[cntlaw]

why you guys give me soooo much time to mod my car before the next showoff meets?

[Neekulaz]

Seems better to postpone it to 18 or 25 June 2006, coz I still haven't recovered from the shock of the traffic accident (minor one notwithstanding) a few days ago

[RD Sport]

guys

we will postpone our 5th meet until further notice.....

[rikuF10]

Originally Posted by Neekulaz

Seems better to postpone it to 18 or 25 June 2006, coz I still haven't recovered from the shock of the traffic accident (minor one notwithstanding) a few days ago

Neekulaz,

How did it go with the insurance company and other driver?

[kelvinso]

Originally Posted by cntlaw

why you guys give me soooo much time to mod my car before the next showoff meets?

t & 2020, have you checked the shape of your spolier? I have installed mine using double-sided tape and it seems to pop up a bit at the ends....

Might need to buy the Betalink and install it again

[raychkg]

guys, I will be away from Jun 11 till 22..haha a long vacation with lo por....so prefer to meet on Jun 25 if you can wait...

[LKW]

Originally Posted by kelvinso

t & 2020, have you checked the shape of your spolier? I have installed mine using double-sided tape and it seems to pop up a bit at the ends....

Might need to buy the Betalink and install it again

Hi Kelvin,
May I know your shark fin just for beauty or really workable as antenna.

[kelvinso]

Originally Posted by LKW

Hi Kelvin,
May I know your shark fin just for beauty or really workable as antenna.

Just for decoration

[RD Sport]

Originally Posted by kelvinso

t & 2020, have you checked the shape of your spolier? I have installed mine using double-sided tape and it seems to pop up a bit at the ends....

Might need to buy the Betalink and install it again

You did it yourself? I remember my garage wipe my trunk with some liquid before they put my spoiler on. So far my spoiler sits on my trunk firmly and both ends do not pop up...

[RD Sport]

Originally Posted by raychkg

guys, I will be away from Jun 11 till 22..haha a long vacation with lo por....so prefer to meet on Jun 25 if you can wait...

that's good.... I wanted a long vacation too...

[LKW]

Originally Posted by kelvinso

Just for decoration

OIC. I will do so.

[Neekulaz]

Originally Posted by RikuE90

Neekulaz,

How did it go with the insurance company and other driver?

Things have finally settled today, and I had a bit of uneasiness in the past few days.

The police officer in charge of the case called me up at 11:45pm - yes I am not joking, close to mid night - the day after the accident and asked me what I think about the case. By then I already had the photos developed which clearly show that my all four wheels were already in the lane at the time of crash. In other words, I could well argue that technically I have already finished lane changing although my car wasn't in the exact middle of the lane.

I informed the police officer of this and my view that this was a case where a speeding driver failed to notice a slower vehicle in front (and there was visual obstruction because there was a bend before going straight to the toll booths of the Cross Harbour Tunnel) and failed to stop in time. Although the car behind bumped into the boot area of my vehicle, this didn't mean it was me who was careless because the lane there is so wide that it could accomodate virtually 1.5 car. This gave leeway for the driver behind to swerve its vehicle towards (and scratch) the road side and bump into the boot area. If the lane was a normal lane of normal width, it would have bumped exactly into my bumper..

The police officer obviously wanted to put me off by saying that it was my fault anyway and said lots of discouraging things to indicate that if a driver were to be prosecuted it would be me. Nuts. I told him that I could not agree and and I was seeking legal advice.

After consulting a barrister experienced road traffic cases and reading some traffic cases (I work in the legal field as well), it does appear to me that judges and the police tend to convict drivers of the changing lane vehicles due to a concept deeply rooted in their mind that changing lane vehicles are always at fault. It is very difficult to defend cases of this type.

I then had a sad day full of grievence. I just couldn't believe how I could possibly be prosecuted when an insane driver crashed me from behind and when all my 4 wheels were already in the lane.

Luckily, another friend of mine who works in the car insurance field took a look at my photos and pointed out a small but very important thing - the photos also clearly show that the driver behind was wearing SLIPPERS at the time of accident! Goodness I believe that the balance of my case has since then changed. I do not think the police would be able to proof that I drove carelessly without any reasonable doubt. The case should be a speeding driver wearing slippers failed to stop in time and bumped into a vehicle in front which had just finished lane changing.

Although I was convinced that it was the driver behind who was careless, I also understood that it would nearly be impossible to convince the police to prosecute the other driver because it could never be proved that he was speeding and that his capability to stop the car was hindered because he was wearing slippers. The evidence could only make the police difficult to prosecute me successfully.

And by then, I've decided that I wouldn't pay a penny to compensate the other driver. I was also prepared that I wouldn't be able to receive any compensation because the police would not prosecute the other driver because of lack of incriminating evidence.

The police officer called me again today and asked me whether I had made up my mind. I put forward my new findings and my case to him. Once again, he tried to dismiss all my arguments and put me off. I've got enough of him and told him that I am a practising lawyer and I have sought the advice of a barrister who works on traffic cases. By then, he started to be more cautious.

