One of those old fossils managed to lose control over their car today, and plowed their ride right into mine. Worth of car: about $1500. Estimate for fixing: $3000.
Yay for an economic total loss.
And ofcourse, this happens right when I've got 90% of my cash invested in my webhosting business, and I can't afford to buy a new car. Yet I need one, because the data center is 30 miles in the middle of nowhere.
Fuck.
Fucking fuck.
Anyone wanna donate?
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
Still driveable, at any rate!
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ACES! Another post by Xyrra:
That doesn't look like the damage is too bad, unless of course the quarterpanel is rubbing in the wheel well.Still driveable, at any rate!
Well he has to replace the turnsignal cover.
No insurance?
Besides that, the entire bottom of the trunk is bent out of shape, and whenever I take it over 20mph everything shakes, rattles, and rolls, so I'm suspecting the subframe that the rear suspension is hooked to is either bent, or has come loose.
All in all the other guys' insurance company will declare this a total loss, and will offer me the current going rate for this car. Which amounts to just about $750, since a) it's from 1989, b) has about 190k miles on it, c) it's 'merkun, which for some reason means that it's not an interesting object for any wreckers yard.
So I'm fucked proper.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
I'm not very familiar with insurance - never driven before, so... But that seems like a pretty raw deal.
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Channeling the spirit of Sherlock Holmes, Zaeron absently fondled Watson and proclaimed:
And you can't do anything about that? $750 won't replace a car with, well, anything that could even remotely be considered a car. I mean, can't you refuse and insist they fix the car?I'm not very familiar with insurance - never driven before, so... But that seems like a pretty raw deal.
If the damage is more than the market value of the car, the insurance takes the car and pays out only what it's worth--they won't pay more than the car's worth to fix it. It's not a happy thing, but that's how insurance works; they'll never pay out more than the thing's worth.
--Satan, quoted by John Milton
Some seventeen-year-old girl hit a kindergarten teacher on her bike because she was busy chatting on a cell phone.
I agree that old people don't need to be in cars anymore.
Can you get a loan for a used but new style car? I'd go with that..
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Kiranê said:
That sucks.Can you get a loan for a used but new style car? I'd go with that..
I just had a great idea!
You could loan him your private jet and/or helicopter.
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Kiranê had this to say about Optimus Prime:
That sucks.Can you get a loan for a used but new style car? I'd go with that..
Naw, I've taken out a loan already to fund my business, and I can't take out another one. Suckage really. But oh well.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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So quoth Demos:
Anybody you can carpool with? Perhaps even go so far as to put an ad in the paper for a carpool, see if anyone else makes the commute and offer to pay for gas.
Ahh, I don't think people tend to wanna carpool when I call them at 3 in the morning and go "dude, get up, get dressed, I needs to be at the data center in 30 minutes" 
I do a lot of driving around to pick up servers and such and hook em up in the data center, as well as doing all the odd-hour support junk that comes along with being a webhoster, so that's right out.
I guess I could sorta bump out most of the dent with a big fucking hammer, and a new taillight cover can be had for a decent price too (read: free, from the wreckers yard). Unfortunately the subframe is bent so it's not safe, and it won't pass it's yearly checkup, and in general, I don't wanna be doing 3500 miles a month with it.
A new (used) car has been spotted, 1990 thunderbird, 5.0L V8, and all the cool options one could ask for. For reasonably cheap.
(Yes, I like american cars, sue me 
)
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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And I was all like 'Oh yeah?' and Bloodsage was all like:
If the damage is more than the market value of the car, the insurance takes the car and pays out only what it's worth--they won't pay more than the car's worth to fix it. It's not a happy thing, but that's how insurance works; they'll never pay out more than the thing's worth.
That's the gist of it, in general we get 3 types of coverage here, 1 is plain old liability, 2nd type is liability + minor damage to the car (think side mirrors being kicked off by some kids), and 3rd is basically liability + total loss. If I'd be insured for liability and total loss, I'd get the value of the car when it was new.
