HOUSTON - The First Court of Appeals recently reversed a ruling denying Mac Haik Chevrolet’s motion to compel arbitration in a lawsuit accusing the dealership of violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
Court records show the lawsuit was brought by Steven and Abigail Parker in 2020. The Parkers purchased a 2013 Audi A6 sedan, with 71,790 miles on the odometer, from Mac Haik. The contract included the sale of an extended warranty.
In their petition, the Parkers assert that the dealership represented to them that the warranty would cover repairs to the Audi “for 48 months and 100,000 miles.”
According to the First Court’s Feb. 7 opinion, in mid-2018 the Audi had an odometer reading of 109,000 miles and began experiencing mechanical problems. The Parkers alleged that when they presented the Audi to a shop for repairs, “MasterTech declined to cover the repair costs, citing that the warranty had run at 107,000 miles instead of the expected 171,000 miles.” As a result, the Parkers were unable to complete the repairs and the Audi sat idle, leaving the Parkers to rely on alternate transportation.
The Parkers sued and Mac Haik moved for arbitration. The trial court denied the motion and concluded “that arbitration has been waived” due to the inability of the parties “to get even the basics done toward arbitration,” the opinion states
On appeal, Mac Haik challenged the trial court’s order denying its motion to compel arbitration on the basis of waiver of the right to arbitrate.
The First Court concluded that the Parkers did not meet their initial burden to establish that Mac Haik substantially invoked the judicial process.
“We hold that the trial court therefore abused its discretion in denying Mac Haik’s motion to compel arbitration on the basis that Mac Haik waived its right to arbitration,” the opinion states. “We reverse the trial court’s order denying the motion to compel arbitration and remand the case to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion, including the entry of an order granting the motion to compel arbitration and an appropriate stay.”
Case No. 01-22-00685-CV