Minor car accident (insurance, law, legal)

[pixa241]

This morning i was at target and as i was backing up to leave a lady backs up as well and hits me. We parked exchanger info and all that. We didnt call the police. It was minor. Her csr just got scratches and mine got a broken taillight and the rear bumper got loose and bent in. I recorded our conversation as we were talking just in case. Should i let her know i recorded so she doesnt try to lie because she did have a passenger in the car so they may since no one else saw. Her insurance already contacted me and when they tried to contact her she told them she couldnt talk until monday..todays saturday..

[mstnghu2]

Originally Posted by pixa241

This morning i was at target and as i was backing up to leave a lady backs up as well and hits me. We parked exchanger info and all that. We didnt call the police. It was minor. Her csr just got scratches and mine got a broken taillight and the rear bumper got loose and bent in. I recorded our conversation as we were talking just in case. Should i let her know i recorded so she doesnt try to lie because she did have a passenger in the car so they may since no one else saw. Her insurance already contacted me and when they tried to contact her she told them she couldnt talk until monday..todays saturday..

Why don't you just call your own insurance company rather than relying on advice from complete strangers on the internet?

[ccm123]

You should call your own insurance company. Let your insurance company know that you recorded her.

I was involved in an accident a few years ago (other driver ran stop sign at a two way stop sign controlled intersection).
The driver that hit me was a bit reluctant to provide her information to me, so I took photos of everything and called the local PD to respond. The PD responded, filled out a report and I submitted everything to my insurance. She denied responsibility to her insurance company, claiming that I hit her. (Impossible, because of the location of the damage to both vehicles.) In the end, my insurance sent the case to arbitration, and because of the photos and evidence, we won.

[OwlKaMyst]

If her insurance company has contacted you, then she has already reported the accident. Don't know why they would be waiting to speak with her.
You should have also contacted your own insurance company and reported the accident even though it was not your fault.

[nightlysparrow]

Originally Posted by OwlKaMyst

If her insurance company has contacted you, then she has already reported the accident. Don't know why they would be waiting to speak with her.

When an accident is reported, it takes maybe five minutes. They just want to know how serious, if anyone is hurt, and to start the paperwork. They will call again her to get a longer, recorded statement from her so she can describe all the little details of the accident; it's the insurance company version of testifying. It's standard. Done it a few times myself >sigh<

[kettlepot]

It's illegal to record a conversation in California unless both parties consent. So, even if she did try to lie, your proof would be worthless from a legal standpoint.

[Mike930]

Originally Posted by kettlepot

It's illegal to record a conversation in California unless both parties consent. So, even if she did try to lie, your proof would be worthless from a legal standpoint.

This isn't exactly correct. You can't record a conversation if the parties have a reasonable expectation of privacy. A public street may not fall under that.

California Recording Law | Digital Media Law Project

As everyone else has said, report it to your insurance company. The fact that the other person had someone with them may not mean anything. I had someone hit me and then claimed I hit them and they had their turn signal on (they didn't and turned into me). I had my wife and daughter with me, so I had two witnesses. Everyone discounted the witnesses because they were related to me. The insurance company said that relatives will lie for each other, so they aren't considered good witnesses.

I won in arbitration because of the set up. You need to report it ASAP.