Month: May 2012

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I Think I’m Officially Cursed

I am sitting at a repair shop in Petersburg, VA, where I had to get towed only 45 miles from my destination. I am now 60 miles from my destination. Without any warning whatsoever on that final stretch, the needle on my odometer went crazy and I had no control over the rig except to pull over, put her in neutral, and turn off the engine. Everything seemed fine from the cab and walking around outside, but there was a strong burnt smell inside the study.

It was not a good place to be stuck, on a very rural road with no shoulder. I knew I was done for so I looked up automotive services on the GPS and called the first place that had the word towing in the name. They couldn’t help me so they gave me the name of another company that also couldn’t help me but was able to give me the name of a third company that was able to help. It took about 45 minutes for him to arrive. Just before he did, I saw a police car stop behind Miranda. I hoped that he’d been sent by the towing company, but I decided to be careful and start off with, “I’m sorry. I know this is a bad spot.” I forget what he replied but his tone will remain seared in my memory. He was just so, so, so kind. He asked me if this was my first time away from Alberta traveling with the rig and I said that, no, I’ve been fulltiming for four years and traveling all over. He replied, “God bless you!” It was amazing to meet a law enforcement official who was so enthusiastic about my lifestyle choice. Thank you, officer.

But I digress.

The mechanic says that my rear axle is broken. He’s only done a cursory assessment, but this is going to be a huge job.

He advised me that since I drove almost 4,000km without incident and had this happen the day after I got rear ended that I talk to my insurance company before having him take anything apart. Because of the time zone difference, that might not happen till mid-day tomorrow and then it could be a few days to get an adjuster out here. Meanwhile, I can rent a car and go spend some time with my friend, but I won’t be able to breathe until I know if I am paying for this out of pocket or not.

If I have to pay, and the mechanic says that at first glance I’m looking at $2,000 to $3,000, then I’m at a loss. I’ve been through a lot in the last four years and I have always dealt with these matters myself, but now I have to admit that I am stuck. If you haven’t bought any of my e-books yet or have a friend who would be interested in one, I’d really appreciate some sales right now. There is also my Early Bird RV Show Seminar that is available to download at whatever price you feel is fair. This would mean so much to me. Right now, I can cover the repairs and get back to Canada, but my holidays with my friend would be shot. Having a little extra in the bank would mean that I could spent the next few days tooling around Virginia with her, providing you with exciting reading material (huh uh), instead of sitting in the rig and at her place utterly depressed.

The time zone difference is going to make tomorrow morning very trying as I might not be able to get hold of the motorhome adjuster until noon. The good news is that the car insurance company will be paying for a rental car for at least a few days. So I can leave Miranda parked here and take off in the rental car to visit my friend. We have tickets for an event Thursday night and it looks like that will still be able to happen. My current location is noisy, but the mechanic made sure I was level, and the work will be done right where I am, so there will be minimal bother to the cats. If I wasn’t waiting on the insurance, he would start first thing tomorrow and I’d be on my way Friday, but the whole insurance thing could make this drag on for a bit. I may have no choice but to pay out of pocket and hope that the insurance will reimburse me.

Now, I have otherwise had an amazing day of travel and I will be putting together a blog post with pictures of the good parts of yesterday and today.

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Ready to Pull Out

It’s still much too earlier to get a hold of the insurance companies today and I was given the go ahead to leave Beckley, so I’m leaving. Web reviews for Glen’s Towing, who got my car off the turnpike, are very negative. All I can say is that they don’t seem very organized and their towing prices seem crazy, but they have absolutely no problem with my taking off without paying the towing bill and without having heard from my insurance company. I imagine that’s probably because they have some rights to my car now and could recoup that way, but I appreciate them not being hard asses about this. Paying that towing bill wouldn’t kill me, but since I won’t ultimately have to worry about it, why pay now only to get reimbursed later?

Jody reminded me to grab the license plate off the car so I don’t have to pay for a new one. I don’t know if my new toad will be plated in Alberta or not, but it’ll be nice to have that plate if I do reregister in Alberta.

My plate registrations are due this month. Guess I’m saving on the car, huh?

One thing I forgot to ask the adjuster is if I should be contacting BMO, which holds the loan on the car, regarding the crash. I imagine that any monies I get from the insurance would go to BMO first to clear the loan and I’d get whatever is left over, if anything. One thing that is in my favour is that the car is in great shape and has low mileage on the odometer, so there is a chance that it will get appraised on the higher end of the scale.

Well, I’m off to see if I’m right that traveling without a toad will be a lot less stressful

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Thank You To My Readers

I am replying to all your comments about my toad’s demise in a post rather than a comment.

First of all, thank you to everyone who sent good wishes. Especially in reply to Linda, I am okay this morning. I’m a little sunburned from all those hours on the turnpike waiting on the state trooper, but that’s it. Sitting so far ahead of the wreck, I didn’t really feel the impact and only knew something was seriously wrong because I could feel the car fishtailing behind me. I’m not sitting here feeling traumatized at all. This is not at all like the morning after I lost the brakes when I know I did fifty billion things wrong beforehand and ignored my instincts. Yesterday was an accident pure and simple and I can deal with that. I had a decent night’s sleep and am ready to move on.

Croft suggested I replace the toad in the US. This would require me to have the rig fixed and I know I won’t have time for this, plus I have to wait for the insurance settlement. I have thought of buying a beater for getting around in Quebec for the summer, selling it in the fall, and then looking for a new toad when I get to the US. I really don’t want to talk about my plans for a new toad at this point, so please don’t push me about that, but I know exactly what I want and I’m pretty sure I’ll only find it in the States.

westernerbychoice provided a link to a company in Phoenix that can set up vehicles for towing. That will probably be too far for me, but I’m grateful for the lead.

Amber complimented me on my driving skills. Have I told you recently how much I adore you?

Sue asked questions about my insurance coverage. I am insured with Aviva Elite under a full-timer’s policy that covers damage to the rig and to the contents.  I am insured under Intact (formerly Axa) for damage to the car and liability issues related to the motorhome. It looks like I won’t have any issues with Aviva and they told me to get back in touch with them when I’m ready to have the rig repaired. My adjuster immediately got in touch with me by email and I was able to send her pictures. We didn’t talk too much about contents over the phone, but after I went through the rig last night I decided to make a modest claim for a few things so we’ll see how that goes.  I am not certain how Intact is going to be yet. They asked me a lot more questions about the circumstances of the crash. They will have an appraiser out here in a few days to look at the toad and we’ll go from there. Regarding the tow bar system, there could be some back and forth between the two companies, but I have put in a claim for it and both say that it should end up being covered, especially if the other driver admits he’s at fault and my insurance companies can recoup from his. That’s all I know for now.

Now, I’m ready to get back on the road to visit my friend, but I want to doubly verify that I can go, so I may have to wait a couple of hours for the insurance companies to open back west. I will go into the wrecking company shortly to see if Intact has called them and confirmed that they will be handing the towing and storage fee and that they are comfortable with my leaving. My ETA in Virginia is sometime between 6 and 8PM and all I can say is that I can’t wait to be there. I knew driving out east wasn’t going to be fun, but I didn’t expect the party to start until I was heading north out of Virginia!