Cleveland woman's car hit by city street sweeper, waited weeks for settlement check

CLEVELAND - Maggie Jo Massey, of Cleveland, said she's never been in a car accident, that is until March 2009.

Massey said a city of Cleveland street sweeper hit the back passenger side of her vehicle, causing nearly $4,000 in damage.

"It has a lot of torque, it threw my car into another lane," Massey said.

Massey filed a police report and a damage claim with the Cleveland Law Department. More than a year later, her attorney was sent a settlement memorandum on Oct. 15. The city of Cleveland agreed to pay her $7,500 for damage to her vehicle, and lost time at work.

Massey said days later she received an e-mail from her attorney, stating the Cleveland Law Department would issue her settlement check on Oct. 27, but Massey said the settlement check never came in the mail, so she contacted the law department to find out what went wrong.

"The woman who answered the phone told me my settlement was rejected because the city didn't have the funds," Massey said. The next day, Massey contacted 5 On Your Side. Troubleshooter Joe Pagonakis took the case directly to Cleveland Law Director Robert Triozzi.

Triozzi said no one from his department could have told Massey the city didn't have the money to make good on settlements.

"When I sign-off on a settlement, the city is self-insured," said Triozzi, "The city is able to back-up any judgement I would sign-off on."

"Once a case is settled, it could take a month for a settlement check to be processed," Triozzi said. "In fact Massey's check was processed today."

If you're thinking about filing a damage claim, always contact a cities law department, and fill out the proper paperwork. It's always a good idea to file a police report on your incident. 

Document your claim by taking numerous pictures, and keep all paperwork on the incident.  If your damage claim is significant, you should consider hiring an attorney.

Information on filing a damage claim in the City of Cleveland can be found by clicking on this link www.city.cleveland.oh.us/CityofCleveland/Home/Government/CityAgencies/Law/Claims#vehicledamage