Missed a bad accident by the skin of my teeth. Thankfully the driver of an oncoming car saw what I was going to do, and he slowed down.
It all happened in seconds.
If I braked, the tree would have fallen on the top of our car, but I swerved to the right into the opposite lane trying to avoid the tree. We heard the screaming scratches of the tree on our car as we passed the tree.
I parked our car immediately behind the fallen tree and I tried to call the owner of the property as there was no bell on the gate.
The tree bust the cement paneled fence wall on its way down.
Yep! That fence now had a big gap in it.
Shame, our car had some bad scratches on it, but rather scratches than a caved in roof or either of us hurt.
Scratches right back to the rear light.
A neighbor heard what was going on and in typical South African fashion, fetched a long-handled saw and started cutting the branches off that protruded into the road.
After a while, the owner of the property's daughter arrived and she swopped some details with my wife for insurance purposes.
Just look at the size of that baby. One cannot say that it is an old tree, because it looks healthy, but it must have been in sandy soil that can never stand up against our strong winds.
Finally, the road was cleared and the dual way was open again for traffic.
Now here is another sad thing. We had to go to the police station to do a damage report, with the idea that we will submit the report to our insurance for the repairs. I say again, sad news as we were informed at the police station that the insurance will not cover accidents by the forces of nature. So now I will have to fix the car myself, and it comes at a time when we are not very well off in the wallet. Reason being, we have just had to spend a big amount on the medical equipment for my iron infusion series that starts again soon.
But be it as it may, we shall overcome as usual.
I am not going to say here that I hope you have enjoyed the photos, as it was certainly not an enjoyable experience, but we are grateful that nobody was hurt.
Photos by Zac Smith-All Rights Reserved.
Camera: Canon Powershot SX70HS Bridge camera.
Thank you kindly for supporting this post.
If it's just the car that's damaged then that's not too terrible. They can be fixed. You got lucky, but will still be out of pocket. Stay well.
I agree with you Steve and it is just one of those things.
Fortunately, I have a bottle of scratch fixer and I am busy now to fix the car.
All well here, and thank you again.
!LOL and !PIZZA
Cheers and !BEER
View or trade
BEER.Hey @papilloncharity, here is a little bit of
BEERfrom @steevc for you. Enjoy it!Did you know that <a href='https://dcity.io/cityyou can use BEER at dCity game to buy cards to rule the world.
What an unexpected and intense experience you've had!
It's truly a blessing that both of you are safe, even if the car has some battle scars to show for it. Situations like this remind us of the unpredictability of life and the importance of staying vigilant on the road.
It's unfortunate about the insurance situation, but material things can be repaired or replaced - lives cannot. Sending you positive vibes and hopes for a smoother journey ahead @papilloncharity!
Thank you for the great and caring comment @rak7 :)
It is what it is and it was destined for us to happen. Just a serious warning to be aware and to take care.
Too bad about the insurance issue, but we are used to overcoming problems. The bad thing is that we are in the process of selling the car and we have a very good offer for it. Reason being that it is now too heavy on fuel because the fuel prices have rocketed. We run a charity, and we cannot afford to spend a fortune on fuel. I will now fix the car as best as I can and fortunately, I have some experience with fixing cars. The plan is to get a smaller car that is lighter on fuel.
Thank you for the kind wishes and we appreciate it.
!PIZZA !LOL and !LUV
@rak7, @papilloncharity(1/10) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. InfoI am glad to know you are safe and unhurt. Accident really happens within a snap of a finger. No-one knows when it will occur and I am pretty sure your focus saved the day.
Thank you for the kind message. It is said that an accident happens in the blink of an eye.
Fortunately whenever I drive, I am always on the alert.
!PIZZA and !LOL
Ohhh dear @papilloncharity I am so so sorry but I am glad that no one was hurt as this would have been a different story.
Sorry about the scratches on your car dear friend.
Thank you kindly and yes it was a very close call. Had that tree fallen on our car, it would really have been an issue.
I am busy fixing the scratches.
!PIZZA
You are most welcome!
Oh! It's a good thing it was only the car that got scratched, so sorry about it. Your life is more important than the car.
Totally agreed, and thank you for the comment.
!PIZZA
Wow.. that's so wild! Really happy that you are ok my good friend. Hope you have a very restful evening. Stay safe 🌻
Thank goodness we were not a few seconds earlier on that road, else we would have collected the whole tree on top of our car but destiny did not determine it like that, and we were happy to escape serious injury.
You also stay well my friend.
!PIZZA and !LUV
@ma3str0, @papilloncharity(4/10) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. InfoThat's like blessing in disguise, my friend. You have been very lucky and these scratches are only on metal, but luckily not on you 🙏
Have you had a look at the insurance policy if such damages are really not covered? Or maybe the tree or it's roots or so were somehow damaged or broken, so the owner would have had to cut it. So it might have been his fault that it fell ...
But I have no idea about your laws, of course.
!invest_vote
We see it as a warning from nature to be on our best when we drive around.
I don't want to battle with the insurance, as previously we did put in a claim for another case, and they demanded a huge excess payment before deciding on the claim.
So this time I am fixing the car by myself.
Cheers and thanks.
Yep, and Mother Nature loves you 😊
Sadly the insurance companies are stronger than you and me, at least most times. I hope the repairing doesn't cost too much and you'll still get a good price for the car.
Sending !PIZZA and !LUV as always 😉
!invest_vote
Hahaha, and mother nature also loves you my friend 🙂
When we still had the VW Polo, some red road paint slashed from the wheels onto the car. A guy was promoting spray cans of Premier Max at the service station, and he said that he can take the paint of by using this stuff. I told him that if it takes the paint off then I will buy a can. Guess what? He took the paint off.
