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Today I was backed out of a parking spot ready to pull forward and an old lady backed right into the bumper of my truck. It didn't look like there was any damage to my truck, but her car had a huge dent in it.
I got her info and I didn't want to give her mine unless we had a cop present (I didn't want her to accuse me and file a claim that it was my fault). She didn't want a cop and she said "obviously you aren't going to give my your insurance info!" and left.
After getting home I inspected it a little closer. The bumper of my truck is pushed in about 1/2" on the side she hit me on, but as far as everything else looks it seems okay.. but remember I am a girl and don't know a lot about this stuff!
Should I file a claim and get my truck looked at or should I just let it go??
File the report. If you find you have a problem in the future you will at least have a record. Did she hit your wheel/tire? If so, You may need to have your alignment checked. Your agent should be able to advise you if it needs to go to the shop. Hey!, I'm a girl too. But I've worked in the car business for almost 30 years!
My wife was backed into by an old guy who acted like a real jerkoff towards her. She was backed out of the spot, in drive getting ready to pull forward, he backed his geriatric caddy out and knocked the taillight lens off my trailblazer and pushed the bumper forward a little. An officer responded to the scene and refused to fault anyone, because it was private property. I never filed a claim, because my deductible was $250.00 and a taillight cost me $74.00 and I installed it, and adjusted the bumper myself. A few months later we get a letter from his insurance company. "Thank you for agreeing to pay for this accident as per our phone conversation blah blah blah." His company NEVER called us. I called and raised hell with his company, and then with mine. They settled and faulted my wife which caused my insurance to go up. They refused to look at the pictures she took of the scene which clearly showed his fault, they refused to take our story into account, and paid half his repairs. I dropped the insurance company because if they weren't going to fight for me, I wasn't going to pay them. You need to report it to keep your insurance company in the loop, if she is elderly, she WILL report it and drop the blame on you. You can report it without having it repaired, just opt to repair it yourself, or leave it alone if the bumper isnt contacting the paint.
I agree! File. She may not have gotten your Ins. info, which by the way, you really should have given to her, but she probably took your license plate down. She can say it was hit and run. As mentioned above...you'll be on record.
File. The one time I neglected to do so, it caused me a panic attack when I got a $4,000 bill from a collection agency. Neither I nor my insurance company wound up paying it, but the whole fiasco could have been avoided if I had told my insurance company, hey, I had an accident while working, the car didn't have insurance on it, so at some point you may have to tell an insurance company to frack off.
I agree! File. She may not have gotten your Ins. info, which by the way, you really should have given to her, but she probably took your license plate down. She can say it was hit and run. As mentioned above...you'll be on record.
In Arizona, the police will not even go to an accident on private property unless there are injuries. She could not be charged with hit and run. Since she did not give the lady her information, she is in the clear unless she wants to get her truck fixed.
Since she did not give the lady her information, she is in the clear.
You know, theres this new thing going around, they put these little square pieces of metal with a bunch of numbers and letters on them on the back and sometimes the front of cars. Apparently, and I know this sounds crazy, you can look up the combination of numbers and letters, and get information about who owns the vehicle. Nuts!
Of course someone who felt screwed would never use that for their own ends....
In my state you were required by law to give your information and being a girl is no excuse to them. Basically without witnesses its just your word against hers as to who was at fault really.
File a claim. On a MotorWeek segment of Gause's Garage (sp?), he showed what the underside of modern bumpers look like before and after a minor fender bender. After a minor fender bender, there are parts inside the bumper that are collapsed or damaged. These pieces are made to absorb the impact. He also showed that some criminal body shops will cheat their customer and charge for the replacement of the bumper but actually out on only the outer shell with nothing inside the bumper.
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