Smashed drone, don't take off from a road.

[John Gowland]

My DJI FPV is killed at Hillarys Boat Harbour. Perth Western Australia. Body DOA, battery DOA, 128 sd card DOA.
January 9th 2021 Don't bend your head
I forgot to mention that the 4x4 was about two feet above what it usually is. So you can not see things on the ground, close to it. All she could see was her bonnet.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Sorry about the drone but to some extent you are perhaps lucky it didn't damage the car, under Australian law would you have been held liable if it had?

That said, I can't help but wonder why she didn't see the drone on the road, when mine is powered up the lights are quite noticeable.
Also you say you turned around to close the car door and crunch. How close to you and the car was she???
You might be lucky that she didn't hit you and or your car.

 

[John Gowland]

I have never heard of such a law in Australia. Could you tell me where I can find such a law?

Sorry about the drone but to some extent you are perhaps lucky it didn't damage the car, under Australian law would you have been held liable if it had?

That said, I can't help but wonder why she didn't see the drone on the road, when mine is powered up the lights are quite noticeable.
Also you say you turned around to close the car door and crunch. How close to you and the car was she???
You might be lucky that she didn't hit you and or your car.

I forgot to mention that the 4x4 was about two feet above what it usually is. So you can not see things on the ground, close to it. So all she could see is her bonnet. She was pulling into the bay next to me so about 3 feet.

 

[Trippp]

Another important consideration... never pour a 5 gallon bucket of water on your drone before you go to fly it, hehe!

 

[Deleted member 103366]

I couldn't tell you where to look for such a law but my raising the matter stems from a recollection that in the UK the owner or transporter of an item is responsible for any damage that an item causes if the item is left or dropped on the roadway and is subsequently hit by a vehicle.
I think its aimed at poorly secured loads but it could be argued that it could be extended to stuff placed on the roadway. I presume there are similar law elsewhere.

 

[old man mavic]

@John Gowland sorry for your loss John ,a hard lesson learned you wont do that again,glad to see you took it in good spirit, part of life's rich tapestry, not many people would have posted something like that ,good on you for sharing that unfortunate event

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Wow John, sorry to see / hear of your loss, and thanks for sharing, it might make people think twice about where they launch from.
But I guess you know this incident can only be placed at the feet of one person, and hopefully they've learned a valuable lesson here.

There is no way you can see a drone on the ground when close in any car, especially if this was a carpark, or roadside parking etc, the other party would not in any way be responsible for damage that occurred here.

I'm not sure I've ever seen anything in Australian Law that could be applied here, if her tyre (for example) had suffered damage and needed to be replaced.
I think it would become a civil matter, she'd have to take you to small claims, generally too much drama and time for what generally might be minor damage overall.
I'd hope in most cases, most people, when in the wrong, would offer to repair or replace something belonging to others that they've damaged.

I know you have commercial insurance for your drones, but these things won't reflect well on your policy I guess.

What I'd like to ask, how do you fly from such a location, keeping 30m distance from people when flying from a busy roadway or carpark ?
Not to mention flying in a responsible way to avoid damage to peoples property, cars, homes, etc ?
Their rules are explicit on this for both rec and commercial drone flights.

If you have RePL and ReOC, you have a little leeway in some regular drone rules, but generally not with these for non essential participants.

 

[Don Testme]

@John Gowland sorry for your loss John ,a hard lesson learned you wont do that again,glad to see you took it in good spirit, part of life's rich tapestry, not many people would have posted something like that ,good on you for sharing that unfortunate event

I put my drone on the trunk of my car once. It totally slipped my mind. I drove off to pick something up at the store. I suddenly realized I left it on my trunk. Looked in the rearview and it was gone. I did a quick U-turn and searched the opposite lane. Saw it in the middle of the road with lots of traffic. I pulled over, flagged the traffic to slow down enough and ran across the treet and grabbed the drone. It got hit by one car , but only one of it's legs got run over. The motor was crushed and the leg snapped. I got lucky. Only had to replace a leg and motor. All was fine after that.

 

[John Gowland]

Wow John, sorry to see / hear of your loss, and thanks for sharing, it might make people think twice about where they launch from.
But I guess you know this incident can only be placed at the feet of one person, and hopefully they've learned a valuable lesson here.

