I parked my car trailer in a public lot...

[dheinz]

And two days later the police are knocking on my door. The trailer had drifted down a slope and glanced off a car 's front bumper in the lot. The lot is an abandoned sloping asphalt playground.
I left the empty trailer there on Saturday secure with three large stones in front of the tires to keep it from rolling. All parties agree the stones were removed by vandals causing to trailer to drift.
The problem is the vehicle it struck. It is a salvage title 2001 Nissan Sentra with a duct taped together front bumper. The cops took pictures and filed a report. He told us to settle the issue between ourselves be it insurance or cash. I figuerd $200 tops was generous. The Nissan owner came back with an estimate of $1950.

1. Do you think my car insurance will cover this?

2. Has anyone else had a similar experience?

All thoughts and comments will be appreciated.

[bell]

sounds like he's trying to scam you....an insurance company would return the car to the state just before the "accident".....so you may be able to get out of it by just handing him a roll of duct tape

if the owner is unreasonable i would turn it over to your insurance company........at least get copies of the pics the cops took in case he takes you to small claims court....in which you'll probably have to by him a used bumper cover.

worst case your insurance company will tell you they won't cover it......who's to say the owner of the nissan isn't the one who un-blocked your wheels?

[Zeke]

IIRC, my policy covers trailers when they are hooked up. Your homeowners ins might back you on this, but I'd try to scare them off with some legal baloney. This might be a good time to have a lawyer write a letter for you. You are clearly at fault, but 1900 seems ridiculous. The lawyer might be able to point out the over-claiming is fraud. I really don't know, just a thought.

A good lesson about rocks being used as chocks here.

[Racerbvd]

I bet the sentra owner removed the stones

[ZAMIRZ]

Originally Posted by Racerbvd

I bet the sentra owner removed the stones

Yup, I would also speculate the same...

[john walker's workshop]

private property, not a public street, questionable circumstances where he may have removed the stones to make money....... tell him your people will talk to his people if he wants to squeeze an unreasonable amount of cash out of you. give him the $200 and leave it at that. nobody's going to come after you. he probably doesn't have an insurance company that's going to pursue this.

[Bobboloo]

+1 what John Walker says. Take it or leave it.

[dheinz]

Thanks for the responses guys.

The Nissan owner is a college student from another part of the state and I don't think he removed the stones. There are a few likely juvenile delinquent
suspects that consider the lot their turf.
I really don't want to involve my insurance if I don't have to, so I am going to suggest another estimate from my friendly, local body shop.

Milt, yes, a valuable lesson about rock chocking has been learned. Usually I run a lockable cable thru the trailer wheel spokes.

[Karb]

2. Has anyone else had a similar experience?


Kinda. I borrowed my dads truck when I was younger. It was a stick shift. I parked it at his house that afternoon, and left in my Bug. Next morning we found that the truck had rolled all the way down the hill backwards, into the field, and halfway into the pond (up to the door rockers).
Must of left it in neutral. There's never been a day since that I haven't pulled the ebrake all the way up, and thought about that.

[ossiblue]

Sounds like you're trying to do right to a college student who you feel is legit. I think your idea of "local friendly body shop" is perfect and be certain that you have the police photos of the bumper condition prior to the accident. Most shops don't want to repair because it's easier to replace. Given the bumper was damaged prior to the accident, you are liable only for the new damage--something your local guy may be willing to tackle, for a lot less money. At least, you will have another estimate that is (hopefully) realistic, and negotiations can move from there. Keep us updated.

[rnln]

Is there any body damage beside the bumper? If only the bumper, obviously the quote is too high. I would offer to take his car to another convenience body shop for another quote with youself present.

[MRM]

Your insurance won't go up if the estimate is less than a certain amount. Call your agent and find out what the threshold is and turn the kid over to your insurer. You should be covered through your auto policy or homeowners.

[VINMAN]

Tell the kid, "take the $200 or youre gonna end up with $1950 in medical bills!"

J/K....

[Laneco]

Why are you negotiating with this idiot? Here are the facts as I would present them to him:

1. Your trailer probably does NOT have liability insurance, that normally goes only with the tow vehicle

2. The lot was empty and the trailer was blocked

3. Now the lot is not empty, the nissan is parked in harms way and the blocks are removed.

I would accuse him of putting his car in the way and removing the blocks to gain repairs to his POS and further he has damaged YOUR trailer in the process. Demand payment from him.

He won't pay and you'll be done.

angela

[legion]

Originally Posted by bell

who's to say the owner of the nissan isn't the one who un-blocked your wheels?

My thoughts exactly. He may be looking for a quick fix.

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by dheinz

All parties agree the stones were removed by vandals causing to trailer to drift.

Originally Posted by bell

sounds like he's trying to scam you....an insurance company would return the car to the state just before the "accident".....so you may be able to get out of it by just handing him a roll of duct tape

if the owner is unreasonable i would turn it over to your insurance company........at least get copies of the pics the cops took in case he takes you to small claims court....in which you'll probably have to by him a used bumper cover.

worst case your insurance company will tell you they won't cover it......who's to say the owner of the nissan isn't the one who un-blocked your wheels?

There were Russian and Vietnamese immigrant operations doing insurance scams in Sacramento that I can recall, along with a good number of home grown ones

Originally Posted by milt

IIRC, my policy covers trailers when they are hooked up. Your homeowners ins might back you on this, but I'd try to scare them off with some legal baloney. This might be a good time to have a lawyer write a letter for you. You are clearly at fault, but 1900 seems ridiculous. The lawyer might be able to point out the over-claiming is fraud. I really don't know, just a thought.

A good lesson about rocks being used as chocks here.

Good advice, but I fail to see how this could be a lesson about what type of chocks to use. Both posts above you mention someone removing them, so unless you have some you can lock to the ground...

[Dueller]

I believe I'd tell him "$200 is fair. If you don't think so, sue me." Doubt any lawyer would take on the case...and probably too much of a hassle for him to take you to small claims court.

[Rick Lee]

I parked my 993 in a diner lot one day while a friend and I had lunch. Of course, I parked it away from all other cars, except my Carrera, which my friend was driving that day. When we came out, some idiot had parked in front of me and left their car out of gear with the e-brake off. The car had rolled into my 993 front bumper, but caused no damage. Trouble was that, if I backed out of there, the other car would have kept on rolling and hit the restaurant window. I couldn't even find anything in the parking lot to chock that car's wheels. I had to walk into the woods to find a thick branch and it did the trick. I hate people!

[nineoneone]

What was this kid doing in the parking lot?
I wouldn't offer anything, I would say something to the effects of " So, I wonder if I can get the security tape from the store near by" or " I'll get the tape and see what happened"

Duh, he runs away.

[unimog406]

For all that this sounds like crap, this could just be a nice, stupid kid. try not to be too aggressive "Sounds to me like your estimate is exponentially high... where did you get it?" and then go check out the shop and confirm. otherwise tell him to get f***ed