A Southern California woman is drawing attention online after alleging that a collision repair shop has refused to return her boyfriend’s vehicle. This followed an accident. Now the business has allegedly demanded thousands of dollars in fees before releasing it.
Cheyenne Serrano (@Cheyenneserano) shared TikTok videos describing what she says happened after her boyfriend brought his damaged vehicle to a collision center in Newhall, California. Newhall is an unincorporated community within Santa Clarita in Los Angeles County.
According to Serrano, her boyfriend signed paperwork that he believed authorized an inspection of the damage. She said the shop owner later verbally quoted approximately $4,000 for repairs. He reportedly told him the work would be completed within about a week.
Serrano claimed communication then became difficult. She alleged that repeated calls to the shop went unanswered and that when they finally received a response, they were told the vehicle no longer belonged to her boyfriend because of language contained in paperwork he had signed.
The storage fee dispute
The TikTok creator further alleged that the shop initially demanded roughly $158,000 in storage-related fees and later increased the claimed amount to about $220,000. She said her boyfriend recently received an offer to settle the dispute by paying $35,000, which she claimed is roughly the value of the vehicle itself.
Serrano also alleged that the vehicle remains unrepaired. According to her account, visible signs of the original crash damage remain on the car. “We really just want the car back,” Serrano said in the video.
Several commenters offered advice. One person who identified themselves as working in insurance wrote that collision shops “can’t charge for storage & teardown cost. It’s one or the other.”
However, California’s Bureau of Automotive Repair, or BAR, states that repair dealers may charge storage fees under certain circumstances, including after a visual inspection or teardown if a customer does not authorize repairs or retrieve the vehicle within a specified time frame after receiving an estimate.
Another commenter suggested filing a complaint with California’s Bureau of Automotive Repair. Serrano responded that she had already done so and planned to follow up. According to her comment, she was told that if a repair facility refuses to comply, BAR may have limited ability to compel the immediate release of a vehicle.
BAR’s website states that consumers can file complaints involving storage charges and that the agency investigates and mediates disputes involving automotive repair dealers.
Public records do show at least one separate complaint published by the Better Business Bureau involving allegations of substantial storage-related charges at the same Newhall repair facility. That complaint involved a different customer and different circumstances. The allegations in that complaint remain separate from Serrano’s claims and do not establish that her allegations are accurate.
Serrano’s allegations are not independently verified. Opinions expressed are those of Serrano and commenters.
Published: Jun 25, 2026 04:41 pm