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Question

If my car was damaged in a car wash, who pays for the repair?

The mirror was knocked off my car and there are lots of scratches and a big dent from the car wash. Will the gas station that owns the car wash pay for my damage or do I have to file a claim?

Jul 28, 2021 Bloomington, MN

Answer

By The Zebra

Updated July 28, 2021

The answer to your question will depend completely on the specifics of how the damage occurred. The gas station will pay for the damage if:

If your vehicle was not moving and the brushes or moving parts of the car wash damaged your vehicle then the liability would be on the owner of the wash.

You will have to file a claim if:

If you were in control of your vehicle when the damage occurred - for instance, you drove your car into something in the process of washing the vehicle

Either way, you can contact your car insurance company to begin the claims process. Once your company determines how the damage was caused then they will either require that you pay your deductible, or require the car wash owner pay for the repair.

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