I’ve always wondered why valets are necessary for restaurants or other places. They are usually a service that is provided for higher-end, fine dining establishments but given that people who patronize these establishments also order wine, a taxi would be a more suitable form of transportation. If you are going to indulge in alcoholic beverages, why would you want to drive your nice car while impaired? Forget about alcohol altogether, why would you let a valet, essentially a stranger, drive your high-end car and risk damage? Even if I was a multi-millionaire, I wouldn’t trust a valet to my car(s). Valets are usually young males with high testosterone and earn minimum wage. Given that they probably won’t ever drive a Mercedes, Ferrari, Lamborghini, [insert your car dream car here] in their life, this opportunity of a lifetime will no doubt be abused. A West Vancouver man is suing a valet this week in BC Supreme Court after his $320 000 Mercedes Benz ended up in a crash at the airport. The court details alleged that the valet was speeding in his Benz when he lost control and slammed into a concrete wall. He is suing for damages, anguish, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of the car. Wow!

$320 000 is probably close to the average cost of a family’s first home. Why would you want some snot-nose punk with a valet jacket to drive and park your car is beyond me. I wouldn’t want anyone to park my crappy Toyota Celica as it is! Even though the West Van man wasn’t wise to trust his car to the valet, I hope he wins the case and recovers some of his money back. The car is probably a write-off and a collector’s item so it’s irreplaceable. Being a huge car enthusiast makes me sad when I heard about this. Just say NO to valets!