A family outing turned into a distressing ordeal for Bengaluru resident Divya Chhabra when her newly purchased Mercedes-Benz, valued at ₹1.4 crore, was wrecked by restaurant valets allegedly misusing the vehicle for social media content.
The mishap took place on February 26, 2025, at The Big Barbeque in Marathahalli. Chhabra entrusted her car to a valet outside the restaurant, but within an hour, the vehicle was discovered crashed against a basement wall. By the time her family reached the scene, restaurant staff had reportedly removed bricks and evidence from the site.
Initially dismissed as a minor parking error, the truth surfaced through CCTV footage. It showed three valets—none fully qualified—taking turns behind the wheel, driving recklessly, and recording Instagram reels using the car.
Shockingly, the individual who crashed the vehicle, Abdulla Laskar, possessed a forged licence. Records from the Assam RTO indicated discrepancies: his licence appeared to be issued in 2010, though he was born in 1999. Another involved valet had no licence whatsoever.
Insurance investigators corroborated these findings, even recovering the video the valets had filmed. Chhabra stated that only one among them was legally permitted to drive.
She further alleged that the restaurant tried to derail the investigation by presenting a fake driver and forging documents to suggest a pre-existing contract with a third-party valet agency.
With repair costs reaching ₹20 lakh and insurance still pending, Chhabra emphasized this incident reflects deeper systemic flaws.
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