Legal position on this...

[TheArchitect]

I recently posted in The Workshop section about issues I've been having with my bike.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=318180&start=25

In summary, I parked at work and water leaked onto the bike from a HVAC unit above it. Water had been gushing heavily through the whole day, approx 10 hours. Bike had issues and is now in the shop.

After much tinkering and a few supposed repairs problem is still there. I've now had Suzuki look at it and they've conformed without doubt that it's damage due to water entering the innards. Bearing in mind I didn't mention the water issue to Suzuki, they deduced that themselves.

I've put in a claim in with building management at work, who passed it onto the contractors who are working on the units. Repairs will potentially exceed £1k. Contractors have now started to get itchy feet and are passing the buck around between the landlord, building management and their subbies.

So in terms of liability, can I pursue any of them legally and what chance do I have of being successful? There is CCTV so it's clear my bike was there and you can see the water gushing over it.

Also any recommendations of a good solicitor who might specialise in this kind of case?


____________________
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[Andy_Pagin]

Probably too complex for anyone except a hired legal expert to comment on.

Eg.
Did you have permission to park there?
Could anyone (who can be held legally liable) have reasonably predicted the leak, or taken any action to prevent damage to your bike once it was under way?.... and so on
____________________
They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[ThatDippyTwat]

[MarJay]

There are probably signs up saying that you parked there at your own risk...
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[davethekwak]

[Andy_Pagin]

[TheArchitect]

Yep, I had permission to park there. Standard security protocol is that you have to pre-book the space with name and registration number so when you show up they check which bay has been allocated to you.

My company leases spaces so have permission to use the spaces as they please as long as they pre-book for building security's benefit.

There is building work going in in the ground floor, and the contractor was installing/reparing the HVAC units. They failed to but the waste water collection trays (as is normal practice) under the units, hence it flooded out.

No signs stating anything about parking at your own risk. It's a private building and anyone that parks there is either an employee or a guest, ie no public use.

Building management has been very helpful so far. But I along with everyone else think liability is with the contractor.
____________________
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[bamt]

Not particularly helpful, but at my work there is one of the motorcycle bays positioned under a rainwater gutter. When it rains there is a waterfall over the bike as the drainpipe is inadequate.

I reported it to facilities ages ago. The building manager said he'd inspected and there was no issue. Of course, the day he checked it there was no rain

[Rad82]

Contractor carrying the repair is liable for any damage to public property.
Their public liability insurance will cover this.

[Rad82]

Contractor carrying the repair is liable for any damage to public property.
Their public liability insurance will cover this.

[Rogerborg]

Identify who took the action that resulted in your loss, or who is most likely to pay up - not necessarily the same thing, although it's likely to be the contractors if they've actually got indemnity cover.

Invoice them directly.

Then letter before action.

Then follow the further steps on that page to a small claim.

It's easy, you can file it online, it doesn't cost much (and you can add the costs to your claim) and you don't need to be represented. Just show up, state your facts in plain English, get your verdict. Check with the court as to what formats of video they can view - some of them are still on VHS, I kid you not.

The caveat is that it'll take months, and if it actually gets into court then there's a fair chance that whomever you are pursuing at that point will just sod off the verdict and require you to go back to court to employ bailiffs for enforcement (at more time and up-front cost).

The sooner you start, the sooner you'll be done. Don't wait for anyone to respond, you set the schedule and stick to it.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[TheArchitect]

Cheers 'borg, that's the info I was after just didn't know what to call it or how to refer to it.

The contractor is a reputable company, funnily enough my company has done work with them in the past so I know quite a few of the guys they have on site downstairs. Problem is with their legal guys who have are required to admit liability before any monies can be discussed.

I've given them up to midday today to confirm the actions they intend to take to rectify this. If I've not heard from them by then, I'll be pursuing this through small claims.


____________________
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[Rogerborg]

Written notice first. Get a body of documentation showing that you've tried to resolve it before filing the claim.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[TheArchitect]

[arry]

[TheArchitect]

[arry]

Who are the contractors? Big or small?

[TheArchitect]

[arry]

Ideally get them to give you insurance details so that you can speak to the insurer's claims team. You may very well have more joy going to the source, ie the sub-contractors in this instance.

[TheArchitect]

Quick update...

After many emails back and forth and much pushing back and passing the blame around, the contractor heading up the works related to the HVAC unit has it seems seen sense. Well, that was after a very strongly worded final email from me requesting the details of their legal counsel.

Rather swiftly I got an email directly to me from one of their seniors requesting a meeting the following day. Meeting now done, and I have their agreement that they will cover costs associated to investigating the problems and rectifying it subject to repair costs needing re-approval if they exceed £1k.

Thanks all for the input.. not ashamed to say I did steal some of the wording from this thread to get my point across!
____________________
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[ajag]

Not trying to derail things, but really curious. How come the bike got damaged from water from the unit but not regular rain? Was it coming through the exhaust or was just enough to waterboard it?
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Street Triple

[Wonko The Sane]

[Andy_Pagin]

[TheArchitect]

[TheArchitect]