Minor accident. What would you do?

[depth]

Rear ended while parked, he was going probably 7-8mph trying to park next to me. Bumper scratched. Not sure if there is any further damage.

$940 estimate. The dude took 2 days of phone calls before he would fork out his insurance provider. If the estimate goes over $1000 he loses a point and his insurance goes up. He keeps giving me the run around of letting his friend paint it for me and he would drive me around town while my car is getting fixed. Not to be racist but the dude comes across as a high anxiety stressed Russian constantly telling me to lie to the insurance if it goes over $1000 and what not.

He offered me $500 cash to not say anything and I live with a 4” scratch on the bumper.

Should I take the money or should I go through insurance and file a claim just in case there is further damage? I could use $500 cash and I can live with the scratch unless there ends up being frame damage.

 

[eddielasvegas]

What's the incentive for YOU to take 50 cents on the dollar when it's his fault and his insurance will go up?

If the damage is minor and it sounds like it's only cosmetic damage, I would say give me a grand and we're good.

Good luck and keep us posted.


Eddie

 

[Inv4drZm]

Pics man.

You might be surprised what could be buffed out easily.

 

[depth]

Pics man.

You might be surprised what could be buffed out easily.

Scratched while parked by white Prius - Album on Imgur

It feels like 2 or 3 maybe 4 layers deep

 

[2016 4Runner SR5]

99% of that is nothing but paint transfer. It'll buff right off like it never happened, no paint work needed. I'd still push for as much cash as possible.

 

[Inv4drZm]

99% of that is nothing but paint transfer. It'll buff right off like it never happened, no paint work needed. I'd still push for as much cash as possible.

Agreed. At $500 you will be making money as long as you are okay with potentially a small scratch left.

Take it to a body shop/ detailing business and it should be easy for them to buff most if not all of it out.

 

[truckhigh]

just go through insurance and not deal with him anymore. You're affecting the resale value of the car and i have dealt with these kind of things multiple times. the stress of not having a car during repair or him not answering is just unnecessary pain to look forward to. i let somebody pay me in payments for an accident that wasn't my fault and it was like i was stealing from them every time i asked...

 

[BendRunner]

rear bumper time.

 

[SAC-CA-Runner]

Is the bumper dented in where the majority of white is? Like is it flattened? Or is it still round and there is paint transfer? Like other said, that can be buffed out easily. And...tell him the quote you got to get it fixed from your paint guy and tell him that's what you want, plus $200 to rent a car for a day or two. Done.

 

[hughharden]

Take the money

Probably has no insurance anyway

 

[TenTwelve]

Tell him $700 in cash and walk.

 

[Supersonic]

I'm what the $1000, but if he isn't already handed you cash he's probably trying to get out of it altogether, so I go through the proper channels.

 

[f250ben]

What most everybody else said. That's DEFINITELY mostly paint transfer. Little bit of buffing and you'd never know it had ever been there, if you didn't know where to look.

I like the suggestion offering to do HIM a favor, accept 700 and leave it be

 

[BackOff]

What's the bluebook? 10k on a good day?
You guys think 1g for a stock bumper is a good thing?

Did the rear end damage F'up your T4R?
If not I would,
Take the $500 and run...

 

[Terminator03]

99% of that is nothing but paint transfer. It'll buff right off like it never happened, no paint work needed. I'd still push for as much cash as possible.

Agreed. At $500 you will be making money as long as you are okay with potentially a small scratch left.

Take it to a body shop/ detailing business and it should be easy for them to buff most if not all of it out.

I’m with these guys. Looking at the pic, I could fix that in about an hour, or less. It would never be flawless, but 90% of that could be removed, by carefully wetsanding to remove the paint transfer and smooth out most of the scratches that remain. The only scratches that will remain, are those that go through the clear coat. Even though you’d be money ahead at $500 (if you fix it yourself), I’d still go for $700-$750 if you can and be happy. If you involve insurance, they will mention it on carfax, which will affect your value on resale, since EVERYONE, especially dealers use it to get the price down, even if the damage was very minor. Bottom line, I’d take the cash personally, then if you don’t have the skills, or a buffer, take it to a detailing guy, and pay to have it fixed. Even doing that, I’d expect no more than a $100, or so for a pro to do it, especially for “cash”.

 

[MrEMan]

I'm currently going through the same thought process. I got rear ended on the highway, and it appears to be relatively minor damage ... but in my case he scratched up the rear bumper pretty well, plus he hit my trailer hitch and tail pipe. Either of those could end up being significant, but haven't gotten the estimate yet. IF there's no damage to the trailer hitch or exhaust, then I might be willing to live with the scratched rear bumper and put the money toward other upgrades. But I'm typically not willing to work directly with the other party ... would much rather remove the hassle and go through insurance ... and especially not for an amount less than the estimated repairs.

 

[Bluesky 07]

Can't give you specific advice on the damage repair, but in general, never let the other party make their problem, like potential insurance consequences here, into your problem.

 

[depth]

Pics man.

You might be surprised what could be buffed out easily.

We agreed to $600 over the phone.

He shows up with $500. Starts giving me the half Russian half English runaround nonsense and keeps calling me “tony,” after I repeatedly correct him on my actual name.

I lose it in his face in public.

Crowd shows up.

I calm down. I take his $500, write him a receipt stating the $500 is for the paint scratch only.

I’m so pissed at this dude that I’m considering filing a claim anyways and having it inspected for further damage. Not sure if it’s worth the energy at this point but this dude was absolutely awful to communicate with.

 

[Inv4drZm]

We agreed to $600 over the phone.

He shows up with $500. Starts giving me the half Russian half English runaround nonsense and keeps calling me “tony,” after I repeatedly correct him on my actual name.

I lose it in his face in public.

Crowd shows up.

I calm down. I take his $500, write him a receipt stating the $500 is for the paint scratch only.

I’m so pissed at this dude that I’m considering filing a claim anyways and having it inspected for further damage. Not sure if it’s worth the energy at this point but this dude was absolutely awful to communicate with.

Oh sh!t! What a jerk.

I really doubt there is more damage, these trucks are tough. You might end up paying more in the long run with the claim and insurance and everything, I think you made out alright. Take it to a body or detail shop and they should hook you up for a couple hundred max.

 

[GreenPM]

Rear ended while parked, he was going probably 7-8mph trying to park next to me. Bumper scratched. Not sure if there is any further damage.

$940 estimate. The dude took 2 days of phone calls before he would fork out his insurance provider. If the estimate goes over $1000 he loses a point and his insurance goes up. He keeps giving me the run around of letting his friend paint it for me and he would drive me around town while my car is getting fixed. Not to be racist but the dude comes across as a high anxiety stressed Russian constantly telling me to lie to the insurance if it goes over $1000 and what not.

He offered me $500 cash to not say anything and I live with a 4” scratch on the bumper.

Should I take the money or should I go through insurance and file a claim just in case there is further damage? I could use $500 cash and I can live with the scratch unless there ends up being frame damage.

You should never talk to this guy again and deal with your insurance agent only. Don't **** with this. You should have called the police the second he refused to hand over insurance information.

Nevermind, I see you took his money already. Terrible, terrible mistake. You just let yourself get bullied. And you can't file a claim now. You took his money and gave him a receipt. It's over. He could actually sue you if you file a claim now.