Told neighbor I pay for trampoline damage if I'm responsible, but am I responsible?

girlneedshelp

esuhl wrote: »

He's clearly admitting that he knew the location he'd parked his car meant that would very possibly be damaged, and he did nothing to move his car, secure the trampoline, or contact you. Sounds like its entirely his problem, but I'm not a lawyer. Keep that recording safe -- make a backup now!

I agree with you, but just like you, I'm not a solicitor either. Would be interested to know the thoughts of anyone else who might be sure. At a minimum it seems like contributory negligence, so that my neighbor should share the liability to some degree. If you see a supermarket trolley swaying back and forth in the wind next to your car, do you just leave your car there?

esuhl wrote: »

Is this a wind-up? You must be absolutely loaded to be thinking of buying a car for no reason other than you scratched it."

I'm not, as I don't have that sort of money. I just listened to him as he gave me all the options that he would find acceptable, namely buying the car for £6000 or paying him £2400. Since I told him on Friday that I would need him to either go through his auto insurance (to claim off my home insurance), or take a small claim out (and my home insurance would pay out if liable), I haven't heard from him.

Aretnap

esuhl wrote: »

This article from 2015 claims that there is no such thing as "acts of god" clauses in any new UK insurance policies.

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-3373352/Do-Act-God-clauses-really-exist-pays-check-insurance.html

It would be well worth reading the full policy so you know exactly what you're covered for, rather than relying on the word of the insurance company.

That's a terrible article, though no worse than I expect from the Daily Mail.

If her insurer says "we're not paying - it was an Act of God" then it has nothing to do with any exclusions which may or may not be in her policy. It's simply a reflection of the fact that her home insurance only covers damage to other people's property if she is legally liable, and she is obviously not liable for an Act of God.

So her insurer is quite right to say that they would not pay for damage to somebody else's property which was caused by an Act of God, though strictly speaking it would be more accurate to say that they won't pay because they don't think that she was liable, because there is insufficient evidence of negligence on her part.

(Act of God is a legal term for a natural event which occurs without human intervention and which could not have been prevented with any reasonable amount of care or foresight. Nobody is liable for an Act of God*, so by definition liability insurance does not cover them.)

*(There are a handful of exceptions, mostly related to activities which are inherently risky. Dangerous wild animals is one. If you choose to keep a tiger in your back garden and it escapes and mauls someone, then you are liable - even if the reason it escaped is that a meteorite fell out of the sky and damaged the cage. However a trampoline is not a tiger, and to avoid liability for it the OP only has to take the amount of care that would be expected of a reasonably careful person.)

lush_walrus

esuhl wrote: »

The OP is already in a dispute with her neighbour.

Not really it was all quite amicable at the start of the thread, the OP realised it was her fault and was looking to resolve that.

arcon5

The guys a joker
Tell him his options are..
Agree a nominal settlement - defo not in the four figure region
Claim on his insurance
Take you to court

And don't discuss it further

katecheshire

It would be perfectly reasonable to ask for 3 quotes for the repairs. At least you would know whether the costs were realistic

EdGasketTheSecond

Why not offer him free use of your trampoline for a year as a goodwill gesture?

kjsav123

Probably a bit late to this - only saw it just now via Twitter.

Very unpopular view I expect, but it's purely on facts and not on "what's the moral reply see here

Put 3 W and a dot here blandy.co.uk/blog/storm-damage-and-neighbour-disputes[

You're NOT let able for a penny, he can't sue you, you have done nothing legally wrong.
No solicitor word take action against you.

It's up to you what you do - I would probably suggest a Dent Master type quote for repairs is reasonable. He's having a laugh expecting all new parts be used 😂

Edit: wow - only been a registered member of MSE for like over 10 years but it thinks I'm a new user and won't let me post a link so I've tried adding it as plain text SMH

Marvel1

girlneedshelp wrote: »

I think you might be possibly right, but I'm new at all this, and it's not entirely clear to me. While I was taking a video of the damage with my neighbor's permission, he said (while I was recording) that they saw the trampoline go up into the air several feet, and were concerned it might damage their car. He said that he then went for a walk past my house, but decided in the end not to tell me, as they didn't want to bother me. Since they didn't move their car, particularly as there was an empty garage ten feet in front of their car, I'm wondering if this could be a case of contributory negligence. If I'm found liable, could they also be found partially liable for not moving the car after seeing the trampoline go into the air several feet and expressing some degree of worry before the trampoline came over the fence?

Perhaps someone here has some further insight on that point...

Make a backup copy of that recording.

Manxman_in_exile

I can't be bothered to read 170 posts but,...in the original post you say you "agreed" to pay for the damage.


Never agree to pay for anything until you know what it's going to cost.


Doesn't your house insurance cover occupier's liability?


(Apologies if these points have already been raised, but five pages (edit: sorry - nine!!!) on a wayward trampoline!!!)


Edit: Perhaps OP should be posting on the Insurance board rather than Motoring).

NickG_UK

All trampolines require fixing to the ground with an anchor kit and fixing kits are very cheap (£11 on Amazon) or come with the trampoline. If you don't fix the trampoline, this is the equivalent of leaving your car hand-brake off and you would be liable for any damage.

A trampoline is essentially a massive sail so it's obvious it will not stay in place in anything other than light winds. Just spend £11 on a kit if your trampoline didn't come with one.

As for the bill - request 3 quotes rather than one. That's perfectly reasonable.