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If someone crashes into you and breaks your camera/video/equipment


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Today I saw an accident where this out of control boarder crashed into this guy taking a photo. Camera fell and seems something was broken on it. He was as you might expect pretty angry but the boarder was dismissive and after throwing out some languaged carried on boarding. I know I would be pissed if that happened to me.

 

Anything like that happen to you?

What's the manners here. I'm pretty sure I would accept it was my fault but was wondering what would happen then.

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Yeah - some skier twatted into me last season and broke my bindings, feigning injury then pissed off down the slope. Think there is a pic on here somewhere - was very pissed off but no-one did anything to help me.

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I assume that in an accident where personal property is damaged and the person causing the accident won't take responsibility you could file a police report. Why would it be any different than if someone crashed into you on the street? If there are witnesses than surely something could be done.

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Originally Posted By: muikabochi
Yes, remember there is snow on a ski run. confused

I would be mightily angry. I am very careful though when I take my decent gear out. Try my best to make sure something like that won't be happening.


There are also variable conditions like ice and snow on streets too. If someone had slipped on ice and bumped into you only to break your camera, I fully expect they would have the decency to help reimburse the affected.

If I were to ever hit someone and break a camera I would give them my info and go from there. Never know, sometimes it's just a quick fix and a really nice gesture to care about someone else's misfortune.
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If reported to the J-Cops, you'd lose half your remaining skiing / boarding time down at the local Koban filing in a super-detailed incident report which would ultimately come to nothing.

 

Description? "snowboarder, male, average height, goggles, face mask, low-rider boarder pants, i-pod, might have been Japanese...etc." Think about it!

 

If you can't safely collar the person who did it yourself (for example if they are injured in the incident) then you might as well forget it.

 

I let others take the pics.

 

SdS

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Originally Posted By: muikabochi
(I was being slightly sarcastc, Mitch. wink Totally agree with you).


Sorry, been a rough past few days, my sarcasm meter is way off hahaha. My apologies.
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This reminds me of surfing manners. If someone hits you and they are clearly at fault they will almost always end up paying for any repairs. Why is that? My guess is that unlike on a ski hill they can't escape so easily and if they want to come back to that spot to surf they'll pay. Of course, it's sometimes difficult to judge who has the right of way in a line up on a crowded beach here in Japan and in those situations you have to resign yourself to the fact that accidents happen.

 

You have to assume some level of responsibilty on a ski hill to ensure your own safety. Stopping on the side of a crowded or busy hill is just asking for trouble. I know personally that I make sure what I do is safe, especially concerning my treasured camera, so if there is an accident I'm sure it's going to be as a result of someone else's negligence. I would hunt the person down and make sure they paid! And if they weren't willing to I would try to involve the authorities. There is no way I'd just shrug and mutter 'shoganai' to myself.

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Originally Posted By: skidaisuki
If reported to the J-Cops, you'd lose half your remaining skiing / boarding time down at the local Koban filing in a super-detailed incident report which would ultimately come to nothing.

Description? "snowboarder, male, average height, goggles, face mask, low-rider boarder pants, i-pod, might have been Japanese...etc." Think about it!

If you can't safely collar the person who did it yourself (for example if they are injured in the incident) then you might as well forget it.

I let others take the pics.

SdS

How true is that!!! lol
We had two run in's with the police this January.
The first we were in Kutchan doing some shopping and the J-Police asked if we worked for a big company in Niseko (assuming we must have been working if we were driving, not tourists) when they realized we were just tourists they wanted to see the international license - but of course the driver had left the license in our accommodation in his OTHER jacket! Long story short it took almost 2 hours to sort out and involved the driver going for a ride BACK to the Niseko apartment in the back of the police car to prove he HAD an international license - J-Police were very disappointed that it was all in order!

The second one of the crew had his Jacket lifted from the bar at The Vale. He reported it stolen to police the next day so he can claim on insurance. It took half a day. He was fingerprinted. The visited The Vale and took actual measurement from where he was sitting, where his jacket had been etc - photo's, staff statements ... the whole circus!! Ridiculous! You really have to work out whether the items value and claiming it on insurance is worth losing a day of your vacation.
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Lesson to be learnt - ALWAYS have your license with you.

I got caught once on a checkup, licence was in my wallet which was at home. I had just driven to the shops up the road with a note in my pocket.

doh

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Originally Posted By: Black Mountain
This reminds me of surfing manners. If someone hits you and they are clearly at fault they will almost always end up paying for any repairs. Why is that? My guess is that unlike on a ski hill they can't escape so easily and if they want to come back to that spot to surf they'll pay. Of course, it's sometimes difficult to judge who has the right of way in a line up on a crowded beach here in Japan and in those situations you have to resign yourself to the fact that accidents happen.

