Josh's Bad Day

Last Friday was a beautiful, sunny day. I'd taken time out from my current project (sprucing up the paint on the inside of my house - eight years later, it's showing its age) to run some errands. I'd just finished up, proud of myself because I'd completed the stops in less time than I thought I'd need, and was leaving Costco, when, crunch!

It was one of THOSE moments. I was in the drive lane, heading out of the parking lot, when backup lights came on in a big old van and it started out of its spot. I was already in the line of fire. I tried to avoid him by swerving to the left and laying on the horn, but to no avail. The van kept coming and backed right into the corner of my StealthMobile, my bright yellow convertible. 

Argh! It took a moment for him to figure out why his van stopped, but then he pulled back into his spot. I just sat there, fuming at the driver's carelessness, ready to spit, as the driver got out of the van and came around back. As soon as I saw him, my anger evaporated. He was just a kid; looked about eighteen.

He was nervous - this was the first time he'd been in an accident, and it was clearly his fault. He just hadn't looked for cars coming from my direction. He asked what the procedure was, and I told him I needed his license and insurance card. He pulled out his license and handed it to me, then started to pull up his insurance information on his phone.

That's when his face turned pale. He poked buttons and more buttons, to no avail. His most recent payment hadn't gone through, and so his insurance had lapsed. *sigh* Josh was having a very bad day.

I still couldn't be mad. I did stupid stuff when I was eighteen, too. (and, truth be told, plenty of times since then.) I didn't want to call the cops and have him get a ticket. That wasn't going to fix my car or anything else in this scenario.

So, I took pictures of his license plate (the accident hadn't even scratched his bumper!) and driver's license. I got his phone number, told him we'd figure out a way to work things out, and went on my way figuring I was soon to be out the deductible on my insurance because the cost of the repair would fall on me. *more sighs*

I snagged an appointment at a local body repair shop for Monday, and took my car in, expecting them to tell me I'd need a new bumper and fender, to the tune of several thousand dollars. To my pleasant surprise, they said new parts weren't necessary - they could repair the damage without replacing the parts! The total estimate came in at $1600.

I texted Josh to see what he wanted to do next; he said he'd be a bit - he was at the vet with his mom because the cat just died. (????!!! Talk about a bad day.) When he called an hour or so later, I gave him the good news on the estimate. I told him he had two choices - he could pay me the deductible for my insurance, and I would turn in the claim and his insurance rates would skyrocket because the system would know he'd been driving without insurance at 18, or he could pay me the money for the repair.

Somehow, he'd gotten some money over the weekend; coincidentally just enough to pay for the damage to my car. (hello, Universe???) He sent it to me via PayPal on the spot, and it was a done deal. I have an appointment to repair the car in two weeks, and also have a refreshed, improved attitude regarding the goodness of others. I trusted him to make things right, and he did - without his parents stepping in to fix it all for him.

I'm sure he had other plans for his windfall, and I'm also sure it'll be a long time before he backs up before checking behind him in ALL directions. I'd also be willing to bet he'll check every month to ensure his insurance payment has cleared. 

I talked to him for a bit while we were working out the details. I told him I was proud of the way he'd stepped up to the damage he'd done and worked with me to set things right; proud of the adult he was becoming. I meant it. 

Lessons provided by the school of life are never easy, and always come at a price. But, all in all, we agreed, it was a relatively inexpensive way to learn the lessons of the day.