Damage caused by RoadWorks Options

[TJG]

Hi all,

I'm looking for some advice as best way to proceed with this...

I was driving to Nottingham the other day, and hit a trench left by roadworks, as pictured here...



I have a BlackVue DR900S-2Ch camera in the car and it's recorded the impact, and clearly shows before and after results, from the image below, you can see the smooth running of the car, the impact and the shaking afterwards.



I have taken the car to Mercedes for an estimate and they have said that the passenger side alloy is buckled, plus the front wheel bearings need tightening, Mercedes have taper bearings and therefore can be knocked loose on an impact such as this.

I have spoken to the construction company involved, who were initially quite helpful until they got the quote from Mercedes, with the wheel being £550 and total bill just shy of £900 - which includes 4-wheel alignment and wheel bearing adjustment (inc VAT) - when they saw this bill they changed their tune..

Now they are saying that they want to get their insurance company involved....this is fine but in the process I'm left without a car as it has been suggested with the loose wheel bearings that this could be classed as a MOT failure - car had passed the MOT on 01/08/2019 with nothing on it, and wheels were refurbished and replaced about the same time, and confirmed no buckles, cracks or marks..

What would be the best way forward? Should I wait for them to come back to me - or do you think this would be advisable to take up with my insurance company and let them battle it for me? I just don't want to be lumbered with loss of no claims, and having to pay the excess if I can avoid it...

Thanks for any help, and any questions please ask!!

Location for reference, in case anybody else has had a problem is here...

https://www.google.com/maps/place/52°18...33;4d-0.1637592

This post has been edited by TJG: Fri, 6 Sep 2019 - 15:41

[Advertisement]

[southpaw82]

Let your insurance company deal with it.

[DancingDad]

If you don't want to get your own insurance involved, bung it in writing to the roadworks people. Give them a date for them to settle by.
How they deal with it, whether by petty cash or their public liability insurance is irrelevant.

[The Rookie]

When my son had similar They contractors were really good, we just submitted the bills and got the money in 3 weeks (and that was over Christmas) that was for over £1000 of wheel, tyre and tracking, VW did the bearing under warranty.

[TJG]

Thanks for all your help!

The bill for the damage is just under the £900 mark - the construction company cannot understand how it's costing so much...they are also saying that they cannot understand how the alloy has been damaged when the tire is still on the wheel.

Just to get your thoughts, from the picture of the trench, how deep would you estimate this to be?

This is the video of hitting it.,.

https://youtu.be/bACyA2ikdQw

This post has been edited by TJG: Sat, 7 Sep 2019 - 08:06

[DancingDad]

What wheels/tyres are on the beast ?
If ultra low profile would not dispute but otherwise would not have thought that the trench or perceived impact from the video would have done any damage.
Obviously it did but I can understand company querying.

[TJG]

They are 235/40/18 - and the car is a E350 convertible - it was in Sport mode at the time and the suspension is quick to respond, shocks would have been in sport mode so more rigid.

It most certainly went down with a bang, as evident on the G-Meter, and also you can see the before and after shaking of the car,.

I'm told that it's the inside of the alloy that has a slight flat spot - so would be the weakest point.


This post has been edited by TJG: Sat, 7 Sep 2019 - 10:11

[The Rookie]

Ideally you should have measured it at the time, that’s what we did, plus screen shots from ‘fixmystreet’ showing two other cars reporting the exact same issue at a similar time.

[TJG]

I know, and I would have measured and photographed it, but because this route was being used as a diversion for the A14 being closed, it would have caused serious amounts of disruption to traffic, and most probably caused some upset to other road users...

[DancingDad]

They are 235/40/18 - and the car is a E350 convertible - it was in Sport mode at the time and the suspension is quick to respond, shocks would have been in sport mode so more rigid.

It most certainly went down with a bang, as evident on the G-Meter, and also you can see the before and after shaking of the car,.

I'm told that it's the inside of the alloy that has a slight flat spot - so would be the weakest point.

Okay, you convinced me, profiles like that will not have the "squash" available to take impacts that a regular tyre will take.
And as you say, all the strength on the rim is outboard where the spokes are.
The inner, unsupported rim can buckle far easier.
Unless buckled significantly, no reason why the tyre should deflate.
And as you point out, you can pinpoint the exact point and repercussions from your dashcam.
Only argument is the cost but end of the day, it is Mercedes and a Main Dealer pricing.

[TJG]

Thanks for the replies and reassurance.

I had a CLS that hit a pothole on the rear a long time ago, and that ended up buckling the alloy, tyre was fine but it started to deflate over time.

