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Help needed re damage to wall in 2015
tinker15
Posts: 1,393 Forumite
Hi, a friend of mine is having a nightmare at the moment. A council lorry damaged their garden wall in late 2015 and she was asked to get quotes to make good again. They admitted liability.
Unfortunately good bricklayers that are willing to do a small job are hard to find so she wasn't able to get an actual quote until the latter part of last year. It is not a straight wall, so a good bricklayer was needed.
The loss adjuster/Insurance for the council ( I think that's right) has offered to pay out but with a shortfall of around £300 due to wear & tear although she has said that she has no issue with them using the same bricks but they are adamant at this price and no more.
She doesn't want to accept as she will be £300 out of pocket when she has done nothing wrong.
She gave in two quotes, they have taken the lower quote & want to deduct the £300. Is this right or should they have averaged between the two and accepted to pay the lower quote?
Not really sure where to go from here as it has dragged on for so long so any help & advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
Unfortunately good bricklayers that are willing to do a small job are hard to find so she wasn't able to get an actual quote until the latter part of last year. It is not a straight wall, so a good bricklayer was needed.
The loss adjuster/Insurance for the council ( I think that's right) has offered to pay out but with a shortfall of around £300 due to wear & tear although she has said that she has no issue with them using the same bricks but they are adamant at this price and no more.
She doesn't want to accept as she will be £300 out of pocket when she has done nothing wrong.
She gave in two quotes, they have taken the lower quote & want to deduct the £300. Is this right or should they have averaged between the two and accepted to pay the lower quote?
Not really sure where to go from here as it has dragged on for so long so any help & advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
Comping from May 2012 
Thank you to all that post & contribute, I think you are wonderful, I could not achieve without your help
Thank you to all that post & contribute, I think you are wonderful, I could not achieve without your help
0
Comments
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Suggest a letter before action to the CEO of the council advising that unless they pay the full cost of reinstating the wall, that you will have no alternative but to issue a court claim against the council.
In the letter you point out that they have already admitted liability for causing the damage, but do not want to pay the cost. Enclose copies of the estimates and advise that their loss adjuster is trying to deduct £300 for wear and tear, when there were no issues with the wall, until the councils lorry damaged it. Give them 14 days to pay the full amount of the lower estimate or a court claim will be issued, which will include relevant fees. If they don't pay, then use Money claims online to issue the claim.The comments I post are personal opinion. Always refer to official information sources before relying on internet forums. If you have a problem with any organisation, enter into their official complaints process at the earliest opportunity, as sometimes complaints have to be started within a certain time frame.0 -
Thanks for your reply huckster, I don't think she had thought of going back to the council as they had involved their insurance company so I will propose that to her. Thank youComping from May 2012
Thank you to all that post & contribute, I think you are wonderful, I could not achieve without your help0
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