Accident in Private Land 4 May 2022 at 12:13PM in Insurance & life assurance 2 replies 102 views

azpitartem

Hi there, 
Just looking for some advice. 
My garden fence was damaged last week by someone (most likely a car) from a private road right next to us.
One of the fence poles was hit from the private land's side.
We don't know who was but it was someone that had access to the private road.
We have contacted the agency that manages the properties and private road as there is a CCTV at the entrance but they have confirmed that the CCTV does not work and that they are not responsible for any damages.
Is this right? 
Very often they have trade workers accessing this road to cut trees, clean etc and they access with big vehicles that drive very close to our fence. Do they hold no responsibility over the damage of our fence?
Any advice would be very welcomed!
Thanks
Miriam

Sandtree

You have to prove who caused the damage, on the balance of probability.

No CCTV, no witnesses, no idea who it was then your chances are slim. You may be able to claim on your buildings insurance but after the excess and the increased premiums for 3-5 years then it may not be economical to do so (plus some provide less cover for boundary fences than they do walls)

Aretnap

Responsibility for the damages primarily lies with the person who was driving a vehicle without looking where he was going, and who drove into your fence. Unfortunately you don't know who that was.

There is a concept of vicarious liability in the law which can make a company liable for the carelessness of its employees, but it generally only applies to actual employees. If it was an independent contractor doing a bit of tree surgery or drain cleaning for the management company, the management company is unlikely to be liable. If it was a random visitor to the site, the management company will definitely not be liable. As you don't know who did the damage, let alone what their relationship to the management company might be, realistically you have no chance of holding the management company responsible. 

As above, unless you can find the culprit somehow your options are to claim on your home insurance (if it covers this) or to grit your teeth and repair the damage yourself.