Liability Check Off Sheet

S

Shawn F.

New member
I was not sure what to put as the topic here but I am in great need of a sheet that I can put together where I go over the vehicle with the customer to show them what is already on the vehicle as far as scratches and dents go in order to cover my own butt. I have a couple jobs coming up where the customer is VERY picky and even said that they don't like others working on their car in case someone does something to it to mess it up. I want to be able to mark all the dings, scratches and imperfections that it comes in with and they sign it so that way when they come to pick the vehicle up, there is no question as to what was or wasn't there.

Most likely, legally I am sure that this piece of paper wouldn't hold very much value in court if they tried to sue me over a dent or bumper, etc but at least I have SOMETHING to show for.

I am looking for ideas, opinions and suggestions from you guys here. If you could email me an example of yours as well, that would be great! I promise not to copy and print yours off and make it my own. ;)



Thanks in advance!
 
Contact Beth at ValuGard, 800-543-7156

Back before I retired, we developed an "inspection form" and a place for the owner's information, as well as a signature from them to insure they knew what, if any issues might be and it also works as a "sales" sheet to create up-sell potential.

Beth can email you the form and then you can print out a supply.

They don't charge for this, so just give her a call, they are in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Grumpy
 
No matter how well I inspect a vehicle before hand I still find a lot more as I proceed with the detail. I am simply spending way more time in very close proximity with optimal lighting so it is bound to happen. Regardless of what forms you have I recommend taking photos and/or video at the time of intake. I have had an issue in the past where I didn't notice an issue until the compounding phase and my heart sank because I thought I had caused it. Only by going back to my video was I able to see the preexisting condition.
 
Thanks for the info guys! Nth Degree, I know exactly what you are saying here! I just did a job a few weeks back on a black truck that had been used as a hunting truck. There were scratches from top to bottom that went straight down the sides from front to back. I did my first heavy cutting step to cut them down and then by the 3rd step with white pad and polish I noticed halfway through polishing that there were curly q's throughout the entire front fenders and doors. I freaked out thinking I created them and even though that step was done, I just HAD to pull the same pad out and do a test spot again and start over to see if I created them. Long story short, I found out that the PO of the vehicle had someone work on the paint and it must have been from a sanding DA or such.

As you said, you can't see everything until you get down and dirty with the vehicle but at least I can pin point the major dings, scratches, etc within 5 minutes. Another thing I need to figure out is how to mark down what will and will NOT come out. I have a job Friday where the customer is VERY picky and OCD. He wants me to show him every single scratch that will and will not come out. He said that he doesn't want to expect one thing and get it back and it be another. When I talk about picky, I mean even a small piece of trash in the clear UNDER the rear bumper that was there from the factory. He wanted to know if it will be fixed and I told him I can wet sand it and fix that but it's under the bumper and can't be seen. He said he knows but he knows it is there and really bothers him...

It's things like this that I want to have in writing and signed by the customer. Another great example is a guy who wanted his newly purchased used car clay bared, buffed and sealed along with filling in what looked like where someone took a handful of pebbles and threw it at the cars drivers side doors. I told him I can color match it as close as possible but not exact and front 5 feet away it will not be very noticeable at all but up close you can see them. He said that was fine as long as they were covered from rust. I did the car, he came to pick it up and was pissed that they were not glass smooth and that you can see a slight color difference (mind you, the paint was a newer Buick green with metallic flake and pearl). He rubbed his hand over it and said he thought it would be smooth. The rest of the car looked AMAZING compared to how it looked and felt when he brought it in but he didn't care. I told him that I already explained to him at the beginning what it will and will not be and how he said he just didn't want it to rust and that was his only concern. Well in the end, he wasn't happy, paid me (after I took off money for the chip repair), and then left while whining.



If I had this sheet explaining the end result I would at least have it in writing to show them that they signed and agreed to it! Sorry for the ranting on...
 
I get what you are saying and agree. One thing I have found, though, is that people often don't want to wait around while I inspect the car. As was mentioned in another thread about the card readers for Square not working well and causing a 30 second delay that irritated a customer, they just want to drop off and pick up their car without any inconvenience.



