Story is, a guy fell asleep and plowed across my lawn, so I had to get a landscaper in to move a giant rock back into place, and to do some sod work. He sent me a bill for $180, understanding that it could take some time due to circumstances.
The police have no info for the driver, only an address. A letter sent to him came back marked “Unknown Address”.
So what can I do to find this guy? I don’t think hiring a private detective would be worth it.
Why didn’t you try to get more information about the guy when he plowed across your lawn? If you didn’t get it at the time of the crime, you are pretty much SOL.
Just be careful showing up at someones supposed address with a plea to sue them. Make sure you have your proof [i.e. paint on rock that matches car or eyewitness] And maybe your localm sherriff as well.
How do the police have only the address of the driver? That seems impossible. Do they have his name? His license plate? How did they obtain the address and nothing else?
Agreed the police should have more contact info like his license number and tele number if they came out and talked to him. If you have the tag or license # you may (in some states) pay a moderate fee at the local DMV and get the person’s name and insurance carrier.
If the car is registered to a false address under a false name by a person who drives around so (presumably) chemically altered that he plows through people’s lawns . . . I’d say $180 is not enough money to risk messing with him.
I don’t get how the cops could have only an address. I could see not having a valid address. Until 1997, my driver’s license had an address I hadn’t lived at since 1981.
You can always sue and sue to recoup the costs of the lawsuit and the damages and auxillary cost of finding the person. You might win. It will be a small claims court so it will be up to the judge to decide if you get those. If you hired a private eye, the court may rule you should be compensated for that, then again it might not.
You may also try sending a letter marked “Address Correction Requested” this will allow you, for a small fee, to find out if a forwarding address is on file with the post office.
You can also send a blank letter “certified / retrun receipt” Don’t put a name but on the form mark “signature required.” So if someone picks up the letter they have to sign for it. Of course you may not be able to make out the signature.
If there was a ticket issued, this is a matter of public record, so you may want to go down to the station and try to find this on the police blotter or whatever they use.
You may also check your homeowner’s policy to see if it covers anything.
Finally remember even if you do so all you’ll get is a judgement. The court doesn’t help you actually GET the money. They just make it all legal that the person does owe you the money and this allows YOU (not the court) to collect the money.
You even may want to try one of those court shows, if you find the person. The one’s I’ve looked up, if you are picked to appear, pay the judgements to the people, not the people who appear
The guy was super handicapped, driving a minivan while in a wheelchair. And wearing one huge winter glove in May.
They had to use the jaws of life to get his unconscious body out. So I couldn’t really talk to him… He totaled the van when it hit a cement retaining wall head on at 50 mph (after he landed on my lawn because he launched it about 20 feet through the air first).
I’m bothering because why should I pay for the damage he caused?
$180 is A LOT of money to some people. My wife is a teacher, and I am unemployed.
I think the police got his address from the phone book, seriously. After I got the letter back I checked, and he was listed. Small town police…
Oh yeah, I was home at the time and the house shook like an earthquake. The wall he hit was 3 feet from the house. Kinda scary. Thank God the rock steered him away from the house.
And I’m waiting to get flamed for trying to get a handicapped person to pay up. But I’d rather go through his insurance company, if I knew who they were.
Then they have a name too, yes? Which I presume you also have? With a name they should be able to get the guy’s license for you (especially in a small town) and with that you can usually get the insurance info from the DMV. Indeed, the DMV might even be able to get you the insurance info with the name and old address.
Do you know he has insurance? Does the DMV in your state not require that information in its database for licensure? I’d find out first if that insurance is still valid, if you can, because if he is not insured, he may well be judgment proof and even if you put the time and money in filing suit and win a judgment against him, you will still not get your $180 back.
I’m with **TruCelt **and personally would not put this kind of effort into a $180 claim either (if he’s insured, sure, put in a claim, but I would not file an action for it). I realize $180 is a LOT of money to some people, but if it’s all that much to you, I probably would not have put it into the landscape. You weren’t hurt, grass grows back, and life can go on.
I was involved in a vaguely similar incident. The police were very helpful. They gave me the info from the police report and I contacted the guy’s insurance company. They told me to get an estimate. I came up with a number off the top of my head for what I would charge for my own time, added cost of materials, then doubled the final number. I gave the insurance company the number and they sent me a check.
You realize you have provided completely contradictory information, right? If they got his address from the phone book then they also know his name (and you apparently do too). Also I would think it unusual if there were a phone book listing with only an address but no phone number. (I’m not even sure that’s possible) So if he’s listed why don’t you call him? And even if you couldn’t talk to him at the scene, you could have written down his license plate info, no? For someone who is so concerned about repairing his lawn it just doesn’t sound like you’ve addressed this with any due diligence.
Also I suspect you’ve never sued anyone before. The people who are telling you it’s not worth it for 180 bucks are right. If you’re able to contact him though I’d still request that he compensate you for your damages and hopefully he’ll do so voluntarily. If he doesn’t or isn’t able to, it’s really not worth it.
I assume he has insurance, since it’s required by law. And his wheel chair driven hydraulic ramp van had to be expensive, he wasn’t driving a beat up Escort.
The local DMV wouldn’t give me any info. My homeowners insurance company was no help, the amount is under the deductible, so I can’t make a claim where they would try to find him.
I have sued somebody, for about the same amount, no problems at all.
Sorry, I never thought about writing down his license plate at the time. I was scared shitless and freaked the hell out.
Today we filled out an accident report request form at the PD. Hopefully it goes through some hands and somebody does something. But since they recently voted “no confidence” for the chief, I won’t hold my breath.
I haven’t paid the landscaper yet, is the problem. He wants his money, but said he’ll wait to make it easier for us.
And grass does not grow back when the dirt is soaked in oil, transmission fluid, and antifreeze. And 2,000 pound rocks do not roll themselves 20 feet back into place. So, I kind needed the work done, ya see?