Table of contents:
- Step 1. Registration of an accident
- Step 2. Independent examination
- Step 3. Going to court
- Where to complain about bad roads
2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44
Step-by-step instructions and advice from a lawyer on how to get money for a broken wheel or a dead suspension.
Step 1. Registration of an accident
From a legal point of view, damage to a car due to an uneven road is a road traffic accident.
Article 1.2 of the Road Traffic Regulations: An accident is an event that occurred during the movement of a vehicle on the road and with its participation, in which people were killed or injured, vehicles, structures, goods were damaged or other material damage was caused.
If there are no warning signs on the road, and you were driving according to the rules, but ended up in a hole, then you are a victim in a traffic accident.
It is necessary to stop, turn on the alarm, put up an emergency sign and call the traffic police.
You cannot be denied permission to go to the scene, but it can take a very long time to get involved in an accident with a pit. Therefore, do not tell by phone that you have entered the pit. Tell me that there was an accident without injuries. Formally, it is.
It is impossible to register such an accident according to the European protocol, since only one car was involved in the accident.
Theoretically, the action of the CTP policy should apply to cases of damage to the car as a result of a road traffic accident due to a collision with a pit or an open hatch. After all, each road has a balance sheet holder, and insurers have the right to regressive claims against organizations responsible for the maintenance and repair of the road. Even if an accident happened inside a closed territory of a residential complex, regressive payments can be presented to the management company. In practice, insurers refuse to pay MTPL because of an accident with a pit. The main reason is the difficulty in identifying the person who will need to present regressive claims. Under CASCO in such cases, you will definitely receive compensation for damage.
Waiting for the traffic police:
- Talk to eyewitnesses. You are in luck if someone saw your car get damaged. Take their contacts and ask if they can, if necessary, testify in court.
- Inspect the car and take pictures of the damage. You can use recordings from video recorders.
The arrived traffic police officers are required to measure the pit, draw up a diagram of the incident and a protocol.
According to GOST R 50597-93, a pit is a subsidence or pothole longer than 15 cm, wider than 60 cm and deeper than 5 cm.
Be sure to re-read the protocol and the accident certificate. They must contain accurate pothole parameters and comprehensive damage information. Copies of these documents, as well as a ruling on initiating an administrative offense case or refusing it, you will receive in your hands.
If it is important for you that the organization serving this section of the road is brought to administrative responsibility under Article 12.34 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, insist on drawing up an act of identified deficiencies in the maintenance of roads.
Step 2. Independent examination
Contact a car appraisal firm after an accident. There are many of them on the market. Choose a company with a good reputation and experienced experts.
Another option, which is more convenient and of high quality, is to work with appraisers who are advised by a lawyer. The lawyer will go to court with the claims on the basis of the opinion on the value prepared by the appraiser. I do not think that among colleagues there will be masochists who will defend the interests of the client on the basis of a mediocre conclusion about the damage assessment.
Alexander Gulko
Notify the place and time of the examination of the future defendant. In writing, it is better by registered mail with notification. You can find out who is in charge of the road in the traffic police. As a rule, these are administrations of municipalities and their departments. The contractors who carried out the paving or road repairs can act as co-defendants.
The authorities may not come to the assessment. It does not matter. The main thing is that you warned, and the expert described all defects, including hidden ones.
The money spent on the damage assessment can be returned through the court. But first, it is recommended to go through the claim production.
Send to the authority responsible for the road a claim demanding compensation for damage, a copy of the expert's opinion and documents from the traffic police. If within a month there was no answer or a refusal came, go to court.
Step 3. Going to court
The right to compensation for damage caused by bad roads is enshrined in Article 28 of the Law "On Roads and Road Activities" of November 8, 2007.
Jurisdiction: the district court at the location of the defendant (if there is no harm to health).
State duty: depends on the price of the claim.
The documents: statement of claim, expert opinion, accident certificate, act of identified deficiencies in road maintenance (if any). Photo and video filming, testimony of witnesses can be used as evidence.
Stay calm and confident during the trial. The defendant can blame the traffic police (they did not hang up signs, they do not fine the reckless drivers on this street) or road workers (they were poorly repaired). But the court will look mainly at papers. It is very important that the accident report states that you did not violate traffic rules. If the defendant insists on a reduction in the amount of damage, remind him that he was invited to the assessment.
98% of claims in such cases are satisfied by the court. 2% of refusals are cases when drivers have poorly followed their car. For example, many times a repaired cast alloy wheel of’21 radius can crack even on a small flaw in the road, and once you get into a hole, you can simply be left without a wheel.
Alexander Gulko
If the court decides in your favor, you will receive not only money for repairs, but also compensation for legal and legal costs. The corresponding writ of execution is issued within two weeks.
Where to complain about bad roads
It is the duty of the traffic police to keep track of the roads. If you skillfully avoid road bumps, but do not want to put up with them, write a written or online complaint to the State Traffic Inspectorate.
One can complain not only about road pits, but also about poorly laid manhole covers and tram rails. They should rise above the asphalt by no more than 2 cm. The term for eliminating unevenness on the road is 10 days.
There are also services for automatically sending complaints about bad roads:
- RosYama. After a short registration, click on "Add a pit". Your complaint will be checked by an expert and sent to the traffic police.
- "Map of the killed roads". Registration is also required, and the appeal is moderated. Focus on large sections of damaged roads rather than individual pits. The information about the pit is received by the activists of the All-Russian Popular Front, and not by the traffic police. And the inaction of public figures cannot be complained about to the prosecutor's office.
If the State Traffic Inspectorate and the local administration are inactive, contact the prosecutor's office.
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