Property Damage by Business in Same Building - Restitution?

LRedroses on 17/11/2017 - 21:30
Last edited 18/11/2017 - 08:55 by 1 other user

Hi,

I'm wondering how to go about seeking retribution restitution on an item with high sentimental value that was destroyed by a business in the same building as ours.

I'd been working on a side project, restoring an antique drawer, and was storing this item on my side of the shared parking bay.

A clean out was done by one of the other businesses in the building and due to negligence of the other business the drawer was thrown out and destroyed beyond repair.

I'd been working on the project for a number of weekends, paid for the drawer and restoration materials, and feel upset about the experience ending this way. The other business hasn't been cooperative at all - empty 'sorry's and pointing the finger at their staff instead, further adding to this negative experience.

I hadn't had it formally valued but it wasn't a readily available item. Is my time spent on this worth anything here at all too?

I'm wondering what the best way to go about this is? How does seeking retribution restitution work for an item where I've put my time and effort into and had a large amount of sentimental value?

Edit: Restitution not Retribution

Financial

Comments

  • altomic on 17/11/2017 - 21:34
    +1

    Bikies

    • [Deactivated] on 17/11/2017 - 21:36

      Postie bikies

  • chumlee on 17/11/2017 - 21:42

    Do you mean restitution or retribution??

    • Redroses on 17/11/2017 - 21:48

      Hi Chumlee,
      As below, definitely restitution.

      • chumlee on 17/11/2017 - 21:54

        Then it's going to be a civil claim in vcat against those who damaged it if you cannot come to some agreement

        • Redroses on 17/11/2017 - 22:10

          I may have to if the business owner doesn't cooperate. Do you know if VCAT look sentimental value or just what was spent?

        • HighAndDry on 18/11/2017 - 01:15
          +1

          @Redroses: What was spent, if that. I'm not sure you've even got a case, you're only supposed to park cars in parking bays.

  • kipps on 17/11/2017 - 21:42

    I'm not sure you understanding what retribution means. Do you mean restitution?

    • Redroses on 17/11/2017 - 21:47

      Oops, definitely restitution - I'm not out for vengeance on the other person themselves! Just compensation for the damage.

      • [Deactivated] on 17/11/2017 - 23:11
        +4

        Nah, go with retribution

  • garetz on 17/11/2017 - 21:49
    +6

    Why would you leave something like that somewhere it can be accessed by people you dont even know.

  • whooah1979 on 17/11/2017 - 21:54

    shared parking bay.

    Was a shared private common property accessible by the public?

    • Redroses on 17/11/2017 - 22:08

      Not accessible to the public. Only tenants of the building have a key to access the parking area.

  • [Deactivated] on 18/11/2017 - 01:08
    +4

    Antique drawer left in a public car space, and apparently that's something you appreciate. Lol. Good luck

  • HighAndDry on 18/11/2017 - 01:14
    +1

    and was storing this item on my side of the shared parking bay.

    Pretty sure every set of strata bylaws I've ever seen make it against the bylaws to store personal goods (other than cars) in parking bays.

    Anyway, you can only seek compensation for its financial value, not sentimental value to you, so

    payed for the drawer and restoration materials

    Probably just how much you paid for the drawer, at the very most.

  • wordplay on 18/11/2017 - 08:56

    Had a similar thing happen with an old door i was restoring at work (and stored in the car park), got thrown in the skip bin and emptied. as i didn't have a receipt for the door the company that threw it in the bin offered to buy me a new door (a cheap one from bunnings - not the same leauge at all!) I was able to find out which dump the company sent the skip to and spent a whole weekend there going through garbage - eventually found some of the stained glass (in surprisingly good condition - and was actually able to sell it after) and a bit of the timber and metal, but not enough to make me want to spend hours and hours to get it back into the condition it was previously in.
    Don't expect compensation (they may offer to buy you a draaw from ikea), and don't tell them how much the item means to you unless you want to become the laughing stock of the business park (ie. have them coming to you with empty coke cans asking if you are going to restore it or if its ok for them to throw away). If you want retribution go for it (but remember that what they did was probably an accident without malicious intent), but expect things to escalate and don't ever leave anything of yours out in the open again or they will destroy or deface it.

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