Working Man's Burbon

[Advanced Design]

Ugh...hate to see that. Hopefully the resolution will go smoothly.

[Ol Blue K20]

That sucks, hopefully the parents do what's right.

[Average Joe]

That sucks!

I hate parking lots. Idiots driving too fast and not paying attention. Grrrrr! My wifes van got hit 4 months after we purchased it, in a parking lot. Of course it was a hit and run with no witnesses. The insurance covered the repair less the $300 deductible. Still crappy though. Good luck!

[04ls1gto]

Man that sucks, you put alot of work into something And someone not paying attention wrecks it

[LockDoc]

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OUCH!

It's always a pain no matter how bad it is. You get something about the way you want it and something like this happens....... Hope you can get it taken care of.

LockDoc

[HO455]

Thank you everyone. I have talked to the mother of the kid. She says they will pay for the damage but depending on the amount it may have to be in instalments. My inner pessimist is not confident that things will work out smoothly.
My buddy no longer owns his body shop so I'm going to have to deal with finding a new shop too.
The kid apparently had just run to get some lunch from school. This just makes my head explode. How do you let your 16 old kid with, no license or insurance drive to school? My girlfriend is so pissed about this part she can't even talk about it. So my quip about him learning to drive by playing Mario Cart didn't go over very well.

[crakarjax]

Originally Posted by HO455

Thank you everyone. I have talked to the mother of the kid. She says they will pay for the damage but depending on the amount it may have to be in instalments. My inner pessimist is not confident that things will work out smoothly.
My buddy no longer owns his body shop so I'm going to have to deal with finding a new shop too.
The kid apparently had just run to get some lunch from school. This just makes my head explode. How do you let your 16 old kid with, no license or insurance drive to school? My girlfriend is so pissed about this part she can't even talk about it. So my quip about him learning to drive by playing Mario Cart didn't go over very well.

Yeah I'd be leery of installments, too easy for them to just decide not to deal with it down the road. You should at least have a police report on file for the record so they can't deny it later!

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by crakarjax

Yeah I'd be leery of installments, too easy for them to just decide not to deal with it down the road. You should at least have a police report on file for the record so they can't deny it later!

Should also be able to have them sign a contract and get it Notarized. Guy I know did that. It was with an an older guy that totaled his '65 Buick and the guy quit paying on it. The guy with the Buick sent the old guy an invoice every month and kept a copy of it with it marked whether it was paid or not. If it was paid he sent the guy a receipt marked paid for that month. The old guy died with quite a bit left to pay on the contract so the Buick owner turned the rest of the bill in when they were settling the estate. With the Notarized contract and the records he kept the bill had to be paid before the estate could be settled. I don't know if other states are the same as Iowa, but it would be worth checking into if the amount was large enough.

LockDoc

[HO455]

Good points everyone. I wasn't pleased to hear the word installments myself. But I was also expecting it. If they aren't paying for insurance it's unlikely they have 2 grand laying around.

[HO455]

Well it has gone full circle. I will be paying for this one myself. The family has disappeared. They will not answer the phone and have moved from the apartment they were in. At this point I would have to file a civil suit, hire someone to find them and serve them papers, then have the court pass judgment on them and when they didn't pay sell the judgment to a collection agency. I have been down that road before and really would rather not do it again. So moving forward I have gotten the wheel damage repaired and will move into the sheet metal repairs in the next couple of weeks.
On the up side the wheel looks so good I may have to take the rest in for a fluff and buff.

[HO455]

A while back I talked about the air bag guage leaking internally, I got the guage swapped out and it has solve the leakage I was having. I also posted the guage angle adapters I installed but failed to get a photo of the modifications I had to do to to the strap that holds the guage in the mounting plate. The legs are about the same length for a 45* angle of the adapter. The biggest part of the modification was getting it to clear the fittings and the bulb holder.
It's nice to jump in the truck and not have empty air bags.

[LockDoc]

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Sorry to hear the sleeze bags skipped town.

It seems like it is always something malfunctioning or breaking on our rigs. I guess that's what keeps it interesting....

LockDoc

[pwdcougar]

I can't believe that the family can't be held responsible for this. Their insurance wont pay? It just boggles my mind.

[HO455]

I'm sure their insurance would pay if they had any.

[Nick_R_23]

File a civil suit against them with the local DA.

[pwdcougar]

Originally Posted by HO455

I'm sure their insurance would pay if they had any.

I just looked up the penalty in NJ for driving without insurance. It's pretty strict.

$300-$1,000 fine
$250 surcharge assessment for three years ($750)
Driving Privilege Driver's license suspended for a full year
Possible vehicle impoundment in case proof of insurance was not presented within 24 hours of citation.
It takes an additional $100 fee to retrieve the impounded car.

This is for the first offense!

[HO455]

The family was cited for:
Leaving the scene of an accident.
Driving without insurance.
Driving without a valid license.
I don't know what their punishment is or will be.
If I was a betting man my money would be on them leaving the area and never paying a dime.

I could take them to civil court and try to get a judgment, but that will drag this out over six months or more.
I could claim it on my insurance and pay for it for the rest of my driving life.

What I am going to do is spend a couple of days repairing the damage and then pay someone to respray the quarter panel and be done with it all.

I appreciate all the comments, but I need to move past this mostly mental setback and the best way is to not reminded of it every time I get in the truck so it will fade out of my consciousness, and I can focus on why the transmission has started leaking.

[crakarjax]

I don't think a UM claim will affect your rates: http://ryanhiltslaw.com/common-quest...-motorist-law/ but you could probably verify with your agent easily enough. Of course you have to do whatever makes the most sense for your situation.

[Average Joe]

Originally Posted by HO455

A while back I talked about the air bag guage leaking internally, I got the guage swapped out and it has solve the leakage I was having. I also posted the guage angle adapters I installed but failed to get a photo of the modifications I had to do to to the strap that holds the guage in the mounting plate. The legs are about the same length for a 45* angle of the adapter. The biggest part of the modification was getting it to clear the fittings and the bulb holder.
It's nice to jump in the truck and not have empty air bags.

Nice work!

[HO455]

Thank you Joe!
It's been awhile but finally some progress has been made. Now this is all back in shape it's time to get in line at the paint shop.

[Average Joe]

Originally Posted by HO455

Thank you Joe!
It's been awhile but finally some progress has been made. Now this is all back in shape it's time to get in line at the paint shop.

Awesome!
Happy to see this!!

[HO455]

Thanks Joe! I will be dropping it off on Tuesday for paint. Can't wait.

[richard2717]

Glad to see it coming back together.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by HO455

Thanks Joe! I will be dropping it off on Tuesday for paint. Can't wait.

"On The Road Again, Just Can't Wait To get On The Road Again" (in my best Willie voice....

LockDoc

[PAWS 72]

That is what the uninsured motorist part of your insurance is for according to my agent said.