Accidental damage

[BenT]

Yesterday my Polo got hit by a large rock thrown up by a ride on mower as I drove past it. Made a 20cm dent/scratch that went right through to the metal. The guy riding the mower admitted no responsibility and told me the council forces him to cut the nature strip so it's not good fault.

Rang the insurance company and they said I need his name to make a claim so I went to the police to report it. They said that because it was not done with "intent" then he is not to blame.

So I either have to live with the damage on my 6 month old car that I have anally parked as far from other cars as possible every single time I go anywhere, or I spend $3k to fix it cos they have to do the whole side of the car (I assume).

Regretting increasing my excess to $2k to halve my premium now.

[gldgti]

I guess add long grass to the list of things not to park next to.

Get some more quotes though, because $3k is a lot for a single dent/panel respray, even if its a big one.

[Wolfgang]

Speak to the local council for that area, they may cover the cost of repair as it is most likely a failure of their OHS procedures not to check for objects in a lawn before mowing. What if that rock had hit a person?

Few years ago a sub contractor of my local council decided to repaint the lines in a car park while it was nearly full. I ended up with just as much paint on my car as the tarmac below. They told me to get a quote for removing the splatters and send it through to them.

[Guest001]

Yesterday my Polo got hit by a large rock thrown up by a ride on mower as I drove past it. Made a 20cm dent/scratch that went right through to the metal. The guy riding the mower admitted no responsibility and told me the council forces him to cut the nature strip so it's not good fault.

Rang the insurance company and they said I need his name to make a claim so I went to the police to report it. They said that because it was not done with "intent" then he is not to blame.

So I either have to live with the damage on my 6 month old car that I have anally parked as far from other cars as possible every single time I go anywhere, or I spend $3k to fix it cos they have to do the whole side of the car (I assume).

Regretting increasing my excess to $2k to halve my premium now.

Go to the council to get his name if he is a contractor to them

[Opie]

Should be the councils responsibility to pay for damages. Pretty sure people make claims against them for pothole damage all the time.

[BenT]

He was mowing the council owned nature strip next to his own property.

The rock hit as I drove past at 60 kph.

[wai]

Rang the insurance company and they said I need his name to make a claim so I went to the police to report it. They said that because it was not done with "intent" then he is not to blame.

This might be as far as any criminality is concerned, however from a civil action point of view, you could have a claim, only the cost of lawyers would far outweigh the cost of any repair.

If you make a claim, you will lose your no claim bonus, and the cost of getting it back up to where you are now would not make it worthwhile.

Unfortunately, like depreciation accidental damage is inevitable. On insurance, the whole idea for the insurance company is to avoid paying out. It does not mean they will not pay out, but they get more than they pay out back through higher premiums. So while you have a $2,000 excess, you do come out in front. The insurers hate it when people opt for a higher excess as this means they are less likely to make small claims. They love it when the insured claims for small amounts.

[Rebuild]

My vehicle was parked outside my house on the street.A council ride-on flicked up a stone and smashed a side window.Reported it to council, got a quote and they payed up, no problem.

If it was a council operator that did the damage, find out the council responsible and report it with the street name, time, etc.They should sort it.

If it was a private residence doing the nature strip, talk to your insurance

[brad]

OTOH, sometimes "stuff happens" and you just have to suck it up.

Did the mowing guy deliberately mow over rocks with an intent to fling them randomly down the road? Probably not.

What reasonable steps could the mowing guy have taken to ensure a rock wasn't flicked onto a passing vehicle?
Close the road? Probably not.
Put in traffic control? Not unless he has an Orange card or lots of money.
Put up screens? maybe.
Inspect the area first? Yes, but that isn't a guarantee he'll see a 6mm rock.

I had a rock fling up from a truck & smash my windscreen about 2 months back. I just copped it on the chin as it's one of the hazards of motoring. The truck driver can't see all the small rocks on the road & doesn't deliberately try & get the rocks to flick onto adjacent vehicles.

Rebuild - you were parked. Any reasonable person mowing a lawn would ask people to move their cars if parked nearby - I do. If people are driving past then what can you do?

[gldgti]

OTOH, sometimes "stuff happens" and you just have to suck it up.

Did the mowing guy deliberately mow over rocks with an intent to fling them randomly down the road? Probably not.

What reasonable steps could the mowing guy have taken to ensure a rock wasn't flicked onto a passing vehicle?
Close the road? Probably not.
Put in traffic control? Not unless he has an Orange card or lots of money.
Put up screens? maybe.
Inspect the area first? Yes, but that isn't a guarantee he'll see a 6mm rock.

I had a rock fling up from a truck & smash my windscreen about 2 months back. I just copped it on the chin as it's one of the hazards of motoring. The truck driver can't see all the small rocks on the road & doesn't deliberately try & get the rocks to flick onto adjacent vehicles.

Rebuild - you were parked. Any reasonable person mowing a lawn would ask people to move their cars if parked nearby - I do. If people are driving past then what can you do?

I agree on principal, but as an aside - if a truck (or any other vehicle) isnt fitted with proper mudflaps/guards to stop rocks flicking up on a high trajectory, I feel they are negligently operating their vehicle.

Sorry OT.

[wai]

I agree on principal, but as an aside - if a truck (or any other vehicle) isnt fitted with proper mudflaps/guards to stop rocks flicking up on a high trajectory, I feel they are negligently operating their vehicle.

The problem is enforcing it. It will generally be more expensive to pursue it through the courts than just fix the damage.

[brad]

I agree on principal, but as an aside - if a truck (or any other vehicle) isnt fitted with proper mudflaps/guards to stop rocks flicking up on a high trajectory, I feel they are negligently operating their vehicle.

Sorry OT.

This guy had the full moustache around the wheel arch & mudflap in place. It was just bad luck IMO.

As I said in my first post, just ask the question "what could the other party have done to avoid the damage?". If they've covered what can be reasonably done then what can you do?

[asa572]

I thought you needed to make a claim against his household insurance in cases like this.

[Sunny43.5]

I cannot agree with the above comment as it would require manufacturers to fit mudflaps that drag along the road to prevent stones from being flicked up . I have watched on the highway a rock thrown up by another vehicle the rock flew out and then started to ricochet along the road it went right over our van as it bounced higher and higher with each successive bounce , luckily it missed us but did not see if it hit anyone else . Damage to cars is inevitable if they are driven anywhere its only a matter of time , my wife tends to park our van away from other cars to avoid making awkward parking manoeuvres {her excuse} and still it gets dings as other cars will end up filling those empty spots while she shops .

[FundysGTi]

BenT, shop around for cheaper quotes mate, some panel shops love small cash jobs as described. Unfortunately I think you just have to cope this as bad luck. If it was a council worker or contractor you would be OK to make a claim directly with council.