Someone backed into my car, didn't leave note. What is normal play here?

[culdeus 5,811]

While at lunch someone nailed the back right side of my bumper.  No note.  I didn't notice it till I got home.  

Knowing how much this #### costs expecting a bill of $2k perhaps.  I think my deductible is $1k.  

In these situations is it worth filing it just to recoup some of it or will they ultimately add points to my policy or something anyways?  Haven't filed a claim on auto in what must be 5 years with this company.  

[gianmarco 19,030]

This is part of what insurance is for. This should not raise your rates. Yes, I would file the claim.

Any chance there are security cameras where this happened?

[culdeus 5,811]

10 minutes ago, gianmarco said:

This is part of what insurance is for. This should not raise your rates. Yes, I would file the claim.

Any chance there are security cameras where this happened?

I'm not even sure where it happened. i went like three places.  Noticed it when got home.

I mean I probably would have seen it at lunch but only really saw it when I noticed the tail light got loose.  

Edited October 12 by culdeus

[Leroy Hoard 9,606]

Find his wife and let her back into you.

[jvdesigns2002 2,259]

I know this is a weird question--but approximately how much is your car worth?  The reason I ask is this:  if you report it to your insurance--two things will happen. Your rates will probably rise and your car will now have an incident on its CarFax report. The incident will also cause some depreciation in value when you go to sell or trade your car in.  If you have a really nice car--an incident on your Car Fax report would probably depreciate you car a lot more than the $1000 you might save by calling it in to your insurance.  I would find a nice independent body shop and find out what their best cash price would be to repair the body damage on your car.  Tell them exactly the scenario--that you are deliberating between paying cash to keep your cars record clean versus just calling it into insurance and taking the hit on your car's history.   

[irish eyes 1,013]

44 minutes ago, jvdesigns2002 said:

I know this is a weird question--but approximately how much is your car worth?  The reason I ask is this:  if you report it to your insurance--two things will happen. Your rates will probably rise and your car will now have an incident on its CarFax report. The incident will also cause some depreciation in value when you go to sell or trade your car in.  If you have a really nice car--an incident on your Car Fax report would probably depreciate you car a lot more than the $1000 you might save by calling it in to your insurance.  I would find a nice independent body shop and find out what their best cash price would be to repair the body damage on your car.  Tell them exactly the scenario--that you are deliberating between paying cash to keep your cars record clean versus just calling it into insurance and taking the hit on your car's history.   

Good post. I got hit once but it was major damage. When I went to trade it in, I got bent over because of the car fax.

[ChiefD 13,252]

3 hours ago, culdeus said:

I'm not even sure where it happened. i went like three places.  Noticed it when got home.

I mean I probably would have seen it at lunch but only really saw it when I noticed the tail light got loose.  

Call all three places. The detective work is worth finding that pooosay muthereffing #### sucker.

Edited October 12 by ChiefD

[culdeus 5,811]

4 minutes ago, irish eyes said:

Good post. I got hit once but it was major damage. When I went to trade it in, I got bent over because of the car fax.

Can places not put it on the Carfax?  For cash?

[irish eyes 1,013]

14 minutes ago, irish eyes said:

Good post. I got hit once but it was major damage. When I went to trade it in, I got bent over because of the car fax.

 

9 minutes ago, culdeus said:

Can places not put it on the Carfax?  For cash?

Not sure about that. But I'm not informed enough on that kind of thing. Cant hurt to ask around. But as JV stated in the original post, I think if insurance is involved then it will definitely hit carfax. If you dont go through insurance, I would ask the repair place if that can be avoided.

Edited October 12 by irish eyes

[JoeSteeler 2,410]

Was hit recently...no note. $1200 damage...$500 ded. Went thru my insurance... rates did not go up

[shadyridr 13,474]

Same thing happened to me. It will definitely NOT raise your rates. 

[jvdesigns2002 2,259]

52 minutes ago, culdeus said:

Can places not put it on the Carfax?  For cash?

The question is not whether they can--it's whether they will.  If you personally were very skilled in automotive body work--you could buy the supplies needed to fix the car and do it yourself and you wouldn't report it to CarFax. I would absolutely go to a few nice independent body shops and at least ask.  It cannot hurt.  I can tell you firsthand that incident reports on CarFax will absolutey effect the resale value of your car in a negative manner. It's worth your time to investigate this possibility.  

