Money Moral Dilemma: Should I pay for my excess dust?

beans

macavity wrote: »

....i can think of a few choice words i'd like to say to him, if i were you.... Personally I'd tell him to stop being such a **** and 'do one'....

And If you were the neighbour with your [STRIKE]dust[/STRIKE] grit all over my new car I'd be !!!!!!-off to have an obnoxious neighbour like you.

beans

Kazz81 wrote: »

What does he do if a bird does its business on the car-take a picture and send it to him!?.

Yet another obnoxious and idiotic response. Birds are wild and are nobody's responsibility. The actions of one's workmen are yours and yours alone.

You are a nightmare neighbour and if someone takes exception to your attitude, you will have no-one else to blame.

raym9112

I once has some work done on my drive in a previous property - the buider used a petrol saw to cut concrete and my brand new car was covered in concrete dust - I thought nothing of it and washed it off with a hose and sponge - result - major scratches!! - offer to hose his car ONLY - do not touch it at all with a sponge or anything else and suggest he lets nature just weather the rest off over the next few weeks - it DOES work. Next time maybe you or your builder may want to pre warn him of any work so he can move his car/put in garage etc

sue.b_2

I have just had the gable wall of my house repointed. I knew it would make a lot of dust because my neighbour had it done a few years ago. I did not tell him in advance because he did not tell me. I coped so I assume he did too.

iloveradio2_2

Be careful if you do hose his car off, he might accuse you of damaging it. Smile sweetly, apologise for the mess and go back inside.

kneelbeforezod

raym9112 wrote: »

I once has some work done on my drive in a previous property - the buider used a petrol saw to cut concrete and my brand new car was covered in concrete dust - I thought nothing of it and washed it off with a hose and sponge - result - major scratches!! - offer to hose his car ONLY - do not touch it at all with a sponge or anything else and suggest he lets nature just weather the rest off over the next few weeks - it DOES work. Next time maybe you or your builder may want to pre warn him of any work so he can move his car/put in garage etc

Exactly the point I was making.

No matter how a few people on here want to admit it, there is legal precedence to the neighbour having a case for claiming damages if they can prove the dust damaged their car. Likewise the OP can in turn sue the builder if it can be found that they did not sufficiently mitigate the OP's risk.

All the OP can do is wait for the neighbour's next move. Hosing the car off might be the best option (domestic hoses are rarely powerful enough to do any damage through pressure).

kneelbeforezod

BigMummaF wrote: »

The way I have read this is:-
a) a NEW neighbour, so probably wasn't living there when the original process was or was not discussed.
b) lives ACROSS the road, so not immediate neighbours. How big an area of potentially at-risk households are we supposed to notify of impending, possibly dusty/ noisy work to take place to our property, that could be affected if the wind is in the wrong direction?
c) Hubby APOLOGISED & offered suggested solutions, if in a roundabout kind of way.
So..:think:..I think the OP has covered the niceties of neighbourliness, & leave it at that.

I can kind of see what you're getting at, but it doesn't really alter the fact that the car is out in the elements & as such, liable to all manner of substances that fall from the sky.

You have assumed a lot - problem is, the OP has not come back to verify any of your assumptions.

Oh, and how exactly is saying "I don't know what we can do about it" 'offering solutions'??? :rotfl:

biggreen_2

Their actions of taking photograhs seems a little extreme and provocative. But why not apologise, tell them how long it will take to complete, ask for their forebearance and tell them that you will pay for a wash when all the works are finished.

You could tell them where to stick it but you have to live with them as neighbours for the forseeable future and little things have a habit of snowballing ... probably best to nip it in the bud and then keep your distance in the future.

mandwhy

Just tell him how long you expect it to be going on for, sympatise with the mild inconvenience and suggest he parks a bit further away. Then if there's any dust left draw a big smiley face in it, that'll cheer him up! If he's still got a problem, turn up with some wire wool and a bottle of fairy, you'll never get that unsightly dust off with a sponge!

moneyballs2

Well, seeing as you're causing the excess dust then why shouldn't you pay for it to be cleaned off his car?

If he was replacing his guttering and lots of old rotting moss was to land on your brand new driveway and your car, would you expect him to pay to clean it? I know I would...

Give him a £10 and apologies, it'll save a lot of future hassle from an angry neighbour.