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Vehicle Fires

"A car, truck, golf cart, riding mower, e-bike, or scooter catches fire in a garage, carport, or parking structure, and the fire spreads to the building. These losses move fast in two ways: the fire itself, and the vehicle, which is often towed to a salvage yard and crushed within days. The key questions are why the vehicle caught fire and whose vehicle it was. Open recalls, recent repairs, and aftermarket work are where most recoveries come from."

What it coversCars, golf carts, e-bikes in garages, recalls, dealers and repair shops, auto policy

Step-by-step checklist

Identify

Contact the claim adjuster right away. Ask them to hold the scene and for permission to retain an expert at the client's expense. Note the call in the file.
On every claim, ask the client whether they want an origin and cause investigator to review the scene, or confirm one is already assigned. Note their answer in the file so the decision is on record.
Make sure no evidence is touched or moved until the expert has secured the scene
Get the client's approval for the scene exam cost. Most run at least $1,600 with travel, the day rate, and expenses.
Confirm the fire started in the vehicle, not the building
Get the year, make, model, VIN, and owner of the vehicle
Run the VIN for open recalls, and ask about recent repairs or add-ons

Hands off until the expert arrives. Nothing at the scene gets touched, moved, repaired, or thrown out until the origin and cause investigator has secured it. Evidence that's moved early can sink the whole recovery.

Notify

Put a hold on the vehicle with the tow yard or salvage yard right away
Retain an origin-and-cause expert with vehicle fire experience
Notify the manufacturer, dealer, repair shop, installer, and the vehicle owner's auto carrier

Investigate

Hold the joint scene exam, then a joint vehicle exam with every party notified
Pull service, dealer, and recall repair records
Check NHTSA complaints and investigations for the same model
Review the expert's report

Demand

Review payments and out-of-pocket costs
Sort the supports into photos, estimates, invoices, mitigation records, and reports
Send the full demand packet

Negotiate

Follow up. No response? Send the second demand.
Coordinate with the auto carrier if it is also pursuing the manufacturer
If liability is accepted, negotiate. If not, review for ADR.

Settle

Review the release
Receive payment, issue the deductible and client payments
Final file review, then close

1. Identify

Common vehicle fire sources

A known defect with an open recall, including "park outside" recalls where the maker tells owners not to park in a garage
A recall repair that the dealer did wrong, or never did
An electrical problem after a repair, like a loose battery cable or pinched wiring
Aftermarket add-ons: remote starters, stereos, lights, lift kits, and trailer wiring
Fuel or oil leaks onto hot engine parts, often after service
Electric and hybrid vehicle batteries, and home chargers or charging stations
Golf cart, e-bike, and scooter batteries and chargers
Riding mowers and other small engines stored hot after use

Whose vehicle was it?

Whose vehicle	What that means for recovery
Your insured's own vehicle	You generally can't pursue your own insured. Look at the manufacturer, dealer, repair shop, and installer instead.
A guest, relative, tenant, or neighbor	The owner and their auto carrier may be responsible, plus the manufacturer and any shop.
A contractor's or delivery driver's vehicle	The driver's employer and its commercial auto carrier.
A vehicle in a shared or public garage	The vehicle owner, the garage owner or operator, and the manufacturer.

The auto policy. Put the vehicle owner's auto carrier on notice. Whether the auto policy covers damage from a parked car that catches fire depends on the policy and the state, so ask the carrier in writing. The auto carrier may also be pursuing the manufacturer for the vehicle itself, and working together can save both sides expert costs.

Defect, repair, or add-on?

