[twisted_ophelia]

So.... I'm sitting here trying to get a hold of my house insurance company because my car just got driven through my garage door

Yup. Thomas, my best pal in the world who reguarly sleeps over at my house and did so last night, and I decided to head to our tattoo shop early today to get some organizational stuff done. We decided to take my Explorer since he's probably gonna spend the night again tonight and his truck is full of car parts for some car he's working on restoring and my chair wouldn't fit in there right now, heh. I asked him to drive my car since I am sick and feel like crap. He's perfectly used to driving around with hand controls as he drives my car all the time. Last minute, he wanted to run to McDonald's to grab some breakfast first cuz I was still in my house getting ready. All of a sudden, I hear a gigantic bang and a whooshing sound. Go outside wondering what the hell is going on and see my garage door (the automatic kind), all bent and crumpled with the door still down, broken glass everywhere and Thomas trying to get out of the garage by trying to lift the big ass door up and crawl out from underneath. For some reason, he just totally spaced out, had the car in drive instead of reverse, and somehow hit the gas instead of the brake, I don't know what the hell he was thinking. He drove THROUGH the garage door, which lifted up and over the car (WTF!), car hit the wall on the other side, and the garage door came crashing down onto the ground, thus shattering the glass windows on the upper part of the door and smushing it up pretty good on top of the crumpling from the car impact. Thankfully he wasn't hurt and managed to get the car braking in time so that he didn't hit the wall with much force and did no damage to my house (it's the wall of my living room) and the only damage to my car is the sideview mirror being ripped off and paint damage which isn't even that bad, it just goes from the front of hood and also on the roof. Luckily I have a big truck-like vehicle because I think a smaller car would have gotten messed up pretty good. No broken lights, no structural type damage that we can see, not even a dent in the hood. It's the garage door that's completely f*@ked. The thing will need to be completely pulled out and replaced so I have to call the house insurance. We actually can't even get the car out of the garage right now because the garage door is stuck about 2 foot or so off the ground. Thomas was trying to pry it up further but it won't budge. He feels so bad, was offering to pay for it and stuff but replacing that door plus the car repairs would cost thousands. I'm just glad he wasn't hurt, I didn't even get upset with him because it could have been so much worse and accidents happen. The funny thing is that he drag races cars for fun--you'd think he'd know how to freakin' drive! I seriously thought the world was ending when I heard that big banging/whooshing sound though. And being sick right now really sucks ass.

This post has been edited by twisted_ophelia: 05 May 2009 - 03:12 PM

[bobm]

Someone told me that damaged rear walls of garages are among the commonest house insurance claims in the UK;

As for Toronto I cannot say, but I doubt things are much different there, even though I don't recall seeing any wrecked garage doors when I visited in 1987 [I think..]

Please tell Thomas that he has our sympathy [however bad you feel it can't be worse than how he'll be feeling ..]

[twisted_ophelia]

bobm, on May 5 2009, 10:24 AM, said:

Someone told me that damaged rear walls of garages are among the commonest house insurance claims in the UK;

As for Toronto I cannot say, but I doubt things are much different there, even though I don't recall seeing any wrecked garage doors when I visited in 1987 [I think..]

Please tell Thomas that he has our sympathy [however bad you feel it can't be worse than how he'll be feeling ..]

I just got off the phone with my insurance company again and they told me they will MAYBE send the claim adjustor to look at it tomorrow but it could be a few days which is totally annoying because my car is stuck inside the garage and the whole thing looks like a disaster zone. I barely use my garage and don't actually ever park my car in there because it's only a single-car one and there isn't enough room to get in and out of my chair from the car in there. I park in my driveway all the time and use the garage to store stuff. I called the garage door company and they said they would come this afternoon and at least take off the broken door but the insurance company is saying not to touch anything. They didn't even want us to sweep up all the broken glass off the driveway! But they're taking their sweet time. Ridiculous. This is all making Thomas feel worse, poor guy, and he was like 'don't worry, "'ll chauffeur you around, I'll make it up to you' blah blah blah but I'm truly just glad that he's not hurt. I am not at all angry with him. I've actually been hugging him all morning, and trying to cheer him up! I mean, the windshield could have shattered and cut him up, he could have driven the car right through the house, who knows. I'm mostly just annoyed at the insurance company because you'd think THEY were paying ME or something, the way they act, not the other way around. I've got to go out there now and take some photos. I should put them up later for you guys so you can see, heh.

