To not fix DS's dented car?

[graceandmichael]

DS parked his car on the wrong bit, he has the back driveway but parked it in DH's spot as he thought he'd be back out before DH got home. DH came home, obviously thinking it was empty and as he reverses in, he doesn't particularly see what's there as it's really tucked away. He reversed on and boom, hit DS's car. There's quite a bad dent in it. Have been quoted £450 to fix. We don't particularly have the spare money and would have to 'find it'. DS has a few thousand in savings and DH thinks he should pay for it if he cares enough about the dent because of the way it happened.

After opinions please and thanks for reading.

If I hit someone elses car I'd expect to pay for it. Your DH should pay. I don't really understand how he didn't notice DS's car behind him.

I agree, your DH is at fault. You don't just blindly reverse because you expect a space to be clear - you look. The idea that each car has its own bit of drive and cannot park anywhere else is silly.

Or just drive it with a dent in it?

Or just drive it with a dent in it?

Why should the son have to do this?

I'm bemused by the idea you can reverse without looking on the presumption a space is empty just because it's on your land! My drive is also on my land, i manage to look for potential obstacles every time I park in it - to not do so is clearly reckless and dangerous. Let's hope your dh learns to use his eyes and thinks himself lucky it was just an inanimate object on this occasion!

Your DH is at fault. I have been parking at the very same spot for the past 9 years but I would never just blindly park it because surely, it's where I always park.
That's just utter idiocy. DH caused the dent, he pays.

A dent is a fairly easy DIY fix, how about using this as some father/son time to repair it together.

Who owns the car?

DH pays for it. He should have been Looking.What if someone had been stood there?

Your son can legally go through your insurance to pay up if that means your husband / your premiums go up tough titties you either cough up the money directly or you pay more from increased premiums.

No way should your son have to A drive around with a heavily dented car or B have to cough up too repair it.

(if my parents had done that and refused to cough up i would damage their cars deliberately but make it seem like an accident and if they ask me to pay up i would say the exact same lines back but i am slightly passive aggrieve like that.

Your DH should pay and book himself and eye test.

Nice attitude for DH to have regarding DS. DH hit it DH pays. Thank goodness it was 'only' a car, next time he might hit a person. Why is he
reversing without looking is he a twat ?

DH came home, obviously thinking it was empty and as he reverses in, he doesn't particularly see what's there as it's really tucked away. He reversed on and boom, hit DS's car.

DH thinks he should pay for it if he cares enough about the dent because of the way it happened.

Your husband is a cheeky fucker, and does he normally go around reversing without looking?

Is your front garden walled and gated in? You claim gated but considering dh just drove into it assuming it was clear, presumably from the road, at a speed fast enough to cause damage I doubt it! So yes there COULD have been someone there.

"The only assumption that any driver should ever make is that they need to pay attention at all times - anything else is just irresponsible." Exactly!

Another car is a pretty bloody big thing to miss!! Dh needs to go Specsavers!

"I bet if it was the other way around your DH would be expecting your DS to pay" yep! I'm also willing to bet he wouldn't agree to instalments either!

"Surprisingly, there's no damage to DH's car. It is much larger though, if that makes a difference."

A - all the more reason he should be more bloody careful!

B - he can't KNOW that without getting it checked out and if he drives it without doing so and its not roadworthy he could get in a lot of trouble or worse get hurt.

Eh?
Of course Ds shouldn't pay. Dh should.
Odd thread!

People have misunderstood how our car park spaces are, they're on our property, tucked away, gated.

What's that got to do with the price of cheese?

You still look when you're reversing! What if a child had run onto your property to fetch a ball? What if a cat/dog was there? Or a visitor/delivery driver/postman?

Saying "Well, it was on our property so I didn't look" wouldn't stand up in court if you hit a child!

You dh hit a parked car regardless of who’s car and where’s he should pay. You wouldn’t be asking this idea he got any other random parked car. Maybe you’re ds should just contact the insurance company.

If this was a visitor, a mailman or window cleaner, and you weren’t in to tell them that your husband never looked properly when he reversed in, and you didn’t know how much money they had in the bank, DH would have to pay. Or be prosecuted.

Tell him to do the right thing.

I’m surprised you have to ask tbh. Not having a go, just shocked that your DH is being so horrible about it all.

I’m learning to drive, I’ve just spent about 3 hours of today learning reversing, reverse parking, reversing round a corner blah blah.

Anyway, the upshot being, as the driver, it’s your responsibility to check what’s behind you before you reverse.

I hope your DH is more attentive on the road?

I think your DS should contact your DHs insurance company if he won’t see sense and stump up.

Imagine if it wasn't your sons car and he reversed into a stranger... would he pay then? yes he would so he should pay for his sons car to be fixed too

I park my car in part of my garden it's also a strange bit and also gated Despite the fact I live alone and only have one car I reverse in carefully slowly and looking over my shoulder the way any normal sensible person would.

Your husbands attitude is appaling. It doesn't matter what savings your son has why the hell should he use them on repairing damage caused by someone else.

I hope that if your husband keeps this attitude up that your son contacts his insurance company and puts in a claim

Is this a piss take?! Of course you're husband should pay. How can he be so unobservant while driving. I'd genuinely be concerned about his driving ability.

“There wouldn’t be someone there”
Last week there was a little old lady and her King Charles spaniel stood on my drive, and on Saturday the neighbors CF granddaughter parked her fiat 500 on there.
which was a bloody joke as Barbara and Clive have a big enough drive for the whole village and Lilly really doesn’t need to park on our drive, but I digress.

Good job I looked where I was going isn’t it

While generally I'm with the others your DH should pay for the repair however, I think sometimes there is difficulty with insurance when accidents happen on private land, especially if the land belongs to you and technically the other person should not be parked there

it is different to reversing round a corner or on a street as the expectation is that you need to look for oncoming vehicles other parked cars etc, when I park at home I'm looking to park in garage which is behind house but at an angle so I would just drive along it you can't really see around corner but as nothing should be there I wouldn't be gong the same as if it were a public road;

I do have a little sympathy for your DH as DS's car should not have been there, I bet DS doesn't park in his dad's space again but DH needs to get fixed,

Completely unrelated but if you are borderline broke and DS has plenty of cash, I hope he is contributing to household and not living rent free while his parents struggle

Good grief! Of course DH should pay. I leave for work before 5 a.m., it’s UNLIKELY there’ll be any person/vehicle behind me when I reverse off my drive but certainly not impossible...so I look and use my cameras.

This thread reminds me of a routine Jasper Carrott used to do; reading out statements from insurance claims. One went thus: “Driving home from work one night, I turned into the wrong driveway and hit a tree I haven’t got.”