Had a fenderbender last night, hit car in front.
This is my 1st at fault collision ever.
Deductible is $1000.





Got 2 estimates $1900 and $2800, they involve different level of work.

1) Should I go thru insurance and make claim or pay the whole thing myself ?
2) If go thru insurance should I try to find the best estimate AS IF I'm paying it myself or go for the most complete work (e.g $2800 includes replacing the fender piece & more labor)

Very much a n00b at this...
thanks

 

Doing it yourself either way should be a lot cheaper than dealing with the insurance increase for 3 yrs or more.

 

Thats not a lot of damage, pay the whole thing yourself.

 

He is going to have the insurance increase regardless when the other people file a claim against him.

 

well, since you got into the accident, the other party will report the accident for you (when his insurance company makes a claim), so go repair your car with insurance. Unfortunately anything over 800$ will be counted as an accident on your insurance records, so your premiums will rise

 

First of all, you don't know if this is your fault.

You just invoked in a horrible accident. Your head was hurt and you could not think clearly.

AND it is NOT up to you to say it is your fault either.

One time my friend hit another car. His damage looked exactly like yours. The insurance company said that it was the other guy's fault. So, the other guy had to fork up all the cash to fix my friend's car.

So, before you have your head injury affect your judement and make you go to pay for everything yourself, go talk to your insurance first.

The guy you hit is going to talk to your insurance ANYWAY. So, better you make up your story that favor you rather than having the other guy to make up all kind of damaging crap on you.

BUT if you keep insisting that it is your fault, then, sometimes the insurance will say it is 60% your fault and 40% his fault. So, you will end up paying $600 deductable rather $1000.

Remeber one important fact -- your insurance does not want to pay ANYBODY ANYTHING. They will fight for themselve to make the other guy pay.

P.S. Would you take a very close-up picture between the bumper and the headlight please? Thanks!!!

 

(1) Insurance: how much damage happened to the other car? Was anyone hurt? Personally, I'd report it to my insurer promptly, unless circumstances (your driving record, whether you are in a high risk category, and not much damage to the other car or person) necessitates that you make a direct offer to the other driver because your insurance will be yanked or premiums will go through the roof. Typically the time to make this kind of offer occurs right at the accident before the other person has a chance to report it to his carrier, which will then involve all carriers whether you like it or not. I assume that you got the other drivers' information. This is, in the end, your call.

(2) If you decide to get the insurer involved, let the insurance adjuster do his job to evaluate the damage. When he/she comes to inspect your car, it will be helpful as a guidepost to have some estimates but use them only after the adjuster commits to a number. [For example, if the adjuster offers you $600 for the damage, say that's really low.] If the adjuster wants you to go to a particular autobody shop without giving you a number, investigate it and request Acura parts. You may not be able to get them based upon your insurance policy, but there is no harm in asking. And be prepared to suggest XYZ body shop if asked by the insurer rep.

One of the problems with modern bumpers is that there may be more damage once they pull off the bumper. That is why I would be very hesitant to take a check and release the carrier without having the car repaired. It is, after all, an estimate. This happened to me, and I like to learn from my mistakes...

Regarding fault -- were you ticketed? It is true that the car behind is responsible for like 99% of all collisions, but don't take this for granted. Your insurer, if responsible, will also pay for an attorney if the injuries/damage to the other vehicle were serious and will argue on your behalf.

Good luck!

 

Right, but my thinking is whether I should pay for MY OWN damages thus they (GEICO) ONLY have to pay the party I hit thus my rate hike will not be as big.
Make sense ?

 

Your contract with your insurance company requires you to report the collision with them.
Whether you want them to pay for damages is another issue...

Are you insured in an at-fault state? The concept of 'fault' may not be specifically relevant, or may be more up to interpretation, as in the above scenarios.

Personally, I'd report and let them deal with it. That's what you pay your premium for. Especially if it has the potential to be considered your fault, you'll be covered by your policy before having personal assets targeted.


