Rather random but would like others opinion,

My car is at the panel beaters having drivers front wheel guard replaced.{Due to someone reversing out a driveway and smacking into my car parked on the side of the road!}Get a phone call from the panel beater today saying my radiator was leaking water {never has before and wasn't leaking on Monday when i dropped my car there to have guard replaced}They said they noticed it dripping yesterday when they drove if from workshop after replacing guard.{The radiator wasn't damaged in anyway from accident.}The guy reckons a small stone might have flicked up and caused the tiny hole.My issue is it wasn't leaking when i took it in there and he says he only noticed it yesterday after having the car all week.So its a' my word against your word' situation that has ended up costing me to get the radiator fixed.Itis an unexpected cost that has pme off to say the least!Just curious if anyone else has had a similar experience and who should liable to pay for the radiator repair panel beater or me!

I'd doubt they would have put a hole in your radiator really!
If the radiator is in reasonable condition then it takes a fairly decent bump to put a hole in it, and they probably were't working near the radiator anyway. so if it has developed a hole mysteriously, I'd say the radiator must have been on it's last legs anyway and it's just chance it has developed a leak while they had the car.

It's entirely possible the radiator did decide to spring a leak while it was there in their posession, be thankful they actually told you rather than let you drive off with it losing water and potentially overheating the engine.

I would understand if it came back with an additional scratch or overspray which you knew wasn't there beforehand, but just because it's sitting somewhere getting work doesn't mean it's automatically exempt from contracting mechanical or maintenance issues.

Maybe i must be sounding abit ungratefull, like you say atleast they told me.Just put it down to wear and tear pay the bill and shut up.Like i said earlier unless i could prove who or what caused it to leak, its wasting everyones time.Thanks for clarafying that for me!

Radiator failures can come completely out of the blue, no symptoms at all right up until the moment of failure.

It's also not really something that can be caused by malpractice (such as his apprentice revving the sh*t out of your car for instance.)

So unless he packed your car straight of to his dodgy mate's radiator place without asking you first, I think it is highly unlikely they are scamming you!

Whoever fixes the radiator will be able to tell you whether it is damage or old age.
Get the car back, take it to an independent radiator specialist and tell them the story and ask them to let you know what they find.