Politics & Government

Man Blames Car Damage on Speed Hump

Should the city of San Juan Capistrano pay?

Originally posted 9:45 a.m. Oct. 14, 2013. Updated to include information about city maintenance of the speed hump.

If you’re driving along a San Juan Capistrano street and you hit a speed hump hard, so hard that it causes some damage … whose fault is that?

In one instance, the driver is saying the city’s.

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San Clemente resident Ron Hascall had just turned from Camino Las Ramblas onto Via de Agua at around 7:30 p.m. July 23 when he unexpectedly hit a speed hump hard.

“It caused my 2007 Toyota Avalon to bottom out, then leave the pavement coming back to the pavement with a solid thug,” Hascall wrote on a claim form to recover damages from the city.

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His damages, which amounted to throwing his wheels out of alignment, totaled $140, and he thinks the city should pay.

It was city employees whose failure to maintain white, longitudinal ladder markings in proper, visible condition” that caused the mishap, Hascall wrote. Two more speed humps on that same street were much more visible.

The city’s insurance adjuster is recommending the council reject the claim. The City Council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 32400 Paseo Adelanto in San Juan Capistrano. 

According to Cathy Salcedo, city spokeswoman, the sign seen in the photo predates Hascall's incident. The hump was freshly painted the week of Aug. 26.

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