This is what you get for doing the right thing..

[Anth83]

Ok here is my story -

Saturday me and my fiancee were going away for the night. My car was playing up so i borrowed my brothers car. Anyway down a back road this dog comes out from nowwhere and yeh i mowed it down. Hit it pretty hard. I got out of the car and the dog ran away. I went to the nearest house to do the right thing and tell them that i hit there dog. This old guy comes over and says that its his dog and that she looks like she is ok. (i saw blood and fur ripped out of it and it looked very shakey) His grandson says, "grandad you better take her to the vet". Anyway after saying how sorry i was and telling him i would be happy to pay the vet bill if something was seriously wrong, i walked back to my brothers car and drove off. When i got hom i looked at the front of the car and the damage was unblievable. Headlight smashed, bumperbar hanging off. So i went back to the old guy and showed him the car. Now knowing that he has to pay the damages coz it's his dog and it ran out on the road i said you better call you insurance company monday. He says yeh no worries. Tonight he gives me a call and says that he doesn't think it was his dog after all and that he took it to the vet and there was nothing wrong with it. Stupid **** just doesn't want to pay the bill to fix the car. I am extremely upset. How can people sleep at night after lying like that? Now I am going to have to fork out the money...... Ir's his dog the LAW say he has too. But he just denies it..

I mean i did the right thing and stopped and told him i hit his dog and that i was sorry.

Some people....

[EzyStvy]

If he comes back to you with a $4000.00 vet bill then maybe you can play "lets make a deal."

[Markoman01027]

Whoever is the owner of the dog should take more responsobility for their dog. A dog running around without a lease can cause all sorts of problems, even like this. This is just a clear indication of the *owner*(whoever it is) that he does not want to take responsobility. But if this happened to him, I am sure he would be asking for money, as well.

I am sure if I had a dog, and I let him roam free in the area that I live in, and he bit a child, I am pretty sure I would be held responsible for it, as their are laws for dogs to have a lease. This is usually because Animals like a Cat or a Dog rely on Instinct, they do not have reason.

I know you are concerned about money. And I am sorry for what happened. Despite everything, just be happy that you did the right thing, and been the better man. Thats all that matters. Money can be replaced, but sometimes not your pride.

[rwest]

Originally Posted by Markoman01027 Money can be replaced, but sometimes not your pride.

Well said. That is soo... easy to forget. Especially when there are so many others out there waiting in the shadows for the gullible.

Markoman, remember to hold your head up high when you go any where. Why, because you are a better person.(probably than most others) Good luck to you.

[David M]

Ask yourself, what if the dog had died? Would you be heartless enough to give a bill to a grieving family? Let it go, file an insurance claim. Thats what you have insurance for.

[HAL9000]

While not trying to lay blame on either party, a few questions go though my mind... 1) how fast were you going? Was it too fast for the area you were driving or road conditions? 2) You say back road... as in a road not used much, or back alley? If it were a back alley and that much damage was done, sounds like you may have been going too fast in an area where visibility can be an issue.

I do have to agree with David though.... it's what the insurance is for.

[Markoman01027]

Originally Posted by rwest Well said. That is soo... easy to forget. Especially when there are so many others out there waiting in the shadows for the gullible. Markoman, remember to hold your head up high when you go any where. Why, because you are a better person.(probably than most others) Good luck to you.

Thank you, but I am no better than you, or anybody else in this world. Plus, I am just a Socialist ..What do I know?

Originally Posted by HAL9000 While not trying to lay blame on either party, a few questions go though my mind... 1) how fast were you going? Was it too fast for the area you were driving or road conditions? 2) You say back road... as in a road not used much, or back alley? If it were a back alley and that much damage was done, sounds like you may have been going too fast in an area where visibility can be an issue. I do have to agree with David though.... it's what the insurance is for.

