Damage to side panel

Omegajb · March 28, 2018

Hey all,

En route home from work. My wife has sent me a message that someone has damaged the side of my NX. Looks like the punk, has driven into the vehicle whilst parked and scraped it when parking. I am obviously furious that this has happened. My wife has only just noticed it so the damage could have been done whilst at the nursery or gym. Do you know if legally I can request cctv footage of the gym cameras? If there are any present in the car park? Or is this not possible due to data protection? When a similar issue happened to my Honda the police wouldn't obtain the footage from a main road. So i had to claim £2177 worth of damage on my insurance, and only this year the 3 year period has expired so I no longer need to list this on new quotes.

Secondly I have smart cover but due to the extent of this damage I'm sure it will not be covered. Which will mean now I have to pay a hefty bill to fix someone's incompetence who doesn't have an ounce of decency to own up to their mistakes...

Thanks in advance.

ColinBarber · March 28, 2018

Sorry to see this, I feel for you.

I don't think you have any right to the CCTV footage but it is certainly worth asking. The police would be able to obtain access if they could be bothered to investigate. Also your insurance company may pressure the police into investigating as they would want to recover their costs.

Quite a bit of that would probably polish out as the white just looks clear-coat damage, after which the remaining damaged areas might be small enough to be covered under your smart policy.

as13 · March 28, 2018

What a shame, not sure even a rear dash cam would of spotted it.

Agree with Colin alot of the white will polish out, i had similar on her indoors car a year or two back.

Omegajb · March 28, 2018

Thanks Colin and as13. Times like these really make me consider getting Lexus to install a dash cam. Especially as I have a PCP deal, this will de-value the vehicle at the end of the term.

I will purchase some polish tomorrow, and a new cloth to get the white out as recommended. Then I'll proceed with the smart cover claim for the two main blemishes.

rayaans · March 28, 2018

2 hours ago, Omegajb said:

Thanks Colin and as13. Times like these really make me consider getting Lexus to install a dash cam. Especially as I have a PCP deal, this will de-value the vehicle at the end of the term.

I will purchase some polish tomorrow, and a new cloth to get the white out as recommended. Then I'll proceed with the smart cover claim for the two main blemishes.

Get something with some cut - not T-cut though, its too aggressive.

Meguiars ultimate compound should be OK by hand, or Scratch X. Autoglym Paint Renovator - all sort of the same stuff in terms of end results.

The plastic parts will need changing - those won't come out and a repair is usually very obvious as grain won't match perfectly.

Smart repair may cover that - doesn't look like loads of damage to be honest but worth polishing first to see what the damage is really like.

The car park, if they're decent should provide footage of the incident if it occurred. However, there's a chance that they have to blur everything out due to data protection including number plates of cars so its practically useless unless its somewhere you go often and track the car down yourself

DanD · March 29, 2018

We were in a similar situation some months ago, when our previous Lexus got damaged in a car park in Winchester. We were told by the council that we could not have access to the CCTV footage, but that the footage would be checked and any relevant info passed onto the police directly. All we had to do is to provide date and approximate time.
Unfortunately, we then found that our car was parked in a blind spot not covered by the cameras.

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Omegajb · March 29, 2018

8 hours ago, rayaans said:

Get something with some cut - not T-cut though, its too aggressive.

Meguiars ultimate compound should be OK by hand, or Scratch X. Autoglym Paint Renovator - all sort of the same stuff in terms of end results.

The plastic parts will need changing - those won't come out and a repair is usually very obvious as grain won't match perfectly.

Smart repair may cover that - doesn't look like loads of damage to be honest but worth polishing first to see what the damage is really like.

The car park, if they're decent should provide footage of the incident if it occurred. However, there's a chance that they have to blur everything out due to data protection including number plates of cars so its practically useless unless its somewhere you go often and track the car down yourself

I did some research last night and from a few reviews "Meguiars ultimate compound" came out on top and leaves the best finish apparently without a need for a top up. So I have ordered this, and will polish it on Friday and will then proceed with the smart cover claim.

Do you have any idea how much it'll cost to change the plastics?

Good point about the CCTV footage, if the plates will be blurred out it'll be a lost cause as I will be unable to find the culprit.

@Dan that is just typical that the vehicle was parked in a blind spot.

rayaans · March 29, 2018

3 hours ago, Omegajb said:

I did some research last night and from a few reviews "Meguiars ultimate compound" came out on top and leaves the best finish apparently without a need for a top up. So I have ordered this, and will polish it on Friday and will then proceed with the smart cover claim.

Do you have any idea how much it'll cost to change the plastics?

Good point about the CCTV footage, if the plates will be blurred out it'll be a lost cause as I will be unable to find the culprit.

@Dan that is just typical that the vehicle was parked in a blind spot.

Dont know on the cost but I doubt it would be cheap - maybe £500-750 but thats just a guess.

You could always try and get it repaired, if its not a good fix, swap it out later.