What you find	Likely cause	Who may be responsible
Open recall for fire risk, and the fire started where the recall says	Product defect	Manufacturer
Recall repair done recently, and the fire started in the repaired area	Poor recall repair	Dealer, and the manufacturer
Owner brought the car in for the recall, but the dealer said parts weren't available	Known risk, not fixed	Manufacturer, possibly the dealer
Fire started at a remote starter, stereo, or other add-on	Poor installation or a defective add-on	Installer, or the add-on maker
Fire started soon after a repair or oil change	Poor service	Repair shop
Fire started at a battery or charger	Product defect or poor charger installation	Battery or charger maker, or the electrician who installed the charger

Responsible parties to consider

The vehicle manufacturer, and makers of parts like batteries or wiring
The dealer, especially for recall repairs
Repair shops and quick-lube shops
Installers of aftermarket add-ons, and the add-on makers
The electrician who installed a home charger, and the charger maker
The vehicle owner, if it isn't your insured, and their auto carrier
A driver's employer, for work vehicles

2. Notify and investigate

Stop the vehicle from being crushed. Find out right away where the vehicle was towed. Call the tow yard or salvage yard, put a hold on the vehicle in writing, and confirm it. If the vehicle's own insurer has already taken it as a total loss, ask that carrier to hold it too.

Check recalls. Run the VIN on the NHTSA recall site. Also search NHTSA complaints and investigations for the same year, make, and model, since a pattern of fires helps even without a recall.

Who to put on notice

The manufacturer and the dealer
Any repair shop or installer that worked on the vehicle
The vehicle owner and their auto carrier, if it isn't your insured
The tow yard or salvage yard, for the evidence hold
The charger maker and installer, for electric vehicles

Evidence checklist

Photos and video of the vehicle, the garage, and the burn patterns before anything is moved
The vehicle itself, held for a joint exam
The VIN, the recall lookup result, and any recall notices mailed to the owner
Service, dealer, and repair records, and receipts for add-ons
The fire department report and any photos or video from neighbors or doorbell cameras
The charger and its installation records, for electric vehicles
Mitigation records and moisture or smoke readings for the building

Exams

Hold a joint scene exam, then a joint vehicle exam, with the manufacturer, dealer, shop, and carriers all notified. Don't let anyone take apart the vehicle before the joint exam.

3. Demand, negotiate, and settle

Liability theories

Against the manufacturer: product defect, failure to warn, and breach of warranty
Against the dealer or repair shop: negligent repair, including a bad recall repair
Against the installer: negligent installation of add-ons or chargers
Against the vehicle owner: negligence, such as ignoring a "park outside" recall notice

Defenses to expect

Defense	How to answer it
The fire started in the building, not the vehicle	Your expert's burn pattern findings and any video from the scene
The cause is undetermined	Vehicle fires are hard to pin down. A recall that matches the area of origin, or a recent repair in that spot, helps.
The owner modified the vehicle	Find out who did the work. That can shift the claim to the installer.
The owner ignored the recall notice	That may shift some fault to the owner, but it doesn't clear the manufacturer of the defect.
The evidence was destroyed	Your hold letters, and proof you notified every party before the vehicle was moved or crushed

Negotiating and settling

Vehicle manufacturers usually handle these through their own claims teams or outside law firms. Expect a vehicle exam request.
If the auto carrier is also pursuing the manufacturer, coordinate so both claims are presented together.
Review the release with the release checklist, then close with the standard closing letter and the deductible reimbursement letter.

4. Letters for this loss

Step	Letter	Sent to
Identify	Subrogation Opening Letter to Insured	Insured: VIN, repair records, photos
Notify	Notice of Subrogation Interest and Insurance Request	Manufacturer, dealer, shop, installer, vehicle owner
Notify	Notice of Subrogation Interest to Adverse Carrier	The vehicle owner's auto carrier, and each party's carrier
Investigate	Evidence Preservation and Joint Scene Exam Notice and to Responsible Party	All parties, plus the tow or salvage yard
Investigate	Joint Lab Exam Notice	All parties, before the vehicle exam
Demand	Subrogation Demand to Adverse Carrier	Carrier(s)
Negotiate	Second Demand with Escalation Notice, Tolling Agreement Request	Carrier(s)
Settle	Release Review Checklist, Closing (Made Whole) or Pro Rata, Deductible Reimbursement	Client and insured

Sources