[rohank024]

My car was coming down in the parking lift when, for some reason, the boot opened on its own (I didn’t press any button on the key). The boot got stuck for a few seconds on the lift plate above, which caused damage to the back door, including dents, and the metal plating came off. Seems like the entire back door might need to be replaced.

My question is: would this be covered under insurance? I have a Tata AIG comprehensive policy that covers both own damage and third-party liability.

[svsantosh]

I think the car has the 'swing your feet' below the bumper to activate the boot door feature? The sensor should have felt the movement of the car rising/dropped down Viz-a-Viz the platform Vs atmosphere as a foot movement - long shot theory, but check it.

Insurance should cover it. Just get ample photos and videos of the area/place. See if there is a CCTV footage available. Since it is a industrial kind of place (car elevator) that Mall should have equipped it adequately.

PS - I hope you have a Zero Dep Bumper to Bumper policy! It is a Merc after all.

[rohank024]

Originally Posted by svsantosh

I think the car has the 'swing your feet' below the bumper to activate the boot door feature? The sensor should have felt the movement of the car rising/dropped down Viz-a-Viz the platform Vs atmosphere as a foot movement - long shot theory, but check it.

Insurance should cover it. Just get ample photos and videos of the area/place. See if there is a CCTV footage available. Since it is a industrial kind of place (car elevator) that Mall should have equipped it adequately.

PS - I hope you have a Zero Dep Bumper to Bumper policy! It is a Merc after all.

Yes I have a zero dep policy thankfully.

Thanks for the 'swing your feet' insight, will get it checked. It actually happened in the building where I live, they have this hydraulic lift parking section where this happened so photos isn't a challenge, will check on cctv. thanks

[astrodex]

Have you faced the issue of the boot sporadically openeing before? I ask since we have a new GLA and it keeps happening for us. We have now had 3 incidents where the boot has automatically opened without us doing anything. In one of such cases the key was on the key chain stand far away from the vehicle with no chance of being pressed and the boot was still found open. The SA dismissed it as maybe the spare key was around etc. For the leg swipe, I thought the key had to be close to the vehicle to open it.

[shimoo]

This happened with a friends GLC too. We were sitting at a cafe and suddenly he looked at his car and realised it was standing on the road with the boot open. Also, for some reason it refused to close from the key and he had to go to the car and use the buttons on the bootlid to close it.

[TorquePull]

I once had my home’s motorised gate close while reversing out due to another car trying to open the already open gate. It hit one of the doors causing significant dent and had to be replaced. I was very sceptical while going for the claim. New India approved the claim without any issue.

[kimmig]

On a side note, these Hydraulic lifts are going to be a big headache soon.

Greedy builders charge you 10Lakhs for car parking and get these "lifts" for about 2-3 Lakhs and pocket a tidy profit.

But the inconvenience is huge on a day to day basis, right from car washing to when someone needs to leave early.

Eventually, these will malfunction and breakdown will be catastrophic. Managing a 1500 Kilo vehicle on a metal contraption is no joke esp in rust prone areas like Mumbai.

In our area, a builder has built a 15 floor vertical parking structure, I shudder to think what could happen.

Originally Posted by rohank024

My car was coming down in the parking lift when, for some reason, the boot opened on its own (I didn’t press any button on the key). The boot got stuck for a few seconds on the lift plate above, which caused damage to the back door, including dents, and the metal plating came off. Seems like the entire back door might need to be replaced.

My question is: would this be covered under insurance? I have a Tata AIG comprehensive policy that covers both own damage and third-party liability.

[IshaanIan]

Strange but when I searched on google, it seems like multiple people across the world have faced this boot opening by itself issue across multiple Mercedes models. Might be worth checking out what’s causing this to occur.

[bamaboy]

I've faced the same issue multiple times with my X164 GL350. The tailgate would randomly open on its own(ghost opening). In my case, the culprit turned out to be moisture inside the key fob. It was shorting the boot release button, causing it to trigger without any input.

The fix was pretty straightforward: I opened up the key fob and cleaned the internal chip using isopropyl alcohol. After drying it thoroughly and reassembling the fob, the problem was completely resolved.

If anyone else is facing this, it's worth checking your key fob for moisture or corrosion, especially if you live in a humid area or the fob has been exposed to water.