As for this particular customer I hope you are charging to compensate for what is likely going to be a headache. Is this a daily driver or a concourse prep? It sounds to me like the car will never be up to his expectations so you should be prepared for that. I have a customer who originally wanted me to take her 4 month old black car to perfection. I explained the risk of overpolishing, the time commitment to maintain a perfect finish, and that, given her not having a garage to park in, that it was better to focus on "acceptable". A few months later she was very glad I had convinced her to be realistic once she saw how quickly the car picked up flaws.



Every once in a while I will have a customer who, upon seeing their freshly polished car, asks or comments about a scratch or flaw that could not be safely removed that they had not previously noticed. The scratch has always been there, but it was camouflaged by all the other marring. Think about the "Where's Waldo" books. Sometimes it would be very hard to find him. Now imagine a 1/4 size waldo on a blank page. Very easy to find, right? It is human nature for your eyes to be drawn to what stands out. When you look at a car with tons of swirls your eyes are drawn to contrast of those swirls. Once those swirls are removed your eyes will be drawn to the next thing that creates a contrast.
 
You are exactly right! This customer will be a headache as you stated so I am prepared for it. It is his wires daily driver and is parked outside. The car looks like it has had every panel repainted at different times. Not a single panel matches in color (silver) nor metal flake and the clear is very cloudy and in some spots cloudy due to separating from the base coat. I showed him this but he said it's all original paint from factory except one panel and the bumpers. I tried to turn it down with my price and he wanted it done right away and I told him I am booked out 2 weeks. He insisted that I do it. Oh and get this, he said he will drive it to the shop and park it where it needs to be done at because he doesn't want ANYONE inside the car in case they break something. I told him it will need to be moved inside to each bay for wash then moved for exterior and then again for interior. He didn't like that idea... haha I may just tell him I am not going to do it but if I do, I will have video of the car, have him sign papers, etc.

Now when you take a video of the car, do you delete it when the car is delivered and out of your hands or save it to your computer or something? I like this idea...
 
I have almost 25 Gigs of photos. I could purge a bit as some is redundant. For most cars I have a folder of all the original photos, then a sub folder of select photos that have been cropped and edited as necessary. I could probably go through every vehicle and tell you the name of the owner, when it was detailed, what the issues were, etc. And that is just from the past few years as I had a catastrophic hard drive loss at one point.



I hate to say it, but that is one job I think I would be bowing out of as politely as possible. I would walk him through the issues you have noticed and your realistic expectations of the possible results and tell him that you have concerns that anything but a full repaint can meet his expectations. I hate to be a doomsayer. It just reeks of a setup from what you have said. Could be he knows it needs a repaint and he's looking to get it free.
 
I guess you got the "inspection form" from Beth.

However, that is not the one that you need, so I contacted her to send you the form that is included in the PrepExcellence Manual, which is much more detailed, etc.

It can be modified to suit your needs, however if used correctly -IE take a few minutes going over the vehicle, talking with the potential client while doing so, provides an "educational experience" for them.

The best part is that when done correctly, gives them a sense of security that they are dealing with a professional.

Having gone over the entire inspection form with them, gains you customer contact information, and having them "sign-off" on the work puts you in a better legal stance should something happen later.

After all, they don't go to their doctor, tax people, attorney, even the brake/muffler shop when they have a need, without expecting their concern to be properly diagnoised, explained what the services and concerns are, "estimated cost for services", etc.

And the best part, it provides you the opportunity to "up-sell" additional correctional services, be it small paint touch up, restoring of mirrors and other black exterior trim, odor removal, etc, etc.

The first 10 minutes with a new client set the tone for making them a profitable and happy customer for years to come.

Grumpy
 
Ron Ketcham said:
I guess you got the "inspection form" from Beth.

However, that is not the one that you need, so I contacted her to send you the form that is included in the PrepExcellence Manual, which is much more detailed, etc.

It can be modified to suit your needs, however if used correctly -IE take a few minutes going over the vehicle, talking with the potential client while doing so, provides an "educational experience" for them.

The best part is that when done correctly, gives them a sense of security that they are dealing with a professional.

Having gone over the entire inspection form with them, gains you customer contact information, and having them "sign-off" on the work puts you in a better legal stance should something happen later.

After all, they don't go to their doctor, tax people, attorney, even the brake/muffler shop when they have a need, without expecting their concern to be properly diagnoised, explained what the services and concerns are, "estimated cost for services", etc.

