Tires Rotated and Wheel Came Off? Not A Problem in Michigan

In one of the more bizarre lawsuits in Michigan, an appeals court has determined that a mechanic need not tighten the lug nuts on your tires after performing a tire rotation. Here's how this happened (I'll try to simplify this whole thing):

According to Jalopnik.com, in October 2013, Samuel Anaya and Doris Myricks took their car to a dealership in Grand Rapids for basic repairs and maintenance - including a tire rotation. After leaving the dealership and driving two blocks, the left front wheel came off, causing the car to crash into a curb. It was determined the mechanic did not tighten the lug nuts. Samuel sustained some leg and back injuries from the resulting wreck. So, they sued the mechanic and dealership. The mechanic admitted to not tightening the lug nuts on the one tire, so the court awarded $40,000 plus $70,000 attorney and legal fees. The dealership appealed.

Long story short - a Michigan appeals court ruled that the mechanic did rotate the tires, but that TIGHTENING THE LUG NUTS IS NOT PART OF ROTATING THE TIRES! Therefore, the mechanic and dealership was NOT negligent. How does this happen? Am I missing something here? Attorneys? Judges? Law school students?

Read the full story here.

And when you get your tires rotated, next time you might want to get the deluxe package where they tighten the lug nuts.