January 09, 2008

NOT THE MORNING I WAS PLANNING

so there i was ... driving mom downtown to renew her Health Card.
some dude runs a stop sign
smacks into my car ... driver's side rear ...
spins me ... ACROSS TWO LANES of ONCOMING TRAFFIC

THANK GOD ... the lanes were clear ... at 9:00 AM ... a miracle in and of itself
as I'm spinning I'm looking at someone in front of me walking on the sidewalk
"DEAR JESUS!" uttered by me ... by Mom
i come to a rest across the far lane of traffic with my front tires up on the curb
my glasses had been knocked off my head
I have no idea how the air bags didn't deploy but am grateful because sometimes they make things even worse

Mom is ok ...
I'm ok ...
my car ... not so ok
the back drivers side tire is flat and the back rear panel / back door punched in

call to CAA ... "i need a tow truck" ... "we can't release one until there is a police report"
call to police ... "is anyone hurt?" ... "no not really" ... "we can't send an officer unless there is an injury ... you need to come to a reporting centre" ... "but they won't send a truck until there is a police report ..."

... as the circle of frustration continues to grow a tow truck arrives unannounced and unsolicited ... but I'll take ...

he says ... Eastgate Ford uses blah blah garage I can take you there from the reporting centre ... and arrange a rental ... I'm like "ok"

... get to reporting centre and the dude there says "where are you having the car towed" ... i tell him and he says to the cop at the desk ... "Would you take your car to blah blah?" NO is the response ... "the tow guy is getting kickbacks and they are brutal" ... GRRRRR (can i say how much i despise people that take advantage of people in a vulnerable place?)

ok ...call my garage for their recommendation (they don't do body work) and they say ... "Take it to Eastgate Ford they have a body shop right next door (CARSTAR) and they are the best in the city" ...

i tell the tow dude and he's all bent out of shape ... "well this tow will be costly ... i would have just billed this into the insurance thing" ...I'm like ... "buddy's insurance is covering this ANYWAY ... take me to Eastgate Ford" ... he does ...

the lady there says ... "yeah ... that's a scam why would we send our cars to someone else when we have CARSTAR next door?" They arranged my rental ... which is covered in my insurance anyway

...OI ... after all that we ran downtown and got her health card (as hers expires next week ... and she's got Doc appointments the week after) ... run up to BGT to say "I'm going home" ... share the details with coworkers for a bit.

I went to the Urgent Care ... my neck is stiff and sore ... back too ... just wanted it documented medically. Doc said ... "i don't think we need to bother with Xrays ... you've not broken anything ... but we'll get this documented for Insurance or police reports"

HOME ... call insurance company ... call Glyn ... he's like ... "I'm coming home now" I said ..."you don't need to ... I'm fine ... just come down after work"

OI ...I've taken a Tylenol 3 and I think i will lay upon my couch ...
I'm weary ...the adrenalin has worn off

OI ...
GOD IS GOOD ...what could have been ... scary

11 comments:

Don G said...

Kelly: I agree: GOD is good --- all the time ! We wonder why these things happen to us. Especially when we are not in control. But, in looking back, it's pretty obvious that GOD was there because it could have been a lot worse. You were smart not letting the tow jockey pirate your car off to the cheat shop. Those guys are bandits and the towing operator a leach. He will not likely get his threatened high towing cost. The insurance companies are onto these guys. The police and the legitimate towing companies play right into the hands of these people by refusing to come if there are no injuries. I don't know what the answer is but, I think if it was me, as a member of CAA, I'd be asking some questions. As a matter of fact, now that you have told us of the experience, I think I will do some investigating on my own just for future reference.

Dougie G said...

I'm glad you are ok! You must have some guardian angels! That guy that hit you should get charged with running a red light and possibly even careless driving. His insurance should cover all your damage. It's a confusing time because you are kind of in shock and don't know what to do. Too bad there are people that try to take advantage of situations like that. But God is on your side and you made a good decision to listen to the right people. Everything will work out ok.

Unknown said...

holy cow Kelly. we're glad you're ok.

Kelly said...

Don, Doug & Dwayne ... THE THREE D's

:)

God is good ...
Trying not to dwell on the what could have beens ... but at the same time, they (or the lack of they) also are a testament of God's protection. There was a school at the intersection with a crossing guard on the corner. IF kids had been crossing ... IF oncoming traffic had been oncoming ...

OI ...

OH and the garage that the tow dude wanted to take the car ... AUTO CLAIM ... that's an FYI for all the Hamilton peops!

Patti said...

Oh Kelly, that is so brutal. I am shocked that CAA wouldn't send anyone; I've never had a problem like that with CAA. I agree with Don - I'd be asking some questions, because I don't think they handled that the way they're supposed to. What the heck are we members of CAA for, if they can't help in the exact time when they're supposed to??!!!

You will be stiff for a few days, I'm betting. So sorry that happened. And so glad it was not worse.

My suggestion: document EVERYTHING.

Joe said...

I think you handled yourself quite well in the circumstances. I am just glad that there are no serious injuries. I know what it is like to lose control of your vehicle... even for those brief seconds. It may take a bit of time to get over the feeling of helplessness when driving. That should pass with time. I hope in your case it is quick.

And... I thought if the damage to your car was over $3,000 the police had to be called. Your damage is at least that. When did they change it to "there needing to be personal injury" before they come? I was under the impression that if it needed to be towed they needed to respond. The CAA is as stuck in this situation as you were. If they moved the vehicle and then the police did respond they could get into trouble. Guess someone changed the rules and not everyone is aware of the new "guidelines".

Patti said...

Joe - A few years ago, I was told it was a few thousand dollars in damage for the police to come BUT that didn't include labour.

What the heck do I know about the cost of parts??

So the police wouldn't come. You have to go to them and draw diagrams.

Kelly said...

AND LET ME TELL YOU ... i drew beautiful diagrams, intricate diagrams ... listing weather and road conditions ... knew my North, South, East and West.

yeah i'm not sure when the rules changed. it was frustrating in the midst of it all.

but all things work together for good ...

i'm driving a spiffy rental (a fire red Dodge Avenger) it makes me feel very powerful ... almost She-rah like! ;)

Don G said...

Kelly, I e-mailed the CAA - outlined what occurred ( without giving any identifying info ) and asked what I could expect as one of their members if the same thing happened to me. I asked if they expected me to leave my car at the accident scene and take a taxi to the reporting station to get the police report. here's their answer verbatim:
" Thank you for contacting CAA. You will not have to leave your vehicle at the scene of an accident. CAA does cover accident tows, however, if the damage is more than $1000., you will require a police report or we will tow it to the collision reporting centre where the report can be made; of course, you can accompany the vehicle there: so, you would not have to take a taxi. Once the report is complete, you can contact CAA again to come and get the vehicle and have it towed to the destination of your choice. These two service calls would only be counted as one occurrence on your CAA membership call count ".
If the dispatcher mishandled your case, maybe you should lodge a complaint. They would probably like to know about it.

Kelly said...

Don;

I will contact CAA. I am sure that if I had called them again after the convo with the police (and their not coming on the scene) they would have released a truck. But as one drove up unsolicited I took that one!

Since buddy was taking full responsibility and I had the names & contact #'s of three witnesses, his disputing responsibility wasn't an issue. I wasn't worried about the truth being told at the Reporting Centre.

FYI ... still a little stiff and a little sore ... but a bit better than yesterday.

:)

Patti said...

Glad your stiffness is going away!