LucentAUTO

...what you bought from them caused injuries in an accident?
i dont know about avalon racing but im pretty sure custommaxima/greg does not have insurance on ALL his products. if ever accident occurs and is caused by their products, what would you do?

Shadow

iTrader: (15)

Greg isn't the responsible party if a part he sells you causes injury. Whoever manufactured the part is responsible. You'd sue the maker of the part, not the shop that sold it to you.

Having said that, Custommaxima is a LLC for this very reason.

Why are you asking this? Did something happen?

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

LLC = Limited Liability Corporation

Good luck in attacking assets.

He's also just a re-seller. You would be better off suing the "big bad evil corporation". Much more money in their deep pockets.

NickStam

iTrader: (3)

I remember a consumer law class that i took at college where the test case talks about a supermarket selling a product that causes injury to a customer. Ex: Selling a box of unpitted prunes when they in fact had a pit, and the customer swallows it and is injured. You CAN sue the supermarket and the manufacturer. I forget what law came into play here, but it doesn't sound fair?

I think the laws are different in any state, but that's why sole proprietorships are no good

LucentAUTO

but what if the person sues greg, what happens then? greg is partially responsible because he is the seller. even though its not made by him, he still did the transaction.
why is it LLC? corporation? custommaxima is not a corporation, his company has unlimited liability.

disadvantages of sole proprietorship
unlimited liability-the risk of losses, any debts or damages incurred by the business are your debts and you must pay them, even if it means selling your home, you car etc.

Pearl96Max

iTrader: (151)

Technically you would be able to sue Greg and his company if he sold something that caused harm to someone or something. But I must ask...Why would you want to? Aside from the obvious money. Greg is on here to help us get what we WANT at fair prices? Is he making money? Yes of course that is what businesses do, and I wouldnt expect him or anyone else not to.

But think this way....You WANT something and he is able to provide it for you, then there is a problem with it....Do you always bite the hand that feeds you?

This can be looked at in two different aspects...
1: he knows the problem and ignores it, then sue? ABSOFU**INGLUTELY
2: He has no idea of the problem, sue? I dont think it would be appropriate.

Considering that Greg would most likely fall under the latter of the two aspects, I would choose to no0t sue, and go for the company that produces the product.

If it was something that he actually installed, well then thats a different story...BTW I am an LLC for these reasons. Accidents CAN happen.

--Don

LucentAUTO

don: no one is sueing greg , this is just an example, all im saying is that the person or the broker is responsible as well, if the perons decides to sue greg and his product manufactures, both of them will be screwed.
nick is right, but what if an out of state person bought something, which law would it follow?

NickStam

iTrader: (3)

I don't remember exactly, but i think it's the state where the customer lives, which means that the seller has to abide by the customers' state laws (or is under their jurisdiction)

Pearl96Max

iTrader: (151)

I wasnt implying that you were sueing Greg, just replying in a hypothetical sense to the thread.

You are correct as far as him being the seller, and he can be sued, but then it becomes a moral issue for the suer.

IF this was to happen you would follow the laws in the state that the law applies in. Not your own state.

--Don

LucentAUTO

so e veryone here is saying if greg sold a product that caused an injury, and he is sued by the customer, he will win the case because he is not the one responsible.

NickStam

iTrader: (3)

that's not always true.

LucentAUTO

so under which circumstance is greg responsible

RR95SE

That would be up to the judge or a jury; that's the whole purpose of the lawsuit. Generally in this situation, both parties are sued and jurisdiction lies in the county or state of the suing party. That's not to say that Greg's insurance company's attorneys and/or the manufacturer's insurance company's attorneys won't file a motion to change venue. It's a big game and who ever plays it the best usually wins.

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

okay.. let's call out a situation or two..

1. you buy a big brake kit from bob's auto parts, inc..
you install the brakes according to the directions in the kit.
you forget to bleed the brakes, because it doesn't specifically state how and why in the instructions.
you pull out of the driveway, floor it, get to the corner at 60mph and slam on your brakes.. but wait.. you have no brakes! SMASH!!

who's responsible? the manufacturer of the parts, the seller of the kit, or the installer?



situation #2.
you buy a big brake kit from bob's auto parts, inc..
you install the brakes according to the directions in the kit.
you bleed the brakes properly because you're no fool, whether it's in the instructions or not.
you pull out of the driveway, floor it, get to the corner at 60mph and slam on your brakes.. but wait.. you have no brakes! SMASH!!
you haul your totalled car home and realize the caliper was faulty- it had a crack in the case which caused it to leak brake fluid out under high pressure.

who's responsible this time?

situation #3.
you buy a big brake kit from bob's auto parts, inc..
you install the brakes according to the directions in the kit.
you bleed the brakes properly because you're no fool, whether it's in the instructions or not.
you pull out of the driveway, floor it, get to the corner at 60mph and slam on your brakes.. but wait.. you have no brakes! SMASH!!
you haul your totalled car home and realize the caliper was faulty- it had a crack in the case which caused it to leak brake fluid out under high pressure.
you then find out that bob's auto parts, inc has had several complaints about the calipers in the kit being faulty and has done nothing to correct the situation.


