.
Diminished value claims | CarInsurance.com

 

[R/T_Fire]

I would not take the truck back. Don't EVEN touch it. As soon as you drive it, they will be off the hook.

get the police report. Call your insurance company, and file a claim. Your insurance company WILL protect you in this case. Its in their best interest to insure the value of the truck they are insuring is maintained. I'd also request a list of the repairs and damage. Your insurance agent should work with you and the dealer.

At the very least, have YOUR insurance adjuster inspect the truck. Request it be towed to another dealer for inspection. DO NOT DRIVE IT!!

I'd demand a new truck from the dealer, as they are most likely incompetent.

Sadly, I really doubt it could or would be totaled. If the dealer refuses to replace the truck with something equal to or better, and you want that, you may need a lawyer.

This is the best advice right here!!!

My question is does texas have a automatic salvage title on stolen vehicles?
Here in Cali if a vehicle is stolen and recovered even in perfect condition it is given a salvage title. This lowers the car vehicle value and puts a black mark on the title. If this is the case then you need to go through your insurance and let them fight the battle for you.
The dealer is giving you after repair a vehicle with a lessor value from a claim and incident that happened while in their care, they are responsible and liable for the vehicle but not objects in the vehicle.
Its a tough road but good luck to you getting it all resolved in a way your happy

 

[QwikKota]

The way folks think never ceases to amaze me,,, The 'emotions' involved over inanimate chunks of steel,, The perception of a 'violation' of your dreams,,,,

Realistically, all that happened was your truck was driven into the mud and got stuck. The chance of any 'real' damage to the truck is virtually nil,,, IMHO,,, getting your feelings hurt is really the biggest problem here,,, Not the truck,,, YOU.

I can think of far worse things that could have happened,,,

To me, sittin around all pissed off w/o a truck while yours sits at the dealer ready to go doesn't make a lot of sense, but, hey, it's your blood pressure, not mine.

I find it hard to believe that you would not be angry if this happened to your truck. Don't fool yourself.

 

[Sir John]

I find it hard to believe that you would not be angry if this happened to your truck. Don't fool yourself.

^^^agreed....I would be crazy pissed too.

 

[SlowRoller]

I find it hard to believe that you would not be angry if this happened to your truck. Don't fool yourself.

HA!!! You don't know me very well then!!!

Unhappy? Sure, but once I saw my truck was OK, just WTH more could I want? I dayum sure wouldn't start pushing the 'I want a new truck!!!' button!

The abuse MOST of us put on these trucks far exceeds anything that happened that night, and none of us blink an eye when we do it to our own vehicle, over and over and over again. But if someone other than ourselves 'got it stuck in the mud' once, it's a major crime and the truck is now 'damaged'?

What about the guy who now has no truck? Should he 'lawyer up' and demand a new truck and a Million bucks for 'anguish?' (Unfortunately, this is becoming the new 'American Way')

Perhaps due to a Customer Service/Warranties background, and quite a few 'personal losses' of my own that far, far and away eclipse someone other than me getting my truck stuck in the mud makes all this seem quite trivial,,,

But hey, a persons biggest problem is that persons biggest problem. Doesn't matter if that person is a 2 yr old who wants his blanky, a 16 yr old who got their smart phone taken away, or the Colonel who has to decide which group of Soldiers will be sent into an area knowing casualties will occur.

Yeah, we all got problems. You'll have to excuse me if 'someone got my truck stuck' just isn't near the top of my list.

Perhaps if we all made our own 'list' and compared it to others, most of our problems would look rather insignificant,,,,

 

[BLKMAGIC]

I kinda agree with SlowRoller, but I would be pissed, my temper doesn't really do well under a situation like that, but I wouldn't be looking for a new truck. I would, however, fight to have my warranty extended due to unknown treatment it was put through. I feel like that is fair. A new truck? No. If it was stolen from his driveway and recovered, it would be the same thing. Just because it was done on their lot, doesn't mean he is entitled to a new truck.