I am not trying to start a fight with anyone, or lay blame on anything. But I agree with HAL. Sounds like you *accused* him of being at fault thus telling him about the damages that the dog *caused* to the vehicle. I think before you can *accuse* somebody to pay for the damages, you need to assess how and why the accident happened. HAL makes it perfectly clear about factors that need to be put into the equation. IF you were driving carelessely, then I think you have no right to have the owner of the dog pay. Once again, I am not trying to pick a fight with you, only telling you how I feel. Not accusing you of anything, or any wrong doings.

Mistakes do happen(Forgetting to put your Dog on a Lease), but careless driving is not a mistake. It is a conscious choice.

Best of luck!

[Strider]

I think the owner of the dog should keep the dog from roaming where there are roads, dogs do get out from time to time. Very good points made already about insurance, it sucks to have insurance cover the repairs, but there really isn't no good alternative.

[SARGE]

Since I've been forced to use my bike since my wreck, I've had a few close calls with dogs. One that stands out is the lady "walking" her 2 dogs. She had the leashes in hand but not connected to the dogs. I've seen her doing this in the 'hood before. They run all over everyone's yard with her trailing way behind. Anyway, they came charging at me barking which made me pedal faster than my ticker wanted to. I got away from them and was fuming. Rear-ended a week ago in my Bug, now almost attacked by 2 unleashed dogs while on my bike. Sheesh, it's a war out there.

[faulkner132]

Originally Posted by Anth83 Anyway down a back road this dog comes out from nowwhere and yeh i mowed it down.

Being an animal lover (yes, my dog would eat before I would if we had no money), seeing a phrase like this makes me sick.

"yeh i mowed it down" makes me have no sympathy for your situation. Animals are living creatures too and there are more important things than worring about insurance. I know a lot of people will disagree with me here, but I'm more concerned about the dog.

[HAL9000]

Umm... when he says "mowed it down", I hardly think he means he stepped on the gas and took aim as your post seems to be implying.

[SARGE]

Originally Posted by HAL9000 Umm... when he says "mowed it down", I hardly think he means he stepped on the gas and took aim as your post seems to be implying.

We all have heard about folks who swerved to miss an animal, only to result in a serious wreck. Good point, Hal.

[faulkner132]

Originally Posted by HAL9000 Umm... when he says "mowed it down", I hardly think he means he stepped on the gas and took aim as your post seems to be implying.

The interesting choice of words suggests this, however.

"Accidentally hit it" or "Couldn't help but avoid" are much better choices in my opinion.
"Mowed it down" has negative connotations to me.

[HAL9000]

I use those same words to describe a cat I hit not once... but twice... long story... ya.. I mowed it down... plowed him into the pavement hard... do I hate cats? No... I have two and have had cats for years.... I think you're reading a little too much into it.

[David M]

I have hit so many squirrels trying to avoid them that now I try to "mow them down" and usually end up missing them. I guess sometimes attempting to mow something down can work to their advantage.

[rspassey]

I've been fortunate to have not hit an animal yet. Came close to hitting a car twice actually (typically mistake of assuming the other driver actually knows what they are doing).

I'm not even sure if this is really a case of "what you get for doing the right thing" because you are in the same position as you would have been if you had just kept on driving. However, you should actually acknowledge the fact that you are a better person because of this. You had the decency to approach the man and offer restitution for your damages: the same can't be said for many people I know, who would have kept on driving. The fact of the matter is that you tried to be a nice person, you did the "right thing". That's what is important - your character, your reputation, your dignity. Don't spoil it by getting hot over the insurance.

[Anth83]

Wait a sec. I am being accused for driving too fast and reckless? What a load of crap. I was driving under the limit and the dog was BIG. German sheppard. I think if the same thing happened to you, you wouldnt be happy. The old guy said it WAS his dog. He didn't even seem to care that it was hurt. Dogs should be on a leash. And if the dog HAD died i still would want the bill. Imagine if i had swereved into an oncoming car and people were killed.
Still my fault if that happened?

