Neighbour's Son Damaged my Car

dannyjay

Hi All,

I'm in a bit of a pickle at the moment, it's a bit of a long explanation so bare with me.

I get home on 15/07, started running the bath for my 5 month old daughter then I got a knock at the door, it was my next door neighbour (n#1), she had come to tell me that my other neighbour's (n#2) son had scrapped his handle bar of his bike down the side of my car. I didn't believe her at first, so I went out to find a nice scratch down the front wing and drives door;

I think the son was about 5/6 years old and was being watched over by a 8/9 year old, Mum wasn't outside when it happened.

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I went straight around to n#2 and as I knocked I heard "this will be about that car". The Mum answered the door and apologised and said she would pay for the damage, I said it could be costly and took her and her boyfriend to show them the damage (you can see in the picture above, he tried to rub the mark away with his hand) and they then proceeded to tell me they will pay for it and I said I'd go to a few bodyshops to get quotes on 18/07.

I did try and polish it out, but it's definitely down to the metal;

i36.photobucket.com/albums/e15/digitalsuperstar/Miscellaneous/20160715_193258_zpsbyv8wdng.jpg

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The next day, her boyfriend come up to me and said his friend at the Ford Garage could sort it on 30/07 for £180 - which I said I'll still go to a body shop I know for a quote.

On 18/07 I got a matching quote from a preferred bodyshop - I presented the quote to the Mum and she said she will pass it on to her boyfriend.

I thought I'd give them to 30/07 as this is when he offered to sort it - heard nothing from them, so I've been around a few times this weekend and knocked but had no answer even when her car is on the drive.

As I was leaving for work this morning (01/08) the boyfriend walked past and I asked him if we could get it sorted, his reply; "We've fallen out, shes thrown my stuff out. Sort it with her."

I've checked Citizens Advice and the only thing I can find is:

Damage done by children

If a neighbour’s child causes damage to a property, a conciliatory approach to settle the matter is probably the best solution. Legally, the child can be sued for damages if they are old enough to know what they were doing. In practice, this is unrealistic since few courts would look favourably on such an action, and a child is unlikely to have much money to pay any damages. However, the parents of the child may be liable for negligence and damages if they have trusted the child with something dangerous that was beyond their capability to use responsibly, for example, an air gun. The parents may also be liable if they have failed to exercise the control that would be expected of a parent given the child’s age.

I've spoken to Citizen's Advice (Phone Call) and I'll be honest, it sounded like the apprentice and didn't help much - just told me to go to Small Claims Court and the cost would be £25. They also had no templates where I could write a letter to the Mother of the child and be covered legally.

I'm really looking for real world experience or if they don't pay up (which it's looking more likely) what options do I have?

Bare in mind, the wife is on maternity leave so £180 is a massive stretch at the moment!

Thank you in advance,
Dan.

BJV

Well sorry to hear that this has happened the last thing anyone wants is extra hassle. I would however say to give her a few more days. If she has just broken up with her partner then she may just have been ignoring you because of that instead of trying to avoid the damage.

P.s sorry forgot to say if you can sort it out without small claims it should stop a lot of bad feeling which again is not something you want to have with a neighbor.

DCFC79

Link to image 1

http://s36.photobucket.com/user/digitalsuperstar/media/Miscellaneous/20160715_182313_zpswnvfhxzi.jpg.html

Image 2

http://s36.photobucket.com/user/digitalsuperstar/media/Miscellaneous/20160715_193258_zpsbyv8wdng.jpg.html

Image 3

http://s36.photobucket.com/user/digitalsuperstar/media/Miscellaneous/20160715_193252_zpsuv6bce3o.jpg.html

dannyjay

That could well be true, however I think it's an excuse if I'm honest - they are the black sheep family of our neighbourhood, from her older sons riding motor bikes on the pavement and hitting golf balls at cars to her shouting and swearing at all her kids. They have had many dealings in the last 5 years with the police (by other neighbours).

I just need a way, even a letter template to remind her that it's not something I can drop.

I saved up for my car for nearly 7 years, and I personally don't see why I should foot the cost.

Quentin

Your best option is to claim off your insurance.

If they are able to they will get reimbursed by your neighbour and you will then get any lost ncd reimbursed and can pursue the neighbour for your excess.

Other options are pay yourself or follow cab advice.(Get proper legal advice on your chances of winning in court before spending on a court case and of course be sure she has the means to pay up should you win)

magpiecottage

If you sue the mother, I'm afraid you will have to prove not simply that the child did the damage but that she was negligent AND that she ought to have reasonably realised that the damage to your car was a foreseeable consequence of that negligence.

Maybe the mother should have been there but the position the court would take is "if she had been there should she have prevented the child using his bike?"

Looking at the photo, we can see a reflection of the area in the paint on the car. It is a relatively modern residential road with detached houses. Not a great deal of traffic, it seems. So it would appear to have been reasonable to let him use his bike there.

This would mean that even if the mother had been supervising, the child would have used the bike anyway and the accident would have happened.

So even if you could prove that the mother negligent I suspect that the incident would be considered too remote from that negligence for a court to find in your favour.

dannyjay

Excess is more than the £180 so not an option.

If I follow cab advice, do I drop a letter through her door saying by a certain date if no resolved it will go to small claims?

dannyjay

magpiecottage wrote: »

text

N#1 from primary post was the witness.

Opposite my house is a large 'green area', surely he should have been on here or the opposite pavement with no houses?

Quentin

Your witness is not needed - there's no denial is there?

Your witness cannot help you prove negligence.

Get legal advice on your chances before sending your " letter before court claim" as you could end up with strained relationship for ever. If you decide to chance your arm, then google MCOL for the procedure you go through - which includes you paying all court fees up front which you will only get back if you win and the other side can pay you.

Plus if this is your own house a difficulty should you want to sell it as you will have to disclose the dispute to buyers

huckster

Given the age of the child and there being no parent nearby, i would say there is no chance legally. If the Mother decides not to pay, there is not much you can do.

As this becomes more of a moral situation rather than legal, perhaps a mention of involving Social Services might do the trick, if she is not willing to pay anything.

If she is letting her kids go and do anything causing a risk to themselves and others, then these days Social Services can be quick to make inspection visits which the Mother might want to avoid.

dannyjay

Thank you for the input so far, it's appreciated.

It is quite alarming though; basically small children can scrape their bike down as many cars as they like and nothing can be done? It opens up quite a big can of worms in my opinion.

SS could be an option, as I think she has already had a son removed to his fathers recently.