James7

Well this was enough for me NEVER to do any business with that Lexus dealership .. wouldn't even buy a cabin filter from them because of this .. sorry about your experience, I know this is an old thread but it just shows its getting harder to find the service that once supported this brand ..

E46CT

Late to this thread, but there's not really many "options" and hiring a lawyer for something like this would backfire on you financially. That's just laymen advice-sorry. Dealership techs are just dumb kids and apparently that's what happened here. a kid crashed his car. I'm sure he got fired. And yes the dealer is responsible. They possibly paid this out of pocket than made a claim with their liability (possibly CGL) carrier.

I hope OP got his car fixed, but seems to be he could certainly make a diminished value claim against the entity responsible for the damage to his car which in this case is the dealer. It's simply a formula that includes a multiplier based on the amount of damage. He may not receive much, but something is better than nothing. It would be in the few hundred to very low four figure range (starting with a 1)

Assuming the statute of limitations isn't passed, op should run a letter over to the dealer asserting the claim and applicable california law re diminished value and right to recovery. The party who reviews the letter may have a layman's understanding of the law and still may assert they'll "fight you," so include in your letter that you'll recommend that if they're still confused, to submit the letter to their general counsel (i'm sure they have some on standby) for their review.