Car Accident, need help!

ValHaller

tony551 wrote: »

- we exchange emails etc, i paid half. £360, attach reasons as to why I think it's wrong that I should now be expected to pay the full amount (it was a 2ft wall remember....)

Why pay half? You damaged the whole wall, so you should pay for it in full. The only reason not to is 'betterment' eg replacing a 2ft wall with a 4 ft wall.

mattyprice4004

Also, just to add, arrogance? I bet he's seething at your arrogance for damaging his property and refusing to pay for it!

If I was him, I'd think 'what a tool, I'm going to go through his insurance' and then watch the fireworks.

This could end up costing you much more than £360! Do the right thing.

pinkshoes

OMG, such RUDE replies! No wonder the OP hasn't bothered posting again!

It doesn't say in the post if the OP contacted his insurance or not, so why all the assumptions?!

As the LL had agreed that the OP could get it fixed, it was indeed arrogant to do it himself without notifying or agreeing the price with the OP.

OP, I would take a picture of the wall, measure it, and get THREE quotes yourself to get the wall fixed. Did you take a picture showing the damage after you'd crashed?

Labour should be around £150 for a day, and a small wall like that would take no longer than a day! (even my lazy "builder" neighbour who takes the longest tea breaks ever could manage it in a day!). Bricks would be around 30p each from a trade place each unless they were special ones, although depending on how much wall was knocked down, no doubt some could be salvaged.

When you have your three quotes, WRITE to the landlord.

Dear <landlord>.

On <date> I crashed my car into your small 7ft x 2ft wall at the front of the property <address>. The day after the accident, we spoke about the damage, and you agreed that I get the wall fixed professionally.

I have therefore obtained three quotes from professional builders with the cost to repair the wall coming in at £X, £Y and £Z (see attached quotes).

As you went ahead and got the work done without my knowledge or consent, I am therefore only willing to pay £<amount>, which is the average amount of the three quotes.

If you do not agree with these quotes, please show me the THREE quotes you obtained from builders before having the work done, as I consider the amount you paid to be excessive.

If you cannot send the three quotes within the next 14 days, I shall consider the matter closed.

Kind Regards

<you>

tinkerbell28

They are not rude, factual. Op doesn't have the luxury of bargaining power here. S/he damaged his property and has not compensated him in the entirety. He could just report it to the police and insurance. Job done.

It is pretty obvious s/he has not contacted the insurance, otherwise they wouldn't be in the mess now of feeling they have been ripped off. They would've taken over from the outset. This is what insurance prevents.

The advice you've just given is terrible. By aggravating the landlord he could just report the accident. Op gets in big trouble with the insurers for not declaring. They also will flag this, making it harder for them to get insurance with other companies. After already paying £300 odd, they'll have to front the excess and the huge rise in premiums which will follow an at fault claim and an attempt to cover up an accident.

They should've gone straight to the insurance. Op is in a very precarious position now, annoying the landlord and making demands is not the wisest move.

CoolHotCold

This is it in a nutshell.


OP left themselves vulnerable to exactly this situation happening.


You can fight it and probably win, but the landlord can easily tell your insurers and the overall cost will be much higher than what the landlord is asking.






As far as the cost goes, it seems it happened very close to Christmas and labour costs can go up, it depends on if it's a heritage site or listed building or if there are any council restrictions in place in regards to stones/materials used. Too little information is given by the OP for others to say if it's a genuine quote or not and the topic is getting diverted.




Sorry, but I feel the OP made a mistake in not reporting it and paying £700 is cheaper than the alternatives. Some mistakes are costly to learn.

dacouch

As a precaution I would recommend you look at the invoice, check any vat numbers and check out the company eg google them to ensure they exist and give them a call on any telephone numbers displayed.

It's not that unusual for people in this situation to get the job done by a friend at mates rates and then an moody invoice generated at a higher price using a made up business name.

It's worth checking

pinkshoes

tinkerbell28 wrote: »

He holds all the cards really. You should've probably just gone straight to your insurance. By not doing so, you left yourself open to being ripped off or blackmailed.

Now however, you've paid a few hundred quid, for a few hundred more, he will call it quits. £300 odd pound, vs policy excess and having a premium rise over the next few years, due to a fault claim on your file. Oh and a note to say you didn't declare an accident in a timely manner. I know which I'd choose.

It doesn't mention insurance and whether he contacted them or not. It's common that if you have a high excess, then the insurance are happy for you to pay the damage out of your own pocket, which could have happened here.

Unless the OP comes back and states if he notified his insurance, then no one can help...

malchish

pinkshoes wrote: »

OMG, such RUDE replies! No wonder the OP hasn't bothered posting again!

It doesn't say in the post if the OP contacted his insurance or not, so why all the assumptions?!

As the LL had agreed that the OP could get it fixed, it was indeed arrogant to do it himself without notifying or agreeing the price with the OP.

OP, I would take a picture of the wall, measure it, and get THREE quotes yourself to get the wall fixed. Did you take a picture showing the damage after you'd crashed?

Labour should be around £150 for a day, and a small wall like that would take no longer than a day! (even my lazy "builder" neighbour who takes the longest tea breaks ever could manage it in a day!). Bricks would be around 30p each from a trade place each unless they were special ones, although depending on how much wall was knocked down, no doubt some could be salvaged.

When you have your three quotes, WRITE to the landlord.

Dear <landlord>.

On <date> I crashed my car into your small 7ft x 2ft wall at the front of the property <address>. The day after the accident, we spoke about the damage, and you agreed that I get the wall fixed professionally.

I have therefore obtained three quotes from professional builders with the cost to repair the wall coming in at £X, £Y and £Z (see attached quotes).

As you went ahead and got the work done without my knowledge or consent, I am therefore only willing to pay £<amount>, which is the average amount of the three quotes.

If you do not agree with these quotes, please show me the THREE quotes you obtained from builders before having the work done, as I consider the amount you paid to be excessive.

If you cannot send the three quotes within the next 14 days, I shall consider the matter closed.

Kind Regards

<you>

Thank you, pinkshoes! You are absolutely right...

tony551

I'm back guys, thanks for all the replies!

I'll reply individually in the morning, however in a nutshell I need to clarify this:

I/ We didn't go to the insurance as I/we (the landlord) agreed in principle, the day after the accident, that he was allowing me to fix the wall myself, as I knew people who could do the job. it was straightforward. no delays, no fuss. In the week after the incident I was awaiting a quote, when I drove by, and wow, it had been rebuilt. one thing I unfortunately cannot clarify clearly on here is the damage that was caused. the wall was knocked over, not demolished, and the damage to my car was negligible. insurance could have been an option, potentially the better option but all things considered, the incident was so minuscule, that there was easier ways to correct it. this is why the cost is so hard to take, especially when the original outcome was for myself to arrange the repair. there is no clarification on the 'receipt' I received, just an amount, so I have no real idea what I'm paying for.

I've been totally fair with this guy, owned up to it, met him the next morning and agreed to fix it. he gave me the opportunity to do so, before going back on his word and then issuing me with a bill, from anyone, for an amount that's probably double the realistic price.

tony551

I apologise if anyone took my behaviour as arrogant, I wouldn't like it to be seen that way, however I feel my honesty has been repaid with a big left backhand round the face...

Cruel world etc yes I know however I'm paying for the arrogance/mistakes this guy made in getting the work done, which hurts. it's a fact that had he left the situation as it was, this would be long forgotten about.