It might not be a lost cause though - if they go regularly at that time, you might be able to track who it is, especially if its a gym

First_Lexus · March 29, 2018

Really sorry to see this @Omegajb

A few years ago a previous car was scratched - deliberately down the side - while in an upmarket hotel car park in Nottingham. The hotel refused to provide any CCTV and even told me that having a Watford FC sticker on the car up there was '...asking for trouble, Londoners aren't popular up here.' I didn't even know where to start with that but I never stayed there again. And neither did anybody else from my organisation which cost them a fortune in lost revenue. A year later it was taken over by a chain. I didn't shed any tears. Karma is a funny thing and hopefully the idiot that did this to your car will experience bad karma...

Blackmore Hotspur · April 1, 2018

We have CCTV at work and to cut a long story short, clear legal advice is that under NO circumstances are we ever to share it. I had a really annoying mark on my last Mercedes, an anonymous present from someone else’s crap parking. Following a detailed internet search I got rid of most of it... using toothpaste on a damp cloth! It worked amazingly well and enabled me to hand the car back at the end of the PCP deal with no financial penalty.

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Omegajb · April 3, 2018

I do hope that karma hits this imbecile very hard.... I asked my wife to speak to the manager at the gym. The gym took our car details and said that they would be in contact if they are able to assist. I presume this will amount to nothing due to what you both have stated above, but there is no harm in asking. I have also asked the wife not to use the car park going forward, even if she is late for a PT session or for the kids evening classes. As it's just not worth the risk.

After doing a bit of surveillance, there are two cameras in the car park. One not covering the angle where she was parked. The other may capture it depending on the viewpoint but its very unlikely...

I attempted to rectify the issue over easter weekend to no avail.. So I am going to hit YouTube and figure out if I am missing something. I have in the mean time raised it with smart insurance to see what they come back with I have nothing to lose. The worst they can do is say no they will not attempt to repair my vehicle.

is200 Newbie · April 3, 2018

Paint marks usually come off using an IPA liquid and not damage the paint.

Do the car parks have liability in this instance?

Omegajb · April 9, 2018

I have heard nothing back from the gym, so I guess it's fruitless and I will not get any information about the incident or who did it.

Using the Meguiars I have got off most of the scratched paint marks, so hopefully a few more applications and it will all be removed.

I have made a claim to smart insurance. Hopefully they can fix the actual damage to my vehicle so fingers crossed there.

rayaans · April 9, 2018

3 hours ago, Omegajb said:

I have heard nothing back from the gym, so I guess it's fruitless and I will not get any information about the incident or who did it.

Using the Meguiars I have got off most of the scratched paint marks, so hopefully a few more applications and it will all be removed.

I have made a claim to smart insurance. Hopefully they can fix the actual damage to my vehicle so fingers crossed there.

Good result

If you're hellbent on finding this idiot, its worth visiting the gym in person and try it that way.

Blackmore Hotspur · April 9, 2018

Good result
If you're hellbent on finding this idiot, its worth visiting the gym in person and try it that way.

Nice wishing to sound old, Mr sensible or on in any way patronising but.....to be honest, I think going looking for anyone is a really bad idea, besides which you don’t have any idea who the idiot was. I think it’s one of those moments where you need to get it sorted and not let it eat you any longer.

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rayaans · April 10, 2018

12 hours ago, Blackmore Hotspur said:

Nice wishing to sound old, Mr sensible or on in any way patronising but.....to be honest, I think going looking for anyone is a really bad idea, besides which you don’t have any idea who the idiot was. I think it’s one of those moments where you need to get it sorted and not let it eat you any longer.

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And thats why things like this keep happening.....

as13 · April 10, 2018

On 09/04/2018 at 12:40 PM, Omegajb said:

I have heard nothing back from the gym, so I guess it's fruitless and I will not get any information about the incident or who did it.

Using the Meguiars I have got off most of the scratched paint marks, so hopefully a few more applications and it will all be removed.

I have made a claim to smart insurance. Hopefully they can fix the actual damage to my vehicle so fingers crossed there.

Glad to hear you've got most of the scratches out, How's the plastic wheel arch looking?

Omegajb · April 10, 2018

I can live with it, it's not too bad looking now. Especially with all the rain hitting it over the past week or so that has helped with the damage to it. Ideally I would like to replace it to get it pristine once again, but it's a cost that I think would not benefit me at the end of the PCP term in all honestly.

Blackmore Hotspur · April 10, 2018

And thats why things like this keep happening.....

Things like this keep happening???

Good luck if that’s how you deal with things, personally I like to pick my “fights”. Confronting someone who may or may not have damaged your car is a bad idea!!!

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Omegajb · April 24, 2018

Hey all,

I wanted to give an update. I got the smart repair guys to fix the damage and they did an amazing job. You really have to look closely, in order to see that some damage was present. See the pics attached. I am so glad that I paid for that as an option, when I bought the car it's well worth it.

paulrnx · April 26, 2018

Good result, great news

as13 · April 26, 2018

Does look like a top quality finish, I would of been really pleased with the work they've done.

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rayaans · April 26, 2018

On 4/10/2018 at 4:45 PM, Blackmore Hotspur said:

Things like this keep happening???

Good luck if that’s how you deal with things, personally I like to pick my “fights”. Confronting someone who may or may not have damaged your car is a bad idea!!!

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Yep almost certainly. We live in a society where people are happy to moan but not to do anything about it.

If that scumbag got caught, and possibly even got done for criminal damage maybe they'd think twice about buggering off next time.

Regardless, jobs a good un.