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If applying rubbing compound or a clay bar to remove a pinkie nail sized paint mark comes to $600 labor I'm in the wrong line of work!
Paint mark, or paint scuff?
If it's a simple paint transfer.. You're right.. Won't cost $600. If it gouged the paint on the door.. Yes, it probably will cost $600 by the time you sand it down, match up the color.. Almost simpler to replace the door. You did not specify the damage was paint transfer or not. Only that it was "Just Paint".
Based on the description of what happened.. I would think a gouge. Since the door would be moving at an angle, it would be the edge of the door making contact.. Especially if you have those 'pointy' doors on your car.
The bumper story.. That's the thing about bumpers.. people make relatively light contact.. No visible damage.. But there's a couple hundred dollars in damage underneath everything. 2.5mph bumpers today, they pretty much mean 2.5mph.. Anything over that, you could be degrading the safety of the vehicle, because you've started crumpling the 'crumple zones'.. Not always visible.
Just curious what others have done/would have done in a situation like this...?
I'd have told him to get stuffed at about the 1 minute 90 second mark. Apologize, exchange information, take photos of the... ahem... "damage..." and then go home and put the kids to bed. If he wants to pitch a fit about it, let him screech to his heart's content while you drive away waving out the window.
It was late at night, cold, you had a distraught wife and tired kids to think about. Screw him. It sounds as though you were courteous and respectful in your initial reaction, but you were under no obligation to wait for the police, and once he made it clear he was going to be a jackass about it, you owed him no further courtesy. I would have simply met my minimum obligations, and then left with no further discussion. Someone who starts shouting at my wife in my presence - even if he thinks he has a good reason - is actually much better off if I leave as soon as possible. It's really not in his best interest to keep me around any longer than I absolutely have to be.
We've all had car doors taken out of our hands by wind, it just happens. I'm super careful about entering and exiting my car because not only do I not want to damage the guy next to me, I also don't want to damage my own door, but it has happened to me too. I find new dents on my car everytime I wash it, it is just part of parking in public lots.......and I do every day at work.
The guy overreacted, for sure, because the police do not get involved with small stuff like door dings. Here in Florida they don't even want to come to an accident unless there are injuries. They have more important things to do with their time.
Meet the guy at a body shop of his choice and have them tell you what it will take to fix the ding. Even if there is a little dent, a place like Dent Doctor can make it go away for around $100 or less.
Guy overreacted for sure and paid the price in the end. You were taking all right steps it seems.
However, wind blown door ding or w/o wind it's your responsibility to make that right. Also when we mess something up (particularly if property is someone else's) and have a casual look at it - it always seems less severe than what it actually is. Unless you have prior experience of what door ding paint job can cost - you are fooling yourself by an imaginary estimate.
I'm surprised at the actions of the cop. It was an accident due to your wife's negligence, but one that did cause damage. A simple report from the cop with the statement from both parties that agreed as to who was at fault would have sufficed. I can't blame the other person-too many people that admit to causing an accident at the time...will deny it later when it's time to pay up. Had you just driven off, I have to wonder if it would be considered leaving the scene of an accident. I know it was just an accident, but in the future it might pay to be more careful with other people's property.
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