Neighbor Spun Rocks On My Vehicle

[miknwv]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? West Virginia

On a private driveway a year ago my neighbor backed up to my truck, spun rocks all over it and the insurance company estimated $2500 worth of damage, and paid out $2000 to me after the $500 deductible. The entire incident was caught on video tape and I have an eyewitness testimony on video tape. The tape of the incident shows him standing outside his truck arguing with me (while I was sitting in my truck) and then shows him getting into his truck, backing up closer to mine, then "power-braking" his truck and shows the dust cloud and rocks being thrown onto my truck.

He refused to pay for the damages, so I submitted it to my insurance company who in turn tried to collect the cost of the damages from my neighbor. He refused to pay them and now they said it is up to me to decide whether or not to pursue it in small claims court.

I'm going to represent myself without a lawyer, so my question is..... Is it likely for me to win based on the irrefutable evidence that I have?

 

[ecmst12]

Perhaps a more important question is, even if you win, will you be able to collect anything?

 

[miknwv]

I'm looking to collect my $500 deductible that came out of my insurance payment, and if I'm lucky, hopefully I can collect the $2000 that the insurance company had to pay out and reimburse it to them.

 

[Some Random Guy]

And why didn't you talk to the police about pressing charges for the $2500 in INTENTIONAL damage to your vehicle?

With the videotape it sure sounds like a slam dunk civil suit, but you need to consider the time and money involved in filing suit and compare that to the likelihoood that you will ever be able to collect on the money he will owe you.

For $500 it doesn't seem worth it to me.

 

[miknwv]

I'm going to be representing myself so there will be no lawyer fees involved. I'll check and see how much it would cost to file a small claims suit.

I contacted the police and they refused to respond and were called off by the Sheriff who said it was a civil matter, as this incident was the result of an ongoing right-of-way dispute. So, no police report. However, I do have pretty powerful evidence.

 

[Some Random Guy]

I contacted the police and they refused to respond and were called off by the Sheriff who said it was a civil matter, as this incident was the result of an ongoing right-of-way dispute. So, no police report.

So drive down to the police station with a copy of the videotape and ask them why they will not enforce the law.

For small claims, expect to pay $100 to $200 for filing fees and process service. Although you can get these costs awarded to you when you win the lawsuit, you still have the problem of collecting.

WV Filing a Small Claims Suit - Lawyers.com

 

[ecmst12]

I didn't ask if it would be AWARDED to you. I asked if you could COLLECT it. A judgement is meaningless if the person is unwilling to pay you voluntarily and you don't know how to force them. Google "enforcing a judgement in WV" for some basic info.

 

[miknwv]

its a small town with the "good ole boy" system still in place....I called the sheriff himself after showing one of his deputies the video tape and he said he was keeping the entire sheriff's dept out of it because he's my godfather and thinks it would look bad (he has a local newspaper breathing down his back and is afraid they'll cry nepotism). So apparently I get less protection from this sort of thing simply because of my relationship to the sheriff.

I think the fee in this county is around $45. Now, if I win and I'm awarded the money, then by court order he has to pay it. If he doesn't pay it I can file contempt of court, correct?

 

[ecmst12]

No, contempt of court would have nothing to do with this. What you will have will be a JUDGEMENT, not the same as a court order. Google like I said, to find out how you get paid if he doesn't pay you voluntarily.

 

[miknwv]

gotcha.....i could ask a few lawyers around here that simple question, they should answer it free as most around here would. i'll call up their office and say if a small claims judgement says he owes me X amount of money and he doesnt voluntarily pay, what do I have to do?

 

[Zigner]

gotcha.....i could ask a few lawyers around here that simple question, they should answer it free as most around here would. i'll call up their office and say if a small claims judgement says he owes me X amount of money and he doesnt voluntarily pay, what do I have to do?

You won't find an attorney to advise you for free on collection options (except in the most vague manner). Lawyers like to get paid for their work...

 

[ecmst12]

Or, you could spend 10 minutes doing some research on your own, for free, right now. And then if you have more questions about what you read, you could ask them here.

 

[miknwv]

i'll search the WV State Code for small claims and what to do if they don't voluntarily pay

 

[ecmst12]

Google "enforcing a judgement in WV". The info you need is not specific to small claims.

 

[Poster1]

I'm going to be representing myself so there will be no lawyer fees involved. I'll check and see how much it would cost to file a small claims suit.

I contacted the police and they refused to respond and were called off by the Sheriff who said it was a civil matter, as this incident was the result of an ongoing right-of-way dispute. So, no police report. However, I do have pretty powerful evidence.

The police are correct... this is a civil matter so they really are not going to take any actions. At least not after the fact (polite way of saying we have better things to do, like eat donuts and sip coffee).

Do I think you will win? Well what could be better then having the person on video? You should ask for the $2500 plus loss of use (add in another $35/day for each day of repair). I don't think that the judge will give you the $2000 your carrier paid as you no longer have a right to ask for this. Your insurance company would need to pursue the amount that they paid themselves.

I'm guessing small claims court is about $75. If you have a video, it should be a slam dunk. I'm betting the other guy does not even show up. But as mentioned, this only gets you a nice piece of paper called a "lien". You would then need to file a Wit and attach the lien to some form of property or some states will allow you to garnish wages (not many). You'd need to find out what can be done with that judgement.