04 Jul IRAC

IRACIt’s a hot quarantine day in Southern California, and Jack determines that this would be a good day to buy a trailer hitch for his new 2021 F-150 Ford Raptor so he can take his boat/trailer to the lake for some fishing.   Jack has never owned a truck let alone a boat. So after some online research Jack decides to go over to Glendora Trailer Hitches and Welding (GTHW), a large store and service center business that specializes in welding, fabrication, custom cargo racks and standard/custom ball mounts and hitches.   Jill has been working at GTHW for over two years and is a certified welder. Jack tells Jill that he knows nothing about hitches and needs to rely on her expertise for the correct hitch. After giving Jill the weight/size of his new boat, Jill says, “I’m familiar with F-150 Ford Raptors. What you need is a GTHW custom 1.0 heavy-duty 6” drop/rise hitch.” Jill says the special quarantine price for the hitch and installation would cost $400 cash and carries a 5-year warranty parts/labor. Jack tells Jill, “Let’s do it. Here’s $400” and hands Jill the cash. Jill completes the sale and installs the hitch.The next weekend Jack hooks his boat up to his 2021 F-150 Ford Raptor and heads to Lake Tahoe. On the way to the Lake Tahoe, the hitch is unable to hold the boat, and the boat dislodges from the hitch, forcing the truck to swerve off the road into a ditch. Apparently, the new 2021 F-150 Ford Raptors require a 2.0 heavy-duty 6” drop/rise hitch, not a 1.0 heavy-duty 6” drop/rise hitch. Jill failed to look at the specifications for a new 2021 F-150 Ford Raptor and sold/installed the incorrect hitch. Jack suffers soft tissue damage in his neck and back and although his truck is okay, his new boat has $5,000 in body damage.