Winter Damage: Who Can Help?

Hello everyone!

I have a big problem:

Background:

Winter is coming to an end, and yesterday I wanted to inspect my summer car and get it ready to go.
The car (a Golf 3, TDI model) was stored in a garage over the winter.
There were approximately 20 vehicles there.
The owner of this hall offers it for rent at a price of €20 per month.
Payment is made upfront, and there is no contract involved.

Problem:

I picked up the car yesterday, and it was already scratched.
There are some deep scratches on the side panel and on my (painted) bumpers.
It's clear that it was intentional!
The landlord of the hall says that parking the car there was at your own risk, but this wasn't explicitly agreed upon beforehand!

My question is now directed to you all.

Do I have any chance of getting the damages paid?
Who is liable for this?
The perpetrator is likely not to be found, as several other people have already picked up vehicles from that location, and it could practically be anyone who had their car stored there over the winter.
So, I think that if someone offers a service of storing vehicles during the winter, they should also be liable for any damages that occur.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer (even though I don't have legal insurance)?

Who can help me?


I would be grateful for any advice you can offer!


Sincerely,
Daniel.

P.S. My car was deregistered for the winter.

Hi,

I'm sorry to hear that your car was damaged by someone who intentionally scratched the paint.

What exactly do you get for €20 per month? A parking space the size of your car, or are you getting a service ("For just €20 per month, we will store your car over winter")?

If parking space: I have no idea whether you can get any reimbursement; I doubt it's possible (see underground garage parking space).
If caused by the service provider: It appears to be damage resulting from negligence. The service provider should have insurance coverage for such damages if they do not want to pay out of pocket.

By the way, you've already entered into an agreement: a verbal one! It's legally binding, but the content is much harder to prove. However, other people who parked their cars in the same hall might be able to act as witnesses if it comes to proving the exact details of the agreement.

Note: I am not a lawyer or anything like that. I have only expressed my layman's opinion.

Regards,
Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

"Micha"

A lawyer without legal aid in such a vaguely defined case, and without any written documentation... well, I don't want to discourage you, but what can they possibly achieve? It's probably cheaper to just get it repainted.

That is very sad, though.

What exactly do you get for €20 per month? Do you get a parking space that is as large as your car, or are you getting a service ('For just €20 per month, we will store your car over the winter')?



So, I am of course totally annoyed!!!
Not sure if it's a service or not - I need to check the sign again.

What's more, the tax office is unaware of the parking spaces being rented out.

Regards,
DJ.

HI,

Quote:

What's more, the tax office is unaware of the fact that the parking spaces are being rented out.

Then the landlord should definitely have a strong interest in ensuring that the matter is not resolved "publicly," right?

Best regards,

January.

Hi,

Quote:

"Quote:" What's more, the tax office is unaware of the fact that the parking spaces are being rented out. Then the landlord should definitely have a strong interest in ensuring that the matter is not resolved "publicly," right?

...and to your luck, the "private agreement" is actually cheaper for the landlord .

@Daniel: You probably only found out after the dispute that the landlord was privately and illegally subletting the parking spaces . Promoting illegal work is a crime, so you certainly wouldn't have parked your car there if you had known those facts in advance!

Regards,
Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

"Micha"

@Daniel: You probably only found out after the dispute that the landlord was privately and illegally subletting the parking spaces . Promoting illegal work is a crime, so you certainly wouldn't have parked your car there if you had known those facts in advance!

Regards,
Micha.

Hi,

Okay, so I obviously didn't know that beforehand, and I'm still not 100% sure if it was subleased illegally – I didn't receive any invoice or receipt.


Best regards,
Daniel.

Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

'P.S.: What are my chances if it wasn't declared as black money?'

Hi,

If it wasn't reported as a black expense, you have one less strong argument.
If you've only rented a parking space, I believe you have no chance.

How deep is the scratch, actually? If it's only superficial, you could try using polishing compound to see if that helps. (It's cheaper than painting ).

Regards,
Sure, here is the translation of the text from German to English:

"Micha"