Frame and tie down damage from unmarked speedbump.

[HadEnough]

Last year they put in a new speed bump in a place that I had been driving for years and I didn’t notice the speedbump. I was driving out of habit, and I hit it and damaged my frame mounts for my truck camper. And broke the water tank.

I replaced these frame mounts And fixed the water tank, only to hit a completely new AND unmarked speedbump this year!


This unmarked speed bump damaged the frame mounted tied downs and the frame itself.

Do I have any recourse here with the city or do I just have to eat this? Do I have to pay for this frame to get welded? And replace yet another set of damaged tiedowns?

I’m a little bit irritated at this point. Please see pictures of the unmarked speedbump and the damage to the RV at the following link.


I posted a picture of the frame mount how it should look, and a picture of the one that was destroyed by the unmarked speedbump. Also pictures of the speedbump itself.


Pictures of the broken frame mount, broken frame, and unmarked speedbump.


This is actually unreal. The truck camper left the bed of the truck. Dishes everywhere. Everything flew off of shelves. Unbelievable impact from this unmarked speedbump.

[MFL]

I can understand the OP being upset about the unmarked bump, and being upset with some posters responses. I don't understand how some forum members can get this upset, even in the event that they may feel taunted by other members. A better solution would be to delete your thread, when it goes sideways, or ask mod to close it. It is easy for people to be mean/sarcastic on any internet forum, but in this case, not what I'd call personal attacks.

To the OP...you were right, that it takes time/money to go after anyone to recover damages. You said you didn't have the time, so best to fix er up, move on, be more cautious in the future.

Jerry

[NRALIFR]

I guess he really has had enough!

I drove the 17 mile dirt road in Monument Valley last week. I swear, that whole road is an unmarked road hazard. Tore up one of my Stableloads. I should sue.

:):)

[mich800]

fj12ryder wrote:
You post a picture of what looks like an asphalt patch, basically no way to tell anything about how tall, or how bad of a speed bump it is. You also show a picture of what is obviously an old frame break. And then you say the speed bump cause the frame break. What results is skepticism from anyone who cares to actually look at the photos.

Taking things at face value on any kind of forum an invitation to gullibility. I'm sorry you didn't get the sympathy you feel you deserve, but you just didn't post well enough to show that it was deserved. Make a good case and you stand a chance, your case was too slap dash to be taken seriously.

This is the quote that drew my skepticism “ They were about half a dozen cars all in a line and another half dozen or more behind me. Must be nice driving out in the country in the middle of nowhere and having the road to yourself, but that’s not what goes on in Jersey City right here outside of New York”

You would think a bump violent enough to break a frame would be noticeable watching the first six cars go over it. Frame damage two different times over speed bumps I would start to suspect a bad frame contributed to the damage.

[fj12ryder]

You post a picture of what looks like an asphalt patch, basically no way to tell anything about how tall, or how bad of a speed bump it is. You also show a picture of what is obviously an old frame break. And then you say the speed bump cause the frame break. What results is skepticism from anyone who cares to actually look at the photos.

Taking things at face value on any kind of forum an invitation to gullibility. I'm sorry you didn't get the sympathy you feel you deserve, but you just didn't post well enough to show that it was deserved. Make a good case and you stand a chance, your case was too slap dash to be taken seriously.

[Fizz]

You call that a speed bump?
If that hint of a bump caused damage you were obviously going to fast and your truck is way overloaded.

Your cracked frame is rusty, says it all.

Troll post from the start.

[bgum]

It appears that it is part of the first speeding damage. Clearly you are driving too fast for the conditions or you don't have enough truck for the camper. Either way it's your problem not the public's. It's only normal to blame our problems on someone or something else.

[opnspaces]

I agree with it being a poorly marked speed table (we call them speed humps in San Diego) But it is by no means a speed bump. Speed bumps are in parking lots, are small, steep, and there to make you go really slow like you should in a parking lot.

Forget about all the talk of expensive lawyers and such, you already know you're not going to go there. Get an estimate to get the damage fixed. Get online and find the phone number for the city streets division and call them. Tell them what happened and how much it's going to cost to get it fixed. Be polite but be firm that it's a poorly marked hazard. Getting angry isn't going to help you here if the person on the phone is not the correct person to handle this ask them to transfer you or give you the number for the correct person. You never know, the person on the phone might ask you to send the estimate in and the city cuts you a check. Then again they may tell you to pound sand. Point is you'll never know until you try.

