Got bumped into today :(

[vatovey]

Evening all,

On my way home from Cardiff (Manor way) today a girl in a Golf bumped into the back of the MR2, fortunately there wasn't much damage as she was only going 2-4 mph, nevertheless there was a little damage.

Can you guys/girls take a look and advise as to whether you think its worth pursuing, or maybe attemping a repair job myself ?, or neither.....



If I want to pursue the claim the girl offered to pay the money direct to me (as I suspect her insurance will skyrocket otherwise).

Cheers, Vaughn.

[DannyN]

New rear bumper would probably be easiest but I'd whip that one off and have a look behind it to make sure she hasnt caused any more damage,

[stargazer30]

We have insurers on these boards and they share data, so its a good job it was your mates roadster and not yours eh   s:D s:D     s:wink: :wink: s:wink:    s:wink: :wink: s:wink:  

I sympathise but what happens next year when they don't declare the accident and there insurance is void or 3rd party only regardless of if they claimed or not.  Full disclosure I'm afraid.  Trouble is once he does declare it his premium and hers will go up regardless of fault/recovery/no claims protection.


David

[DannyN]

You dont have to claim on your insurance

[mrzwei]

For that sort of damage I'd try a 'smart' repair shop to get a quote. I've had two on mine through time and they both came in at around £100. Google smart repair

[nathanMR2]

We have insurers on these boards and they share data, so its a good job it was your mates roadster and not yours eh   s:D s:D     s:wink: :wink: s:wink:    s:wink: :wink: s:wink:  

I sympathise but what happens next year when they don't declare the accident and there insurance is void or 3rd party only regardless of if they claimed or not.  Full disclosure I'm afraid.  Trouble is once he does declare it his premium and hers will go up regardless of fault/recovery/no claims protection.


David

We may have insurers on the board but i would hope they are there to help people rather than try to stitch them up. That aside you dont have to claim off the insurance. Its there to make sure you are put in the same position as you were before the incident (some would agrue that never happens with insurers but it should do) and to make sure if you damage someone elses property or someone else they can get compensated for it.

If both parties can agree to sort things out between them thats fine. Theres no need for the insurance company to become involved. Insurance companies base the risk of a policy on the basis of if they are likely to have to pay money out. If you or the other person sort it out its between you two, then thats exactly what it is.

[nathanMR2]

oppps dup post!

Mods please delete   s:) s:)

[stargazer30]

You dont have to claim on your insurance

Sure you don't have to but you do have to declare any accidents you've been involved in regardless of if a claim was made and those affect your premium.  As an example I had a company car and I hit the rear of a 4x4 thanks to some ice.  Low speed job, no damage to the 4x4 and very minor bumper damage to mine.  I didn't claim personally as it was covered by the company policy, but when I got my own car I still had to declare it on my personal insurance.

[Chris_h]

You dont have to claim on your insurance

Sure you don't have to but you do have to declare any accidents you've been involved in regardless of if a claim was made and those affect your premium.  As an example I had a company car and I hit the rear of a 4x4 thanks to some ice.  Low speed job, no damage to the 4x4 and very minor bumper damage to mine.  I didn't claim personally as it was covered by the company policy, but when I got my own car I still had to declare it on my personal insurance.

Thats because you made a claim StarGazer.

If two people have a graze and its sorted ammicably, I think only a real jobsworth would tell there insurance company they had a bump.....

I grazed an alloy on the kerb, caused £100 of damage, I repaired it, shall I tell my insurance company I've had a 'bump'?

[vatovey]

I think I might look into a smart repair as per suggestion, in fact I've just contacted a smart repairer called Bodytech in Pontyclun - has anyone used these guys before ?

Personally, I don't want to go through insurance for something so minor, especially if the offending driver is happy to pay for costs, as my premium will rise regardless of whether its my fault or not.

[stargazer30]

Thats because you made a claim StarGazer.

If two people have a graze and its sorted ammicably, I think only a real jobsworth would tell there insurance company they had a bump.....

