My rear car window was broken after something fell from construction site scaffolding and now developer is giving me the run around claiming no legal liability.I parked my car on the street for about an hour and returned to find my car window broken. I found paint remnants and hand prints on my car from where a construction worker leaned over to remove the item that fell onto the car breaking the back window. I called the police and filled out a police report, spoke with the construction site supervisor and the officer pointed out that it was quite obvious that this was done by one of his workers based on the evidence. Unfortunately there were no witnesses of the item or items falling from the scaffolding only the guy/gal who dropped them and then tried to cover it up. The developer initially stated he would pay for the damage which amounted to 800 dollars, but now the guy is giving me a hard. Shouldn't I be able to file a complaint with the city? He's building condos.
2007-09-25 12:26:15 · 6 answers · asked by Blackerdaberry 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
You could file a complaint with the city, however they are not going to help you get your money. If you have comprehensive coverage for your car, your insurance company may help you. Otherwise, take the contractor to small claims court. Gather as much written evidence you can such the accident report, statement of the investigating officer, pictures of the car and written estimates for the repair. In small claims court, neither party is represented by a lawyer. You simply tell your story to the judge and the contractor tells his. You only have to show that your facts are more likely than not.
2007-09-25 12:34:45 · answer #1 · answered by davidmi711 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
These things are handled by your insurance company. You file the claim under the comprehensive damage section of your policy. The company authorizes the repair, you pay the deductible and they cover the rest. At this time the decision to go after the construction company's insurance carrier is theirs, not yours.
If you don't have insurance your alternative is to get a lawyer and handle it this way. Filing a complaint with the city will get you no relief.
2007-09-25 19:35:41 · answer #2 · answered by Flyboy 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Contact an attorney regarding filing a civil suit against the construction company. Even of they are doing work for the city, they are independent contractors. They have site insurance to cover events like this.
An attorney will usually handle your case for a fee of 1/3 of recovered damages plus expenses.
2007-09-25 19:44:52 · answer #3 · answered by CGIV76 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I would think small claims court.
You could file it through your insurance, some companies have a low deductible (or don't even charge you one) in that type of situation.
The amount you are out of pocket would determine how motivated you would be to deal with it in small claims court. A civil suit would be your argument that they did it vs. their claim that it didn't. Did you take any pictures of the prints and paint as you described? Or did the police?
2007-09-25 19:46:27 · answer #4 · answered by Kevin 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Why are you posting this in the law enforcement forum? Why not ask in the Law and Ethics forum?
This is a civil matter, there is no criminal liability. My advice is to file a small claims court action against them. They won't appear, you'll get a default conviction, then you can get your money.
Other than that, you can hire a lawyer to give you some advice.
2007-09-25 19:34:28 · answer #5 · answered by LawGunGuy 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Sounds more like an issue for the insurance companies to decide rather than the police. Let their lawyers talk for you!
2007-09-25 19:30:53 · answer #6 · answered by theNakedEye 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