Some Idiot Scratched My Ride

[mesmerized]

not quite which section to post this (didn't want to put in wasteland cause i'm after serious answers lol)

anyways, i walk to my car tonight and notice that the car parked behind me is very close (car was parked facing down a hill). the spot allows for two small cars and there are driveways on both sides. i get in, start the car, and release the handbrake and i hear a grinding noise coming from the rear of the car. i get out and look at my cars ass and there's a 2cm scratch probably 1mm deep (i know it's not the end of the world, but i don't want to pay for his mistake).

i've checked the front of his car and there's yellow paint from my car on one of the screws on his numberplate, so i've taken photos of that and the damage to my car.

i left a note stating what had happened, that i've got photos, the time, date and my name and phone number.

i know it's hard to prove that he was the cause of the damage, but i was facing down a hill and had a driveway in front of me, so had no reason to reverse before heading off.

legally is there anyway he can get out of not paying even if i have photos, purely because i wasn't there when he did it?

i will speak to the cops and my insurance company tomorrow to seek advice, but i was just wandering if anyone else had been in a similar situation, and could offer me some advice on what i should/shouldn't say or do to increase my chances of getting money out of him

cheers

Edited January 3, 2008 by into oblivion

[2KR34]

not quite which section to post this (didn't want to put in wasteland cause i'm after serious answers lol)

anyways, i walk to my car tonight and notice that the car parked behind me is very close (car was parked facing down a hill). the spot allows for two small cars and there are driveways on both sides. i get in, start the car, and release the handbrake and i hear a grinding noise coming from the rear of the car. i get out and look at my cars ass and there's a 2cm scratch probably 1mm deep (i know it's not the end of the world, but i don't want to pay for his mistake).

i've checked the front of his car and there's yellow paint from my car on one of the screws on his numberplate, so i've taken photos of that and the damage to my car.

i left a note stating what had happened, that i've got photos, the time, date and my name and phone number.

i know it's hard to prove that he was the cause of the damage, but i was facing down a hill and had a driveway in front of me, so had no reason to reverse before heading off.

legally is there anyway he can get out of not paying even if i have photos, purely because i wasn't there when he did it?

i will speak to the cops and my insurance company tomorrow to seek advice, but i was just wandering if anyone else had been in a similar situation, and could offer me some advice on what i should/shouldn't say or do to increase my chances of getting money out of him

cheers

Unless you have an independent witness there is very little you can do if he denies responsibility.

Cops may help with identification and if he's a nice guy he may offer to pay.

If he won't admit fault then best you can do is try to convince your insurer that he was to blame and maybe they'll allow a no fault claim but don't bet on it.

I had a similar situation years ago and the damage was significant but after about a year of back and forth BS I gave up.

[axe s]

I'd just take the photo's to ur insurance agency and let them deal with it... they should sort the whole thing out for u... thats what u pay them for,

Bit of advice if a car looks close check before you move, take photo's of the cars touching. After some idiot put a big rub up the side of my car (didn't notice till i got home) and didn't leave a note, i do a walk around the car before i get in...

[mesmerized]

yeah the car looked close before i moved, that' spots a tight fit for two cars, and often there's usually not much distance between the two cars, i was just preoccupied and should've checked. i've definately learnt my lesson. it's not a long deep scratch, and could of been a lot worse

it just pisses me off when people do this, i don't remember seeing that car parked on our street before. he had a good 50cm between the driveway behind him and his rear bumper ffs.

i'll jump on the blower and call justcar and try to make them earn some of the $1700 i forked out on comprehensive insurance

[mesmerized]

spoke to cops and insurance company, 'there's not much we can do since you didn't witness the accident'.

for f*cks sake, i've got an image of my paint on his car, and i would have absolutely no reason to reverse before pulling out.

got a quote for repair (aftermarket rear bar) $473!!!!!!!!!! the scratch is only 12mm long

if he doesn't pay and i catch the guy parked on my street i swear i'm gonna...............

[axe s]

is that a quote from a pannel better... check with a touch up guy that does all the car yards, should be alot cheaper.

[Xizor]

I recommend you go look to see if you can find his car. For theraputic purposs.

[mesmerized]

update, after leaving a note, he called . seemed like an alright bloke and said he didn't realise, and, to be perfectly honest, i think i believe him. because he has moved the car since then and parked back on the same street two days later (if i was shifty and knew i'd caused an accident and had no intention of paying, i wouldn't park there again)

i think he's just parked really close, then as he turned his car off and put the handbrake on, and the car's just rolled forward a bit, making contact with my car.

the $470 quote was from an nrma approved smash repairers its a veilside fibreglass moulded rear bar btw

remove and replace - necessary boot trims, $40 rear bumper & dis/ass $60

repair and align - rear bumper $60

refinish - booth allowance $60, mix and match $30, rear bumper $180

total $430 + GST = $473

got his name and number, said he'll fix me up for it. after doing a search, i'm going to get a 2nd quote from vision smash repairers in artarmon. lets just hope he gave me the correct name and number on tomorrow after i get the quote. but i dare say he will, why would he call if he had no intention of paying. time will tell....

[mesmerized]

got a quote from vision smah repairers - $290. only problem, he's seen my car out on the street since the prang and doesn't believe it was him who caused the scratch, even though the marks line up exactly from the ground, and the paint on his number plate is exactly the same colour as mine.

called my insurance company, and they said the only option was to lodge a police report. which i'm not willing to do as they could defect me for a lot of mods.

i'm don't think i'll bother getting the scratch fixed up until i sell the car, as i've got better things to spend money on atm (car currently at tuners getting some noice upgrades, and need the excess cash in case things do go exactly to plan) . just really pisses me off that unless he accepts responsibility for it, he gets out of paying

[Trav33]

check with a touch up guy that does all the car yards, should be alot cheaper.

Check with a touch-up or mobile dent repair guy. It may be repairable without needing a full re-spray?

[mesmerized]

yeah maybe, i'll look into it. if only it was in a place where i could put a sticker