I grazed an alloy on the kerb, caused £100 of damage, I repaired it, shall I tell my insurance company I've had a 'bump'?

I didn't make a claim, the company claims on its insurance to repair its asset.  I agree if you kerb an alloy no need to declare it as its not an accident.  But if you trade paint with a third party sorry but it is an accident and you do have to declare it regardless of claim.  That why the insurance asks you " have you had any accidents or claims...."  The reason is statisically, if you have an accident regardless of fault your more likely to have another one (don't ask me why!)
 therefore your higher risk and therefore they load the premium a bit.  Don't take my word for it ask your insurance  :-) :-) :-)

[Chris_h]

Thats because you made a claim StarGazer.

If two people have a graze and its sorted ammicably, I think only a real jobsworth would tell there insurance company they had a bump.....

I grazed an alloy on the kerb, caused £100 of damage, I repaired it, shall I tell my insurance company I've had a 'bump'?

I didn't make a claim, the company claims on its insurance to repair its asset.  I agree if you kerb an alloy no need to declare it as its not an accident.  But if you trade paint with a third party sorry but it is an accident and you do have to declare it regardless of claim.  That why the insurance asks you " have you had any accidents or claims...."  The reason is statisically, if you have an accident regardless of fault your more likely to have another one (don't ask me why!)
 therefore your higher risk and therefore they load the premium a bit.  Don't take my word for it ask your insurance  :-) :-) :-)

I think its just my way of doing things in the sensible world... A friend bumped my car accidentally whilst parking outside our holiday cottage - he kindly paid me the £100 for a paintman - techincally speaking..... but reality???

[skinz]

Contraversial topic, I ran into a landrover in my C2 at the start of the year...Guess who came off worst :p - Landrover = scratch, c2 = smashed grill, bumper pushed back, snapped front panel & broken headlight. Saying that the old dear didnt mind as the landrover was scratched to hell anyways. Rather than get hammered by insurance for 5yr I spent £100 on eBay and fixed it myself. In terms of an "accident", yes this was on my behalf, but since there was no proof why bother paying more on your renewal? for all the insurance know I could have left it parked without handbrake and it rolled into a wall.

I would say that if both parties wish to persue an "accident" then this should go through the insurance, otherwise dont bother- we wonder why premiums are high and I dread to imagine what they would be like if everyone noted every little paint transfer.

Whose going to claim an "accident" if a cyclist runs into you and dents a panel? - total waste of breath going off-topic trying to justify what the "right" thing to do is, merely when the OP is asking for advice on repair/ getting cash from the other party.... if I was in an accident I would love it to be a little bump with the OP rather than some arrogant tw*t persistant that everything should go through the corporations

[nathanMR2]

Thats because you made a claim StarGazer.

If two people have a graze and its sorted ammicably, I think only a real jobsworth would tell there insurance company they had a bump.....

I grazed an alloy on the kerb, caused £100 of damage, I repaired it, shall I tell my insurance company I've had a 'bump'?

I didn't make a claim, the company claims on its insurance to repair its asset.  I agree if you kerb an alloy no need to declare it as its not an accident.  But if you trade paint with a third party sorry but it is an accident and you do have to declare it regardless of claim.  That why the insurance asks you " have you had any accidents or claims...."  The reason is statisically, if you have an accident regardless of fault your more likely to have another one (don't ask me why!)
 therefore your higher risk and therefore they load the premium a bit.  Don't take my word for it ask your insurance  :-) :-) :-)

It you hit the kerb or any other object, its accidental damage down to poor driving. If a claim is made you need to declare it. Even if your company puts a claim in, its still a claim thats made that you have been involved in so its your claim.

You will also find a lot of insurance companies/brokers will ask if any previous insurance claims have been made and what was the cost of each claim. This way they assess the risk and set a appropriate premium.

