Guy Scores a $14,000 Payout After His Boat is Damaged in an Accident Because the Perpetrator Refused a Cash Buyout of $1,000 Upfront

Author image for Jesse Kessenheimer
Jesse Kessenheimer • Writer and Editor
Oct 7, 2023 10:00 AM EDT

Have you ever been on a boat? The wind whips through your hair, the sun shines on your neck, and it seems like all of your woes get left on the dock. That's why boating is such a dang expensive hobby– it's phenomenally pleasant! So if you're a boat enthusiast, it's probable that your boat is not only your fiberglass first-born baby, but also a deep, endless money-pit… which is why boaters always have the best insurance.

Insurance may be a scammy business, but it does sometimes pay off. When you're in an accident, specifically a boating accident, the price tag for repairs can skyrocket pretty quickly, so trying to wriggle away into the shadows isn't always an option for the guys responsible. In this story, an idiotic truck driver thought he could run away from all of his problems after damaging a couple's prized boat in the marina lot, hoping to avoid paying for his action. But it didn't quite work out for this sneaky snake. Scroll for the full story of how a relentless boating couple fought tooth and nail to get the cash funds to fix their beloved boat after an accident, scoring 14x the amount needed because of the perpetrator's flippant oversight.

Next up, read on about another insurance win where a guy saves $50k after calling out the mistakes on a health insurance bill. 

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  • 01
    Font - r/MaliciousCompliance u/No_Builder 7010 4 hours ago Posted by D Insurance co requires repair quotes on letterhead? My pleasure! M OC My husband and I bought a boat in a storage lot to flip. We spent months of time and buckets of money to fix her
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 02
    Font - up, and we were getting close to being done. The work included painting and rehabbing the mast (the stick that holds the sails), which was being stored in a cradle next to the boat. It was well inside our space but it did
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 03
    Font - extend beyond the boat itself a few feet so we marked it with a neon orange safety cone. Just days after painting the mast, my husband called me from the storage lot with the news that someone had damaged it. Turns out the facility's
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 04
    Font - camera caught the rat trap guy drive right into the mast, knock it to the asphalt, drive OVER it, stop, then back over it!! Naturally, he didn't leave a note but his truck was easily ID'd and he fessed up when confronted. He didn't want to go thru insurance, so
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 05
    Font - we worked up a figure based on us buying used gear (most of it Not Cheap) to replace what was broken and doing all the work ourselves for free. I think it was less than $1000, and anyone who knows boats will know what a bargain that was. Even so, he decided to go thru insurance after all.
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 06
    Font - The agent who called us needed a quote from a business, not just our scribbled estimate, so I contacted our local cheap boatyard for a DIY quote (they'd just store the mast while we did all the work). That bumped the total we were seeking to about $2500. We
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 07
    Font - spent five months trying to get the agent to respond, and when he finally did, it was to say they couldn't accept an emailed quote, it had to be an attachment on letterhead. (The rinkydink yard only sends quotes in the body of emails because they have
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 08
    Font - zero forks to give.) He all but called us liars and scammers who could have had their buddy supply this fake- looking estimate. No, company policy required at least two quotes on letterhead to move forward. I
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 09
    Font - confirmed that he would not be able to process our claim without those two quotes. Correct. I also confirmed these yards could be anywhere in the state. Correct. I warned him the new quotes would be significantly higher, but he snidely said that was fine, as long as they were on letterhead.
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 10
    Font - Cue malicious compliance (and some FAFO). Having worked in the boating industry for most of my life, I knew exactly who to call: the two most respected (ie expensive) boatyards in the state.
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 11
    Font - These quotes included the yards doing all the work, replacing all damaged gear with new, storage fees AND transportation to and from our storage lot. Both were hundreds of miles away.
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 12
    Font - Unsurprisingly, he called as soon as he got the quotes asking if he could pretty please use the rinkydink yard's quote. "Oh, you can't do that, you might get in trouble since it's company policy, right? We've got to follow all the rules lest someone think we're scammers. Right?" He wasn't happy.
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 13
    Font - A week later, we got a check...for the original quote we scribbled down for the rat trap guy! Guess the agent decided to see if we'd just bend over after he called us liars and cheats. Uh uh, no way. I called our
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 14
    Font - insurance, who got on the line with the other agent and gave him what for. Two days later, we got a second check for the remainder. I'm sure someone spit on it, but I was happy enough to deposit that $14,000.
    via u/No_Builder7010
  • 15
    Font - Grouchy_Old_GenXer. 4 hr. ago I went through the opposite of this. Daughter hit a car while parking. Offered the guy $1000 cash. He said no, the estimate was like $2000 and so he said take it to
    via u/Grouchy_Old_GenXer
  • 16
    Font - insurance. I took a look at the pictures of the damage and noticed that most of his damage was on the quarter panel above the wheel well.
    via u/Grouchy_Old_GenXer
  • 17
    Font - My daughter drove a Sebring and no way did it damage his car above the wheel well. I pointed this out to my agent. Guy got $750 for the damage my daughter did.
    via u/Grouchy_Old_GenXer
  • 18
    Happy - Overall-Tailor8949 · 3 hr. ago And that insurance company couldn't even call it fraudulent since you were playing by THEIR rules.
    via u/Overall-Tailor8949
  • 19
    Font - tcollins317 3 hr. ago Is it too late to call his insurance agent, and in your most sarcastic voice, super thank them for all the hard work they did and what wonderful people they are. Basically rub a little salt in the wound.
    via u/tcollins317
  • 20
    Font - Ryugi 2 hr. ago you really raked them across the coals and they deserved it. Kinda hope that dummy gets fired for trying to accuse you of lying when he could just as easily Google the business name, call them, and ask them to confirm the quote.
    via u/Ryugi
  • 21
    Font - Second Breakfast Crew 2 hr. ago oh yeah, this was an absolutely delightful MC read. well done and enjoy that extra $13k!
    via u/SecondBreakfastCrew
  • 22
    Water - "Insurance company couldn't even call it fraudulent since you were playing by THEIR rules"
    via u/canva

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insurance dock cash marina malicious compliance accident boating petty revenge insurance money payout pay buyout scam reddit thread payment Reddit boat boats
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