Heartland Automotive D/B/A Jiffy Lube contaminated damaged brakes lube oil beware Bloomingdale Illinois
On 9/29/2007 I had a full service oil change performed on my 2000 Toyota Camry at the Jiffy Lube located at 922 E. Ogden Ave in Naperville, IL. Over the next two days my brakes gradually lost their braking capacity. I took the car to Lucas Tire at 3501 N. Western Ave in Chicago, IL on 10/2/2007 to assess the problem. They informed me that the brake fluid in the car was seriously contaminated with motor oil. This contamination required the replacement of every rubberized part of my braking system since the motor oil caused those parts to swell and become non-functional.
As soon as the problem was diagnosed I contacted the Jiffy Lube store where the service was performed. They denied any fault in the matter but said they would consult with corporate management to see if they could offer any compensation. I gave them the contact information with Lucas Tire so that they could discuss the necessary repairs and authorize any work. Phone discussions did occur between Lucas Tire and Jiffy Lube but no compensation offer was ever made by Jiffy Lube. After a week of inaction on Jiffy Lube's part I authorized Lucas Tire to make the required repairs because I needed my car back.
Lucas Tire faxed the final repair bill for $892.61 to Jiffy Lube. The store manager at Jiffy Lube who identified himself as Tim Piszczek contacted me on 11/1/2007 and told me that Jiffy Lube would not be making any compensation offers because they "would never make an error of this type" and because they never authorized the repairs that were made.
There is no explanation for the oil contamination other than an error during the Jiffy Lube service. No other service had been performed on the car for the prior six months. Oil contamination causes rapid degradation of rubber parts; it is a matter of days, not months. Lucas Tire collected a sample of the contaminated brake fluid which they provided to me. Jiffy Lube's claim that they didn't have the opportunity to authorize the repairs is ridiculous. They were notified immediately of the problem and had ample time to investigate and make the repair authorization if they had any intention of doing so. I could not simply leave my car at Lucas Tire indefinitely waiting for Jiffy Lube to get around to authorizing the repairs.
In addition to the $892.61 in repair costs, I am seeking reimbursement of the $229.22 that I spent on a car rental from Enterprise during the period that the car was being serviced at Lucas Tire.
After filing a Small Claims suit against Heartland Automotive I was informed by their District Manager that the company had filed for Bankruptcy and was probably immune to being sued. I will continue to pursue this in any way I can. But this should be a warning to anyone thinking about using a Heartland Jiffy Lube franchise, of which there are hundreds, that they can do anything they want to your car with no legal recourse possible on your part. Let the buyer BEWARE.
John w
Chicago, Illinois
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Civil Rights
berwyn,Illinois,
USA
Keep going
#4
Sun, September 20, 2009
Business today reported that Heartland Automotive is out of the bankruptcy and under complete scrutiny by JLI who monitor there actions.
Word has it that most of their employees don't have complete training even with their provided training program called CBT.
Burden of proof would lie on their training and they record all the people who worked on the car... so, if the person who was working the Upper Bay was not certified you have a solid proof that he/she did not know what they were doing. Most of the people who get hired with Heartland have no previous experience of automotive so their training program is the source where they hold a duty to the consumer to have complete trained and certified. Also to complete the computer training they have to get hands on evaluation, most of the time the manager will just sign off without conducting the evaluation you would have to cross examine the employees when you take this to court.
Also all you need is to find 3 other simular mistakes and have them pull weight on your case.
I believe in fair treatment and that if one made a mistake then they should man up to them and make it right, no one is going to hurt you just admit that you did wrong, in other countries you get killed or embarrased in front of others for not taking responsibility... but thanks to America we dont... but we a fellow Americans need to voice our opinions and fight for fairness, the only reason they are getting away with things is beecause they have more practice then you.
Goodluck
Ted Jefferson
Wonder Lake,Illinois,
U.S.A.
Be Persistant
#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Fri, July 31, 2009
Jiffy Lube does not do anything with brake fluid or the master cylinder other than check the level of the fluid. However when you bring your car there they are obligated to preform the repairs or services correctly. They will naturally deny an error like that because it can effect bonus moneys that the employee's receive. Jiffy Lube and more so Heartland does not seek out ASE certified or a credited techs. This can leave a margin of error for repairs.
Obtaining a lawyer is a wise choice. Regardless of financial problems they should be held accountable if it is determined that they were the cause of your brake system failure. They should cover the cost of the repair along with the rental charges and they should be held accountable for your legal fees as well. Seeing as their name is not on the title of your vehicle they have no right to tell you that they have to authorize a repair. That is bad business practice on the part of both the location manager and the district manager to not back work they have preformed.
I would also contact the BBB on the issue as well, I would also recommend contacting Jiffy Lube International. That is the parent company. If Jiffy Lube gets enough complaints that are founded to be true it can put their franchise lic. in jeopardy.
J.e. Stancil Jr.
Hemet,California,
U.S.A.
Brake fluid contamination false allegations
#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sun, June 01, 2008
Jiffy lube has, and has had, a policy that brake fluid is inspected, and inspected only. Brake fluid is not added to, stocked, anything of the nature to contaminate the vital, safety fluid. If an individual wants to look into such procedures, I would strongly suggest that one visitsd the jiffy lube website.....www.jiffylube.com. and see first hand what the signature service entails.
Most service center locations also utilize closed circuit video for claim prevention, as well as for loss prevention. If the customer making allegations has concrete evidence...i.e. witness, lab samples that detect motoroil in the brake fluid. That would stand more firm in pursueing a damage claim. But an individulas theory is no basis for assuming responsibility for brake fluid contamination. Water may have contaminated it, was the system properly maintained? (BRAKE FLUID FLUSH). If all consumer theories were to dictate the way an allegation of negligiance takes place....., the inmates would be running the asylum!
Thats why in this grat country of ours, we are innocent until proven guilty. The judicial system puts the burden of proof on the accuser.....not the defendant. Granted that the automotive repair industry has had some negative media spawned marks on it's record..but we hace agencies investigate, and regulate the business. Such as The B.A.R. in California. The court systems, small claims., etc., But to push ones frustration on the "last guys to touch the car", is simply ludicrous. I have noticed that when angered or frustrated, 80% of ones words stemm from emotion, while only 20% stem from fact.....makes sense..