More Than A Year Later, USPS Agrees To Reimburse West Garfield Park Couple For Damage Driver Caused To Their Car
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The video was clear: a postal worker damaged a parked car, then took off. For one year, a retired couple on the West Side tried in vain to get the U.S. Postal Service to cover their huge repair bills. So they reached out to CBS 2 for help.
Days ago they got some good news.
The last year has been "very frustrating" for Donald and Vera Rideaux.
"Not being able to get in to talk to anyone. No one was getting back to us," Vera said.
You'd be frustrated, too, if a U.S. Postal Service worker had damaged your parked car, then drove off, and USPS had done nothing about it.
"He kept backing the truck up, back and forth, back and forth, pulling my car at the same time," Donald said.
Donald and Vera had video of the incident outside their home in West Garfield Park. You can see the postal worker even getting out of his truck to look at the scratches and dents he caused.
"He looked at the car. He looked up the street, and he got back in it, and he drove off," Vera said.
And when Vera and Donald's grandson confronted the driver?
"'My grandmother has you on camera.' He says, 'Oh yeah, well, do what you got to do,'" Vera said.
What made this especially maddening for the retired couple is that, for one year, they tried to get the U.S. Postal Service to cover the $1,200 bill and their $1,000 deductible. With no success. And so they reached out to us for help. We aired the story in December.
"You put it on CBS 2 News, and that got it out, and it got the attention of the people," Vera said.
A Postal Service spokesman apologized to Vera and Donald, and promised action. A few days ago, they received word they would indeed be reimbursed.
When they got word that USPS will be paying their claim, what was their reaction?
"Yippee!" Vera said. "I can't think of anything, but to thank you and CBS News so much for your help."