Roberthorse

I have a 2005 Ford Mondeo estate and I had an MOT and service done 4 days ago. I had done say 30 miles since then [as I work from home] and got a shock when my bonnet flew open smashing the windscreen, bonnet and a denting a bit of the roof.

Is bonnet lock maintenance part of a normal service?
Does any one know what fault caused it or could the garage have done something to cause it.
I must admit I hadn't opened the bonnet for a few months.

Any idea what the likely cost of repair is going to be and the way to approach it?

Thanks

black_jack

The catch for the bonnet may have failed/ been "sticky" due to lack of use/ lubricant, corrosion, or a broken spring, it probably appeared fine untill you were travelling at high(er) speed, when the air pressure got under the front edge and lifted it off, once it was up it would have thrown it back with some force

it is part of the MOT and i feel you have a good case for blaming the garage

i would approach the Citizens Advice Beauro, and trading standards, and speak to the garage, it seems obvious not to shout, swear or loose your temper when speaking/ dealing with the garage, but it can be hard for many people to do this, keep calm and assert yourself, they will probably say it is nothing to do with them, because they will not want to pay out money/ do additional work - so you may have to be persistent with them

If the garage refuses to fix/ pay for the car being fixed, its worth negotiating with them, perhaps a refund for the work or even for the labour, something is better than nothing - as this is an MOT related thing, you could explain you may contact VOSA, or it would make an interesting story in the local press "local garage MOTs death trap" etc - it could have caused a serious accident

i recently replaced my winscreen due to a split for the MOT, i had to get fully comp, and it was a £50 exess on the screen (so my new screen cost £50) , i was told it could have cost up to £600 with it being a heated screen,

if you are fully comp you could claim off your insurance, your insurance company would probably try to recoup the cost from the garage, if you had a very high exess (eg- £250) and your windscreen exess was only £50, it may be more cost effective to claim on only the screen, and pick up a secondhand bonnet and fix the roof yourself

I know very little about consumer rights and the law, i am just thinking aloud and putting it "out there" - so i would contact those that do! hope you get it sorted and good luck!

Roberthorse

Thanks very much for your advice black_jack. I took it to another garage and they and a bodywork firm next door say they could not see any signs of a fault and it looked oiled. In addition the safety catch and lock are still working even in the bonnet's current bent state. I'm waiting for the insurers to get back to me as to whether they consider the accident caused by the MOT garage [claimable] or wear and tear [not claimable]. The MOT garage deny any wrongdoing and the insurers do not seem to be interested in claiming off that garage. But I suppose the MOT garage could always say that there's no way of proving that I didn't open the bonnet and close it improperly after the MOT.

RichieST

iTrader: (2)

It could well have been the garage that didn't close it properly however I'm pretty sure if it wasn't shut properly then the alarm would have gone off and you'd have had the door open light on on the dash.

There is no way the garage would be found responsible for it though as like you say, there was plenty of time in between for you to open and close the bonnet. If you drove away from the garage and it happened 100 yards down the road it could be a different matter!

Roberthorse

The insurers accept it was accidental damage but have come up with a very high repair estimate which means the car would be written off. My local garage says it can be done for 1/3rd of this amount which means the car would not be written off. Having initially told me they would accept this second quote they now say its too cheap in relation to their own exhorbitant estimate and they would not accept it. This seems a crazy decision as they will pay out twice as much money as a write off! Any ideas how I can fight this decision?

DanW@FastFord

iTrader: (1)

Use it to your advantage. Get the payout, buy the car back, get it repaired at your place and pocket the difference.

Roberthorse

They've since said I can get my garage to fax them the lower quote and although it's unlikely there's a possibility they may accept it. In this case my garage is now quoting new parts so the only difference between the £1,500 estimate just received from my garage and the £2,900 one received from their approved supplier is the new roof supplied in the latter.

Unless they refuse to accept it I'd rather retain my non write-off status.

Do you think their refusal would be acceptable [i.e. in line with custom and practice in the insurance trade] ? Thanks for your advice thus far.

Paynee

I may be wrong but i doubt that it would make so much difference between just making a claim, and a claim resulting in a write-off. you have still made a claim non the less. Also i think that when you declare any claims they ask for more details so would be clear that it was accidental damage due to a defective bonnet catch rather thank bad driving. Sure, insurance companies look for any excuse to shaft you, but i think they have that in the fact that you are claiming in the first place.

I too would be happy to let them write the car off and end up with a couple of grand in the back pocket.

black_jack

The bonnet flying open happens a lot more often than you might think, and certain cars seem to be more prone to it,

if you think how potentially dangerous it could have been!

Racing-style (but MOT-able) bonnet pins could be a worthwhile investment in the future IMO

botters

iTrader: (2)

happens a lot on mondeos unfortunatly