[TLEF316 3,469]

So many people just have absolutely no idea how insurance works. 

Personal auto insurance is an incredibly competitive industry where price is basically everything (for the most part, you're not going to see a lot, if any, coverage difference in the personal auto market. There just aren't that many potential differentiators) 

Yeah, if you have a history of poor driving, multiple at-fault accidents, then sure, you may see a price hike. But for the most part, when rates go up, its because the carrier has years of actuarial data indicating that their overall auto pricing in a specific area (or in general, as auto is a very tough line to write profitably)  just isn't sustainable long-term. 

They're not going to tack on 15% at renewal just because someone banged up your Honda accord (or even if you did it yourself)  and they had to pay $1K in damages post deductible. Because they know that if they do that, the smart consumer is just going to call any one of a dozen national carriers who will write them for the same (if not cheaper) price.

So yeah, put the claim in. That's what insurance is for.

[sports_fan 2,428]

Has anyone ever been in a situation like this where they actually left a note? It’s definitely the right thing to do, but I have to imagine it’s incredibly rare. I’ve been hit once and didn’t even consider the possibility of finding a note

[-fish- 11,723]

6 minutes ago, sports_fan said:

Has anyone ever been in a situation like this where they actually left a note? It’s definitely the right thing to do, but I have to imagine it’s incredibly rare. I’ve been hit once and didn’t even consider the possibility of finding a note

I have been hit in a parking lot and found a note, and I've left a note once when I was rear ended and pushed into a parked car.   I can't imagine being such a #### as to not leave a note.  

[Terminalxylem 508]

1 hour ago, irish eyes said:

 

Not sure about that. But I'm not informed enough on that kind of thing. Cant hurt to ask around. But as JV stated in the original post, I think if insurance is involved then it will definitely hit carfax. If you dont go through insurance, I would ask the repair place if that can be avoided.

I hope it’s not so easy to game the system, else Carfax is pretty worthless.

As to the OP, ask your insurer if your rates will change before officially reporting the accident. Many insurers won’t change them if you weren’t at fault.

ETA Looks like Carfax is pretty prone to underreporting accidents.

Edited October 13 by Terminalxylem

[Terminalxylem 508]

15 minutes ago, sports_fan said:

Has anyone ever been in a situation like this where they actually left a note? It’s definitely the right thing to do, but I have to imagine it’s incredibly rare. I’ve been hit once and didn’t even consider the possibility of finding a note

I’ve left a note, and had someone do the same when my vehicle was hit. Not everyone is a weasel.

[SHIZNITTTT 2,533]

Buy a bumper yourself and replace it.  Has to be cheaper than 2k. 

[Terminalxylem 508]

7 minutes ago, SHIZNITTTT said:

Buy a bumper yourself and replace it.  Has to be cheaper than 2k. 

Depending on the extent of the damage, it may be worth letting someone qualified check it out to ensure the structural integrity is OK in case he has a more serious accident.

[Dan Lambskin 11,737]

3 minutes ago, Terminalxylem said:

Depending on the extent of the damage, it may be worth letting someone qualified check it out to ensure the structural integrity is OK in case he has a more serious accident.

Yeah that’s a good point, but if it’s minor and you are remotely handy you can usually find painted bumpers on e-bay pretty cheap.  I replaced one on my minivan for less than $300 and that included delivery 

although if it’s a newer car and you’ve got sensors it can be more difficult 

[Ghost Rider 4,492]

Sleep with your insurance agent's wife....or husband. 

[jomar 2,303]

not sure if it's something special with the state of MI or with my carrier, but if my car is hit while its not being driven, the deductible is waived. 

Edited October 13 by jomar

[Beef Ravioli 824]

On 10/12/2019 at 7:51 PM, sports_fan said:

Has anyone ever been in a situation like this where they actually left a note? It’s definitely the right thing to do, but I have to imagine it’s incredibly rare. I’ve been hit once and didn’t even consider the possibility of finding a note

When I was in college I had a 1976 Oldsmobile Delta 88 - HUGE car. I came out to a parking lot and a guy got out of his car and told me he slid on the ice and bumped my car in the bumper. No damage at all. He waited 20 plus minutes to tell me and then gave me two free pizza’s from a pizza shop he owned. Stand up guy! Average pizza! 

[culdeus 5,811]

Had chat with my insurance agent - Who is a third party agent and doesn't work for my underwriter.  