And the best part, it provides you the opportunity to "up-sell" additional correctional services, be it small paint touch up, restoring of mirrors and other black exterior trim, odor removal, etc, etc.

The first 10 minutes with a new client set the tone for making them a profitable and happy customer for years to come.

Grumpy
Click to expand...



Ron,

Thanks a lot, I did get in contact with Beth and she sent me the inspection forms today! I will do a few small changes and put my logo, etc on it to make it my own. This will help greatly and hopefully keep touble customers away or under control when/if they want to complain. If they do, I will show them the sheet then show them the car and how it meets what I said I would do and show that they signed off on it.
 
Most Detailers don't know how to COVER THEIR ARSE and the potential for failure for not doing so. Nothing is stopping someone from dropping their vehicle off with you and upon pickup claim that the prior damage was caused while in your possession. Having a check in sheet with their signature documents the damage and will mitigate your exposure to claims.



Did you know that if you can't prove that you didn't damage a vehicle in your care and custody, that your insurance company will most likely pay a claim out to someone who claims you damaged their vehicle? I see it happen all the time. Having a good check in sheet can and will stop this from happening!
 
YUUPPP!

One of those things that get's lost when all one thinks about is "how good can I make it shine", etc.

Beth will send the forms to anyone, in a PDF file that requests it of her, no charge.

The old company uses it everyday, have for years, some changes added due to input from large insurance carriers such as State Farm, Allstate, Progressive, Nationwide, etc over the years.

I can not honestly understand why any professional detailer can not understand the necessity of taking a few minutes to do a walk about, talk with and explain to the customer and fill in the blanks before accepting a detail or costing it out.

Grumpy
 
Way too many get into the business w/o any real plan and just go month to month following the buck failing to discover how they can secure themselves properly.
 
Shawn F. said:
You are exactly right! This customer will be a headache as you stated so I am prepared for it. It is his wires daily driver and is parked outside. The car looks like it has had every panel repainted at different times. Not a single panel matches in color (silver) nor metal flake and the clear is very cloudy and in some spots cloudy due to separating from the base coat. I showed him this but he said it's all original paint from factory except one panel and the bumpers. I tried to turn it down with my price and he wanted it done right away and I told him I am booked out 2 weeks. He insisted that I do it. Oh and get this, he said he will drive it to the shop and park it where it needs to be done at because he doesn't want ANYONE inside the car in case they break something. I told him it will need to be moved inside to each bay for wash then moved for exterior and then again for interior. He didn't like that idea... haha I may just tell him I am not going to do it but if I do, I will have video of the car, have him sign papers, etc.

Now when you take a video of the car, do you delete it when the car is delivered and out of your hands or save it to your computer or something? I like this idea...
Click to expand...



I'm willing to bet he's well aware of all that damage, and he is going to cry "wolf" the minute you start working on it in an attempt to make you pay for a new overall paint job. Make sure you note every bit of what you mentioned on that inspection form and see if when you ask him to sign it, he backs out of having you work on his car.



Actually, the heck with that... RUN, don't walk from that guy! :crazy:
 
Well, there is a word, it starts with the letter "F", and that may be what you are when that happens.

LOL!

Everyone should take their time in doing the inspection, ask questions of the client to avoid that happening, but, sometimes!

Grumpy
 
That's the bad part about if a vehicle comes in caked with mud or dirt.... hard to spot things, and even just doing a quick pressure rinse has liability implications.
 
A little update for you guys here... First I want to thank all of you and especially Ron Ketchum for getting me the inspection sheets emailed and taking your guys' time out of your schedule to throw your 2 cents in here. I ended up checking the car again and having the guy fill the sheet out. I was going to run from the job but figured I'd test the waters so to speak and see what I can do. The ONLY reason is because this guy has 4 very nice vehicles that he said he wants to be able to trust someone with and keep up with them. I did the sheet, he signed it, I did the car and even though a handful of things he wanted out did not come out, he was VERY impressed with the work and even threw me a $20 tip on top.

I lost sleep over it worrying what will happen but in the end it turned out fine and I have another happy customer and hopefully plenty of repeat work!
 
[What if there is damage on the vehicle you don't notice until later on and it's not noted on the inspection sheet? ]



Send client a photo via e-mail and ask them how they want you to proceed
 
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