Mowing/stones and broken glass

[likeitorlumpit]

Thanks all

I think your replies sum up my previous stance when this has happened. I will move on head held high. Interesting to note the roadside verge mowing responses. I would have thought most windscreen breakages would be less than firms excess and not worth an insurance claim. Very true that it would be hard to pin down liability and a £75 cost to the car owner rather than a £200 cost to the firm.

[skyhuck]

In the past whenever we have broken a window through strimmer/mower action we have always held our hands up and paid the bill. This happens roughly twice a year in a bad year. Sometimes we go years without this sort of thing.

We recently lost a mowing contract that we had for 10 years or more. It was just end in a months time- apparently we wern't spending as long as they thought we should. Nothing to do with quality.

Anyway

Previously we had cracked a window and 3 months later (ie today) the management company is saying in a very terse phone call that we should be claiming on our insurance. I would normally do just that (well, not a claim but just paying out of our window fund) but as they had been very abrupt in ending our contract I am considering whether we really are liable in these instances.

What are your thoughts/ experiences on these matters. Particularly flying stones/grit. I guess most of you will just say pay up and move on but I'm just not happy with the tone of the phone call and don't want to help any more than I am obliged to. Is it really our fault that a stone has been picked up- I'm not 100%. Morally/ commercially then yes but legally, I sometimes wonder.

 

If its your mower and you or your staff operating it, how can it be anyones fault but yours???

[Warners]

interesting comments... if you follow the argument that its not the grass cutters fault then whos is it....? the car owner? The way to look at it is imagine it was your car..

 

We break windows pretty much every year.. strimmer flicks a stone up, etc. we have a firm that repairs double glazed windows and another firm that repairs automotive windows. A quick call to either and its all sorted.. My best advice is that as long as the complaint is made while your chaps are still working on site then you are liable and should assume as such, (I don't know of anyone that rides around in thier car with broken windows or leaves broken windows at thier house unfixed). Use a local firm for the repair and get it dealt with straight away.. Never use Autoglass as thier are too expensive. Once its fixed than its forgotton. The worst thing is to get into a protracted argument over a period of time.. Its too much to worry about and your time is best spent getting on with earning some money....!

[likeitorlumpit]

If its your mower and you or your staff operating it, how can it be anyones fault but yours???

 

Thats where you wonder sometimes

If a train hit a stone on the track then would it be the train drivers fault or the person who put the stone there.

Same with a lawn really. If the residents kids were throwing stones then maybe they are responsible.

Similarly, if your mower hit a chunk of scaffolding clip then is it your fault or the scaffolder who left it there.

As a business, you accept blame to just keep everyone happy buy legally may be a different matter.

 

The original post was aimed to see if anyone had a legal stance on this.

 

Can you reasonably be expected to cover every square inch in long grass looking for stones before you cut. You are not on your own property. Should the resident have a duty of care similar to the dog poo debate isn't it? Similarly you shouldn't be expected to find scaffold clips in long grass. So it's your fault if you hit one and damage your mower? Is it or would you be having a word with the scaffolding company. I think you might.

[skyhuck]

.

 

Can you reasonably be expected to cover every square inch in long grass looking for stones before you cut. You are not on your own property. Should the resident have a duty of care similar to the dog poo debate isn't it? Similarly you shouldn't be expected to find scaffold clips in long grass. So it's your fault if you hit one and damage your mower? Is it or would you be having a word with the scaffolding company. I think you might.

 

No, which is why we have insurance.

 

The scaffold Co may have dropped the clip, but they did not make you run over it with your mower, so I doubt very much that they would be liable.

[mowandgo]

I think in this case it would be far less hassle in the long run to pay up otherwise it could be on going trouble you can do with out. Unfortunately its all part of the fun of mowing and simply can not be avoided. I have done it my insurance exes is £350 so I just pay local window guy myself usually around £100.

 

I did one job where I was brush cutting brambles ect. between customers house and a 7' panel fence when I had finished a guy shouted 'OI I want you to look at this' He was the neighbour he wasa used car dealer used his drive as his yard he showed my a newish Peugeot with the tiny est scratch on the window and try ed to accuse me of doing it with my machine I investigated the area and found a few tiny bits of brush chip the sort that blows around in the wind. At this point I new he was taking the piss. I said ' I can not take any responsibility for that scratch because it looks very much like it happened when you was driving the vehicle and I can not find any evidence on your property of any chip that has come from the force of my machine and not blow en over here by the wind'. With this he started to make small talk and became very polite I was polite back and got on with my work taking extra care not to give him any more reason for a false claim.

