Can’t the owner find a really good used battery to get him on his way?
There apparently was no inspection done to determine that the battery was even damaged. The owner had no complaints about the performance of the battery. The dealership told him that the damage to the battery protection cover on the bottom of the car indicated to them that there might have been damage that could cause the battery to catch on fire or explode.
After hearing that claim... if the kid did not inform his insurance company... if something did happen it would not be covered and the kid would be liable. Do you think that an insurance company would insure the vehicle after Hyundai represented by their dealership was claiming that without $60,000 being spent on a new battery that the vehicle might catch on fire or explode?
Installing "a used battery" if one was even available would not solve anything in this case.