When a minor accidentally breaks your window

Asus X540L · 19-09-2020 6:35pm #1

If a kid breaks my window playing football, what are my rights?

If he/she or their parents obliged to pay for it? Are they liable for any criminal charges?

I tried googling and couldn't get a concrete answer with regards Ireland.

Apparently in some US states it is taken rather seriously.

bobbyy gee · 19-09-2020 6:50pm

ask neibour to pay

salmocab · 19-09-2020 6:51pm

Ah criminal charges for kids breaking a window by accident, how would you even arrive at that thought? Get the parents to pay for it and forget about it.

Smee_Again · 19-09-2020 6:53pm

Why would there be criminal charges if it was an accident?

nuac · 19-09-2020 7:05pm

Suggest coming to an arrangement with neighbour. Keep it friendly, don't involve Gárdai nor solicitors. Good neighbours are important

RobbieMD · 19-09-2020 8:33pm

Smee_Again wrote: »

Why would there be criminal charges if it was an accident?

Criminal damage includes recklessness. Intent is not a required proof.

If the kid is under 12yrs they’re not capable of committing the offence of criminal damage.

If you get along with the parents of the child, they may be willing to pay if it’s brought to their attention and you can prove it / the child admits it. But I wouldn’t go falling out with neighbours over a
smashed window.

Asus X540L · 19-09-2020 8:49pm

Thanks for answers.

What I mean is If I ask parents to pay and they tell me F Off, what is my recourse?

hullaballoo · 19-09-2020 9:50pm

You effectively don't have any recourse tbh.

If you approach them and calmly explain what happened, hopefully the parents offer you something as a token gesture. If they do, take it and let them know you appreciate their decency because they would be well within their rights to tell you to FO.

sdanseo · 19-09-2020 9:52pm

I broke a window in school when I was 13 or 14, hurled a Maths book at a mate and missed. Probably the better outcome, as high speed copies of Concise Maths 3 vs the human skull have been shown to be uncomfortable.

My folks paid the school and I was grounded for a week. The Gardaí were not troubled with my wanton act of violence.

bobbyy gee · 19-09-2020 9:58pm

sdanseo wrote: »

I broke a window in school when I was 13 or 14, hurled a Maths book at a mate and missed. Probably the better outcome, as high speed copies of Concise Maths 3 vs the human skull have been shown to be uncomfortable.

My folks paid the school and I was grounded for a week. The Gardaí were not troubled with my wanton act of violence.

what was the velocity and angle of the book
work out the speed of the book where x is the window

Peregrinus · 20-09-2020 5:08am

Forget criminal damage or any other crime. Even if you coul have the child arrested, charged, indicted, tried, convicted and sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered - and you can't - how would that help? Your window would still be broken.

Forget involving the guards. This is so not their problem.

Check your house insurnance. Cover for accidental damage is standard. This was an accident. You should be covered.

There may be an excess. Forget trying to make the child pay. You can't, and anyway he probably doesn't have the money.

Approach the child's parents. They are not liable, but they will probably offer. Maybe split the excess with them?

Be glad you live in a neighbourhood where kids play in the street. Those neighbourhoods have lower crime rates.

Wanderer78 · 20-09-2020 5:14am

bobbyy gee wrote:

ask neibour to pay

Definitely, but be nice about it, no need to go full retard and threaten legal action over it, it's only glass, sh1t breaks

Wanderer78 · 20-09-2020 5:17am

bobbyy gee wrote:

what was the velocity and angle of the book work out the speed of the book where x is the window

You spent the day in that relativity thread, didn't you, take the day off, your brain needs it

20-09-2020 5:58am

Peregrinus wrote: »

Be glad you live in a neighbourhood where kids play in the street. Those neighbourhoods have lower crime rates.

Is this true?

Wanderer78 · 20-09-2020 6:07am

Deleted User wrote: »

Is this true?

debatable, id imagine, but it definitely makes for a happier neighborhood, sometimes

Oink · 20-09-2020 7:09am

I would approach the parents in a friendly manner saying it was only an accident, and ask if they would cover it as it’s only fair.

I can’t offer any legal advice. I’m just surprised to hear that theoretically the parents are not liable/cannot be made to pay. I always assumed I was financially responsible for whatever damage my kids do.

hurleronditch · 20-09-2020 7:17am

I don’t imagine you have any legal recourse, outside of taking a civil court case for damages, which unless the kid broke a 5 grand triple glazed 3m*6m slider is complete overkill.

