Sunday, August 02, 2009

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

I've recently become a big fan of freecycle because I'm all about keeping things from being unnecessarily landfilled and finding homes for items that still have life in them.

So I posted my retired vacuum and someone wanted it. She had no transportation and requested I deliver it. This is not cool. But it was on the way to somewhere I was headed anyway and I really wanted to get the vacuum out of the house, so I reluctantly agreed to drop it off.

We take the damn thing over and drop it off at this person's apartment. Because I figure if someone is in such a bad financial way they need to ask a stranger to bring them a free vacuum, it's the least I can do. I get that my life is blessed and I try to never take that for granted.

As we're leaving the parking lot, we got hit by someone who didn't bother to look behind her while backing out of a parking space.

A non English speaking, unlicensed, uninsured someone. Who - through a young boy who got dragged into the conversation to translate - kept trying to talk us out of calling in the accident while telling us she had a friend who could fix it cheap and that she could get us the money 'manana.' (No, I can't find the fucking tilda right now, I know it's not right, I don't care.)

The passenger side of my van is all smashed in. The side, incidentally, with Baby Bear. I'm not sure I'll ever forget how helpless I felt as I watched that car back into the exact spot my baby was sitting.

Wonderful Husband and I had just spent the morning going over our less than fabulous finances and planning to look into a refi to see if that would make things a little less tight. Now we're on the hook for the $500 deductible and a rental car while the van gets fixed.

Oh, and the officer told us if this had happened on the road she'd have been ticketed and arrested. But because it happened on private property he can't touch her. Bottom line - the chica at fault walks away scott free.

I don't want anyone arrested over a repairable incident with no injuries and I'd have been mortified it that had happened to her. But I'm furious to the point of tears that she can't even be issued a ticket and we're stuck paying for the whole goddamn thing.

I am making no judgments about this young girl's situation. I'm just sayin' if you're illegal, unlicensed and uninsured, please look the fuck behind you when you're backing out of a goddamn parking space.

5 comments:

LBTEPA said...

CRAP CRAP CRAP BUMMER ((hugs))

Lisa said...

That sucks! I'm glad everyone was OK, but what an awful awful situation. I wish you had a way to collect the money!

Sixteen Chickens said...

OH kiddo, that sucks major! I'm SO SORRY! If it helps any I can at least commiserate with your finances pain. I went up to my attic during a thunderstorm because I "suspected" that we had water coming in around the chimney. What I saw made me turn white as a ghost. Needless to say I have spent the last few days trying to come up with 3500 to put a new roof on my house. Don't you wish money would just this one time grow on trees? The Bear wasn't IN THE VAN WAS HE?

Chris said...

Small Claims Court may be a recourse that you need. I'm sure you could get a judgment against her for the deductible. (btw, no lawyers are allowed on either side in small claims)

jbmmommy said...

So sorry. I just got my car back on Saturday after my 83-year old neighbor backed into it parked on the road. It's five months old. Then yesterday, someone at work scraped their bumper along half of the right side while backing out. Can't afford to fix it since it's just cosmetic but I seem to drive a magnet now. Good luck with repairs, etc.