[Chris_h]

[

It you hit the kerb or any other object, its accidental damage down to poor driving. If a claim is made you need to declare it. Even if your company puts a claim in, its still a claim thats made that you have been involved in so its your claim.

You will also find a lot of insurance companies/brokers will ask if any previous insurance claims have been made and what was the cost of each claim. This way they assess the risk and set a appropriate premium.

Nathan - naturally it was hypothetical as i dont kerb alloys  s:) s:)  - and obviously wouldnt claim even if i did! i was playing devils advocate - at what point does a minor tap where both grown up parties amicably agree to reach an agreement amongst themselves become so serious to advise our insurance companies - the 'pedant' alarm is going off.

Actually, whilst travelling back from the lakes today on the m6, i accidentally let my speed creep up to 75, which police office should i advise of my indiscretion??

[nathanMR2]

To be fair Chris it was more directed at stargazer30.

Each to their own i guess

[vatovey]

smart repair guys have quoted me between £100-150 to repair it all... just waiting to see whether the girl who bumped me is happy to pay for it.

Another question for you all - hyperthetically, if things did go pear shaped and someway down the line the girl recants and says she wasn't responsible, how much time do I have before a insurance claim would be void due to not claiming in a sufficient amount of time ?

[skinz]

smart repair guys have quoted me between £100-150 to repair it all... just waiting to see whether the girl who bumped me is happy to pay for it.

Another question for you all - hyperthetically, if things did go pear shaped and someway down the line the girl recants and says she wasn't responsible, how much time do I have before a insurance claim would be void due to not claiming in a sufficient amount of time ?

Sounds like a reasonable price, considering the possible increase in premium if it was to go through insurance.

In terms of that senario occuring what you might best be doing it writing up a basic agreement based on the events, print 2 copies, and both sign each copy. I think although this is highly unlikley rather than an insurance job it would prob end up some sort of small claims thing, therefore some form of prior agreement would suffice as credible evidence... that saying it will not only provide you with piece of mind but also her - incase you decide at a later date that you intend to claim

[nathanMR2]

You have 6 years to present a claim to an insurance company for vehicle damage. Obviously the insurers would probably question why it was left so long should you claim after 6 months or so and they would not cover any 'additional damage' since the accident (i.e. paint removed from car due to accident and has now rusted due to time lapsed and it not being repaired sooner)

Make sure you take decent photographs (from all angles) of the damage before it's repaired or even cleaned if possible. The more photos the better.

Get your quote and show it to her. If she agrees to pay it make sure you get the money you are happy with upfront and before the repairs commence. People do change their mind and they do change their story. It will be far harder to put through an insurance claim for the damage if it has already been repaired. The damage can also assist with proving who is at fault.

Get a signed statement from her that she accepts that she caused the damage. This doesn't always prove a definite acceptance of fault should the case enter court. But every little helps your case.

If you have an accident.... Get witnesses, more than one if possible. Take photos at the scene of both vehicles. Block the road if you have to. I had an old biddy ran into the side me in another car not too long back. I moved over to allow other cars to pass and she drove off when I got out the car   s:twisted: :twisted: s:twisted:  

If the accident is your fault or even if it isnt take a note of who is in the other vehicle(s). Race, age and gender will be enough. We see more claims which phantom passengers appear. It can be a stressful and shaky situation being in an accident and these things can help if you can remember to do them.

[vatovey]

Fortunately, I did take a few pictures of the scene, due to the busyness of the road where it happened it would have been was difficult to get any witnesses  s:( s:(

The girl has contacted the smart repair company to confirm the estimate I informed her about, and she has confirmed she is happy to pay for it... touch wood, it will all be ok.

[Chris_h]

Fortunately, I did take a few pictures of the scene, due to the busyness of the road where it happened it would have been was difficult to get any witnesses  s:( s:(

The girl has contacted the smart repair company to confirm the estimate I informed her about, and she has confirmed she is happy to pay for it... touch wood, it will all be ok.

Result   s:D s:D   hope it all goes to plan