NBC 5 reported a Fort Worth-area body shop has allegedly held several vehicles for exceedingly long periods of time without repairing them.
Brenda McNaughten told journalist Samantha Chatman she was on her way to work when she was rear-ended. She wasn’t hurt, but her car was heavily damaged.
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“It was all crushed in the back, all crushed in,” she said.
Her auto insurance provider initially wanted her to go to Caliber Collision, but she chose Dynamic Auto Collision Repair in Haltom City instead. She said she’s known owner Larry Dyson for years.
“I knew my car would come back in excellent condition,” she said.
McNaughten said her insurance sent Dyson a check for more than $5,500, which he soon cashed. He told McNaughten he’d have the car ready in a couple weeks. That never came to pass.
She said she spent a year visiting the shop dozens of times asking about her car, only to be met with excuses ranging from Dyson not having money for parts to workers quitting on him.
Another Dyson customer, Edwin Jackson, said having a written contract with Dynamic Auto didn’t help him much.
“This man is so good at lying to you,” Jackson said. “He’s just a punk that lies, cheats and steals.”
Jackson said he signed a contract on Jan. 26, 2016, and hasn’t gotten his truck back in two years.
Both McNaughten and Jackson sought refunds from Dyson, for which Dyson said he didn’t have the money. McNaughten didn’t let Dyson forget about her, going so far as to tape an anniversary card to his door.
“I put a dead rose on it and scotch taped it on his glass door,” McNaughten said. “I have not forgot that you have my car.”
NBC 5 contacted Dyson, who attributed his business problems to divorce, fatherhood, “financial disasters” and “corporate giants taking most of the insurance work.”
McNaughten said she eventually got her car back, fully repaired. However she is still pursuing Dyson to pay her back for rental car expenses.
Lemon law attorneys help their clients by dealing directly with the manufacturer on the clients’ behalf, working to promptly resolve the issue and get their clients back on the road. Thanks to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, attorneys can seek their fees directly from the manufacturer, meaning a client can obtain legal counsel without having to pay attorneys’ fees directly out of pocket.