Oops...when helping someone out goes wrong

[Jennasis]

So we got a good 6-7 inches of snow and ice here in NC this past weekend. Fast forward to today at the farm where many of my riding students still managed to get here for their riding lessons. Needless to say MOST of the parents managed to get their minivans STUCK in the snow, and my gallant DH had to tow them out with the tractor. A short while ago, the last kid of the day finished and mom gets her minivan stuck...not just in the snow and ice, but she managed to floor it so bad trying to get out that she is stuck in the MUD below the 6 inches of ice and snow (and tearing up my lawn). There is a hole nearly a foot deep beneath both front wheels. I run off to find DH and the tractor. Cutting to the chase, while towing her out (in neutral) she isn't watching what's going on at all or listening to us shouting at her and when DH stopped the tractor, she DOESN'T stop the van and van backs right into the back of the tractor...which coincidentally has a 5 foot long hay spear on the back of it.

Yep...the hay spear goes right through her trunk. (luckily only about 6 inches of the tip)

We manage to tow her to safely dry and bare ground and I am frantically trying to tell her to get out of the van to come see what happened. She's nodding and saying "thank you!" and trying to drive off!

Finally I yell "Get out of the car and come look!"

She gets out, comes around the back, sees the hole and the crunched in back (looks like a bullet hole just under the rear license plate/handle for the rear door). She looks at me and says "I'm not gonna worry about that right now." And drives away.

Poor DH is mortified at what happened, and a bit angry (at himself as much as anyone). Wonder what the liability is here?

(don't know what a hay spear is?...have a look

 

[tiggger1]

ouch!!

 

[Jsme]

I do not see how you are liable when she is the one who backed into your tractor. You never know though what she might say or do later.

Good luck.

 

[DarthKTrava]

She was an idiot. Hope there's witnesses... But I gotta wonder why your hubby left the hay spike on the tractor....

 

[Corwin12]

No good deed goes unpunished.

 

[vettechick99]

Wow!!! She left the scene so she doesn't seem too concerned. Let's hope she's not a nut.

 

[Jennasis]

She was an idiot. Hope there's witnesses... But I gotta wonder why your hubby left the hay spike on the tractor....

I said the same thing. BUT it's wicked hard to take off the tractor, and the tractor doesn't have sufficient power to pull in reverse, so he had to drive the tractor forward, towing her out rather than driving backwards, pulling her out. Also the tractor HAS to have an implement of some kind on the back to weight it properly, otherwise it can tip over.