A Porsche Panamera Vanished After A Valet Gave The Keys To The Wrong Guy

We’re sure there are plenty of good valet parkers out there. Valet parkers who are friendly, courteous and careful. However, unfortunately for the profession, the valet stories we’re most likely to hear involve joyrides and crashes, and the latest valet fail we bring you is the scariest of the lot.

It all started when Carlo DiMarco handed the keys to his Porsche Panamera over to valet staff at the Houston branch of DoubleTree by Hilton. When he went to retrieve the car a day later, it had gone, because staff had given the keys to a complete stranger, who clearly couldn’t say no to a free Porsche.

Over a year has passed, and the Porsche hasn’t been seen since. The hotel is still refusing to pay up, too. Hilton has passed the buck on to the valet provider, Enterprise Parking Services, Inc. DiMarco is suing the firm, which won’t pay either since its insurance policy doesn’t cover theft. Oops.

Speaking to NY Daily News, DiMarco reckons Hilton should cough up if the valet company continues to refuse a payout:

“You have a valet company operating your car and if they give your car to the wrong person they don’t have adequate coverage…The charge shows up on your bill when you check out, when you look at the telephone in the hotel room there is a valet button - this looks, feels and smells like a Hilton service regardless of whether it’s provided by a third party.”

His own insurance company valued the car at $68,000, well under the $125,000 he believes it was worth at the time. He said that he’ll continue to seek restitution through litigation rather than file a claim with his own insurance, something which seems likely to take some time.