There is no way you can see a drone on the ground when close in any car, especially if this was a carpark, or roadside parking etc, the other party would not in any way be responsible for damage that occurred here.

I'm not sure I've ever seen anything in Australian Law that could be applied here, if her tyre (for example) had suffered damage and needed to be replaced.
I think it would become a civil matter, she'd have to take you to small claims, generally too much drama and time for what generally might be minor damage overall.
I'd hope in most cases, most people, when in the wrong, would offer to repair or replace something belonging to others that they've damaged.

I know you have commercial insurance for your drones, but these things won't reflect well on your policy I guess.

What I'd like to ask, how do you fly from such a location, keeping 30m distance from people when flying from a busy roadway or carpark ?
Not to mention flying in a responsible way to avoid damage to peoples property, cars, homes, etc ?
Their rules are explicit on this for both rec and commercial drone flights.

If you have RePL and ReOC, you have a little leeway in some regular drone rules, but generally not with these for non essential participants.


View attachment 141638

There were no people or cars within about 50 feet. Only myself and my car. The small car park had 4 bays. The driver took the bay closest to the waves where she was going to take her kite. So, I broke no rule or law. We have an amazing Government app that you register your drone all its details and your permission. CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority) it’s called "Open Sky". Within a few minutes I received permission to fly my FPV.
After the event I approached position of take-off and I could easily see the drone. The driver was so high up in her jacked up 4 x 4 it was impossible for her to see my drone.

Thanks for all your concern but there is no loss on my part. When I was working for 35 years as a teacher, I never used my insurance hence when I did apply for loss, they gave me a "lifelong no claims bonus." What it means here in WA is that I can claim for any damage with without any cost to me. I have just claimed, and they will put the replacement value in my bank account within a few days or weeks. Of course, I must provide proof of purchase and a damage report from a reputable source, in this case DJI. My insurance company will not require a report when I show them the recordings, it is simply impossible to repair so they will not insist on a report. The situation was not negligence on anyone’s part, it was just a freakish accident.
Believe me when I say I have had quite a few claims.

In fact, I think the most important thing you must do before you fly is to get personal insurance which includes drones and DJI Care.

Every time there is a loss of a drone, we all think catastrophe as I did. But after a few moments I think, stop worrying knowing it will be replaced without any loss on my part.

Without good insurance I would be terrified to fly, take zero chances. I do not fly without diligence to the rules and regulations and due care of safety of myself, others, and property.
Still love to fly, what a hobby we have, just incredible. And what an amazing forum we have which, just keeps getting better.
But do take off from a place that is almost impossible that your take off will be a danger to anyone or any thing.

Addendum.
I gave the impression I took off from a busy road. The four bay car park is very rarely used. There is a large car park close and much easier to park, that is why I always fly from the sleepy small one.

 

[John Gowland]

I put my drone on the trunk of my car once. It totally slipped my mind. I drove off to pick something up at the store. I suddenly realized I left it on my trunk. Looked in the rearview and it was gone. I did a quick U-turn and searched the opposite lane. Saw it in the middle of the road with lots of traffic. I pulled over, flagged the traffic to slow down enough and ran across the treet and grabbed the drone. It got hit by one car , but only one of it's legs got run over. The motor was crushed and the leg snapped. I got lucky. Only had to replace a leg and motor. All was fine after that.

Similar thing happened to me! But my Mavic Mini 1 was DOA.

 

[theDRONEranger]

My DJI FPV is killed at Hillarys Boat Harbour. Perth Western Australia. Body DOA, battery DOA, 128 sd card DOA.
January 9th 2021 Don't bend your head
I forgot to mention that the 4x4 was about two feet above what it usually is. So you can not see things on the ground, close to it. All she could see was her bonnet.

https://www.bands.army.mil/music/buglecalls/play.asp?Taps.mp3

 

[eaglesurfing]

Wow.... Sorry about the drone but day by day I keep thinking I never saw that before. One more to add to my list.

 

[rolling56]

Sorry neither one of you (yourself and the person driving the vehicle) wasn't paying attention. Good luck next time.