Looking at the video, would you estimate the trench to be more or less than 20mm deep?

[The Rookie]

Not a chance, that’s at least 40mm deep at the wheel tracks.

[DancingDad]

Not a chance, that’s at least 40mm deep at the wheel tracks.

Fully agree.
The clean cut edge of the tarmac has to be 20mm or so.
Then the infill has been compacted a lot more.


TBH it worries me that a trench like that can damage the wheel but given that 40mm profiles are not that uncommon these days, the people that carve up our roads have to be aware and deal with it appropriately.
Not just backfill a bit of dirt and hope.

[Fredd]

given that 40mm profiles are not that uncommon these days, the people that carve up our roads have to be aware and deal with it appropriately.
Not just backfill a bit of dirt and hope.

Alternatively perhaps manufacturers and buyers should pay a bit more attention to the road surfaces the vehicles will be driven on before selecting sexy-looking but delicate wheels/tyres?

A lesson electric scooter riders are going to learn the hard way should they be allowed on the roads.

[DancingDad]

given that 40mm profiles are not that uncommon these days, the people that carve up our roads have to be aware and deal with it appropriately.
Not just backfill a bit of dirt and hope.

Alternatively perhaps manufacturers and buyers should pay a bit more attention to the road surfaces the vehicles will be driven on before selecting sexy-looking but delicate wheels/tyres?

A lesson electric scooter riders are going to learn the hard way should they be allowed on the roads.

Don't disagree with that in the slightest.
When I see things like Range Rovers with low profile tyres on, I have only two thoughts, first is WTF, second rhymes with banker.

[Guest_Charlie1010_*]

Steel Wheels might not look so sexy.
But they were ok for Saxon.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3IkvZ3ePCIM

[I am Weasel]

Thanks for the replies and reassurance.

I had a CLS that hit a pothole on the rear a long time ago, and that ended up buckling the alloy, tyre was fine but it started to deflate over time.

It wasn't a black CLS 350 by chance? My wife bought one 6 years ago that had a buckled rear alloy.

[The Rookie]

but given that 40mm profiles

40%........

Sidewall height is width multiplied by the aspect ratio.

[DancingDad]

but given that 40mm profiles

40%........

Sidewall height is width multiplied by the aspect ratio.

You're right...brain fade...thanks

[TJG]

Not a chance, that’s at least 40mm deep at the wheel tracks.

Not a chance, that’s at least 40mm deep at the wheel tracks.

Fully agree.
The clean cut edge of the tarmac has to be 20mm or so.
Then the infill has been compacted a lot more.


TBH it worries me that a trench like that can damage the wheel but given that 40mm profiles are not that uncommon these days, the people that carve up our roads have to be aware and deal with it appropriately.
Not just backfill a bit of dirt and hope.

They are saying that they have been out and measured it and it was less than 20mm - but...I found out from another contractor that the hole trench had been back-filled just before 15:00 on the same day I hit it, and the measurements were taken the next day.....

given that 40mm profiles are not that uncommon these days, the people that carve up our roads have to be aware and deal with it appropriately.
Not just backfill a bit of dirt and hope.

Alternatively perhaps manufacturers and buyers should pay a bit more attention to the road surfaces the vehicles will be driven on before selecting sexy-looking but delicate wheels/tyres?

A lesson electric scooter riders are going to learn the hard way should they be allowed on the roads.

The state of the roads in the UKl, we need to go back to 15" rims with /75 profile tyres to ensure that the rims cannot be damaged...

Thanks for the replies and reassurance.

I had a CLS that hit a pothole on the rear a long time ago, and that ended up buckling the alloy, tyre was fine but it started to deflate over time.

It wasn't a black CLS 350 by chance? My wife bought one 6 years ago that had a buckled rear alloy.

No, but was a silver 57 plate, which had the engine blown up because the local garage ran it dry...the rims on that were made from cheese I think...like most alloys seem to be these days...

At the end of the day, and from conversations with a solicitor friend last night, he stated that the video clearly shows the trench had been backfilled incorrectly, and the shear volume of traffic had caused the backfill to be displaced from the trench causing it to be in excess of 2+ inches estimated. - which would indicate that it had been incorrectly filled for the purpose, and therefore there is a claim - and then he said some legal stuff that went over my head.

But I took it away as company digging trench didn't do it right, and therefore there is a case of negligence, together with a damage claim for your vehicle, and if ended up in court the evidence speaks volumes and that I have been reasonable in what I'm claiming for.