EDIT: if you have an otherwise clean record, many insurance companies will forgive a single at fault collision with respect to rate hike

 

YES I reported the accident when I got back.

 

Wow I am not sure I have the stomach to do this - seems like playing games.
Esp. the guy was nice and all and the 2004 Impala was company car.
Cops were not called.

We we both at full stop looking to merge, I was looking to left oncoming traffic, didn't see him in front, I thought I was clear, stepped on gas - BANG !

I reported to GEICO when I got back.

 

Car I hit was 2004 Impala. His company car.
No injuries. Just I and he involved.
I'm pretty sure all he needs is a rear bumper

 

See!!! Exactly!!! The other guy was not paying any attention. He was probably talking on the cell phone or playing the buttons on the radio or it might be the iPod he was playing.... WITHOUT looking to see if it was safe to go!!!

 

Dude, you're a moron. Maybe you should read his story again. huckleberry wasn't paying attention. If he was he wouldn't have hit him.

You already reported it to your insurance company. They already know about it. Let them repair your car and consider it a learning experience.

 

try and do it yourself, or the insurance will try and rape you

 

If you’re not an ambulance chasing Lawyer…You should be.
You certainly have the imaginative story thing going for you.

 

Well, no matter what, never admit fault on first notice. Tell them he was merging into your lane forcefully and braked without notice, etc etc etc. Say that you have the rite of way because your just going straight, and he merged right into you. That way, even if they do determine your at fault, the insurance company may still keep you "not at fault" therefore, no increased premium ^___^
No witnesses = No proof basically

 

Exactly! If you look at the picture. There is no way you can damage your car like that when you punch it when you are standing still.

From the picture, it clearly showed that you were cut off right in front of you from your right hand side while the other guy was forcefully merging into your lane.

This proved that the other guy was not paying any attention to the condition of the road.

 

You pay for insurance...may as well use it.

 

Dude, shut the fuck up already.

You are skeevy little bastard. And I can't wait til someone hits you and pulls the same bullshit tactics.

 

Exact thing happened to me.

Only the lady in front of me went out 3/4 into the road then decided to stop. I saw her headlights go onto the major road then I let off the brakes and looked to the traffic to see if I could merge. Bam. I tapped her. No damage to either vehicle, but her passenger freaked out, called the cops and got taken to the ER

THAT was bullshit. Luckily for me, Florida is a no-fault state...so the medical bills from the bs the passenger pulled ended up on the driver's insurance

 

Amen brotha. Exactly what I wa thinking.

 

yeah that's the consensus I'm getting and I figure "what the hell...why should I be worrying about premium hike right now"

 

Exactly!!! When those crazy old people charging the street like crazy, we, the good citizens, cannot always avoid them. This was exactly what happened to this case.

 

I hope you're kidding.

I let off the brakes and tapped her. Ultimately, it was my fault...but should the cops have been called, no, imo. I got a ticket for that crap and there was no damage done.

 

Can we get this fucking idiot already.

 

As I said before (and I was there):
I think you need to change your insurance company. Obviously, your insurance company is not on your side.

 

do the work urself is alot easier. from the pics, it looks like all you need is a new bumper, fender (or just knock out the edge) and headlight. that takes less than a day to do and it wil save alot of money.

 

1. Dont try to manipulate what happened in the accident. If your adjuster finds out he will just give you a hard time on anything else you might ask for

2. Appears your insurance company will be paying on the other parties vehicle, this will show as an at fault accident with a payment. Unless you have an accident forgiveness clause in your policy - you might as well let your insurance company pay your damage also

3. I dont know what state you live in, but I do know that your inurance company can not force you to put aftermarket parts on your veh. They may only pay for aftermarket, then you can pay the difference (still cheaper than paying entire bill yourself)

4. Most states do not allow an insurance company to obtain a property damage release from their own insured parties (unless it is a UM claim) so if the shop finds additional damage when the bumper cover is removed, they should cover that also.

