Garden wall damaged by bin wagon

[Monday]

My garden wall was recently substantially damaged by a council bin wagon. The crew have apparently not complied with accident policy and procedures and as well have been adversely discussing the matter (and me/my daughter) with neighbours. I have started to get rebuild quotes but the incident and the poor attitude from the council are already causing me (a disabled pensioner) substantial stress and distress.

I would be grateful to know what readers would expect from their local council should they find themselves in a similar situation, whether they would put the matter in the hands of solicitors and whether they would have reported the matter to the police, given that those involved failed to identify the vehicle reg and driver etc.

(The first repair quote is £17,500 plus VAT, engineers bricks? So not a cheap repair).

[wales01man]

With respect, how big is this wall? do you have witnesses proof it was the dustcart

[atticus]

I would put it in my insurers' hands.

Failing that, you have a claim against the driver of the vehicle and his/her employer. The employer might not be the council - in my area bin collection is contracted out.

[Monday]

With respect, how big is this wall? do you have witnesses proof it was the dustcart

The wall is approx 6feet high by 20 feet long and is separated by wrought iron gates from another similar.

No witnesses but has been inspected by a council building inspector, whose (verbal)opinion was that it was hit with some force by the prongs at the rear that hold bins when lifting to collect rubbish. IMG_4693.jpeg

[Monday]

I would put it in my insurers' hands.

Failing that, you have a claim against the driver of the vehicle and his/her employer. The employer might not be the council - in my area bin collection is contracted out.

Unfortunately not helpful. No information available about driver of vehicle and it turns out that my insurers, along with many others, will only cover damage to wall when property (such as a house) is damaged at the same time as the wall.

Thank you

[PallasAthena]

The council have sent someone to inspect the damage so it seems they are treating it as a claim against the council. You need to get their formal response and see what their position is before considering further action.

They don't always deal with these things very quickly as they first have to get statements from the bin collectors and then have it reviewed by council legal department.

Chase them for a formal response to your claim. If still no reply ask your local councillor to help.

Have you told them in writing that you hold them responsible for the damage and asked them to confirm the council will pay for the repair? If not you should do so.

The driver has committed an offence by not reporting the accident to the police.

[atticus]

You appear to have overlooked my words and his/her employer.

And get someone to check your policy, to see whether you are being fobbed off by your insurer. Looking at the photograph, that response is outrageous.

[islandgirl]

I entirely agree re contacing your councillor. They may well be particularly helpful if up for election on 7th May...

[Monday]

Thank you Atticus. Extremely helpful

[PallasAthena]

You appear to have overlooked my words and his/her employer.

I hadn't overlooked that atticus (if you are commenting on my post) and if the bin collections are done by a contractor and if ultimately the OP needs to start legal proceedings that may be where his action has to be directed but at this point I am looking at the OP's practical next steps.

I wouldn't advise OP to start a claim against the bin collection company at the moment. He already has a claim/complaint lodged against the council and they are engaging with him positively, albeit slowly. They've sent out a council officer to investigate and gather evidence and OP needs to get a formal response from that visit before doing anything else. Starting a parallel claim against the bin contractor would not, in my experience dealing with councils, speed things up. More likely it would slow it down.

The council's response might be to accept the claim or to tell OP to claim against the bin contractor. If the latter OP can start that process with the advantage that the council can identify who they are and how to contact them, and the council's investigation should be available to support the claim.

[PallasAthena]

Monday have you checked if any of your neighbours have CCTV or doorbell video that recorded the incident?

As well as asking for help from your local councillor the council's formal complaints procedure is also available to you. Details will be on their website.

[atticus]

That was not to you, @PallasAthena, but our OP.

[Monday]

On the basis of available evidence, it seems as though the bin crew may have intended to deny that they caused the damage and implied it was pre-existing. When my daughter initially contacted the council on my behalf, they were antagonistic because they had no prior notification of any incident. Because of the councils initial response, I potentially opened a claim on my legal expenses insurance and am waiting for their response. The refuse collection service is run by the council.

As it stands, a building inspector has inspected at my daughter's request but did not say there would be a follow up report. The council's insurance department has told me to contact their insurers.I have started to obtain rebuilding quotes but got concerned because the first estimate is £17,500 plus VAT and the contractor said the price is likely to increase substantially in the present financial climate

[Frank1]

According to Allianz Insurance buildings insurance covers garden walls including vehicle impact damage. There is no mention that the garden wall has to be attached to the insured building.

[Monday]

Thanks for this info. My insurers have revised their initial advice. They have taken details but have not recorded a claim. Their current advice is to proceed with a claim against the council and only get back to my own insurers if I run into difficulties.