'I wanted to cry': Man who was offered $10 compensation after motorbike damaged in Yishun carpark

If you own a vehicle, you'd know how painful and expensive it is when it's damaged and has to be sent for repairs.

So, you can imagine how distressed Tan Yen Jue felt when he realised someone had marred his pink motorbike. 

And to add salt to his wound, the perpetrator, who identified himself as Lim in a note, later offered Tan a meagre $10 as compensation.

In a four-minute TikTok uploaded on Sunday (Sept 18), Tan revealed what had gone down some two months ago when he discovered the sorry state of his bike at a HDB carpark in Yishun. 

At the start of the video, he showed the long, dark scratch on the left side of this his bike. He also revealed that a part next to the headlights had come loose. 

In the comments of the video, Tan shared that the engine cover set itself would cost "near to $1,000" to fix and that he is still unsure about how much the total repair costs would be. 

[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@tanyenjue/video/7144311387366362370?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1[/embed]

Both Tan and his friend taking the video theorised that Lim must have been moving very fast when he knocked into Tan's motorbike. 

While they were inspecting the damages, they found a note from Lim attached to the motorbike's in-vehicle unit (IU) device with Lim's phone number and a message that said: "I accidentally knocked onto your bike". 

In the video, Tan expressed how fortunate it was that Lim had left his number, adding that he was very unlucky as his bike had just been freshly spray-painted. 

Unfortunately, he didn't stay relieved for long. 

During the call, which was mostly in Mandarin, Tan could be heard telling Lim that the damages were "very serious" and that both the front and back of his vehicle were affected. 

He also kept emphasising that the incident was "not a small matter". 

While Tan asked if they should settle the matter via insurance claim, Lim requested for a "private settlement". In response, Tan told Lim that he is "very calm" so he did not have to worry. 

However, Tan wasn't so calm a few seconds later when Lim offered to compensate him $10 for all the damages. 

"Uncle, what can I do with $10? Is the $10 for me to buy coffee?" he asked Lim frustratedly, adding that he had just sent his bike for a paint job recently.

"Help me a bit, this isn't even my fault. I'm now giving you a way out, do you know that?" Tan said pointedly. 

He also told Lim that he may have no choice but to make a police report if they could not come up with a reasonable conclusion. 

Eventually, Lim offered to meet Tan to settle the issue. 

"This is ridiculous!" Tan shouted after the phone call ended. 

In the comments, Tan shared that: "I wanted to cry when he offered me $10."

He also shared that after rejecting the $10 offer, he filed an insurance claim against Lim. However, he claimed that Lim failed to file an accident report and thus he could not make a successful claim against him. 

In the video comments, Tan said that he engaged a lawyer to remind Lim of the consequences of not filing an accident report. 

In a recent comment on TikTok, Tan said the "case is under control".

AsiaOne has reached out to Tan for his comments. 

As of the time of writing, the video has garnered over 305,100 views and 625 comments with many furious with Lim and his offer.

There were also those who were tickled by Lim's $10 compensation.

Some added that with that amount, all Tan could afford was a tube of super glue or some tape to mend back the bike parts himself. 

However, some praised Lim for his honesty and said that it was nice of him to leave Tan a note. 

In situations where a motorist is involved in a hit and run and the other party does not want to file an accident report, one can approach workshops affiliated with law firms where they'll hire a solicitor to sue the other party for repair costs.

On the other hand, if a company vehicle is involved, one can also seek police assistance. 

melissateo@asiaone.com