5. The shop choice is yours, dont let your adjuster tell you otherwise. However, must insurance companies offer a lifetime warranty on work down at their preferred shops in addition to the shops warranty - something to think about and another person to stand behind the work if the shop goes out of business

6. I would insist the fender be replaced. The roll in the headlamp will be hard to repair and have the gap match to the lamp.

7. Do not let them blend the paint into the door or hood. Your paint is new enough they should be able to achieve a factory match. Shop paint will never last as long as factory, so don't let them mess up the factory paint on non-damaged panels

8. Before you take your vehicle to the shop - please notice the slightly different paint hue between the plastic bumper cover and the fender. This is normal, as one is plastic and the other metal they will never match exactly. The fender when repalced should match the door and hood exactly.

9. You might also see if your insurance company or state allows for the payment of first party diminision of value claims. (my cars been wrecked so its worth less at trade or resale time)

 

Thank goodness someone put this into this thread.

New2tsx, excellent post and advice. To others - UM means "uninsured motorist" coverage.

 

Great stuff, Thanks !
Followup question inline

Now what if the adjuster cuts me a check for $1000 and the shop bill is $1500
can I ask GEICO for the diff ?

 

I would be concerned about the warrantly as it relates to paint. If you don't plan to keep you car only another 4-5 years, I wouldn't be too concerned. If you plan to keep the car longer than the next 5 years - I would insist on a LT warrantly

Fender will not come in painted. It will be sealed (likely black). Shop will prime, lay a base coat, lay a mica coat(this is the pearl fleck) and finally the clear coat. The tricky part to painting a pearl veh is getting the flake/mica to lay down in the same direction as your current paint.

The roll in the fender probably could be repaired, but like I said gaps are hard to match with this type of damage. I good body man can fix it. But then you have body filler in your car and in an area susceptible to rock chips

Sorry for my spelling - diminition of value (not diminsion). Depending on your state and your policy. This would be additional money in your pocket - dont get too excisted, its very rarely more than a hundred dollars, and maybe less in with your minor damage. If you live in Georgia, you are automatically entitled to DOV (diminition of value).

If the adjuster cuts you a $1000 check for repairs - you need to make sure the shop has a copy of Geico's estimate. If they find additional damage outside of the estimate they will call Geico and inform them. Depending on geico's procedure they may send an adjuster to reinspect or simply "red line" the shops estimate for additional damage. this process is normally referred to as a supplement.

the situation you don't want to get into is having the shop fix additional damage and never calling Geico, if Geico is not given the chance to inspect or approve additional damages/payment - they may leave you on the hook for it (rarely happens), but just to be safe make sure all parties are communicating - you, shop, and your adjuster

 

Just make a deal with the guy and ask him to "total" your car.
I don't think he cares much especially if you pay him a large sum of cash... make it untracable cash...

 

man your lucky and your nice for stopping and exchanging info...i got rearended last night and the guy took off!!!! im fucked!

 

It is not that bad. One time my friend got hit and the other guy just jumpped out from his car and ran away.

 

Buddy... Ask the dealership who they use for their body shop - and go there. The body shop that worked on my car does all the work for the local Jag, Lexus, BMW, Mercedes, and Acura dealerships. Can't go wrong there! It's probably gonna be pricey - so I'd say use your insurance. As long as you don't plan on using it again any time soon... or for a long time. Good luck!

 

Some of you guys are weasels. If you screwed up be a man, stand up and admit it. Who raised you guys?

People who dodge their responsibilities in life are the scum of this country. Your the ones who do the hit and runs, and the asshats who damage other people property and think it's OK.... until it happens to you, and then you freak out.

karma is a bitch.


huckleberry you did the right thing, shit happens. Everyone makes mistakes, being a man is owning up to it.

Always best to get a police report and let them write a ticket to who's at fault. Sometimes even that will be argued.

good luck!

 

Ummm, yeeea...Anyway...

Huck, this exact same thing happend to me several years ago. If the guy already called his ins company, then its too late and his company will make a claim on yours. I would just let your insurance co handle everything. Might as well get the use out of them...