Legal Question in Business Law in Kentucky

Take the business to small claims court. Although, be prepared to be without your car for about a month. It is very easy for you, and the cost is typically pretty reasonable: somewhere between $20-$75 I believe. It is not as easy for the business because it costs it time and/or money. If the business owner represents himself, he will lose about 3-4 hours he could be appyling toward fixing a car(s) that generates him income of $500-1000 or more. If he hires a lawyer, he will be spending at least $500-$1000 or more. So, for him to fight it, makes little to no financial sense because he loses money by fighting it. Of course, he could decide to fight it out of principle, but if you have been polite and professional through this, he generally will not since doing so would impact his reputation which would impact his profitability. Additionally, if he fights it, he runs the risk of losing, and you could make a pretty compelling argument that he should have notified you of the additional cost increase before performing the services. Keep in mind, he has a pricing book that just about all mechanics use, which tell them what something should typically cost, both parts and labor.

Another option, which would kind of be similar in result to the above option, is to file a replevin action. This, in theory, would allow you to get your car back faster because I believe they have regularly set court dates for these actions. Just go down to the courthouse and tell them you want to file a replevin action to get your car. They may even have a form already available for you to use or can tell you what to do. This option may require that you go ahead and pay the $110 that you agreed to pay; in fact, regardless of which option you choose, if you have not already done it yet, tell them you want to pay the $110 so that way you can say that you fully performed or tried to fully perform your contractual obligation, thus negating any claim they might have toward that $25/night storage fee.