ComplaintsforTommy's Express Car Wash

• Initial Complaint

  03/22/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On February 5, 2022, I went through Tommy’s Express Car Wash to keep the road salt and grime off my vehicle. I told ****, the on-duty manager I experienced a sudden extreme increase in the water pressure, that damaged the clear coat on the rear passenger door. He made an Incident Report and told me that they had changed the pressure jets, which increased the water pressure to help remove the snow sludge. ****** ****, the manager reviewed the video and said that Tommy’s Express Car Wash does not pay for damages to vehicles that are more than 10 years old, but since I have been a loyal customer for over 3 years, she was going to give me one month free. (I did not get one month free). ****** also said I could not have a copy of the video but my insurance company could. I have been using this Tommy’s Express Car Wash, without any problems for over three years, and have been using it since this issue without any problems. The only reason the clear coat came off this time was because they raised the water pressure without any warning or it might have malfunctioned. Again, I was not forewarned that the water pressure was temporarily increased or about the potential harm from washing my vehicle, nor made aware of any limitation on Tommy’s Express Car Wash liability. I cannot find anywhere that they state they do not pay for damages to vehicles over 10 years old. Their posted sign says “Please ask before washing if your vehicle is over 15 years old.” I have an estimate from ***** Collision Center for $1558.35. This does not include the cost of a rental car for around five days. I would like Tommy’s Express Car Wash to pay for the damages. I had the Law firm, ******* ******** * ******* ********* send a registered letter to Tommy’s Express Car Wash asking for the damages in the amount of $1558.35. It was signed for on March 7, 2022 at 12:01 pm. So far, Tommy’s has not responded.

  Business response

  04/07/2022

  In response to the Better Business Bureau complaint dated March 22, 2022, on behalf of **** *****, ID
  ********, Tommy’s Express has elected not to pay for the requested damages of $1,558.35. This is
  based on feedback from ***** ** Auto Body and their decision not to complete the requested repairs to
  the vehicle in question. Per ***** ** Auto Body, “a carwash likely did not cause this damage to the right
  rear door. We believe this door (as well as possibly other panels on this car) has been repaired and
  painted before. The paintwork was likely not prepped right and the paint has started to peel off.”
  In addition, ***** ** Auto Body has elected not to repair the vehicle, stating “Though we provided an
  estimate for the repairs to the door of this vehicle we are not comfortable providing the repairs on it
  due to the prior paint product failing. If we were to paint just the door that is peeling, we would need to
  mask off the other adjacent panels to avoid overspray. In doing so we run the risk of the tape peeling
  the paint from those panels as well. Therefore, we will not be able to perform the repairs on Mr. *****
  Highlander, as we do not want to be held responsible for repainting those panels at our expense.”
  While Mr. ***** received an estimate from another source – hence the request for the $1,558.35 – we
  spoke with that company, and they too were hesitant to complete the work and stated they will likely
  not provide a warranty for the repairs.
  We are sorry that Mr. ***** had this experience and take great pride and care to ensure all guest
  vehicles exit the wash in better condition than when they entered. After additional evaluation and
  review, and feedback from external Subject Matter Experts, it is our belief that our car wash was not the
  primary cause of the damage to the vehicle.
  This information was provided to Mr. ***** directly via email as he was included in the messaging from
  ***** ** Auto Body.
  Sincerely,
  
  **** *. ******
  VP – Retail Operations

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