As far as the pictures, I would refrain from sending them if possible. the frame damage is clearly not new and the speed table is marked, albeit poorly as if by a child with a can of spray paint. If you have to send pictures I would send the pictures, but also include a picture of a clearly marked speed table in the same city as a comparison of what drivers should expect.

[Horsedoc]

You can ask and even demand compensation for your damage. I doubt that you will prevail if you get into a courtroom situation. Take your vehicle to a frame shop, have them straighten it and repair the damage. You will spend as much money on an attorney as it will cost you to fight the battle. As an old friend who got into trouble with the Feds years ago said, "they have all the money, the lawyers and the time". You probably got screwed over, but is your case so overwhelmingly obvious you have been wronged that you will prevail without a fight. From the photos and comments here, you have a sampling of how a jury is likely to see it.

[mgirardo]

The speed bump is clearly marked to me, that's what those triple arrows mean in front of the speed bump. I spend almost 6 months of the year in NJ. Every speed bump in NJ is marked the same way. Actually, in NJ, those are called speed tables. Speed bumps are not as wide and they are harsher to drive over.

-Michael

[ken56]

So much is wrong with your assertion. There is no way you should havee been going so fast as to have that damage happen. I guess if those other drivers had been going 80 on that road then that would have been acceptable to you. You are responsible. Like another poster said, you didn't notice the cars in front of you launch into orbit? No sympathy from me on this.

[Halmfamily]

Let your insurance company handle it. If they feel there is a responsible chance they will get reimbursed by the city they will go after them for the amount of repairs they paid for your vehicle.

[lakeside013104]

HadEnough wrote:
You guys really don’t get it do you?

You do not drive slower than the speed of traffic or you’re going to get shot.

So enough giving me a hard time please.

Comparison to you for your troubles, my fellow camper.

Just like in my previous profession, LEO, if a shooting incident happened, or an auto crash happened, during the investigation of the event, the events leading up to that incident are broken down into 'microseconds'. Just imagine a 'frozen' picture in time to analyze every second of everyone's actions leading up to the event.

In retrospect, in my experience, 95% of all incidents, if analyzed as I have stated above have a 'preventable' element to them. If those involved had done one thing different, the incident would have a different outcome or perhaps,not happened at all.

You seem to imply that you feel the speed bump caused your problems with the damaged frame and truck camper. None of us were there, accept you, but any investigator can break down this incident into 'microseconds of events' and determined that it would have been preventable had you done one thing different.

You say above that you would have been shot had you not driven the speed of everyone around you. I do not believe that everyone in Jersey city has the 'get out of my way or I will shoot you' mentality. You Sir, have control of your own immediate destinanty. I believe you allowed the other drivers to push you into a driving at a speed that was not safe for that particular section of highway. You have the choice to drive at the speed you want, whether that be above the posted speed or at the posted speed. You Sir, have the choice to drive at a reasonable distance behind the vehicle in front of you so that you may observe what is happening to that vehicle and to maintain control of your vehicle at all times to prevent damage to yourself or others.

I am NOT trying to give you a hard time, for I believe you have had enough trouble from this incident. I only ask you to ask yourself, "If I had done this thing different or that thing different, may I have been able to prevent this incident from happening in the first place?"

You have control of what happens in your own immediate 'space'. Driving defensively and driving at responsible and legal speeds is your choice. A choice you have control of regardless of the pressure you make yourself feel from other drivers around you. Keep in mind, those other drives will NOT be paying your repair bills in this case. You will. Other drivers around you will not feel the stress of a damaged vehicle. You will. I doubt you will be shot for following posted speed limits and for driving defensively.

My opinion only. Worth exactly what you paid for it. No intention on my part to be mean to you or cause you harm. My only intent is to give you another viewpoint on why it is so important to drive for 'yourself', not others.

Safe travels,

Lakeside

[Grit_dog]

You've probably HadEnough of those speed bumps, eh?
Bummer dude, but if this happened recently, it didn't break the frame. Too rusty.

Good luck with the City. You'd be better off spending any $ you would spend on taking the City to court on fixing your truck. At least you won't throw away money on 2 financial commitments.

Still wonderin how you didn't see the cars infront of you hit it, if it's that big.

[dodge_guy]

I agree on it just looking like a repaired section. I probably wouldn't have slowed down either.

With that said, it looks like your damage has been existing for a while with the rust around the break.