Grrrr!!!! Paint Chips by Morons!

[troutspinner]

Short story..........

Neighbor’s Landscapers chipped the hell out of my truck.


Long story.........

My neighbor is having some sod installed at the edge of his property, Landscapers decided to level his ground using a weed whacker, sending stones all over the side of my 1 week old black truck, front to back, including the hood.

I yelled at them to call their boss, no comprende, called my neighbor, he called the boss and of course, he’s out of town. My neighbor came out. We rinsed and washed it to reveal 20 or so small chips. They got every freaking panel including the hood.

I’m very friendly with my neighbor, he said do what you have to do so I called the police, told them no emergency, I just need to have a report when I go to make an insurance claim. I know many of the police in my town, small town and one showed up a few minutes later. The officer spoke with the workers, admitted fault (obviously) and the officer was able to reach the landscape companies owner. He got his insurance policy info and the owner asked me to call him.

The officer left, providing me with the report number and then I called the owner. He tried a little run around, asking that we avoid insurance and that he would like to see it for himself. I said, that’s why I had the police here so he could document it. He begrudgingly gave me the info.

I called his insurance company, they started a claim and will have a claims rep call me once it is assigned.

Anyways......WTF!!! I kept my cool and followed procedure but damnit, brand new freaking truck! I can’t tell you how pissed I am. I feel like “The Born Loser”.

As far as I can see, I don’t see any dings and the chips are small. If this was the 14 I just traded in, I probably would have just grabbed my Meguiars X2.0 but damn, it’s brand new. I don’t know if a good paint guy can fix it or if they’ll have to repaint it.

Arrggghhh! Thanks for reading my vent.

 

[VaderRebel]

I would've thought you'd call the police to keep you from committing a murder. I don't know what I would have done... probably the same. Well handled.

 

[immersivenc]

Good grief. I would be livid. Hope you get this resolved in short order so you can go back to enjoying your new truck. As I say frequently “It’s always something.”

 

[Jared B]

You handled that well, I probably would have been flying off the handle.

Hopefully they're able to get it taken care of with a good cut polish. It would be brutal to have to repaint a brand new truck. As a rule of thumb if you can't feel it with your fingernail it can be polished out.

Another word of advice is most body shops do a horrible job polishing, if there was a way to go through a detail shop using your insurance if they are able to be polished out I would research the best detail shop in your area and try and go that route.

Hope this gets resolved for you.

 

[troutspinner]

I would've thought you'd call the police to keep you from committing a murder. I don't know what I would have done... probably the same. Well handled.

The inner flames were blazing for sure. I would have liked to handle it the way I would have 20 years ago but I've learned that just costs me money then.

You handled that well, I probably would have been flying off the handle.

Hopefully they're able to get it taken care of with a good cut polish. It would be brutal to have to repaint a brand new truck. As a rule of thumb if you can't feel it with your fingernail it can be polished out.

Another word of advice is most body shops do a horrible job polishing, if there was a way to go through a detail shop using your insurance if they are able to be polished out I would research the best detail shop in your area and try and go that route.

Hope this gets resolved for you.

A few of the nicks are nail noticeable. Agreed about a body shop vs. a detail shop. There is a Detailer that does Ceramic Coating a couple miles away from me. I would assume they would know how to handle these and / or offer advice.

 

[Jared B]

A few of the nicks are nail noticeable. Agreed about a body shop vs. a detail shop. There is a Detailer that does Ceramic Coating a couple miles away from me. I would assume they would know how to handle these and / or offer advice.

Definitely worth at least having a chat with them and have them look at the truck. Hopefully this gets squared away to your satisfaction.

 

[Ramajama]

I’m not an expert at this but I wonder if this will go on carfax? Check on it. If so they just caused you some instant negativity equity. A diminished value claim may be in order if this is reported to carfax.

 

[Jus Cruisin]

I feel your pain...... Hopefully the chips can be filled and blended without painting panels. At least you'll get a professional polish job out of the deal..... Good luck.

 

[19RamLimited]

Man.. so many idiots in the world. They just do NOT care. They are oblivious to the fact there are people out there that care about their possessions and do not see them as JUST a truck. I work extremely hard for everything I own and no one handed me anything. So for others to think they can act like they do not care about my possessions is infuriating. I would had killed them. I know it. I don't just say that I would have.

I hope that you are able to get it repaired to your satisfaction. Really bad luck.

 

[dutchman187]

The inner flames were blazing for sure. I would have liked to handle it the way I would have 20 years ago but I've learned that just costs me money then.




