Charged for damages to company car after 5 months

concerneduser

Hi,

I left my job in August last year and returned my company car. When I returned the car I asked the fleet manager to do an inspection (the car was 18 months old and flawless) but he claimed to be too busy. I then took photos of the car on my mobile and left. I took these photos as my ex-girlfriend was charged for non-existent damages to a car she returned several years ago. I have heard nothing from my company until a letter last week in which they asked for £2000 to cover the damages to the car with underlying threats about taking it further should the money not be paid. They said the damage was just to damage to the body work. I'm just looking for some advice about what to do next - I simply don't have £2000 to give them and I have proof that the car was undamaged. I also don't know the law around this - namely are they within their rights to send me a letter 5 months after I returned the car? I contacted an old colleague who said that he has heard of similar stories from this fleet manager.

Any help would be most appreciated.

catflea

No expert here, but I would be writing back stating that the car was returned in good condition and a refusal was made to inspect it at the time by the fleet manager. The keys were handed back on xx/xx date and this can be seen as acceptance of the condition on the car in absence of an inspection. Should there have been a problem with the vehicle you would have expected to recieve notice in reasonable time (i.e 14 days) and as such do not accept any responsibility for damage to the vehicle.

vikingaero

Was the car returned in good condition or was there any damage/scratches/scuffs?

5 months is taking the mick, the car could have been hit by others or driven by others.

Inactive

I would tell the company to enjoy some sexual travel.:)

bosseyed

I agree with Catflea.

Tell them (politely) to get bent - at no stage has anyone taken any details of damage that could be directly attributed to yourself, they did no inspection on the vehicle which is surely standard practice when returning hire/fleet vehicles, they can't possibly be able to prove you did any damage at all.

I wouldn't even query what the damage was, I wouldn't query the amount, I wouldn't say you have photos of the car in an acceptable state - basically I wouldn't even get into a back and forth dialogue with your ex company. State your case firmly and succinctly and then don't worry about it.

concerneduser

Thanks for the replies. The car was like new - I had actually intended buying it for myself but the quote they gave me was inflated and I ended up buying a similar model for a lot less money. I've drafted a reply stating the fact that the car was in pristine condition, that I asked for an inspection but wasn't given one and that it's been more than 5 months since I returned it and I don't know where the car has been since then. Not a very pleasant thing to have hanging over me though.

catflea

Quite!

Care to post the draft so we can have a looky and make suggestions?

Dave_save

Usually it's the practice for an inspection on handover against a check list, which is agreed and signed by yourself. If this didn't happen they have no right to now be saying they're charging you for 'damage'. I have always done this and it never causes a problem.

maninthestreet

They don't have a leg to stand on - five months after you return the car to them (where they refused to inspect it), they claim it is damaged - plus you have photographs of the car at them time you returned it to them.
Ask them to send pictures of the damage - and point out you have pictures of the car when you returned it them, undamaged.

concerneduser

Not sure whether to include the fact that I have photographs of the car on the day I returned it or not. At this stage I was simply going to state that I am not responsible for any damage to the car that has occurred since I returned it in September:

Further to your letter dated 28th January 2010:
I returned the above car on Tuesday 1st September as I was instructed to do so in the email enclosed. The car was returned in pristine condition and I asked for an inspection to be carried out immediately in order to verify this. I was told that the fleet manager was too busy to carry out an inspection and that I would be contacted that day if there were any problems. When I received no such call I assumed this was acceptance of the fact that the car was returned undamaged. Had the car been damaged in any way I would have expected to receive communication about this in a reasonable time frame and not some five months after the event. I accept no responsibility for any damage to the car that has been made since September and trust that this will be the end of the matter.

catflea

Sounds good to me. I'c change the last sentence to "I accept no liability for any damage to the vehicle not noted at the time of its return ....."

Dont mention the photos as yet. Dont show your hand too early in the game.