What to do, so angry!!!

bcwang

New member
I'm pretty much out of patience right now and getting really angry at my situation. I drive a 2004 SVT Cobra that was in pristine condition before I moved into this new complex.



At the end of october, I noticed a large ding above my rear wheel well when I went to my car after parking it in my assigned parking spot in the apt complex over the weekend. That pissed me off right then. Then, I looked around the rest of the car carefully (it had been dirty from the rain) and found a total of 7 dings/scratchs/paint transfers, and all from the same car!!! :mad:



Now, the first thought through me is that this better be fixable by PDR or else I'll be really pissed. The spot next to mine is assigned as well so I know exactly who did it. At work I park next to a wall on my right, and I don't take my car out for anything else (got another car for that) so I know exactly who did it. Long story short, they flat out deny doing it. My insurance can't take care of it because my deductible is too high, and their insurance company says it wasn't their fault because there is no independent witness.



All the evidence is there, the missing paint from their door, the paint transfer onto my car, the shape and area of all the damage. But with their clients denying they did it, I lose!!! I want them to inspect our cars side by side so it's obvious that it happened, but their client refuses to do so and because of that, they don't have to. Those slimeball liars have had me in a bad mood for 2 months, and I don't know what to do about it. Thinking about people who care so little to hit another car 7 times, when it's so easy to figure out who it is, and yet still get away with it is just killing me. Constant communications with their insurance has netted nothing. Sending pictures of evidence seems to mean squat to them without a witness. I really never even disliked anybody before in my life, but I really hate those people. Scum who can't take responsibilities for their own mistakes, messing up my property, hiding behind their lies, and still parking right next to me every day!!!



What should I do? This just angers me so much that there are people like that in the world. This isn't some random parking lot ding, this is the same person messing up my car 7 times in the past 8 months of living here, and pretty much getting away with it because no one saw. This just isn't right, there has to be something I can do. And get this, they own a saturn ion sedan, the ones with those plastic doors that are ding proof. Ahhhh!!!
 
Call the cops and have them file a report. It may take a few times but you will get your evidence.



Good luck with it man! I hate inconsiderate people!!! :mad:
 
yea file a police report and take them to small claims court!



me I would set up a camera and sooner or latter you will have you proof
 
Unfortunately you pretty well have to catch them in the act. People like that don't care and it will probably happen over and over again until you or someone else sees it happening. I would try for another parking spot. I lived in a situation like that for a couple of years and got my share of dings in my company car. Even though it wasn't my car, it sure pissed me off.:mad:
 
Yea, unfortunately it seems your only choice will be to set up a camera and try to catch them the next time
 
Police reports and small claims court are steps in the right direction. Another option is to buy a small inexpensive video camera that records both audio & video. Connect it to a 12 volt VCR (a time lapsed VCR would be best) or connect it to the line input of a cam corder. Setup the VCR or cam corder remote trigger with a motion sensor so that it records only when there's motion. This will get you some video & audio evidence of being door dinged. There's tons of cameras and accessories for sale if you search eBay or google, etc, but here's two quick links to get you started.



the perfect and affordable vehicle camera systems!

Camera Accessories : X10.com!



I've had problems in the past with damage to our trailers, cars, the side of our hosue, etc. I knew who it was, but couldn't prove a thing and it was my word against his. This guy even used his scanner to listen into our phone calls through our cordless phone, but once we figured out he was doing this, we fixed this by going spread spectrum. Enough was enough, so I bought a time lapsed VCR, cameras, video multiplexor, etc. I already had some excellent night vision equipment, so I bought a camera that connected to my gen 3 night scope.



Over a period of several months, I caught the guy on video on several occassions throwing rocks and other things at our vehicles, our house, driving his vehicle across our front lawn, etc. This was nearly 8 years ago and I think our lawyer was charging us nearly $250 and hour back then, but we went to court and won our case. We got the judgement, but we still haven't collected a dime from it and we sank some big $$$ with the lawyer. We tried putting liens on anything he had, but everything was locked up in trusts and we couldn't touch him financially. On paper he looks poor because he's retired and collecting ss, but he has gobs of money in his trust, lives in a house worth 7 figures, owns several other houses that are worth millions each, has a nice boat, etc. We were able to file criminal charges against him and had some satisfaction from that, but we may never collect on our judgement.



Hopefully your situation works out in your favor. Good luck!
 
That kind of stuff drives me crazy too.

My previous car, a Stealth was gorgeous except for a line of perfect dings down one side. They lined up exactly with the door of the wife's car as they sat in the carport. Wifey always claimed she was extremely careful with her door, never touching the Stealth.

I got the line of dings fixed and we switched sides in the carport. No more dings ever showed up. Co-incidence? Yup.

I know that story isn't going to help you but crazy stuff happens.