• Found out have 250 deductible for such an event, where non insured person is claimant.  Yay?
• No real point in doing any investigation, but insurance company may ask for a report.  If nobody was injured there isn't going to be some vigilante justice and police are not likely to look into something happening on private property just as a general rule.
• Also, it's made somewhat complex by fact that I was parked at somewhere that appears out of biz, but could be because Columbus day so they are closed? Have no real hope of some camera on the scene pointed in the direction of the parking area bringing me a pot of gold here.  
• Said will likely report to the policy but will not be judged as harshly as something like an at-fault accident and will roll off entirely in 3 yrs vs 5 yrs for an at-fault.

So I'm going to take it to a place to get an estimate.  If >2k I'll probably just file it.  If <1k I surely won't.  Between is where it gets sticky and I will ask if they would do no car-fax for cash or shop it around till I find someone that will keep the carfax clean.  

 

[Hov34 2,986]

I would leave a note.

 

[IC FBGCav 5,439]

On 10/12/2019 at 7:59 PM, -fish- said:

I have been hit in a parking lot and found a note, and I've left a note once when I was rear ended and pushed into a parked car.   I can't imagine being such a #### as to not leave a note.  

I think this says more about your imagination then anything else.  When I was 16 someone left me a note.  I'm paraphrasing here but it went something like this...learn to park dipshi*, I couldn't get in my car.  

[saintfool 2,639]

had someone back into our car a few month back. we used the valet at a restaurant and, while retrieving the car, a work truck backed into it. the driver of the truck took off despite the fact we had their license plate number. filed a claim with the local police and learned the truck wasn't even insured. something in our insurance coverage wasn't right and we weren't covered. we tried to push with the valet company but they weren't forthcoming with their insurance information. we ultimately had to pay for the repairs ourselves and spent about $1800 to fix.

[Terminalxylem 508]

17 minutes ago, IC FBGCav said:

I think this says more about your imagination then anything else.  When I was 16 someone left me a note.  I'm paraphrasing here but it went something like this...learn to park dipshi*, I couldn't get in my car.  

Not sure I understand the imagination part, unless you think it’s fantasy to believe people will do the right thing?

[belljr 8,179]

@Worm said he left a note... 

 

[coyote5 1,108]

On 10/12/2019 at 7:29 PM, Ghost Rider said:

Sleep with your insurance agent's wife and husband. 

FYP, make it a party! 

 

[coyote5 1,108]

3 hours ago, culdeus said:

 

• Also, it's made somewhat complex by fact that I was parked at somewhere that appears out of biz, but could be because Columbus day so they are closed? Have no real

 

They moved Columbus day to Saturdays now?

[fatness 6,174]

On 10/12/2019 at 7:51 PM, sports_fan said:

Has anyone ever been in a situation like this where they actually left a note? It’s definitely the right thing to do, but I have to imagine it’s incredibly rare. I’ve been hit once and didn’t even consider the possibility of finding a note

I've been hit and found a note on my windshield. The damage was so minor I never called the guy; the car was pretty old then anyway and I don't trade them in, I drive them until they're over 200k miles and looking at a rebuilt engine/transmission coming up.

The only time I hit someone (scraped) I had just gotten my drivers license and I left a note. Just as I finished it the owner came out of the store, looked at the minor damage, and told me not to worry about it.

[IC FBGCav 5,439]

53 minutes ago, Terminalxylem said:

Not sure I understand the imagination part, unless you think it’s fantasy to believe people will do the right thing?

It's fantasy to can't imagine doing the wrong thing.  You might never do the wrong thing but very simple to imagine it.  If you can't imagine it, you are probably making some big mistakes.  

[Long Ball Larry 11,397]

I would look for them.

i would find them.

and I would kill them.

[Terminalxylem 508]

32 minutes ago, IC FBGCav said:

It's fantasy to can't imagine doing the wrong thing.  You might never do the wrong thing but very simple to imagine it.  If you can't imagine it, you are probably making some big mistakes.  

It’s not about whether -fish- or the OP contributed to their car getting hit. That’s irrelevant in the decision to leave a note after you’ve damaged someone’s vehicle. Unless you’re some sort of vigilante apologist, there aren’t many good excuses not to do it.

[IC FBGCav 5,439]

1 hour ago, Terminalxylem said:

It’s not about whether -fish- or the OP contributed to their car getting hit. That’s irrelevant in the decision to leave a note after you’ve damaged someone’s vehicle. Unless you’re some sort of vigilante apologist, there aren’t many good excuses not to do it.

