Collision Inside Tunnel

[jdc9750]

I have been in the tunnel business for two years and this is the first collision inside the tunnel. One guy put on his brakes and the guy following hit him. Only minor damage and I will pay for the repair. It could have been worse. What is the best way to handle this problem?

Jim C

 

[stevie g]

I wouldn't pay for the repairs if you can prove by physical evidence or admission of guilt by the driver who braked in the tunnel.

We've had this happen a few times here in the three years we've been open and each time I tell the owners of the vehicles involved that they need to swap insurance information and treat it as if it were an accident that occurred on the street.

The reasoning is because we tell each customer and have signage indicating the whole "neutral, foot off brake, don't steer" bit that frees us from responsibility.

If there were an equipment issue then of course we would pay for it, but I can't for the life of me understand why operators should feel responsible for someone putting their car in gear or hitting their brakes so the chain forces another car to rear-end them.

However if you've already indicated to your customer(s) that you intend to pay for the damage then there's probably no way you could or should reneg on that, but in the future, I would reconsider paying for a situation that is entirely the fault of the customer.

 

[Chiefs]

Put invideo cameras (3-4 should do the trick), all facing the rear of vehicles as they go through. By doing so, you will be able to find out why the accident happened. It is easy to assume that any time two cars hit, the first one skipped a roller due to putting on the brakes and caused the collision. Often that is the case. But what about the one that knocks their vehicle out of neutral and gets a running head start, runs 20-30' down the track at 5-10 MPH and rear ends the vehicle in front of them. Been there done that. Cameras catch that and with a good DVR not only can you catch it but you can also make them a copy of it for them to take to the local police station and for their insurance company when they make a claim. Either way, whether they put their foot on the brake or took off in drive, you're responsibility is absolved.

We had one last winter, a young guy who had been through several times not only take off down the track, but jump both wheels to the right off the inside guide rail and drove virtually all the way down the tunnel, sideswiped a rinse arch breaking a nozzle, jump back on the conveyor just before running over the tire shine and continue out the exit.
He came back and told me the conveyor did and was I going to fix the scratch now on his vehicle. We went in the office and reveiwed the video. Upon viewing it I told him that it was his fault and that if he pursued the claim that I would be sending a copy of this to his insurance company along with a bill for the damage he caused to my equipment. He left and brought his mother back. She reviewed the video, looked at him and called him a 'dumbass' right in my office!

If you run a car wash today without many video cameras you can never know what is going on when you are not there nor avoid the headaches of customers doing 'stupid customer tricks' and then outright lying about what happened. It is worth its weight in gold.

 

[stevie g]

We had one last winter, a young guy who had been through several times not only take off down the track, but jump both wheels to the right off the inside guide rail and drove virtually all the way down the tunnel, sideswiped a rinse arch breaking a nozzle, jump back on the conveyor just before running over the tire shine and continue out the exit.
He came back and told me the conveyor did and was I going to fix the scratch now on his vehicle. We went in the office and reveiwed the video. Upon viewing it I told him that it was his fault and that if he pursued the claim that I would be sending a copy of this to his insurance company along with a bill for the damage he caused to my equipment. He left and brought his mother back. She reviewed the video, looked at him and called him a 'dumbass' right in my office!

If you run a car wash today without many video cameras you can never know what is going on when you are not there nor avoid the headaches of customers doing 'stupid customer tricks' and then outright lying about what happened. It is worth its weight in gold.

LOL. I absolutely get a kick out of disproving fraudulent damage claims with our security system, especially the folks that are so worked up about what they must honestly believe is our fault, and when you present them with irrefutable video evidence, the look in theor eyes...priceless!

Our DVR (it's a GE, was about $2500) also has an ethernet connection that is hooked into our computer system. You simply download a software program called "WaveReader" off GE's website and you can look in on your wash 24/7 from any internet-connected computer by remotely accessing your DVR as long as you know your work computer's IP address.

It's also great for monitoring employee actions. I often call my employees in the evening and I'm like "why are you in my office, sitting in my chair?".

It's awesome. I can't imagine operating our washes without security systems...they have helped us save thousands of dollars in damage claims.

 

[Ben's Car Wash]

I've paid a few claims where some customer either hit the brake or got hung up on the rail near the tire shiner. It was in the $200-$300 range. I think it was twice in 6 years now. I have cameras everywhere EXCEPT IN THE TUNNEL so I couldn't prove the guy hit the brake. I work well with the area body shops and they discount me lower than the insurance work and other quotes. For the PR and the headaches... damit, some times it just not worth losing sleep over.

 

[stevie g]

I've paid a few claims where some customer either hit the brake or got hung up on the rail near the tire shiner. It was in the $200-$300 range. I think it was twice in 6 years now. I have cameras everywhere EXCEPT IN THE TUNNEL so I couldn't prove the guy hit the brake. I work well with the area body shops and they discount me lower than the insurance work and other quotes. For the PR and the headaches... damit, some times it just not worth losing sleep over.

We don't have cameras in our tunnel either except in the drying bay, but when this has happened, I simply tell the customers that have done this that it is the ONLY way they could have jumped their rollers (braking) whether they deny having done it or not. This of course is after I do a quick visual on the equipment and the car (low air in tires, etc).
If all that checks out, braking or putting the car into gear really is THE ONLY way that can happen. I make people accept that with my charm and wit...
Or they can take us to claims court if they want, but they never have...

 

[Chiefs]

CAMERAS, CAMERA, CAMERAS! You can explain to people all you want about how the only way for their to be a collision is for them to brake or put the car into drive all you want. But there is no arguing over video. Cameras in the tunnel must of course be kept clean on almost a daily basis but its totally worth the effort.

This past Saturday we had a Hummer in the tunnel jump both rollers and then drive off the track the track coming our of the first mitter and just as it entered the wraps. I actually saw it happen on camera. Fortunately, we were able to simply drive it back onto the track and we were down for only 5 minutes. There was no damage to it or the other two vehicles that bumped as a result. Everyone was very pleasant, I gave them time to inspect their vehicles and then gave them a business card and a free wash ticket for next time. They all left happy. Had there been any damage, then we would have gone to the next stage of reviewing the video and see what happened. I watched it and discovered the woman in the Hummer had put her foot on the brakes and caused her to jump the rollers and the track. Then I would have informed her of her responsibility for the accident, copied the cameras onto CD and given them to each customer and had them go to the police department to fill out a report. Capturing it on video will mitigate your repsonsibility. No longer do we have to subsidize customer stupidity.

 

[sonicsoft]

Camera

Bill,

What type of camera do you use in the tunnel?

We install cameras for car washes, and I haven't found one that I think is worth the cost.

Can you view your cameras from the internet if so can you let me take a peak at your in tunnel cameras?

Louis Kim