Now, on a positive note, I was proactive with the BMW. A company called LeatherZ sells magnetic protector strips for doors. I bought 2 and had them painted my Imola red by a local painter. (They could be just left black). Every time I have to park the little girl in a precarious position, I whip into the trunk and get one or two of the protectors.

The sides of the bmw remain dingless.

If you want the website, I'll post it for you. Cheap peace of mind really and they'll fit on any metal door. Remove them before driving away.

-John C.
 
I think the problem is, now that they know that I know they're dinging my car, they're finally being careful. So I may never catch them doing it again, but that doesn't change the fact that I have 7 dings and some may be serious enough that only a repaint can get it pristine again. And I can't stand a repaint, it never ever is the same. And to think that I have to pay out of my own pocket to fix something that someone else did, with me knowing exactly who did it, just drives me nuts. Plus them being mean to me about it ("I don't want to talk to you, you can talk to my insurance company") and refusing to allow an inspection of their car next to mine by the insurance(sounds real innocent doesn't it?) just pisses me off even more.



I can't even wax my car now for fear of removing the paint evidence, I don't know how long this is going to draw out. But living in this state has made me a much angrier person than before.
 
Like the others have said, file a police report (be really nice to the police, just point out facts, don't show all the hostility I know you have pinned up). Then take them and their insurance company to small claims court. Chances are they will pay up before it gets to court as it will cost the insurance company more to go to court than to payout. Oh, and find another place to park, talk to your complex management. This IS going to get ugly once they get the paperwork.
 
Kick his door down like the terminator on a roid rage....that should do it lol:D



Sadly a friend just did that lol. With his business he had another company talking crap about him and their products (real estate and other stuff). So yes, he does roids and this time just blew up. Went over there and kicked his door down and some other stuff......let's just say they won't be talking crap about their business anymore and didn't press charges lol. I don't agree with what he did but the guy had been pulling this crap for over a year and was the last straw.
 
the exact same thing happened to me when i was in an apartment w/ assigned parking. i was on the end of a row, so there was a wall on my left...and a ford explorer on my right. everything was fine for 7-8 months...then i suddenly had 8-10 (!!) door dings all in the same 6" area on the rear right quarter panel of my RSX-S in less than 2 weeks time. the ding locations only changed depending on how far the cars were pulled up at the time into the spots, etc...otherwise all identical heights...and matched perfectly with where the rear door would open on the stupid SUV. i left them a VERY polite note asking them to be more careful...i didn't even ask for $$$...they ended up bitching to the apartment manager about me!!! i got it fixed for ~$120 total since they were all so close together and left them a present on their vehicle when i moved out. call me evil...but they deserved it because of their attitude...especially considering how i didn't even ask for them to fix it!
 
Paintless dent removal is not too expensive. Pay the Hundred bucks it takes to fix it and get it done. Its not worth the headache with Police, Court etc...etc....
 
Get a camera. Set it up in the garage, someone else's car or in your car. Catch them in the act. Don't worry they'll do it again, chronic dingers always do. In fact even after you catch them doing it and take them to court they'll still do it after you get the car fixed especially if they have kids.
 
Anyone know of a reputable paintless dent removal business in San Jose, CA or nearby?



I'm trying to calm down my rage, but I saw the people walking to their car yesterday, and I ended up with an entire dream about them last night. I think the only way to deal with this is to make them pay for their mistake, or this will never leave my head.
 
bcwang said:
Those slimeball liars have had me in a bad mood for 2 months, and I don't know what to do about it. Thinking about people who care so little to hit another car 7 times, when it's so easy to figure out who it is, and yet still get away with it is just killing me. Constant communications with their insurance has netted nothing. Sending pictures of evidence seems to mean squat to them without a witness. I really never even disliked anybody before in my life, but I really hate those people. Scum who can't take responsibilities for their own mistakes, messing up my property, hiding behind their lies, and still parking right next to me every day!!!



What should I do? This just angers me so much that there are people like that in the world. This isn't some random parking lot ding, this is the same person messing up my car 7 times in the past 8 months of living here, and pretty much getting away with it because no one saw. This just isn't right, there has to be something I can do. And get this, they own a saturn ion sedan, the ones with those plastic doors that are ding proof. Ahhhh!!!



I have two suggestions for you. The first is to buy a high-quality car cover and use it religiously. It will help protect your car against accidental dings and will ultimately cost less than repeated PDR.



The second is to change your perspective. Although I can understand being upset at the situation, recognize that few people view cars as we do; for most, they are a transportation tool and nothing more. Many of those people drive Saturns (or the equivalent) because it's a cheap, reliable ride. That's real life and letting those people cause you two months of anger, bad dreams, and feelings of hatred means you've let your anger get the best of you.



So let the bad guys have this battle and focus on winning the war. Protect your car with a cover and, as soon as reasonably possible, work yourself into a situation where you're not so exposed to the idiots among us. Good luck!
 
Back
Top