Unfortunately, this being considered a -very- luxury car over here, as well as having (for NL anyway) a rather wicked displacement v.s. hp v.s. car weight ratio, the premiums for the 2nd and 3rd level of insurance are through the roof. Come to think of it, just for liability I pay about $120 a month.
So yeah, they'll pay out the current blue book value, adjusted for various things, and I'll be lucky to end up with $750.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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Mooj stopped staring at Deedlit long enough to write:
Sue the old dude for all he's worth.
He'd probably waste more money hiring a lawyer to do that than he would get back.
I'M BEING REPRESSED!
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MadCat the 2nd attempted to be funny by writing:
Anyone over the age of 75, still driving a car, should be shot. In the head. Repeatedly.
I'm all for having everyone, yes every single human being with a driver's license, retake and pass the written driving exam every five years. And those causing accidents to retake the driving test just as often. Idiot driver's come in all ages and types so there's no need to discriminate based on one's age. Vernaltemptress fucked around with this message on 11-19-2005 at 10:48 PM.
Jackman fucked around with this message on 11-20-2005 at 09:41 AM.
Yahhhhhhhh!
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
So not all old people are bad drivers!
quote:When did that happen? I don't remember ever hearing about that one, but I sure as well wouldn't doubt him doing it.
Maradon! thought this was the Ricky Martin Fan Club Forum and wrote:
My grandpa has a 50+ year spotless driving history, and that includes driving himself to the hospital while having a heart attack. The emergancy room attendant was flabbergasted that he'd parallel parked and even put change in the meter.So not all old people are bad drivers!
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Demos's account was hax0red to write:
He'd probably waste more money hiring a lawyer to do that than he would get back.
Except you can move to have the lawyer's fees included in the damages, since without the wreck, he'd have had no need for the lawyer.
ALSO: If I understood my stepmom right (same thing happened to her with her CRV about a year ago) you can decline the settlement from the insurance company and opt to sue instead. Aury fucked around with this message on 11-20-2005 at 03:06 PM.
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Aury thought about the meaning of life:
Except you can move to have the lawyer's fees included in the damages, since without the wreck, he'd have had no need for the lawyer.ALSO: If I understood my stepmom right (same thing happened to her with her CRV about a year ago) you can decline the settlement from the insurance company and opt to sue instead.
Nope You can't do that overhere. Don't forget, I'm over in the Netherlands. Insurance system here is rather screwed up, leaving me wishing this would have happened in the US.
See, if the car's declared totalled, I won't get it back. I get between 500 and 750 dollars back, and the car becomes property of the insurance company. I might (or might not) get the option to buy back the "wreck".
I did some more peeking today, took the car out for a little spin to a buddy who's got a car lift, put it on and really all that's wrong is the big fucking dent, buckling in the trunk floor, and the exhaust was knocked off it's hangers (which might account for the vibration felt when taking it over 70 yesterday). No odd vibrations today after I tie-wrapped the exhaust back in place (yes yes I know it will melt eventually).
All in all it's getting more frustrating because I know I can fix these dents myself. All I need is a 2x4 and a big fucking hammer to work most of it out. But if the insurance company is gonna declare it totalled, I can kiss it goodbye. *ARGH*
Then again, there's a nice V8 thunderbird sitting a mere 5 miles away for a grand, so I might dip into my savings account and buy that instead.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
You live in one of them Eurotrash nations where everybody drives clown cars, don't you?
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Kaiote obviously shouldn't have said:
an 89-90 Tbird is a luxury car?You live in one of them Eurotrash nations where everybody drives clown cars, don't you?
Yeah 
Considering that: it has power windows, power steering, power brakes, power seats, central locking, a V6, and alloy rims, yes, it's luxury. If you compare it to what Mercedes had at the time, it's a pretty loaded car, that could be had over here for half the price of a Merc.
