Vehicle Damage Caused by Business Gate Hitting It

[jm2k]

Bit of an odd one.

 

I park my car alongside a newly converted business residential property.

 

They have been leaving the 8ft x 10 ft heavy steel gate open un-secured.

 

We place a big cone between the gate opening and the side of my vehicle but they have removed it.

 

In the recent wind,

the unsecured gate has swung the full length wide open and smashed into the side of my vehicle causing a big dent the whole length of the door,

luckily not smashing the glass.

 

There was no-one in the property today so we left a note on the glass door for them to call us asap (no call!).

 

We also put a big stack of cones back in between the gate/car to buffer any more hits

and tried to close the gate shut but there is no fixing,

only a chain and padlock, which was locked on itself.

 

This has been going on an hour, so we rang the council to complain about the noise etc.

 

An official come out at the same time as a man who resides there returned home.

 

When he returned, he tried to remove the cones we placed alongside our car.

 

We quickly went out to speak with him and leave them there and highlighted the damage,

he said " its nothing to do with him " (even though he lives there and re-secured the gate).

 

The council man told them to secure the gate which he did but could not help us with the car.

 

The police said it was not a criminal matter either.

 

We cannot move the car to another space as it is very limited residential and that is our only place.

 

The car is also up for sale but this has now caused the value to drop considerably

and we cannot afford to repair it or can we now sell it with this damage.

 

What can we do?

[dx100uk]

why park there ?

 

have you permission from the landowner?

 

dx

[citizenkain]

yeah,I would be looking to park somewhere else if theres a big gate slamming into your car denting it! why would you bother parking there and placing traffic cones to buffer the impact?

[Sparks_]

He does say there are limited parking spaces and that is the only one he can use?

[citizenkain]

well,theres a big world out there,I wouldn't park my car anywhere near a big metal gate swinging around,Id be parking somewhere else

[Slimm]

I'm having a bit of trouble picturing this - are you saying that when fully open their gate is actually on your property or are you parking on the road outside his house?

 

 

I can't imagine the police or council having any interest in the damage. You could try sending a repair estimate and a strongly worded letter to the owner threatening action in the small claims court but I'd be reluctant to actually try any such claim - there's a good chance a court would feel that you parked in a place you knew carried a risk.

[Ganymede]

Were you parked in a designated space?

[jm2k]

Were you parked in a designated space?

 

yes it was our space

[jm2k]

Maybe your legs can walk any distance, i do not, if you READ what i wrote

[jm2k]

Different property owners own different premises. i woulnt be parking on someone else land would i

[citizenkain]

Different property owners own different premises.

 

i woulnt be parking on someone else land would i,,,

 

,well,no one else would know that,if its your proper designated space

and someone else is making your space into a hazardous dangerous area

with a gate swinging into it,

 

I would be taking plenty of pictures and get onto cab for a free half hour

with one of their lawyers as that is out of order

 

,what if the gate hit you or a passenger and injured you?

[jm2k]

Having spoken to the tenant today, he has admitted full responsibility to leaving the gate unsecured in his absence and has offered to pay for the damage to be repaired.

 

He has had 2 follow up visits from the council which I was not aware of, and they inspected the gate, actions and the damage of the car as well.

As the building was only recently renovated, the original plans were for them to install a sliding gate, which they have failed to do so there is possibly some breach of the owner on the planning regulations.

 

I am an old age pensioner, with a car I needed for travelling. It was there as it was waiting to be repaired when I got my pension this week as well as it has been parked in the same spot for the last 4 years I lived here and this business only opened a few months ago.

 

to everyone who chirped up with scathing remarks, I really hope your old mum isnt in need of help from anyone and she doesnt receive such comments instead of HELP and making me feel even more desolate and isolated than i did when this happened

[citizenkain]

well jm2k,Im glad you are getting some compensation from this person regards the damage to your vehicle which was done to your car in your designated parking space,I don't think anyone chirped in with scathing remarks just obvious comments based on your initial posting,ie,heres me parking next to this big swinging gate hitting my car,what will I do,the obvious answer was,why park there and park elsewhere,,youve only just,in your last post expanded on that saying its your parking space and you've been parking there for years,people tend to remark on the information given,Im sure everyone that has looked in on your last post is glad you have had a positive result and hopes everything is ok with you in the future,best of luck