Had Accident In Company Vehicle .

[sweets-on-the-move]

driving for my company came to delivery point and asked to reverse down narrow road .to diffrent drop off point .told them wasnt to happy to do this .this was due to the obstructions either side .cars one side wheelie bins other side .plus a narrow road .but got all the goadind supposed to be a driver u got a licence ect .so i said move the bins and i will give it a go .well no good i hit 2 big bins damaged them and damaged some pipe work on the side of a building tiolet outlet ect nothing major a dint on a couple of bins .damaged my vehicle bumper ect .boss not impressed at all with me .but the road circumstances rear access road to shops .single yellow lines right down left side and right side .cars parked on the left wheelie bins all along the right side obstruction both sides .told no parking between 10 am and 6pm . so the cars should not have been there due to yellow lines .so what about the large bins on other side yellow line on this side as well public highway do we leave wheelie bins on a public highway on a single yellow line .can i go up this road in defending claims on the pipes and the damaged wheelie bins .or was it a case i was reckless in trying to reverse up there .please help im trying to save my job here i think the sack has been mentioned .:mad::mad:

[gyzmo]

In terms of liability, it rests with you. Whether objects should have been there or no is irrelevant, they were there and you hit them. This has been discussed before in detail, so it will be fruitless to argue the point further. For your own peace of mind, try to accept that it is you who is liable as you will get nowhere arguing othewise. Not what you want to hear I know, but put your efforts into something more fruitful.

 

As to employment, I don't know sorry. With the insurance aspect answered, maybe a mod can move this to the employment forum for those in the know to answer.

[patdavies]

In terms of liability, it rests with you.

 

Possibly.

 

When that asked you to reverse along this road, did they give you a banksman?

[sweets-on-the-move]

this was a road with yellow lines down each side. really cars parked down left wheelie bins along the right nothing else .no help just abuse from the customer .why was yellow lines down each side .

[patdavies]

In that case, as Gyzmo states above, the liability for all the damage is entirely with you as the driver.

[sweets-on-the-move]

thanks just thought there might be a glimmer of hope for me but not really. im going to write my resignation letter ill walk before im pushed .

[Big Boss Man]

Sorry to hear about your problems.

 

As other posters have mentioned, unfortunatley, liabilty is down to you, if you have got the details of the cars parked illegally, pass these on to the insurance company for information, they may pursue them partly for the damage caused, but due to the time and costs involved in this i do think this will be a viable option for them.

 

I have suffered similar experiencies like this in the past, ive learnt from my mistakes, nowadays i get close to the property and thats it, if the customer is not happy, inform your manager ! at the end of the day you got to think about yourself more, even though we all like to put the customer first.

 

Hope you get things sorted.

[Big Boss Man]

thanks just thought there might be a glimmer of hope for me but not really. im going to write my resignation letter ill walk before im pushed .

 

Just because you have had an accident it is not a cause for resignation, if your company is causing you problems because of this, discuss it with your managment in an attempt to resolve the matter.

[citizenkain]

sweets Im a driver,been in situations like this myself,if ya customer starts giving ya grief like that tell him to watch you while you reverse then its his fault if ya hit anything, a customer like that will always try and put the onus onto the driver!

[sweets-on-the-move]

well thanks guys feel very disheartened this has happened and also feel i let the side down and the company .so can he stop my wages to pay for the van damage and any other claims that might arise ....... perhaps i feel that as i let the side down .then it might be best to go .

[patdavies]

He can't stop your wages to either pay for the damage or the insurance excess unless you have already signed to accept this either as part of being a driver of company vehicles or as part of your contract of employment.

[gyzmo]

Two things raised in posts above that I want to address for reference.

 

Firstly, even if there is a "banksman", liability still rests with the driver. The only time I can imagine it would not is if the banksman is employed in a position specifically for that purpose in a capacity that the driver MUST rely on him.

 

Secondly is something said about getting the details of the parked TP vehicles to see if they can be held partly liable. The short answer is don't bother. You cannot claim against a parked TP.

 

I suggest again that this be moved to the employment forum as the insurance matter is clear cut and has been addressed.

[sweets-on-the-move]

the work i was doing was sub contracted to me as a driver .i hired myself to the company using there vehicle ect .nothing signed no contract just work as and when required .self employment .i feel badly about this as said previously should not have tried to please the customer .perhaps give regard to the company i was working for .i dont feel i will accept liability i shall wait for the obvious outcome . i feel the side has been let down here by me i feel i must be on my way i will today quit the position .perhaps then things can move forward . thanks for advice from you all perhaps not the answers i wanted .but it was a great help.

[gyzmo]

I wouldn't leave - not until you have another job anyway. And one that you DO have a contract for.

 

Good luck.

[sweets-on-the-move]

yes the atmosphere and what im owed as well in wages .i have resigned from tomorrow at 9 am . also it was work sub contracted as well .perhaps fresh start find something else try to consider the company in future .advise was ok greatfull for that