These days though people drive a Smart, and I fear pancaking them.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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Kaiote wrote this then went back to looking for porn:
You live in one of them Eurotrash nations where everybody drives clown cars, don't you?
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Noxhil2 said this about your mom:
Well, to be fair, he can't help it. He was just born that dumb.
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Snugglits stopped staring at Deedlit long enough to write:
Well, to be fair, he can't help it. He was just born that dumb.
Well, the eurotrash clown cars with their 34mpg are very nice if you see what we end up paying for fuel. Little known fact is that we've been exporting fuel to the USA to cover -your- shortages (SUV anyone?) in turn raising our fuel prices.
Gotta love having a prime minister that's so far up Bush's ass he can check what he had for lunch this afternoon.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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MadCat the 2nd stumbled drunkenly to the keyboard and typed:
Gotta love having a prime minister that's so far up Bush's ass he can check what he had for lunch this afternoon.
It's not our fault that your prime minister is gay for our president!
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Mooj's unholy Backstreet Boys obsession manifested in:
It's not our fault that your prime minister is gay for our president!
Never said it was, but it still sucks. I'd rather have a prime minister who'd back the US by choice, and not just to "look good" to the president of a world power. Actually I'd still rather have one that would tell everyone to go fuck themselves, being as how NL is the smallest country in the EU, but ends up paying the most, so someone needs to grow a pair and tell everyone to go to hell or something.
But, yay, elections in another 2 years.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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MadCat the 2nd had this to say about Cuba:
Well, the eurotrash clown cars with their 34mpg are very nice if you see what we end up paying for fuel. Little known fact is that we've been exporting fuel to the USA to cover -your- shortages (SUV anyone?) in turn raising our fuel prices.Gotta love having a prime minister that's so far up Bush's ass he can check what he had for lunch this afternoon.
I'm pretty sure gas prices are so high in Europe primarily because of the taxes. The reason oil is being sent to the U.S., I believe, is because we're paying quite a bit for it.
So... why are you blaming your elected government for market forces?
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Noxhil2 wrote this then went back to looking for porn:
I'm pretty sure gas prices are so high in Europe primarily because of the taxes. The reason oil is being sent to the U.S., I believe, is because we're paying quite a bit for it.So... why are you blaming your elected government for market forces?
Hmm, mostly for their lack of compensating for said market forces. For each liter of fuel, 80% of that goes right into taxes -- and if the US is indeed paying good for it, why aren't us "common folk" noticing any of that?
I mean, I've hardly got reason to complain because I don't exactly drive the most economical vehicle around, but $6 for a gallon?
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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Nobody really understood why Mr. Parcelan wrote:
Socialism sux
Not always, but the way the current government is handling things is quite sad. Unfortunately we don't get to kick them out for another few years
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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x--MadCat the 2ndO-('-'Q) :
Not always
People thrive despite socialism, never because of it.
But then, I can see how a government that provides for your every need can seem like an attractive idea.
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ACES! Another post by MadCat the 2nd:
Not always
YES ALWAYS 
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Maradon! stumbled drunkenly to the keyboard and typed:
[/qb]People thrive despite socialism, never because of it.
But then, I can see how a government that provides for your every need can seem like an attractive idea.
It seems like an attractive idea, yes, but that's theory.
Practically, it sucks ass. Too many rules and regulations, where the people that try to follow them get shafted, and the people who work around them reap all the benefits.
Oh, yeah, and shitty government. Leads to that too.
ben(at)netmastering(dot)nl
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Verily, Maradon! doth proclaim:
[/qb]People thrive despite socialism, never because of it.
Yeah, all the people out there who would be dead without socialist health care, food, heating or housing benefits would sure thrive alright, as would everyone who got a socialist education or who has to drive on socialist roads on their way to work, had the misfortune to grow up in a socialist orphanage, become a mentally ill (because of socialism) or rely on the socialist police for protection.
Unless by 'people thrive' you mean 'wealthy people buy DVDs', in that case yeah, you're right.
