Petem95

Not sure if anyone can offer some advice here - basically I have a rented property near where I work and the property has recently been renovated, so loads of junk was at the top of the drive - old doors, cupboards etc. My old car was parked infront of this, basically blocking access to the junk.

I got back from work and to my surprise noticed all the junk had gone - and my first thought was "how the hell did they move all that with my car in the way?!" Then I saw the scratches

I took some photos and told the landlord, but shes been on holiday so hasn't come back with anything.

What's annoying is I could have easily moved the car onto the street for the day if the landlord had informed me that workman were coming to move the stuff, but she didn't.

Anyone know where I stand on this??

The_Beast

If you cannot get compensation (which I hope you can as that is pretty disgusting from them to just damage your car knowingly) am pretty sure you can sue via a small claims court. I had the same in my old flat in Leeds city centre. Basically in the gales the building manager moved one of the big heavy bins couldn't control it (not sure why he moved it as the gales were the worst we'd seen in years) and hit my back bumper and cracked it. He openly admitted the damage but everyone I spoke to advised it is quite tough to go through a small claims court and if I lost I would have to cover the management company costs. Not sure if that bit is true but gave up due to the hassle of it in the end.

falkster

Just speak to him. He probably would pay.....no need to jump to negative conclusions straight away.

Dave1980

if you have no luck through the landlord then i imagine you should be able to claim off the contractor through their insurance somehow.

is it damage to the beemer or the old polo?

David Lock

Some scratches on an old car - can't be big claim presumably.

Yeah talk to the Landlady first and don't let her pass the buck to the builders.

If no joy then if you can write to her threatening her with small claims court and if that fails then make a claim. Doubt if it's worth it tbh.

dl

Petem95

Thanks guys, I think I'll discuss it with her before doing anything then.

Dave, damage was to the Polo - some lovely scratches down the side. No what I needed, especially as I could easily have moved it out the way if the landlord had actually informed me there would be workman coming to move stuff

Felix.

Problem is going to be if they deny causing the damage.

Leslie

Got to be down to the contractor's men since they were at fault for not taking care when they moved the stuff. Really annoying when other people can't be bothered to take care of someone else's property.

Les

stilover

It's the contractors you should be going after, not the Landlady. She didn't scratch your car, so why should she pay for the damage.

Get the number of the contractor, and ask them to pay. If the refuse go the small claims route.

Petem95

I've asked for the contracters number so I'll see what they say. I thinking the landlord is at fault for not informing me they'd be coming round however. Given a days notice I could easily have moved the car out the way, thats the annoying thing.

stilover

Maybe the Landlord wasn't told exactly when the contractors would be round.

Best to speak to her first, get all the facts, then take action as you see appropriate.

SetoN

You can make a claim via the negligent third party's Public liability Insurance.

What I would advise doing though before contacting your car insurance company is to contact the negligent TP and advise them of the route you are going to take. They may decide to settle the damage in cash to save going though the insurance. Unlikely though as the premiums dont increase too much for payouts in commercial claims.

Check you have legal protection though your car insurance and then proceed with a claim via the normal route of ringing the claims line. If you dont have legal then you can still make a claim but it might get messy if they despute the negligence.

What ever option you take (apart from cash) unfortunatly your car insurance will get involved one way or another and it most likley it will effect your premium next renewal date (not fair but true) so if its not too much damage it might be worth just biting the bullet and getting it sorted urself.

SetoN