A few of the nicks are nail noticeable. Agreed about a body shop vs. a detail shop. There is a Detailer that does Ceramic Coating a couple miles away from me. I would assume they would know how to handle these and / or offer advice.

^^Definitely this. You only have so much clear. Most dealers and even one PDR place I had fix something small use a rotary and take off way more clear coat than necessary to remove the scratch. Many often leave buffer swirls. Yuck. Your detailer should have a depth gauge to measure how much clear/paint is on your truck. Hoping a moderate polish will even it out for you man. People suck sometimes.

 

[troutspinner]

Definitely worth at least having a chat with them and have them look at the truck. Hopefully this gets squared away to your satisfaction.

That will definitely be in the discussion.

 

[troutspinner]

Please excuse the large photo. Circled and arrowed are the chips in the paint. No dings fortunately. I have a meeting with a shopnthat does Ceramic Coating set up as these guys know how to prep paint. You would think after the morons heard a few hits they would have stopped. Nah, just kept going. Made sure they did the job right.

 

[Edwards]

My congratulations on how well you handled the situation. Hard to believe this could happen.

 

[2019REBEL]

Since it's the landscaper's insurance taking care of it, see if you can get it ceramic coating on his dime.

 

[Neurobit]

You have got to be kidding me. Some people just don't give a crap about anything.
Hope you get it resolved quickly (and painlessly).

 

[356]

If it is any help, I used to concour 'de elegance Porsches....a close friend had an immaculate 20 year old Porsche 928GT with 1500 miles. The only flaw....the same thing...dozens of chips through the clear coat and paint. With time, we were able to use a slow process of paint, polish, wet sanding and wax to produce a perfect finish. The car went on to win many awards. It is possible the right professionals to fix the problems without repainting the whole vehicle. You might want to explore car restoration rather than the normal body shop route.

 

[troutspinner]

Just an update. A reputable detailer looked at it and gave me his opinion. I’ll reserve the discussion until the insurance is settled as the insurance company sent an appraiser this morning.

The appraiser didn’t care how big a scratch was or how many chips or scratches were on any specific panel. He just said, that panel or door or hood needs paint, which was the whole passenger side as noted in my prior photo. He added removing and reinstalling “X” pieces on all specific panels. The appraiser also offered some advice, once again, I will reserve discussion until after the insurance is settled.

So far though, the process has been good and everyone has been helpful and expedient. The only reason the appraiser came today and not sooner was because I was leaving for a fishing trip. I am however confident that I will be happy in the end.

Some fish pics from the trip because what angler doesn’t like fishing porn!

 

[troutspinner]

Another update. The insurance company called me. They are sending me a check for a little over $2k. It is up to me to get it fixed to my satisfaction.

Since this was a liability claim and not a vehicle claim per se, they did not even document my vehicle so to speak so there would be no Carfax or diminished value. Makes sense I guess, it’s not like it was a moving accident.

Back to my earlier comment about seeing a detailer. The detailer says he can fix these scratches and chips. The appraiser who came out today even suggested the same and just put the money in the bank. As I’ve said earlier in this thread, if this were my old truck, I’d fix it myself. So thanks to the irresponsibility of some landscapers, I’ll be getting the truck detailed and ceramic coated and throw a few bucks in my pocket for “pain and suffering”

 

[356]

Another update. The insurance company called me. They are sending me a check for a little over $2k. It is up to me to get it fixed to my satisfaction.

Since this was a liability claim and not a vehicle claim per se, they did not even document my vehicle so to speak so there would be no Carfax or diminished value. Makes sense I guess, it’s not like it was a moving accident.

Back to my earlier comment about seeing a detailer. The detailer says he can fix these scratches and chips. The appraiser who came out today even suggested the same and just put the money in the bank. As I’ve said earlier in this thread, if this were my old truck, I’d fix it myself. So thanks to the irresponsibility of some landscapers, I’ll be getting the truck detailed and ceramic coated and throw a few bucks in my pocket for “pain and suffering”

First, I appreciate your trout porn. Second, a day after I responded to your post, I find myself in the same situation, but this time by the dealer. No-one is offering an opinion on how it happened, but I have noticed teams with weed eaters around the property many times when I have gone by the dealer. They are taking care of the problem.

 

[troutspinner]

First, I appreciate your trout porn. Second, a day after I responded to your post, I find myself in the same situation, but this time by the dealer. No-one is offering an opinion on how it happened, but I have noticed teams with weed eaters around the property many times when I have gone by the dealer. They are taking care of the problem.

That sucks! Obviously, I feel your pain. Good they are taking care of it. You’d think landscapers at a car dealership would be more aware.....ugh.