I am using that same can now to take the scratches off and it works like a bomb. I still have a few scratches to do, and then the car will be as new. It only takes a lot of arm PT and the stuff works like a burnishing compound 😳
Cheers and thanks.
I'll see if Mother Nature still loves me when she has painted all trees in Autumn colours till next weekend 😀 !LOLZ
Wow, that sounds like a miracle fluid. I hope you don't rub all the paint off 😉 !LOLZ
Seriously, I'm glad that it works and you don't have to pay someone to polish the scratches out, or even to paint the car. The work is good for your muscles, I believe, and the pain in your arms will be gone soon, at least when you see an almost new car when you're finished 😉
Sending !PIZZA and !LUV as always 😉
!invest_vote
Mother nature's love endures forever my friend, and I am sure that she will show her love to you, unless you start to chop down her trees, which I know you won't do 🤣 !LOLZ
Never, the great thing is that the fluid waxes and polishes the paint right back to its original shiny color. Almost like it has never been scratched. You said in a previous reply that you are now getting old. One feels the age when your arms are lame from all of the rubbing to get the scratches off. In the past I could rub all day long, but now I have to take little breaks all along. I fool myself to think that I am taking the little breaks to inspect my work 😜🤣😉 !LOLZ
Thankfully the car is like new again Hannes. (Without costing me a cent)!
Cheers and thanks.
Yep, I wouldn't cut trees, you're right, my friend, I'd rather buy firewood in a store 😂 !LOLZ
I was born with two weak left arms and have never enjoyed physical work 😅 So, pushing and clicking my computer mouse is pretty much the hardest work I have done so far 😁
Sending !PIZZA and !LUV as always 😉
!invest_vote
@johannpiber denkt du hast ein Vote durch @investinthefutur verdient!
@johannpiber thinks you have earned a vote of @investinthefutur !
@johannpiber denkt du hast ein Vote durch @investinthefutur verdient!
@johannpiber thinks you have earned a vote of @investinthefutur !
@papilloncharity, @johannpiber(4/10) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. Info@johannpiber denkt du hast ein Vote durch @investinthefutur verdient!
@johannpiber thinks you have earned a vote of @investinthefutur !
@johannpiber denkt du hast ein Vote durch @investinthefutur verdient!
@johannpiber thinks you have earned a vote of @investinthefutur !
So glad you are alright!
Thank you for the care, my dear friend !LOL
Awww, so sad to know about it. But good thing you are safe my dear friend. You know an incident like this also happened in my workplace. The windshield of the car of my colleague was broken, but good thing she was safe. Take care always!
Oh yes, these things happen and thank you for the care. I think that there are so many that endure situations like this, and we always think that it is a warning to be careful on the roads.
Glad to hear that your colleague was not hurt.
Take care too. And have some !PIZZA
$PIZZA slices delivered:
papilloncharity tipped steevc
papilloncharity tipped rak7
papilloncharity tipped pinkchic
papilloncharity tipped iskawrites
papilloncharity tipped ma3str0
@johannpiber(3/20) tipped @papilloncharity (x24)
papilloncharity tipped pazartesi
papilloncharity tipped joanstewart
papilloncharity tipped ibbtammy
Rubbing compound to smooth scratches on vehicle then wax, perhaps a local garage will do at half the cost to what insurance, they take money and run for tiny touch up. Of late an additional clause added to insurance, pay more....
Look to possibly checking what is available. 'Act of god' or nature falling down around your head, insurance houses don't really cover much, too many loopholes for them to dive into.
Glad to hear you are both safe!
I got me a bottle of muti called Premier Wax, as they say that it can remove tar, and it really works to take the scratches out without damaging the paint and the glass. It works like a rubbing compound and it also contains wax. A few more scratches to do and then it will be done.
No need for the insurance and thankfully we will not claim as the excess payment on a claim is R4000. Which we don't have. The medical costs are clearing us out slowly but surely.
Thank you and we were fortunate to escape the incident.
!PIZZA
Money making racket, trees scratch, certain birds poop also damages paint on cars, can mend the car a lot cheaper than putting savings back into your bank account.
Go well, stay well !LUV
@papilloncharity, @joanstewart(1/10) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. InfoTotally true and that is exactly why I decided to give it a go. Now it all looks like new again and only two unobtrusive little lines remain on a rubber panel. The rest of the body and the glass have no more scratches. A ton of money saved.
!LOL
Was the norm in the old days to fix it yourself, now they have 'insurance' for everything.
Yep! I am an old school guy. Car is now fixed and life goes on.
!LUV
@joanstewart, @papilloncharity(1/10) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. InfoNot much use crying over it, spit, polish, elbow grease will look as good as new!
Wow, that was a big tree! You were quite lucky and kudos to the other driver for being alert and observant. I hit a deer with my wife's car yesterday. Have only made one payment on the thing so far and boom! :P
Thank you, and yes, split second action as if not that piece of wood would have landed smack bang on the windscreen of our car. So sorry to see that you hit a deer and I will go and have a look at your post, as I saw that @steevc mentioned our accident.
Only the first payment and now this! Maybe Mother nature wants to tell us something !LOL
No kidding, might be best to just stay indoors for a while!
No kidding indeed. I just opened my blog now and you won't believe me. My post value on Friday the 13th (yesterday) is now on 13 and my replies are also on the number 13. How rare is that?
Freaky!
Indeed!