Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 11:28
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - Robert Yaxley

hi there dont really know where to begin, at the start of december on an hour long break from work i decided to go round my girlfriends and say hello,

upon arriving there, there was no space on her drive at all so i decided to park on the left side of the road as ive done countless times before. so i parked up and walked in to see her.

about 30 minutes later we recieved an unexpected knock on the door. it was the local police officer saying dont worry to me. as we looked down the road we saw my car had rolled down the hil slowly and hit a neigbours wall at the end of the road, it was a collom.

the neigbours werent in and there was no damage other than my car and the wal.

the damage to the wall really isnt/ wasnt that bad honestly there was a crack in the end collum, the collum is only about 4ft high and the crach no larger that 25cm,

i really can t claim on insurance, ive been driving for less than a year and this would destroy my premiums.

the damage to my car wasnt terrible, i decided to put a new bumber and tailgate on it with parts from a scrapyard. but they cost only £100

the wall.... the lady and man want a staggering £700!

i dont want to pay that, i dont think the damage is anywhere near the cost of that nor does it reflect it

the man rang me up today asking me why ive not responded to the quote, he gave me 7 more days to sort it or he will contact the police get the case and take the matter further

i dont know what to do, do i claim through insurance, let her take me to court?? what

thanks =D

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 11:37
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - Falkirk Bairn

You have 2 choices

1) Pay for the wall to be fixed

2) Tell your insurer & they will pay.

If paying yourself get another brickie to give price.

Ignoring the neighbour is not a solution.

Your insurer will not be best pleased at the delays!!

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 12:11
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - gordonbennet

Your problem here is bricks, presumably its a brick wall, well the bricks might be out of production and the nearest similar might be a scandalous price and might need stitching in along the wall to make it look decent again.

They are entitled to have the wall put back to as it was before your car hit it, safely and solidly and presentably rebuilt, not just fill a crack or glue two broken sections together with no more nails.

What you should have done is to visit them immediately after the incident and arrange builders to come and fix it to a decent standard and you pay them directly, always asuming they were amenable to this, in the same prompt timeframe you sorted your own car out.

As above, hoping it goes away isn't an option, nor is avoiding your responsibilities.

Could have been worse, had your car hit some wrought iron gates, that quote might have another zero tacked on.

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 12:23
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - SLO76
Sadly you've little choice here but to pay up or lose your NCB by claiming on your insurance.

It was your fault that the car rolled away, either by not engaging the parking brake properly or by allowing a car with a faulty handbrake to be on the road.

The owner of the damaged property is perfectly within their rights to have the damage repaired to return them to the same status they were in before the collision, it wasn't their fault after all. You can however demand they obtain at least three quotes and opt to pay the cheapest assuming all three are from competent builders and not a pal of a pal you called to give a cheap quote. A court or insurance firm would ask for the same.
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Tue 3 Jan 2017 12:33
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - RobJP

Be very aware that by far the cheapest option for you will be to pay up the £700.

Going through insurance will cost a lot more in terms of increased premiums - you may also get a 'black mark' against you for the lengthy delay in informing the insurance company.

Delaying further is not an option. Get on with it, one way or another - TODAY.

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 13:35
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - galileo

Another case of handbrake failure on a gradient.

Do instructors no longer advise leaving in gear and turning wheels to kerb?

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 13:48
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - RobJP

Yes, they do. And still in the highway code too.

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 14:02
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - oldroverboy.

A few years ago, I did the same thing, driving and told the firm, completed an accident report and also put a note through the owners letterbox. a few weeks later was summoned in to say why i had not declared an accident? took in my photocopy of the accident report..

Pay the £700 it'll be cheaper for you!

Edited by oldroverboy. on 03/01/2017 at 14:03

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 14:36
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - Bromptonaut

As others have said. You're clearly liable, the only question is for how much. Whereabouts in UK did incident happen? Round here, Northampton, £700 to rebuild a damaged wall doesn't sound out of order. More in London, maybe a bit less way out beyond.

If you think it's excessive then ask householder for alternative quotes or get one yourself.

Don't think the Police will be interested in whether damage is put right or whys and wherefores of doing so. It's a civil matter and best advice to householder would be to take it to small claims court. He will, unless you have a far better case than 'IMHO £700 is too much', certainly win with the court fees being added to what you owe.

Pay up NOW.

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 15:11
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - RT

£700 is cheap - my then errant son hit a wall, dislodging a gatepost column - I got an independent builders quote to check the property owner's estimate - both were £1,000, that's about 20 years ago, so the "bank of mum & dad" had to stump up the £1,000 which he did pay back.

I can't add anything further to the previous posts - get your own independent quote and pay up.

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 15:12
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - FP

I think £700 is not totally out of order, but may be a bit steep. Part of the wall, from beyond the damaged bit, would need to be taken down, together with the pillar, and rebuilt.

According to

quotationcheck.com/garden-wall-prices/

£750 ought to cover building a 4m x 1m wall from scratch if a local firm does it and we're not in London. Obviously, without seeing the wall and knowing more, we can't really be sure.

The OP would have to get his own quotation, as has been said, and would then have to negotiate with the householder. If an agreement can't be reached expect a small claims case. If this scenario doesn't appeal, with all the likely hassles and time involved, then it may be less trouble to just pay the amount requested.

Just to emphasise - things will only get more difficult if there is further delay.

P.S. The insurance company needs to be notified even if a claim is not made.

Edited by FP on 03/01/2017 at 15:14

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 16:04
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - concrete

I would get onto a recommended builder straight away and get a quote and a probable start date for the work. Around here a decent builder working solo would charge in at £200 per day. Including bricks and mortar I would expect to pay around £350 to £400. There should not be any foundation work to do, just clear away the old and replace with new. If the bricks are special or not available then you may pay more for the builder to reclaim the exsisting bricks, so possibly another £100. I would also keep the householder fully informed of what you are doing and reassure him you intend to put things right. Your hardest job will be finding a willing builder so try sources through friends and family to persuade one to do the job. You may be able to attract one with cash on the nail. Good luck.

Cheers Concrete

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 19:34
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - focussed

Another case of handbrake failure on a gradient.

Do instructors no longer advise leaving in gear and turning wheels to kerb?

Yes - but their pupils usually ignore their advice as soon as they have passed their test partly because their parents keep saying that you only REALLY learn to drive after you have passed your test.

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Tue 3 Jan 2017 23:12
Vauxhall Corsa D - I hit my neighbours wall - Avant

My parents said that too, and rightly so: they paid for me to have advanced driving lessons after my test. But it was also my parents who got me into the habit of leaving the car in gear when parked and always starting with the clutch down.

A lot of modern cars can't be started unless the clutch is down, as with the brake on automatics.

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