Edited to add that I just got off the phone with the ins. company yet AGAIN and they said we can sweep up the broken glass. I called them to tell them that there's no way I can have broken glass all over the place for the next couple days if they're not going to come out here today and that it's dangerous and a liability. Once I said THAT, they said it was fine to clean up the glass.

This post has been edited by twisted_ophelia: 05 May 2009 - 03:27 PM

[twisted_ophelia]

My 'remodeled' garage door (and trapped car), post-broken glass cleanup:

This post has been edited by twisted_ophelia: 05 May 2009 - 04:43 PM

[edlee]

What a mess,,,, A lot of stuff happens quickly when this kind of thing occurs. Trying to figure out what is happening and how to stop it, all at once. You would think that someone who is into racing would have better reaction time than this, but that's why they call them accidents.

Take it easy on the insurance company, tho,,,, they didn't do it. I know how you feel,,, Can't get mad at Thomas,,,, but ya want to bite somebody.

Hope you get it sorted soon. On the bright side,,, if there is one,,,, you can rag Thomas about this for years. What are friends for???
ed

[Yasko]

Wow, sorry to hear that Mimi!
At least now you can make fun of his driving skills (he drag races cars for fun! He is probably sleep-driving too!) It's important that nobody got hurt!

[allis53ca]

so ?.....was he "outside" the garage and turned the door into a mudflap ?....or "in" the garage and turned the door into a bowl ?

[fatdave]

Gotta love insurance company's. once had one tell me it was half my fault for being rear-ended....while sitting in a traffic jam. oh well, they ended up paying $3200 for a car I bought for $500.

Next time he goes to a track to race, tell him to imagine a door at the 1320 mark and aim for the middle.

[araitn]

There is one thing for sure....... we can't accuse you of living a boring life. It seems like there is always something non-boring going on with you.

I think this type of accident is fairly common. A woman I worked with drove her car through the garage door and completely through the garage wall into her living room. She barely stopped in time to avoid knocking down her outside wall. So, at least you can tell Thomas that he has a better reaction time than a 45 year old woman from Tennessee.

Hopefully your insurance company will take care of things in a timely manner.

Can't wait to hear what happens next in your life. I hope it's something good for you!

[Hapahowlee]

Awe Mimi I feel so bad for you. Not feeling well and then this happened. Well, you're right, the important thing is no one is hurt. It will all be over soon and everything will look like it did before. However it's a must to give Thomas a good razzing for a few years at least!!!

I think I have a sign on the back of my car that comes on when I start the engine that reads "HIT ME!" I've been rear-ended so many times, I can't even remember the number.

The pic doesn't look too bad. I'm sure it'll be an easy fix. Feel better!

[LuckyinKentucky]

I had a similar experience a few years ago.

I was at the tire store about to get some new rubber on the back of my 1967 Buick. At the time i had a minor bed sore so i was trying to limit my transfers. So I broke one of the cardinal rules of man law and let my girlfriend behind the wheel of my muscle car.. I mean how much damage could she do pulling it forward 15 feet right. I don't think i had ever let her drive the thing before and it does sound quite cool to rev so when the engine growled a bit in neutral i thought nothing of it. But when she put it in gear the growling only increased and was mixed with the squealing of tires all hell broke loose. She did manage to get it in the tire change bay (i was parked right in front of it) unfortunately she was burning tires brake torquing it as she did. There is a ,now rebuilt, cinder block wall between the tire change bay and where they actually mount the tires which she put my car through up to just behind the windshield... luckily for me they had a bunch of stacks of tires in that room which brought the car to a stop. Other wise i think she would have burned right on through the building...that car is a bit of a beast. I still joke with the guys there when i get new tires they never fail to ask if they can pull in my vehicle and i never fail to laugh and say I'll take care of it.

All i had was liability insurance on the car and they did fully cover the wall repairs so I wouldn't worry Ophelia the only thing you (or Thomas) may end up having to pay is a deductible, this kinda stuff is what ins. is there for.

[twisted_ophelia]

edlee, on May 5 2009, 01:33 PM, said:

What a mess,,,, A lot of stuff happens quickly when this kind of thing occurs. Trying to figure out what is happening and how to stop it, all at once. You would think that someone who is into racing would have better reaction time than this, but that's why they call them accidents.

