On Your Corner. In Your Corner: Justice delivered for North Texas couple with $11K damage to truck
GRAND PRAIRIE (CBSNewsTexas.com) – A hit-and-run car accident can be complicated, mostly because oftentimes, you don't know who hit you.
A couple in Grand Prairie has been on a wild goose chase trying to get someone to take responsibility for what appears to be a simple case.
With the help of CBS News Texas reporter Nicole Nielsen, the couple got their justice...and over $10,000 worth of compensation.
On mother's day weekend, Harry Slaten was inside Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Grand Prairie, watching his wife Janie Slaten preach.
He'd parked on the curb, to save spots for members...a decision he'd soon regret.
He knew he'd been involved in a hit-and-run when parts started slipping off his fully loaded 2018 King Ranch Ford F-150.
A truck he'd paid $75,000 for now has almost $11,000 in damage. But this hit-and-run had proof.
"We were contacted by the lady across the street...who not only witnessed it, but had the video for it," he said.
That video showed what appeared to be a Lowe's delivery driver hitting their truck. He then notices the damage and drives away.
When he called Lowe's to rectify the situation, the problems began.
"They pretty much told me good luck and that it's not their responsibility and that it's not a Lowe's truck," Harry Slaten said. "I said, 'It's got Lowe's all over it...it's a Lowe's delivery...it's got Lowe's on the receipt...how could it not be your truck?'"
It was a question that CBS News Texas spent weeks trying to answer.
Lowe's pointed fingers to Werner enterprises, a logistics provider.
Werner's response to them?
"She said, 'No it's got nothing to do with us.'"
Strike two.
Werner told Harry Slaten they hire out contractors to make those deliveries, and the contractor's insurance was Progressive.
He was told to give them a call, and when he did…strike three.
"That's not the vehicle they were supposed to be driving."
Harry Slaten claims Progressive tells him over the phone that the man who made the delivery that day was not the same person assigned and insured to drive that truck.
Claim denied.
"So where do we go from there?"
That's when CBS News Texas stepped in and pushed for more answers.
The Slatens intended to sue, so we asked Lowe's first if they had received their letter of intent, if they had done anything about the situation, if the driver was working for Lowe's or a third-party hired by Lowe's...and if they were planning to compensate the Slatens.
At that point, we weren't sure if anyone knew who was driving that day, until CBS News Texas received this statement from Lowe's:
"We are aware of this matter and can confirm the driver was employed by a third-party carrier. that driver is no longer providing services on behalf of Lowe's."
We asked why the mystery driver was no longer delivering for Lowe's. Was he terminated? If so, by which contractor and why? Lowes didn't answer those questions.
But still, no payment offered.
"All I want is my truck fixed."
After weeks of pushing for more clarity, CBS News Texas got the call, then Janie Slaten got the call..
They were getting paid every cent of the near $11,000 in damages.
"It was going nowhere, until channel 11 news got involved."
We met at the Ford dealership in Waxahachie, where their truck is finally getting repaired.
"Because of your persistence, they did pull the trigger on Werner, who wrote the check to us."
Werner still never outright took responsibility.
In fact, we were still confused as to why they paid.
In a statement to CBS News Texas, Werner says, "the reason we got involved was to be good stewards. It wasn't ultimately our responsibility, but we are now in talks with Progressive to be recovered for that expense. We haven't been told the claim was denied, as of this week our claim is still open."
So why was it denied when Harry Slaten called?
We might not ever know.
CBS News Texas reached out to Progressive, who told us they don't plan to share additional details about the claim.
The Slatens still insist that the situation had Lowe's written all over it, literally.
Still.. Lowe's had no further comment.
They're glad to have the money but they say they're "disappointed in Lowes. It's not the way they should treat their customers."
It was a long journey, though, they did learn one lesson through it all.
"Pick it up at the store."