Also remember that any aftermarket caliper and pads to fit them are NOT intended for street use and specifically says they are for off-road, racing use only on the paperwork inside the box for the calipers. no warranties express or implied other than replacement of a defective part.


NOW who's the one in trouble?
Case #1. you. you're an idiot and wasn't qualified to do the work on your car.
Case #2. You. you bought and installed a part not made for street use. you used it on the street and wrecked your car. you have no recourse other than to call the insurance company and total the car.
Case #3. YOU, again. see above. BUT, you also have a case against the manufacturer and bob's parts because they knowingly sold a large quantity of defective parts as good.


so in any of the three cases, you're screwed and there's nothing you can do about it. Life sucks, move on. don't put aftermarket stuff on your car and expect them to be liable if/when it breaks.

bill99gxe

iTrader: (1)

Matt's bitterness over another member's attempted legal recourse coming to a head here.

Max8MyCash

iTrader: (3)

Ahem, a small interjection, if I may...
If you read most people's sites/sales terms, you 99.9% of the time AGREE to not be able to sue someone for the parts they sell if you so choose to purchase those products from that specific company.
All products (aftermarket) are considered off-road/show only, and are not to be used on any street vehicles (so it says in most manufacturers brochures). That's the same reason you get
Hydro tickets
Lights tickets
Exhaust tickets
etc.......

Just my $0.02..
Alex

Frank Fontaine

Why so much semantics? Greg sells a bad part, greg needs to make it right. Anybody can sue anyone, there are tons of frivilous lawsuits that are settled because of potential legal costs. A person can always go to small claims, the odds are many times stacked against the defandant. Is it a kangaroo court? Sure, most of the time the justice doesn't even have a law degree. This LLC stuff can be hokey. I know a dude in my office who does consulting on the side. Maybe I shouldn't say on the side since he spends 4 hours+ per day plus the company's resoruces to run his own business. A real short, shifty guy. He really sc***** a big job that he got, so he simply went out of business and started a new one. You better believe the victim is using every legal means of making him pay regardless of his LLC. The law is not meant to protect shadiness through semantics, even though sometimes it may seem that way.

2k2kev

this isn't necessarily true... people sign forms all the time "waiving" liability that aren't really valid. When I coached I had kids (over 18) sign forms left and right limiting the school's liability, but in reality it's an "acknolwedgement of their responsibility" and not really to keep the school out of court.

so, just 'cause you signed something saying "you can't sue us" doesn't mean you can't sue them.

AND... so now you've got about 16 or 18 answers but haven't answered one question yourself... WHY ARE YOU ASKING?

Vyrus

iTrader: (4)

That's not right. I agree it could easily happen, but it's not right. The fact is the company made the faulty part, the company should fix it. The seller should have nothing to do with it, unless he is also the one that made the part.
-Cyrus

bullseye

It's a good idea for sellers to require their suppliers to name the sellers as co-insureds on the suppliers' product liability policies. Sellers may also require their suppliers to indemnify the sellers in cases of litigation, and assume the defense.

The seller is usually protected from product liability judgments, but not always. For example, if the seller suggests a part be used for a purpose other than for which it was intended, or suggests the part be modified, the seller can be liable. If Stillen *suggested* you use a smaller pulley on your Vortech supercharger, and your engine ran too lean (BOOM!), then Stillen is liable for damages, not Vortech.

Max_Gator

1. You can sue anyone and it will cost them $$ to defend even if ultimately you can't prove your case. The person being sued has no entitlement to get their attorneys' fees back unless (under some state statutes) the claim is utterly without merit (or they are suing for breach of contract and the contract has a provision for attorneys fees to the winner).

2. Sellers of products can be liable under product liability theories under many circumstances. Just because they didn't manufacture it means nothing. However, they can in turn pass that claim up the chain to the manufacturer. Ultimately, the seller should end up with no liability if they merely resold the product with no knowledge that it was defective and did nothing else..

3. The determination of what law applies is complex. Normally, it is the law of the forum that has the most connection to the dispute. This is different from the issue of where a lawsuit is brought. A lawsuit can be brought in Texas but apply New York law.

4. You can waive certain claims by signing a waiver. Normally, the waivers only waive certain types of warranty claims. If the waiver seeks to waive any claims you might have for the negligence of the other party it typically must state that you are waiving negligence claims. Claims for gross negligence and intentional conduct can't be waived.

Frank Fontaine

As much as we think the law is just mumbo-jumbo (look at the scores of people on this forum who wrongly got caught speeding and are constantly asking for advice on how to dismiss the charges), it's meant to render every man his due. 3 easy no-bake common-sense situations--a person gets injured in a ski area. A person's car gets damaged by a valet parking attendant. A person's suit is ruined by the dry cleaners. In each case the customer supposedly waived their rights and the business' liability. Does anyone think for a second that there aren't lawsuits against said firms, and more importantly, where the plaintiffs didn't receive remedies?

pro

That is true but what greg (if he get's sued and wins) can do is file a wrongful something (Im no lawyer but I work for one). This would then make the person that sued pay all the fees including layer, court and anything else that cost money. Also if greg gets sued for selling a borken part that causes injury and loses he can then sue the manufactuer.
Good Luck,
Paul