I broke a neighbours window with a football as a kid of about 9/10. My parents offered repeatedly to pay for the window but the neighbour wouldn’t hear of it. I was taken to Dunnes stores with some of my own birthday money and instructed to buy a very large box of chocolates for the lady who’s window I broke, she was very appreciative of the gesture when I came by with them and we all lived happily ever after

Asus X540L · 20-09-2020 5:16pm

Thanks again for answers.

I'd like to point out that this is all purely theoretical at present.

My windows haven't been broken as of yet but they've definitely been hit and I'd like to be prepared for any eventualities.

I'm a lowly civil servant so wouldn't like to be out of pocket if someone broke my windows.

Wanderer78 · 20-09-2020 5:52pm

Asus X540L wrote:

I'm a lowly civil servant so wouldn't like to be out of pocket if someone broke my windows.

What's your address, we need to resolve this matter, I like breaking glass, one stone situation!

AndrewJRenko · 20-09-2020 7:34pm

I broke a neighbour's window last year when a stone flew out from under my lawnmower and hit their window. We were very, very unlucky on the angle required to go from lawnmower, over the wall, to the top of their window. We told them we'd pay of course, and we had a glazier that had previously done work for each of us, so they were happy that we called the guy and we paid directly. There was a little bit of messing when she moaned a bit at yer man about fiddly stuff, but it all got sorted.

So now I rake before I cut, on that section of the grass anyway.

Wanderer78 · 20-09-2020 7:46pm

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

I broke a neighbour's window last year when a stone flew out from under my lawnmower and hit their window. We were very, very unlucky on the angle required to go from lawnmower, over the wall, to the top of their window. We told them we'd pay of course, and we had a glazier that had previously done work for each of us, so they were happy that we called the guy and we paid directly. There was a little bit of messing when she moaned a bit at yer man about fiddly stuff, but it all got sorted.

So now I rake before I cut, on that section of the grass anyway.

old school teacher nearly lost a leg from a stone and a lawnmower, was bloody lucky to walk after it

Asus X540L · 20-09-2020 8:28pm

Wanderer78 wrote: »

old school teacher nearly lost a leg from a stone and a lawnmower, was bloody lucky to walk after it

When you think about that it actually has at least three different meanings.

Mrs OBumble · 20-09-2020 10:30pm

Smee_Again wrote: »

Why would there be criminal charges if it was an accident?

By that logic, why are murder and manslaughter different charges? Shure why would there be any charges at all if it was an accident. (It's on a totally different scale, for sure, but the same fundamental question.)

OP, as well as the legal answers, pragmatically you could have a chat with the local community guard. It's not good for kids to see that sort of stuff happen with no consequences.

Carawaystick · 21-09-2020 12:57am

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

By that logic, why are murder and manslaughter different charges? Shure why would there be any charges at all if it was an accident. (It's on a totally different scale, for sure, but the same fundamental question.)

Im not sure if your being deliberately provocative, but theres a huge difference between fracturing a bone deliberately and fracturing a bone accidentally.
Never mind a child younger than the age of criminal responsibility cant be charged with a crime requiring mens rea.

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

OP, as well as the legal answers, pragmatically you could have a chat with the local community guard. It's not good for kids to see that sort of stuff happen with no consequences.

Im not sure that involving an organisation(an Garda Síochána), headed by a man (Drew Harris), who tried to cover up the state(uk) involvement in murdering loads of people is the way to go to show a child that there should be consequenses for doing bad things, or careless things....

Mod
Easy now

Peregrinus · 21-09-2020 1:45am

Deleted User wrote: »

Is this true?

Yes, it is. Both burglary, housebreaking etc and vandalism/street crime are less common in areas where plenty of people are outdoors, and more common in quite and unfrequented areas.

Which, when you think about it, is not all that surprising.

s1ippy · 21-09-2020 1:57am

I broke the next door neighbours' window with a wayward sliotar when I was 10. I thought I'd be given the bollocking of a lifetime but my parents were uncharacteristically sound about it and just popped next door to apologise and pay for it. As an adult I now realise that they hate those neighbours.

When a minor accidentally breaks your window

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