You have to assume some level of responsibilty on a ski hill to ensure your own safety. Stopping on the side of a crowded or busy hill is just asking for trouble. I know personally that I make sure what I do is safe, especially concerning my treasured camera, so if there is an accident I'm sure it's going to be as a result of someone else's negligence. I would hunt the person down and make sure they paid! And if they weren't willing to I would try to involve the authorities. There is no way I'd just shrug and mutter 'shoganai' to myself.


in surfing sometimes things just go wrong... there's accepted things that you should do not to get into other people's way (eg 'sacrificing yourself and not paddling for the safety of the shoulder if you will ruin someone's wave) but sometimes collisions are unavaiodable. it is rare though. i have been very close to som bad accidents (both my fault and others) but thankfully serious injury has been avoided by a whisker

snow wise - if a collision is a genuine accident, well, what can you do? but if the person at fault was being pretty reckless, then yep, hunt em down!

you make a good point about safe spots to stop on ski slopes though. some people (eg beginner boarders) will all stop and sit down in a line just below a mound. its dangerous and stoopid.
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Originally Posted By: spook
you make a good point about safe spots to stop on ski slopes though. some people (eg beginner boarders) will all stop and sit down in a line just below a mound. its dangerous and stoopid.


That happens a lot just around the narrowing corner on the green groomer where the gate to Konayuki is (coming from Gondola at Grand Hirafu). I came around that corner once on this trip to find the entire piste blocked by a group of skiers all stopped in a line across the piste! It was a quick change of direction and up around the tree for me, but there were a pile of people after me to ended up having to stop or falling - it was like the freeway at peak hour - total standstill.

Why do they do that?!!!
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Originally Posted By: Black Mountain
I would hunt the person down and make sure they paid! And if they weren't willing to I would try to involve the authorities.

I don't think you'd have a case. If I was the judge I'd say "Mr Black Mountain, you KNOWINGLY put your camera in a risky environment. Therefore you CANNOT make the defendant liable for damage caused to it during the normal rough and tumble of a day on the slopes. Case dismissed!"
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It would never get to a court case as the police are the ones who make the decision about what punishments the person at fault will have. Ever been in an accident here when the police have gotten involved? There is actually a form they request you fill out detailing what punishment you think the person at fault should have which they take into consideration.

 

You can argue the 'risky environment' line of reasoning for any situation so it's not really relevent when you've taken every precaution to protect yourself and yet an accident occurs through someone else's negligence. If you were physically hurt by their negligence they would be forced to pay hospital bills, your wages while away from work AND any damage to your property (this I know for a fact as I've been involved in a situation like that before).

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Originally Posted By: MrSingh
I'd try not to board in heavy traffic areas. Beginning/intermediate slopes are full of beginners barreling out of control.

How about getting equipment insurance?

I hate to say this but it is not the beginers/intermediate who do this.It,s the people who can snowboard or so they think. It is only a tiny minority of selfish people and a apply,s to skiers as well
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Geoff, you're saying that there are people out there whose ability is lower than their assessment of their ability. (or, who are not as good as they think they are!)

 

How could you think that? wink

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Mamabear,

 

Sorry to hear that you should be affected by J-cop officiousness AND inefficiency during the same trip...

 

Why the hell did they ask for your driver's driving licence when in Kutchan? They shouldn't be bothering you for that unless the driver did something stupid. If you'd lied and told them you were working there, would they have left you alone do you think?

 

Stupid local jobsworth cops, I suspect...doh...

 

One thing I learned from personal experience is that it's fine to be a crimbo in Japan as long as you look Japanese and no one ever complains. Why? because unless someone complains - or your crime is so obvious and serious that no complaint is necessary - then the cops will NEVER touch you. If you look slightly foreign and someone's bike's been nicked, or a sweet wrapper dropped, or you don't fit into the usual salaryman pattern of bad behaviour...well, tread in fear... Team donut will arrest you, ask you such questions as "so it's OK to do this in YOUR country is it?"* and try and patronise or bore you into a full confession.

 

Welcome to Japan - where the cops get a kick out of persecuting people for trivial misdemeanours while you can look up gangsters' office addresses - services include human trafficking, selling drugs, shooting people - in the phone book.

 

Rant over...

 

SdS

 

* - response "maybe not, but in my country it's not OK to sexually harass women on trains, beat students to death for 'not trying hard enough' or read violent, sadistic porno mags in full view of young children"

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