What?

[IC FBGCav 5,439]

I would always leave note, if you can't imagine not leaving a note you are a mark and not being vigilant in your life.  If you can only think the world from your own perspective, you lose in the end.  

If you take people at face value, you are gullible, need to be smarter than that.

Nigerians disagree.

Edited October 15 by IC FBGCav

[culdeus 5,811]

This just got wierd

[culdeus 5,811]

3 hours ago, coyote5 said:

They moved Columbus day to Saturdays now?

Well they were closed Saturday. And today.  It is some biz printing sign thing or something. 

[Phil Elliott 746]

May want to check with your agent to see if rates will go up. I have heard rates going up after just one claim and some that will not raise your rates. May want to try and get an estimate. Depending on value, insurance may total the car if you file claim.

 

[Terminalxylem 508]

2 hours ago, IC FBGCav said:

What?

I guess I still don’t understand you point.

To restate, I think there are only a couple legitimate reasons not to leave a note in this situation:

1. You didn’t realize you hit another vehicle.

2. It happened during an emergency, where pausing to accept responsibility would place you or your loved ones in harm’s way.

Your response to -fish- seemed to indicate you’d add punishment for cr@ppy parking to the list. While I have no doubt some people feel this way, I’m not willing to give vigilante a-holes a pass.

ETA And I’m not in denial about the existence of such people. That doesn’t mean I understand how they rationalize their behavior.

Edited October 15 by Terminalxylem

[culdeus 5,811]

33 minutes ago, Phil Elliott said:

May want to check with your agent to see if rates will go up. I have heard rates going up after just one claim and some that will not raise your rates. May want to try and get an estimate. Depending on value, insurance may total the car if you file claim.

 

My agent said they will roll it off over three years and the break even point will probably be around 1k in damage and 2k will be a no brainer. Said rolloff is like 80/40/20 on no fault and 80/60/40/20/10 for fault.  Safeco.  

I have an at fault accident rolling off next year from 2015.  So impact will be worst in 2020 but should recover. 

2015 Volvo xc90 with 59k miles.  Value perhaps 12k. Not sure.  

[IC FBGCav 5,439]

15 minutes ago, Terminalxylem said:

I guess I still don’t understand you point.

To restate, I think there are only a couple legitimate reasons not to leave a note in this situation:

1. You didn’t realize you hit another vehicle.

2. It happened during an emergency, where pausing to accept responsibility would place you or your loved ones in harm’s way.

Your response to -fish- seemed to indicate you’d add punishment for cr@ppy parking to the list. While I have no doubt some people feel this way, I’m not willing to give vigilante a-holes a pass.

ETA And I’m not in denial about the existence of such people. That doesn’t mean I understand how they rationalize their behavior.

Get a girlfriend. 

[Phil Elliott 746]

If you already have an accident on record then I say do not claim, even if its not your fault or “hit and run”. Eat the $1k-$2k and move on. When people say that’s what insurance is for, some companies will drop you for just making one claim. I don’t know what Safeco is like but not worth the risk. Good luck.

[Terminalxylem 508]

16 minutes ago, IC FBGCav said:

Get a girlfriend. 

I’d consider it, but my wife would probably object. And it wouldn’t be with a note.

[culdeus 5,811]

42 minutes ago, Phil Elliott said:

If you already have an accident on record then I say do not claim, even if its not your fault or “hit and run”. Eat the $1k-$2k and move on. When people say that’s what insurance is for, some companies will drop you for just making one claim. I don’t know what Safeco is like but not worth the risk. Good luck.

I asked about this.  On a no fault they won't stack you like that.  Almost have the clock run out on the at fault.  

[ChainsawU 5,429]

I'll tell you who hit those cars. It was those damn vigilantes.

[Terminalxylem 508]

4 minutes ago, ChainsawU said:

I'll tell you who hit those cars. It was those damn vigilantes.

You're a damn fool, and deserve to be swindled by Nigerians.

[culdeus 5,811]

Estimate 1100-1400.  Won't car fax on a cash payment at the place I usually go to. Probably just eat it and move on

[Kanil 1,902]

Do everything you can to find the scumbag that hit you.  That person deserves to eat a whole bag of ####.  I'd do it out of spite even if I wasn't going to get anything from them.  ####ing dirtbag.