 

This goes to show people try it on so be aware if there talking out there anus take time to asses the situation never admit your at fault and explain a perfectly good reason why your not at fault and you take damage to property and health and safety very seriously and needless to say your fully insured.

[likeitorlumpit]

I think in this case it would be far less hassle in the long run to pay up otherwise it could be on going trouble you can do with out. Unfortunately its all part of the fun of mowing and simply can not be avoided. I have done it my insurance exes is £350 so I just pay local window guy myself usually around £100.

 

I did one job where I was brush cutting brambles ect. between customers house and a 7' panel fence when I had finished a guy shouted 'OI I want you to look at this' He was the neighbour he wasa used car dealer used his drive as his yard he showed my a newish Peugeot with the tiny est scratch on the window and try ed to accuse me of doing it with my machine I investigated the area and found a few tiny bits of brush chip the sort that blows around in the wind. At this point I new he was taking the piss. I said ' I can not take any responsibility for that scratch because it looks very much like it happened when you was driving the vehicle and I can not find any evidence on your property of any chip that has come from the force of my machine and not blow en over here by the wind'. With this he started to make small talk and became very polite I was polite back and got on with my work taking extra care not to give him any more reason for a false claim.

 

This goes to show people try it on so be aware if there talking out there anus take time to asses the situation never admit your at fault and explain a perfectly good reason why your not at fault and you take damage to property and health and safety very seriously and needless to say your fully insured.

 

Once again I emphasise that we have in the past always got things fixed- even left notes on car windscreens admitting liability if no one around. I instruct my staff to own up if it was us.

Similarly- it's never an insurance claim as our excess is too high.

I would love a legal viewpoint rather than just opinions (though I value these). I can't help thinking about things like postmen slipping on a path and sueing the house owner.

We will be getting this window fixed because I've said I would but I'm interested in whether it is us who are liable. If I was on a site and twisted my ankle on a large stone in grass. Would I be able to claim off the owners insurance or is it down to me. It's not like tree work where if you drop a branch through someones fence , it's obviously your fault. This is your mower picking up a stone on their lawn. Is it REALLY your fault. Act of God???

Any legal beagles out there who would be willing to comment on a public forum.

[hedgesparrow]

Once again I emphasise that we have in the past always got things fixed- even left notes on car windscreens admitting liability if no one around. I instruct my staff to own up if it was us.

Similarly- it's never an insurance claim as our excess is too high.

I would love a legal viewpoint rather than just opinions (though I value these). I can't help thinking about things like postmen slipping on a path and sueing the house owner.

We will be getting this window fixed because I've said I would but I'm interested in whether it is us who are liable. If I was on a site and twisted my ankle on a large stone in grass. Would I be able to claim off the owners insurance or is it down to me. It's not like tree work where if you drop a branch through someones fence , it's obviously your fault. This is your mower picking up a stone on their lawn. Is it REALLY your fault. Act of God???

Any legal beagles out there who would be willing to comment on a public forum.

if you are going to cut a lawn then you would check it for any stones eg using a rake just to clear any. if you had done all that and a stone did get picked up would you be liable for damage as you did a search of grass and removed any objects. interesting need as you say a begal

[skyhuck]

Once again I emphasise that we have in the past always got things fixed- even left notes on car windscreens admitting liability if no one around. I instruct my staff to own up if it was us.

Similarly- it's never an insurance claim as our excess is too high.

I would love a legal viewpoint rather than just opinions (though I value these). I can't help thinking about things like postmen slipping on a path and sueing the house owner.

We will be getting this window fixed because I've said I would but I'm interested in whether it is us who are liable. If I was on a site and twisted my ankle on a large stone in grass. Would I be able to claim off the owners insurance or is it down to me. It's not like tree work where if you drop a branch through someones fence , it's obviously your fault. This is your mower picking up a stone on their lawn. Is it REALLY your fault. Act of God???

Any legal beagles out there who would be willing to comment on a public forum.

 

Does God work for you, driving one of your mowers??

 

It could be argued that your mowers should not pickup stones and through them, how is the risk of stones hitting people mitigated on your RA's ???

[likeitorlumpit]

Does God work for you, driving one of your mowers??

 

It could be argued that your mowers should not pickup stones and through them, how is the risk of stones hitting people mitigated on your RA's ???

 

God works for all of us- surely you know that.

Interesting about RA's though. We check for stones but sometimes it's not possible to see them and this is where the act of god comment comes in.

I'm not looking for an argument skyhuck- I know you can be a little devil sometimes. I would just value a legal opinion on this. Someone will know but maybe this isn't the place to ask.