Take it easy on the insurance company, tho,,,, they didn't do it. I know how you feel,,, Can't get mad at Thomas,,,, but ya want to bite somebody.

Well, to his credit, he did have an excellent reaction time. He managed to brake in the span of a few feet hard and fast enough that he stopped the car from going through the wall of the house and smashing into it. I'm surprised there isn't more damage to my car. It could have been much worse. I was pretty good with the insurance company. I'm generally always polite, definitely didn't scream and yell at them or anything, there's not a whole lot of point to that! Better to be laid back.

Yasko, on May 5 2009, 01:55 PM, said:

Wow, sorry to hear that Mimi!
At least now you can make fun of his driving skills (he drag races cars for fun! He is probably sleep-driving too!) It's important that nobody got hurt!

Exactly. I'm starting to kind of see the whole incident as funny-ish. Thomas, not so much. He just feels guilty. I would never give him shit for it cuz I know accidents happen and I'm not one to give people I care about shit anyway. He keeps talking about going and buying me a new laptop to make up for it. I've been wanting a new mac for a while and talking about it and I guess that's his way of trying to make it up to me. Total sweetheart. I don't really want him to do that either (as much as I'd love/need a new computer!)

allis53ca, on May 5 2009, 02:28 PM, said:

so ?.....was he "outside" the garage and turned the door into a mudflap ?....or "in" the garage and turned the door into a bowl ?

That's exactly what he did! Turned the door into a giant mudflap. It definitely doesn't look that bad in the pic, it's more damaged on the tracks that the door sits in which is why it's stuck in that position. And once the glass was cleaned up, it stopped looking like the apocalypse hit my driveway. It sucks that the whole door has to be pulled off and replaced. If the mirror hadn't been ripped off my car, I would have probably just gotten the scratch removal stuff and took care of the scratches myself. Oh well.

fatdave, on May 5 2009, 02:52 PM, said:

Gotta love insurance company's. once had one tell me it was half my fault for being rear-ended....while sitting in a traffic jam. oh well, they ended up paying $3200 for a car I bought for $500.

Next time he goes to a track to race, tell him to imagine a door at the 1320 mark and aim for the middle.

I'm totally going to tell him that. Insurance companies are weird and a total pain in the ass to deal with.

araitn, on May 5 2009, 03:06 PM, said:

There is one thing for sure....... we can't accuse you of living a boring life. It seems like there is always something non-boring going on with you.

Can't wait to hear what happens next in your life. I hope it's something good for you!

Awww hehe, yeah, no boring life for me. That'd kind of be my worst nightmare.

Thanks for all the love and support, everyone. You all are the best. I ended up staying home all day and napping, trying to get rid of this cold/flu type thing I have and I'm hoping that someone from the insurance company makes it out tomorrow.

This post has been edited by twisted_ophelia: 05 May 2009 - 08:21 PM

[twisted_ophelia]

Garage door is currently getting fixed. Yay! Well, sort of. The guys from the garage door company are out there right now pulling the old door off so that we can get the car out and then take the car to get the estimate for the repairs. I don't mind not having a garage door but I don't like not having a car--it's amazing how much we rely on our vehicles.

[edlee]

I relate,,, having no car is like a flat tire on the chair with no patch kit and no spare,,,, you can get there if you want to bad enough,, but not easily.

Tell Thomas to forget the laptop,,, that you'll just remind him about the "driving lesson" once a month for a year or two, as compensation. If you can't raz a friend or they can't take it with a grin,,, better get some councelling.

Or tell him to hold off with the laptop till your birthday or Christmas,,, so you'll feel better about it. Either way, it is nice to know he's that kind of guy. Not that many of them, out there.
ed

[twisted_ophelia]

edlee, on May 6 2009, 04:41 PM, said:

I relate,,, having no car is like a flat tire on the chair with no patch kit and no spare,,,, you can get there if you want to bad enough,, but not easily.

Tell Thomas to forget the laptop,,, that you'll just remind him about the "driving lesson" once a month for a year or two, as compensation. If you can't raz a friend or they can't take it with a grin,,, better get some councelling.

