Son's dad powder coated his bike

[latishia6]

Pissed off is an understatement.

My son's dad didn't see him for years due to domestic abuse. He did a domestic abuse perp programme and now has access every other weekend overnight. In the community/hotel not at his house as he lives 3 hours away.

I bought my son a bike. It was £800 custom built and a gift for him completing his racing season and coming second. He's got another season coming up and he was growing out of his old bike.

His dad was taking him to his training last Saturday so I sent the bike with him. Has always been fine in the past.

Son comes home, dad tells me I'll need to pick the bike up in a few days because son wanted it a different colour and he's had it powder coated. Fuming.

Just been to collect it and it's bright green, the handlebars have been sprayed so the grips are now unsafe and moving around, and I'm just so pissed off.

They usually hold their value well as it's a very good brand. All branding has now been removed and it is now unsellable (well, I can't sell it as a branded bike when he grows out of it!). I'm going to have to buy new handlebars as the club chairman has looked at a photo and said they're not safe (don't spray handlebars!).

I actually don't know what to do with myself right now.

I'm sorry I don't know entirely how the system works but is it worth speaking to a DV charity to see actually if vandalising your son's bike the first chance he gets is something you could relay to the family court as abusive behaviour and thus assist evidentially towards his losing access? It's just so upsetting you and your son have to have this loser spoiling things for you because he's too pathetic to feel like a man unless he's abusing someone.

Maybe get the chairman of the club to write and sign a letter that the bike has been devalued and rendered unusable pending repair. (This could also help you with a small claims court if you choose that path). You don't have to let your ex know until you have the outcome.

All that said I'd speak with DV charity for their expert advice first. You don't have to navigate this alone.

Agree with @Daaaaahling - www.rightsofwomen.org.uk May offer advice on this

The op sent her son with the bike and the ex had no intent to deprive. I don’t think theft is going to stick.

However you deal with this, try not to make a deal about it in front of your son or he’ll only blame himself, and please make it abundantly clear to him that none of this is his fault - you know how kids will blame themselves when things get unpleasant between their parents. Good luck, your ex sounds like an absolute knob.

Appropriation and intention to deprive include treating the item as if it is your own and you have all the rights of the owner.

I would say it was the equivalent of taking someone's car for a spin without their consent and returning it with a dent in the bumper and the hubcaps removed.

I don’t think theft will stick. The child said he wanted it done and the op sent it with him. I can’t see the police being interested.

The OP sent it with the child for the purposes of the child taking it to training. She didn't consent to having it painted, and I don't think her child has capacity to consent to it, especially if he was coerced, which it seems like he was.

The father has absolutely no right to do anything to the bike at all other than take it to training and bring it back again.

@latishia6 This.

So bloody frustrating!! It was a power play. Get some advice from the professionals.

In fairness, they will most likely have stripped it down to powder coat it. You can’t powder coat things with plastic and rubber attached.

They were just doing what their customer, your Ex requested. You can’t blame the bodyshop. The customer requested and paid for a powder coat and that is what they did.

The customer didn't own the bike.

And also, they fucked up the job.

They did the job that their customer requested. How would the bodyshop know that the customer who brought the bike in didn’t own it?

If you're going to engage in the somewhat risky business of spray painting bikes, it would be wise to ask for some proof of ownership.

Ahhhhhhhh and then there’s my ex who pays an utter pittance in child support because allegedly he can’t afford to pay a penny more yet bought our son a £2.5k electric bike…… 🙄

I can imagine the rage you feel. What a shit situation. As others have said - I’d take this up with the body shop.

This does fall under the law though so you have a case. You do have to provide proof of ownership before respraying a vehicle - changing the colour - to ensure that they are not working on a stolen vehicle. Bicycles also fall into this category and requirement too.

Thousands of people would never be able to proof ownership of bikes, expensive kids bikes probably go through multiple owners as they are out grown and sold on.
Its not like cars where they can be checked with the DVLA.

There honestly can't be that many people who'd take a bike they don't own to get it resprayed. The rare people who do have probably nicked it and aren't too worried about the resale value.

You think there can't be that many bike thieves? Wow.

You can’t check ownership of a car with DVLA…

There must be somewhere a garage can check for car ownership before they respray.

No, you’d need to provide them with an invoice/receipt to prove ownership.

Ok I'll reword that, their cannot be that many people who'd take a bike they don't own to get resprayed then return it to its actual owner.

Well most people who take stolen bikes to be resprayed aren't intending to return them to the owner, are they?

All of this talk of going to the police is pointless unless the police will do anything.

As is all the talk of small claims unless this man has money to pay any claim.

@latishia6 i am not surprised your DS is devastated, I would be too if this happened to any of my bikes. The only bikes I have seen resprayed are either beat up bmx bikes or cheap ones people definitely want to remove branding from as they are either nicked or they lock up and use as a station bike. They look terrible. Of course your DS didn’t think it would look like that. And as for spraying handlebars and grips, what were the body shop thinking?? They aren’t part of the frame!!

You are right that it has totally knackered the resale value too. I always sold on my kids bikes knowing they would part fund the next one and purposely bought bikes with good brand resale.

Honestly, I’m livid on your behalf.

I seriously doubt threatening somebody would help and hardly look good if it did go to court and it costs about £200 to do that and once a gift us given it belongs to the recipient..yes he is young but the spray paint guy would just assume dad had permission. They hardly ask for receipts