$100 forklift dent....

Dam glad I didn't drive a wagon to work today, I drove my honeys mini van...but. I park in the yard, I'm the only non company ride that does, I have "my" paking spot. My rite hand man is in school taking his 2nd year sheet metal and have temporary help for the time being, today being so busy I had several helpers in the AM

The morning was busy and I wasn't in a good mood fast because of some equipment failure and getting guys ASAP out the door. In the early AM our yard can be so congested only myself or our mecanic drive the forklift. My help, young guy who just finnished his 4th year in sheet metal is my temp help and with what I was involved with he jumped in to help with said forklift...so I let him

Morning goes buy I calm down but I kinda noticed...kid is very quiet compared to the rest of the week. Lunch time comes and he comes back and hands me $100 infront of the other guys and says.."if this won't cover the damage, I'll fill out the company accident/inccedent form and in short said..your wife's van will get fixed.

He stabbed my Honey's van with the forklift He didn't puncture it but did a dent between the 2 side windows that... I can't believe the one window didn't shatter! The bummer is and the pics don't show it, both windows..the seal is broken because of the dent/bend....they are not water proof any more. I could tell this just by looking at it ( a knife blade fits through with out touching), but the drive home on the highway proved it....that wisteling sound of air from the back.

It was a accident, I am glad he waited to tell me, yup I took the $100 because I will have to remove the interiour side panels to push it back out and then seal both windows. He's a good kid, hard worker, and NO I didn't/don't want this going on his personal company record... he is a good kid and I can understand that sadly sh** happens

Did I break his balls all afternoon.....YEAH! but in a eazy aZZ Ole way
Now I have to tell my wife, about her van

Pics don't show it....it's a bad dent when it comes to widow seal, the pilar is bent........

Some guys I honestly would have racked over the hot coals because of there work ethic/attitude. This youg guys work attitude..... I' getting free coffee for a life time, he doesn't need this one little miss hap scaring his work record......but yeah, I'm gona ride his...........in a good azz ole way...forever....

 

Don't tell her... Wait for her to tell you that her van got damaged, and then you will not be at fault..

 

Amazing that he missed the windows and also that the didn't break anyway. I like those Astrovan/Safaris.

 

migyht be the last time you take her wheels to work for a while

 

$100 bux? .... Dang the body shop wont even let you drive into their yard with $100 bux in your hand down here.

 

Your totally missing the point when it .....awe forget it

 

Good kid. Smart to wait for the calm.
I would hassle him too a forklift is no joke. He won't forget it.

 

Well, Fat....looking at the spot where the fork hit....it sure could have been worse. Too bad it happened but your attitude is good. Stuff DOES happen and I think you handled it very well.

 

with that 100 bucks you could get yourself a stud welding kit from harbor freight to pull that back and then have it for any other dents that you might incur in the future

 

Fat Tedy, you took this amazingly well. Many of us might not have stayed so calm. Years ago, I drove forklifts on two different jobs. Both battery and gas. After they put cabs on the larger gas engine operated forklifts it was much like driving an old phone booth with bars on the windows. Add to that all of the lift structure and hydralic junk, it's almost as bad as trying to see out of a newer Dodge truck! They can be dangerous to operate and accidents do happen. Good luck on repairing the mini van and training your helpers. Perhaps if you'd driven the wagon to work, there would be one less sheet metal apprentice around today.

 

I never metioned at work but others did ..RE- one of my wagons. Oddly enouoph the kid who hit it, his parrents have a,loaded with leather, just like in the pic.......


I can't remember the year but it is one family owned and has all that agrivating computor talking at you in mono tone...."your door is ajar",etc.

I have some what delt with repairing the bent pillar....it's staying dented and bent, the van is 12 years old, and it's not like it will ever be a colectors item and although i hate to say it.... in this case sh** happened and Qwag who did it, isn't a moron...I kinda like the little pos who ....... I'm still gona ride his @ZZ..... forever


The only way to prperly straigten the pilar would be to remove the glass, it's kinked into the interiour! Reality is... I go through the paper work chanels, go to insurance, and fact is a fact..they would most likely write the van off. Yeah I could take a cash sum and keep the van, screw a good young punks company record......but thinking long term......I have my very own Bit** for life. You just can't put a price on that!



Sh** happened, there were contributing factors, I should have done things different that morning, it's a chain of BS events:banghead3:

I've sealed the rear window and I've shimmed the seal on the opening window today. Both pass the garden hose leak test and there is no whistle of air driving down the highway now.... It's as repaired as it's gona get

 

Welp I guess we are not all of the same mold but in my mind all you are doing is "enabling" the guy that did the damage .... he should man up and be responsible for his actions and like I said earlier, a hunndred buck doesnt go very far to do the repair.

How many more vehicles do you think he will bounce off of till someone makes him see the impact of his actions? Heck maybe he just might hurt someone next time ... you are not doing anybody a favor.

Even if he paid for the damages in payments , he needs to take alittle responsibily.

 

Come on wingnut, give the guy a break, Fat Tedy did. It's just a crappy white mini van. A little bondo and a rattle can would almost make it perfect...sort of! Tedy is happy and hopefully Tedy's wife is happy. I'm sure the young guy learned something and is sorry. *%#it happens.

 

Cat I am not saying people dont need "breaks". And when given under the right circumstances it is a win/win situation. I am saying these circumstances do not warrant coddeling of this person that, considering he is in a position of responsibility is not doing a responsible act .... I am sure the employer of both this "kid" and Tedy would be very pissed and deservably so, at not being made aware of this incident.

If the kid needs more training on the equipment then he should be given it ... if these "accidents" become recurring then the guy needs to hit the road. He would be too much of a liability and danger to those around him.

The kid needs to face the music, learn from his mistakes and get on with life ... that is how people suceed in life.

Again, just my opinion.

 

Wingnut, I'm going to say we are both right!----- But, from what I gathered, Fat Tedy is the boss and he used his own discression to do what he thought was best. No one said the kid has had other accidents. As a former trucker and fork lift operator, factory employee, I know accients can be just----accidents. Too many accidents do need attention because they are now just negligance and bad judgement. Riding with the forks raised on a forklift is not safe practice. Yet he was outside in a storage yard and we have no idea what he had just done or was about to do with those forks raised.-I'm off to read station wagon stuff now!