'So? What can you do about it?' KL workshop owner accused of wrecking Singaporean's car and refusing to pay up

He sent his car in for repairs - only for it to get totally wrecked.

Singaporean driver Mac Seah has accused a car workshop in Kuala Lumpur (KL), Bumi Zone Tech, of totalling his vehicle, he shared in a Facebook post on Jan 17.

The 41-year-old said he had purchased a car, reportedly a Nissan Fairlady, in Malaysia and had sent it to the workshop for restoration works on Nov 8 last year. 

He had intended to keep the car as a collector's item.

Speaking to AsiaOne, Seah said he left the keys with the workshop's staff Ken Kee on Nov 11, specifically instructing Kee not to drive his vehicle. Seah then left KL for work on Nov 13.

However, Kee didn't listen to Seah's request.

"From my dashcam videos, it appears Kee took my car out almost every single day that the car was with the garage," Seah told AsiaOne.

Kee was allegedly recorded speeding over 130km/h along a stretch of road, going on "multiple joyrides" late at night and ferrying his friends about with Seah's vehicle, he shared a video uploaded with his post.

Joyride no more

On Nov 17, Kee's joyrides came to an end when he crashed into an oncoming vehicle, totalling Seah's car.

In the video, Seah's car has visible damage to the front bumper, with the hood of the vehicle crumpled due to the accident.

Seah only found out about this incident when he returned to KL on Nov 22, after retrieving the dashcam footage.

He managed to come to an agreement with Kee over how he would be compensated for this - Kee was to purchase a replacement vehicle of a lower value and move parts from Seah's vehicle into the new vehicle.

"I initially wanted to settle this quietly," He said. "However, they dragged the incident for three weeks."

Kee's father, Kenny "demanded" to meet Seah in person - Seah had asked for an online meet but was declined.

'They should have been apologetic'

Seah eventually acquiesced, meeting Kee and his father. However, the discussion devolved into the duo insulting him and his nationality instead, Seah said.

"They should have been apologetic," Seah told AsiaOne. "However, when Kee and his father demanded to meet me, they had already towed my car back from the scrapyard illegally, and began illegal repair work on the vehicle to hide the crash. 

"They believed that having done so puts me in a situation where I would be helpless, and when I told them that they leave me with no choice but to seek legal recourse, they devolved to insults and intimidation."

According to Seah, Kee's father called him "Singapore lan si (showoff)", also telling him to "wait and see". He also challenged Seah, asking: "So? What can you do about it?"

In screenshots of a conversation between Kee and Seah, the former stated that Seah's vehicle was left outside of Bumi Zone Tech's garage, and "if his car has any issues outside of Kee's workshop, Kee's company won't take responsibility".

Car no longer roadworthy

Taking matters into his own hands, Seah decided to tow his vehicle to a different workshop to get an assessment.

He was then told that due to the severity of damage, the car is no longer safe to drive.

The vehicle's value has also dropped by up to 60 per cent, Seah explained, responding to AsiaOne's queries.

"I bought my car with the intention to keep it as a collector's car. I have poured in months of effort into rebuilding and restoring parts, even going so far as to buy original parts from Japan. 

"This was a big financial undertaking, and the crash has basically nulled the time, effort and money that has gone into the restoration works," Seah revealed.

"I am determined to make them take responsibility, with the help of my lawyer and friends," Seah also said in his post.

He also said that he has made a police report but was told that it was a civil case. 

AsiaOne has reached out to Bumi Zone Tech for more information.

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khooyihang@asiaone.com