I told the police officer that he should consider my evidence and my anaylsis. He wasn't that convinced, as expected. In the end, I told him that I would be prepared to settle the case but I wouldn't pay any compensation to the other side. The police officer then told me that he had talked to the other side and the other side had indicated that they would be prepared to pay their own repair costs and would not seek compensation from me.

Given the inherent weakness of my case (i.e. I was the "changing lane" driver), I didn't have any further bullet to persuade the police officer to prosecute the driver behind. It was ultimately agreed that the case should be closed and neither party would have to compensate the other. I will attend the police station next week to show my insurance documents just for record and then close the case.

The result is not entirely satisfactory on the face, but I believe this is a fair outcome in light of the disadvantage I have and the lack of evidence against the other driver. It is also a good thing to settle the whole thing just within a few days.

As to my repair costs, I only need to have the boot repainted because there were only a few minor scratches. The car worked perfectly well without any problem at all. BMWHK has quoted HK$3,500 for the paint job. Expensive but seems unavoidable. Or does anyone have any suggestion as to where I can get a decent paint job at a lower price?

[raychkg]

Hi Neekulaz, thanks for sharing your case. I also thought it's the fault of the speeding car behind that hit your back because your four wheels were in lane
Anyway, good to know the only repair is the minor repaint.:rocks:

[rikuF10]

Neekulaz,

I can feel the last few days must be a tough time for you. Police officers nowadays are really working late, aren't they?

As long as you got this settled now, you won't get the hassle if this thing drag on further.

Hope to see you in the next meet!

[woo]

Neekulaz,

If BMWHK only charge you $3.5k for the paint job, I recommand you should go for it. Actually I am not sure how many pis are need to paint. However, assumed HK$3.5k is for rear bumper spary only, I still think it is reasonable. Do not go to the street bodyshop unless you know them well.

[ksquare]

Neekulaz,

I'm impressed that there are only a few scratches and no dents whatsoever. I guess the flexibility of the bumper (plastic I think) cover is one reason for this.

Woo is right. For 3.5K to be done by bmw, take it. They have to ensure that the paint job wil be perfect and not noticeable at all. You can most certainly get it done cheaper outside but you never know how good the quality is. My friend has a car paint shop near the wet market at to kwa wan (nearby bmw) but I would suggest to go for bmw given it's only 3.5K.

[sunnywuh]

Hi Neekulaz,
i had the same experience - got waken up in the middle of the night, obviously police are not very customer-friendly. They tend to choose the easy way out without giving due regard to yr evidence. The fact that the reckless driver was wearing slippers would certainly add weight to yr evidence. You'd need to have an expert opinion to prove that wearing slippers does have a correlation between brake speed and response.

But then what the hell! i am happy that at least you can close the file and let it be bygone!

Since yr car is SG, strongly suggest you go for BM HK for re-painting. Don't know anyone can match the factory standard. Hope it wouldn't take too long for the re-paint work.

[kelvinso]

Neekulaz,
Provided that BMWHK charges you 3.5k, I suggest you to go for it.
Normally, their paint job is much better than the garage outside, especially your color.
Although the outcome is not the most ideal, as long as 3.5k can settle your nightmare, go for it and never remember this afterwards....
Kelvin

[kelvinso]

Originally Posted by sunnywuh

Hi Neekulaz,
i had the same experience - got waken up in the middle of the night, obviously police are not very customer-friendly. They tend to choose the easy way out without giving due regard to yr evidence. The fact that the reckless driver was wearing slippers would certainly add weight to yr evidence. You'd need to have an expert opinion to prove that wearing slippers does have a correlation between brake speed and response.

But then what the hell! i am happy that at least you can close the file and let it be bygone!

Since yr car is SG, strongly suggest you go for BM HK for re-painting. Don't know anyone can match the factory standard. Hope it wouldn't take too long for the re-paint work.

Hi Sunny,
Saw your black bullet on the no. 3 route near Kung Tong Exit this morning...mine was on the fast lane heading TST.
Kelvin

[rikuF10]

Someone told me that the BMWHK paint shop in Shatin is better than the one in ToKwaWan.....Anyone can confirm that?

[kelvinso]

Originally Posted by RikuE90

Someone told me that the BMWHK paint shop in Shatin is better than the one in ToKwaWan.....Anyone can confirm that?

Yes, you are right. My experience with Shatin center was so far satisfactory, especially the paint job I have tried with my E36. But I cannot say it is 100% better than TKW. At least to me, the equipment seems more sophicated for re-painting.

Actually, my car (old and new) has been washed by them many times after services and has not encountered bad experience like RikuE90. May be Shatin center is bigger and not so congested as TKW.

Just my 2 cents!!

[rikuF10]

kelvinso.....thanks for your info (and your reminder).....maybe I should consider to bring my E90 to shatin for servicing. Don't want them to scatch my car again