Fast Tommy V

Last week I was in my truck and there must have been an accident on I5, as traffic was bumper to bumper at 10:30 at night on a Sunday. The "accident" was 90% my fault, as I will explain below. As I was stopped, I pulled out my phone and was looking at google maps to try and plot my course around the traffic mess. In my peripheral vision, I noticed that the traffic in front of me started to pull forward, so I eased up on the brake pressure until i started rolling forward. The car in front of me was clearly distracted as well and didn't notice that traffic was moving in front of her, because she remained completely stopped even though a 20-30 ft gap developed. So I guess I technically rear ended her (it was more of a knick & could barely be felt). I couldn't have been going more then 1 or 2 mph as my truck was idling forward with my foot still applying some break pressure. So thats why I say its 90% my fault. I should have been looking more carefully as to what was going on in front of me, even at 1 mph. But then if she wasn't distracted herself she wouldn't have been impeding the flow of traffic and we wouldn't have been in this situation.

So we fight our way through traffic over to the shoulder to see if there is any damage. Well there kind of is. There is a small, 1" scratch on her bumper. No dents/cracks/deformations, but just a 1" scratch/slight gouge in the plastic bumper. There isn't even a mark on my truck. She claims that the scratch was caused by me. I decided to be the bigger person, not argue, and take her word for it. Although I was thinking BS because something that small could have easily been there before the accident especially given the age and condition of her car. So we exchange names and insurance info, she says that she will get some estimates tomorrow & give me a call, then we are on our way. The cops were not called and no police reports were filed. I call her the next morning, and leave a message saying don't contact my insurance, this is small enough just to deal by ourselves, and I do not want the claim on my record.

So a week goes by and I don't hear anything from her, which is what i semi-expected (she would look at the damage again in the morning and realize it isn't even worth her time and effort to get an estimate and get it fixed). Fast forward to today. I get a voicemail from her saying she got an estimate and wants $1500 to fix it. I almost fell off my chair when I heard that! Her car is a black 1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse, not a Rolls Royce Phantom! So, based on my impression of her, and the condition of her car, she spent almost an entire week driving around trying to get the most expensive & comprehensive estimate possible (the $1500 estimate probably involves replacing and painting an the bumper at that price), to get the most money out of me, so she can buy that new plasma TV at walmart. i was expecting a reasonable price of $200, and a high & bloated price of $500, which is my deductible anyways. But $1500 for a 1" scratch on a 99 Eclipse! Come on!

So my question to the legal guru's here, how do I go about resolving this situation? Do I tell her to screw off since there were no police involved, and deny everything? I have no moral problem doing that, as I was going to be the bigger person by being more then willing to work with her and compensate her to a reasonable extent. But now she is pulling this BS to extort $1500 out of me, which i can 99% guarantee you wont go to "fixing" her car. This has got me so upset that I really want to say that if legally possible. If I have to shell out $1500 i would rather upgrade to Thuren's full leafs and use the rest for a weekend in Vegas then pay for some fat edit walmart plasma TV.

Thanks for the advice

DodgeTruckRam

I would request to see 3 estimates from her and go from there.

rockcrawler304

I'm no legal guru but I would first tell her you want to go with her to drop off the car to get it fixed and talk to them yourself. Chances are she will say no and you just need to insist on it as you will pay "THEM" for the repair and not just give her the cash.

If all that fails just drop it since no police were called.

Dodgezilla

I guess you did not get any pictures at the scene? By now she has probably taken her car and backed into a light pole causing much more damage than you inflicted and she will claim it's what you did when you crashed into her. Anyways, if you do end up paying then insist on using a shop of your choosing and you pay the shop yourself instead of handing the money over to her...

Dodgezilla

And if neither of you have a list of witnesses and their phone numbers then you might want to claim amnesia. The problem with doing that is that she has your phone number and insurance info. You may get harassed until you pay....

1screaminZ

I would not pay her a dime. take it to a shop and have them fix it, you pay them, NOT HER.

Since there is no police report, your insurance is a no go. they will not pay for an accident if there is no written report of it. If she is being unreasonable, tell her to stick it or work on your terms.

one more thing..... No proof - no accident

dodgestang

$500 is the right price for a new bumper cover. IF they want $1500 just turn it over to your insurance company...that is what you pay them hundreds of dollars every month for.