And to think i did it on purpose....because i said mowed it down......

Man some people make me angry

[Stuey]

Relax there. You have to understand that people make assumptions based on what you write and what you don't write. All that was said is that there exists the possibility that the event might have been preventable. It's a possibility, not a guarantee. You're saying that you were driving under the limit. Still, unless you explicitly state that it was unavoidable, there exists the possibility that it was avoidable. Nobody is accusing you of anything though.

Also, like I said, people are going to judge you based on your words. To be honest, for a second I also questioned the language which you used to describe hitting the dog. But then I considered that nobody in their right mind would do that. Given the title of the thread and a few of your comments, I quickly dismissed that it was just an odd description.

The dog owner is responsible for this, but it does happen. I would try contacting him again. You can mask your intent by inquiring as to the dog's well-being and then present the amount of damages to the car. If he's reasonable, he might agree to pay half. I suppose it all depends on the cost of damage to the car. Another question is whose insurance is covering this - your brother's, or yours? It might be a bit unfair to have it covered by your brother's insurance because they might raise his premium heftily over this.

The situation really stinks. Still, don't feel bad about doing the right thing, it's not like handling the situation wrongly would have saved you any cash.

[Anth83]

I had about 1 second to react. Dog ran straight out in front of the car. I used the word "mowed it down" coz those are the first words i thought of. Was impossible to avoid.
The owner of the dog didn't seem to care about his dog. Had blood on it's paw, furr ripped out and was walking very shakey. All he said was "she will be ok" He keeped apoligizing to me saying it wasen't my fault and that the dog shouldn't of been on the road..
Now he says that the dog had a splinter in it's foot and thats why there was blood there.
Aparently this guy is a real shifty charactor. My mum knows the lady who lives next door to him and he has a reputation for being shifty to people.

faulkner132 I love animals myself. Using the words "mowed it down" doesn't make me an animal hater and want to kill them. Use your brains. Why do you think i felt so bad hitting the animal? The first thing i did when i hit it was run after it to see if it was ok.

I have calmed down, and realize that i should feel good coz i did the right thing.

I just don't understand some people. They DON't take responsibility. The dog should of been locked up in his paddock.

[The_YongGrand]

anth83 - I'm sure you can negotiate with your neighbour and have a win-win situation. Shifty neighbours aren't really difficult to deal with.

In my place where I'm staying now, I don't find shifty neighbours, but inconsiderate ones. These are your worst enemies actually.

My neighbour has a dog - a female Rottweiler (I think so - judging by its face) and gave birth to a few puppies. Okay, so one early morning, that owner let the dog unleashed, so she roamed around with her kids. I was walking towards my car as I accidently crossed her 'radius' and she bared her teeth, growled and snapped at me. I was so dead shocked and thought of running, but couldn't because she might chase after me. I couldn't stare at her as well, I could only look down and not facing her. Fortunately the owner called her back home and I was so relieved. At the same day, at night, the same dog which was unleashed nearly attacked a small kid and scared him so badly.

Okay - what happened if she got me? I don't think the owner would compensate. Or even the insurance. Worse of all in my place the enforcers are quite difficult to be contacted and takes very long time to do their action.

[HAL9000]

Originally Posted by Anth83 Wait a sec. I am being accused for driving too fast and reckless? What a load of crap. I was driving under the limit and the dog was BIG. German sheppard. I think if the same thing happened to you, you wouldnt be happy. The old guy said it WAS his dog. He didn't even seem to care that it was hurt. Dogs should be on a leash. And if the dog HAD died i still would want the bill. Imagine if i had swereved into an oncoming car and people were killed. Still my fault if that happened? And to think i did it on purpose....because i said mowed it down...... Man some people make me angry

Relax a little... nobody is placing blame.... we're all just asking for a bit of clarification on exactly what happened. No doubt you're upset... nobody is blaming you for that either.