 

[John Gowland]

https://www.bands.army.mil/music/buglecalls/play.asp?Taps.mp3

Loved it

 

[wombat]

There were no people or cars within about 50 feet. Only myself and my car. The small car park had 4 bays. The driver took the bay closest to the waves where she was going to take her kite. So, I broke no rule or law. We have an amazing Government app that you register your drone all its details and your permission. CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority) it’s called "Open Sky". Within a few minutes I received permission to fly my FPV.
After the event I approached position of take-off and I could easily see the drone. The driver was so high up in her jacked up 4 x 4 it was impossible for her to see my drone.

Thanks for all your concern but there is no loss on my part. When I was working for 35 years as a teacher, I never used my insurance hence when I did apply for loss, they gave me a "lifelong no claims bonus." What it means here in WA is that I can claim for any damage with without any cost to me. I have just claimed, and they will put the replacement value in my bank account within a few days or weeks. Of course, I must provide proof of purchase and a damage report from a reputable source, in this case DJI. My insurance company will not require a report when I show them the recordings, it is simply impossible to repair so they will not insist on a report. The situation was not negligence on anyone’s part, it was just a freakish accident.
Believe me when I say I have had quite a few claims.

In fact, I think the most important thing you must do before you fly is to get personal insurance which includes drones and DJI Care.

Every time there is a loss of a drone, we all think catastrophe as I did. But after a few moments I think, stop worrying knowing it will be replaced without any loss on my part.

Without good insurance I would be terrified to fly, take zero chances. I do not fly without diligence to the rules and regulations and due care of safety of myself, others, and property.
Still love to fly, what a hobby we have, just incredible. And what an amazing forum we have which, just keeps getting better.
But do take off from a place that is almost impossible that your take off will be a danger to anyone or any thing.

Addendum.
I gave the impression I took off from a busy road. The four bay car park is very rarely used. There is a large car park close and much easier to park, that is why I always fly from the sleepy small one.

What insurance company are you with ?

 

[John Gowland]

I will pm you.

 

[tdowler]

Hate you lost the drone. I've taken off and landed in a few sketchy locations but will rethink my choices now.

 

[John Gowland]

That was my intention. Take care where you take off from.

 

[Mr. Rocketman]

There were no people or cars within about 50 feet. Only myself and my car. The small car park had 4 bays. The driver took the bay closest to the waves where she was going to take her kite. So, I broke no rule or law. We have an amazing Government app that you register your drone all its details and your permission. CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority) it’s called "Open Sky". Within a few minutes I received permission to fly my FPV.
After the event I approached position of take-off and I could easily see the drone. The driver was so high up in her jacked up 4 x 4 it was impossible for her to see my drone.

Thanks for all your concern but there is no loss on my part. When I was working for 35 years as a teacher, I never used my insurance hence when I did apply for loss, they gave me a "lifelong no claims bonus." What it means here in WA is that I can claim for any damage with without any cost to me. I have just claimed, and they will put the replacement value in my bank account within a few days or weeks. Of course, I must provide proof of purchase and a damage report from a reputable source, in this case DJI. My insurance company will not require a report when I show them the recordings, it is simply impossible to repair so they will not insist on a report. The situation was not negligence on anyone’s part, it was just a freakish accident.
Believe me when I say I have had quite a few claims.

In fact, I think the most important thing you must do before you fly is to get personal insurance which includes drones and DJI Care.

Every time there is a loss of a drone, we all think catastrophe as I did. But after a few moments I think, stop worrying knowing it will be replaced without any loss on my part.

Without good insurance I would be terrified to fly, take zero chances. I do not fly without diligence to the rules and regulations and due care of safety of myself, others, and property.
Still love to fly, what a hobby we have, just incredible. And what an amazing forum we have which, just keeps getting better.
But do take off from a place that is almost impossible that your take off will be a danger to anyone or any thing.

Addendum.
I gave the impression I took off from a busy road. The four bay car park is very rarely used. There is a large car park close and much easier to park, that is why I always fly from the sleepy small one.

OH - I thought she was parked there and moved her car - then yes, she should have seen the drone sitting on the ground and she is probably liable for any costs.