DiEseLjunKy

That's what I'd do too. You made an offer in good faith.. If that's not good enough then you know she's a dirtbag gold-digger that deserves getting stiffed...

tool

I would just politely tell her that estimate seems a little high. Remind her that you will gladly pay for the dammage that you caused, after all, you did rear end her and the law doesn't care if you were going 1mph or 100 mph...

Tell her you would feel more comfortable if you had some other quotes and ask that they be faxed to you, make it clear you will be paying the shop for the repairs and not her directly.

Evil Genius

I am a lawyer who practices in personal injury law and I think this is sound advice. It is always better to call the police - even in a minor impact case - so that the damage, etc. can be documented. Of course in that situation you probably would have been cited and looking at a fine as well. Under the circumstances I would offer to pay for the repairs at a reputable shop after verifying the damage and the cost directly with the shop. If you can choose the shop all the better because you never know if the one she chooses is her brother-in-law's shop.

If she refuses to go that route tell her to pack sand and see if she makes a claim with your insurer. In a low speed minimum impact case like this they will scrutinize the claim (including any injury claim). It will cost you the deductible plus a possible rate hike.

I would not recommend changing your story at any time as eventually that will come back to bite you in the a$$ and can make a very small deal into a much larger one.

Good luck.

Fast Tommy V

This is all good advice. I will probably call her tomorrow, say that $1500 is unreasonable, and I would like to accompany her to a body shop or 2 of my choice sometime next week to get an estimate. Hopefully we can agree on a shop & price, get her car fixed, and I will pay the body shop directly. If she is into scamming me, which I think she is, she probably wont agree to those terms, and then I can tell her where to stick it. If she decides to get her car fixed anytime, then she can either agree to my terms, or try and convince Allstate that they need to pay $1500 for a 1" scratch.

Thanks for everyones help

AirGrabber

I would just tell her that you think it is a umbelievably high estimate, and you are going to try to turn it into the insurance. Tell her that you think someone is taking advantage of her and you are going to suffer from it. Then tell her that if she wanted to go get 2 more estimates, one of your choice and one of her choice and pick the lowest one that you would be ok with that. Tell her you didnt turn it in to do her a favor and you could be wrong but you think its way too much.

texasram2500

Sounds like you might get screwed no matter what. If you tried changing your story she would probably go straight to an attorney and you would end up in court. It would be kind of hard to deny the incident if it went to court with her having your insurance information. If you haven't had any other claims on your policy I would turn it over to them and let them sort it out. That is why we pay for insurance. Your best bet would have been to get a picture of the damage at the scene. Police coming to scene wouldn't have solved all your problems anyway. Depending on where you are minor accidents do not require a police report since accidents are civil matters unless you have a criminal element involved for example, DWI or Hit/run. I would just tell her to show you a written estimate and go from there. Tell her its too high and send it to your insurance. I don't think the idea of telling her which body shop to use would work, I know I wouldn't want someone that hit me to tell me what shop to use. But then again I wouldn't be trying to scam on someone like she apparently is. Good luck.

mini14

please dont take this the wrong way but u r 100% at fault in a rear collision.....what ever u do do not lie, call your insurance company and let them know about the situation.....but let them know u will be handleing it..they might not cover u if u dont notify them and u need them...let her know 3 estimates is not unreasonable...i dont want to c u get riped off...as long as there is no personal injury involved the insurance co's are pretty forgiving.....there is nothing stoping her from making a claim down the road..please dont let the insurance co here about the accident from her....just cover your a. ive had 4 small accidents over the years that were my fault and paid out of pocket but allways told the insurance co first.what ever u do do not email or write this women anything or she can sue u for harrasment.....if talking on the phone please record the conversation. sorry if i sound so ciniacle but im from NY and have seen and heard my far share of horror stories.

mmurray

As far as contacting your insurance, don't call the 800 # on the back of your card...

Go down to your agents office and ask to speak to him/her. Sit down face to face and tell them what you told us here... Then ask them if it would be better to go ahead and file a claim or see if you can settle it ammicably between the two of you.

Besides, an "off the Record" talk with your agent can at least show, if you end up filing later, you want to protect the interest of both yourself and your insurance. Your Agent will be on your side!!! I can promise you that...