Or tell him to hold off with the laptop till your birthday or Christmas,,, so you'll feel better about it. Either way, it is nice to know he's that kind of guy. Not that many of them, out there.
ed

Not only myself but pretty much everyone we know has been making fun of Thomas nonstop for the last 24 hours and he's starting to now see it as funny just because the whole incident is so absurd. Unfortunately, when we took the car into the repair place, we found out the damage to my car is more extensive than we originally thought. The underneath hasn't even been looked at yet, there could be damage there as well. The windshield is scratched and will need to be replaced and the whole entire car will need a paint job. I don't have the estimate yet but there is a possibility the car might actually be a write-off because it's a 1999 with 180,000K on it. The garage door guys put up a giant bed sheet across the space where the door goes. It's kind of funny.

And Thomas actually went out and bought me the laptop. I told (insisted) him not to and I wanted him to take it back when he gave it to me just a little while ago but he won't. It's a totally awesome brand new Macbook though but, nevertheless, I didn't want him to do it. He feels ridiculously guilty, especially after we found out the car is more messed up than it seemed at first.

[fatdave]

depending on the write off amount, I may be interested in the explorer. Don't ask why but I have a VIN plate and title to a 99 ford Exploder (hehe)

[twisted_ophelia]

fatdave, on May 6 2009, 08:28 PM, said:

depending on the write off amount, I may be interested in the explorer. Don't ask why but I have a VIN plate and title to a 99 ford Exploder (hehe)

Hahaha, ok, I will keep you posted. I like my Explorer though. I hope it's not a write-off.

[fatdave]

Just keep pushing them, get a bunch of quotes and if they aren't more than 75% of the value of the vehicle they will usually have it fixed.

[edlee]

Take the money, and drive it anyway. Nothing an aluminum door can do to that car is going to make it unsafe to drive. Even if they want to write it off, ask them about a "buy back". They are going to sell it for scrap anyway,, tell them you have a friend who wants it for parts, and see what they say.

A few scratches on the windshield and a little touch up paint on the body scratches, plus the money from the insurance, still leaves you with a very servicable vehicle,,,, unless you are hooked up on "pristine". Hell,, they all get dirty anyway..
ed

[fatdave]

Most of the time those scratches on the windshield can be polished out. some shops are lazy and just want to call in a glass guy and have a new one put in...then charge you 300% on the parts and 4 hours of labor to put it in (when it really took 1 1/2 hours)

[twisted_ophelia]

edlee, on May 7 2009, 04:12 PM, said:

Take the money, and drive it anyway. Nothing an aluminum door can do to that car is going to make it unsafe to drive. Even if they want to write it off, ask them about a "buy back". They are going to sell it for scrap anyway,, tell them you have a friend who wants it for parts, and see what they say.

A few scratches on the windshield and a little touch up paint on the body scratches, plus the money from the insurance, still leaves you with a very servicable vehicle,,,, unless you are hooked up on "pristine". Hell,, they all get dirty anyway..
ed

I'm not pristine, I don't mind the scratches (though the roof is badly scratched) but the ripped sideview mirror and ripped off rear wiper which were both hanging off do need to be fixed. If they do a full paint job, it would be expensive and since the car is older (even though it's in really good shape and the Eddie Bauer version of the Explorer), they might not want to fix it. If that's the case, I'll ask them to fix the mirror and windshield and don't worry about a paint job.

fatdave, on May 7 2009, 06:32 PM, said:

Most of the time those scratches on the windshield can be polished out. some shops are lazy and just want to call in a glass guy and have a new one put in...then charge you 300% on the parts and 4 hours of labor to put it in (when it really took 1 1/2 hours)

Yeah, I would imagine most car places will just milk it for all it's worth. I'm hoping they just opt to polish it out.

Ah crap, I feel like shit and am so sick. Maybe I have the swine flu. Haha. Actually I'm pretty sure it's bronchitis. Again. Booo.

[fatdave]

Need a nurse? anywho, get better soon!

[twisted_ophelia]

fatdave, on May 7 2009, 11:18 PM, said:

Need a nurse? anywho, get better soon!

Only if you wear the uniform!

This post has been edited by twisted_ophelia: 08 May 2009 - 04:07 PM

[edlee]

I can see it now,,,, Dave,, all in white,, white stockings ,, and that little nurse's hat,,,, Whoa,, dude!!!!

ed