I wouldn't be arguing about paying the man but I would absolutely question $1500 for scratches. That's absurd. You sent him $750 that should cover it.
I mean why guess, get an estimate, and that's that. what you think is fair, may not be. And well, we haven't even seen the scratch. it could be 2 " or a dented gash?
Wind damage is act of nature/God. Tell him to file a comp claim with his insurance and leave you alone. It doesn't matter how well you tie a canopy, weather can and will make them fly.
Damn, I could have saved him. The proper thing to do, from an insurance prospective, would be for him to file a comp claim. Give the insurance company the tent owner's name and if the insurance thought it was worth trying to subrogate then they can do so.
You do realize, even though a comp claim doesn't affect you, it still does. Insurances are mofos. They brought up a windshield claim and a parking claim on why the rates were higher when I went policy shopping.
It can. Depends on company/policy etc. I was an adjuster for some time. I'll be the first one to pay for damages I cause, even on track, but canopy damage I would politely decline to pay. It's wind damage. I was suggesting the insurance route as a possible means of mediation for the situation moreso than means to actual damage repairs.
Had something similar happen to a friend years ago in the UK. Someone backed into his van in the paddock at Brands. Neither of the car insurance companies would touch it because it happened on private land, not the road.
Is that a UK thing that they wouldn't insure the incident because the mishap occurred on private property?
That's weird. While police here don't get involved with accidents on private property, insurance companies here absolutely do. Parking lot claims are a popular one.....
I had this happen at road america, dented my a-pillar, my insurance company wasn't interested in charging the culprit, it was "natural event" which meant I was on the hook for the deductible. The culprit was up front and offered to cover it. I didn't bother collecting though as I never got it fixed. Its a car, it was new when it happened, now it is four years old and has a lot more dings, chips and scratches.
It wasn't a tree that fell on the guy's truck. Someone put that canopy there. In what universe do they escape liability?
It was a rattle can job... but literally the first time it had seen the light of day... Dude was definitely salty about it but didn't ask for money or help or anything... my idiot buddy was using his gas can as one of his main tie downs, and didn't think far enough ahead that it would get lighter as he used the gas that was in it
Ultimately, the paint job doesn't matter, you (generically) own the damage if your canopy got loose. We usually tie down one side to the trailer and the other side with dual 5gal buckets of water per leg (so, 10gal or 40lbs) Tie the 4 together in the middle and add two more buckets there. Makes a nice space overall (20x20) for keeping out of the rain up here in the PNW.
It was then, I don't know if it's changed but it was over 30 years ago. Parking lots for some reason were treated the same as the road. It was weird, have an accident in a supermarket car park, parking garage etc. - covered. Have an accident in a car park at a race track etc. - not covered. Although a vehicle stolen from private land was covered. As I said above that might well have changed now.
Let me turn that around. Did the guy run the canopy into the truck or did the wind blow it? He took reasonable precautions to secure it but a gust got it. There's no way he's liable in any court, nor in the eyes of an insurer. It's cool he helped the dude by paying him, but IMO it's even less necessary than paying for "on the track" damages. It's like the old neighbor and tree situation. If a neighbor has a rotten tree they let fall on your house, they are liable. If it's a healthy tree then they aren't. OP took precautions we all do and wasn't what any reasonable court would consider negligent.
I couldn’t care less about what a court would rule. This is about basic common decency shown to fellow racers at the track. Full stop.
"Reasonable" is subjective. The person getting his stuff damaged and the person causing the damage will rarely agree on what is reasonable. I would argue that if "reasonable" precautions can't keep your canopy on the ground, then maybe that was the wrong day to put it up. Just look at the poll here. It suggests that most responders see "reasonable" differently than you do. And then, there's that.