Please send a Band-Aid or some duct tape this way as my poor car is in pain! This morning, after learning that the the youngest one's bus was running very late (darn snow, ice and bus heaters), I decided to drive Cara in myself as the main roads in town were not all that bad as the road crews had been out at dawn to plow, sand & ice. As we pulled out of the parking spot when had been sitting in waiting patiently, before receiving the news on the tardy bus, and started to approach the exit of our complex, poor Sally (my husband's name for my car) hit a patch of ice on a "plowed" road and headed straight for the end post of the open gate. Slip, slide, CRUNCH! Sally yelped and came to a stop while I sat in shock. I had made all humanly attempts possible to save the poor vehicle from its ultimate fate, including braking and turning the steering wheel away from the gate but, it wasn't enough. I promptly got out of my car in the freezing cold to inspect the damage. The gate took quite a bite out of the driver's side front bumper and gave Sally quite a bruise.
I backed the car up and went into our complex's office and spoke to the maintenance guy. Alright, I'll be honest, more like snarled at him. He then followed me back (out, once again, into 16 degree air) to the accident scene to inspect the damage and then told me to contact the property manager, who was out of town. Call her I promptly did, but I was disheartened to know that due to a very convenient addendum to our lease agreement, she didn't believe that the complex was liable for any property damages since a reasonable attempt was made to deal with the "conditions" on the roadway.
Not willing to take no for an answer, I went about getting a quote for the repairs ($1200 and some change *gulp*) and coming up with a strategy for when I talk to the property manager tomorrow. I believe, truly, that the complex is at fault for not dealing with the snow & ice more effectively and in a more timely matter. I'm not asking them to pay for the repairs, no-no, just all or part of my $500 deductible to get the damage fixed. Since we pay for snow removal services, I have a reasonable expectation to be able to exit my home without having a run-in with the gate.
I am going armed with pictures, a time line and sincere hope that our property manager will work with me on this. Poor Sally needs to have her front end fixed. In the meantime, did you know that duct tape comes in 14 colors? I'm sure I can find one that comes close to my bumper color!
