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heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 04:39 PM

I was involved in an accident today. It was a fender bender. There was no damage to other persons car. She claimed there was on side of her car however, I hit her bumper! That was it. We exchanged phone numbers and insurance and she asked for my drivers license number which I gave her. We never called the police and made a report. She was turning right at and I was behind her. She went to go and then changed her mind and abruptly stopped. I had started to go and I hit her bumper. She called my insurance and I talked to them, told them that it was not my fault. I also noticed I had a little bit of bumper damage inside the groves on the very very bottom of my bumper which I had not noticed before. My agent said that I would not have to pay for their car since I have insurance, just for damages on my car if I wanted to pay deductible and fix them.

I got some legal advice from a friend that is a cop and he said to get 3 estimates from them and see if its less than my deductible so my insurance does not go up and its not reported. My deductible is $250. My car needs front bumper work and I got this woman that said her car was dented in on the side, which was not even in the accident. She claims it was bent in, that her car got bent in where it was hit, I don't know what she is trying to do. I hit her fender and I have a very small car that would not of reached the side of hers. We discussed her bumper and she said you didn't see that my car was bent in. I don't know what she is trying to do and I'm afraid of being in any legal nasty situations, if she tries to sue me for anything. Again there was no police report. What should I do to resolve this painlessly and legally. Im a single mom with a young child and I can't afford to be sued. Please help. Very stressed!

Wondergirl · Oct 18, 2010, 04:42 PM

I used to work for State Farm. Your insurance company will get the "facts of the accident" from both of you and will photograph both cars. If she sues, the facts and photos will confirm you are telling the truth, and the suit will be tossed out.

Let your insurance company handle this. (Which company is it? What is her company?)

heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 05:11 PM

Im with Progressive. She actually has State Farm. She said it was expired and that she just renewed it today? Not sure about her coverage start on that. I think it is right after you pay for it, but I'm not 100% on that.

ballengerb1 · Oct 18, 2010, 05:30 PM

She having insurance or not will not change the outcome of who pays. 99% of the time the person who did the hitting, in this case you, will end up paying. When she stopped short you were traveling too close for conditions. What if she stopped for a kid, a cat or no reason at all you should not have been so close to hit her. If you get sued it will be your insurance who will handle it so let Progessive do their job. If she renewed prior to the accident and State Farm received the money prior to the accident then she is covered but I still think you are at fault, sorry. Hitting a bumper can cause the fendfer immediately next to the bumper to buckle in or out from the compression of the bumper material into its mounting so it is possible yoyur bumper hit did damage the fender if it is immediately next to where you hit her.

heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 05:59 PM

Yeah her damage was about midway up her car on the left side and it was much higher than my car is. She also had a tire on the back of her car which I would think would have stopped the impact some. It was not a hard hit. I was going probably 5mph

Wondergirl · Oct 18, 2010, 06:04 PM

It sounds like the facts will be clear to the adjusters. Like ballenger said, let Progressive deal with this -- and don't worry about a suit.

Fr_Chuck · Oct 18, 2010, 06:07 PM

So many red flags,

Insurance expired but she renewed it ( that means she did not have any insurance, it does not go back to cover an accident.

So don't expect her to have insurance.

If you hit her car and you are at fault, your insurance will pay for the repair of her car, And perhaps her medical costs if she diecides in a few days that she is hurt.

The minute she started claiming damage that was not where you hit here, you needed the police there to do a report,

But just let your insurance take care of it, *** if you can get even a scratch fixed for 250, good luck

heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 06:28 PM

Yes I have pictures that I took, also so that should help. I go through allied insurance that goes through progressive. It's a small town of smaller businesses, but they do branch out. I told my agent what happened. So he knows

heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 06:31 PM

I had said I wanted to work it out just me and her. I wanted her to get 3 estimates , hopefully she just does her bumper, I do not see how I would have causedher the side damage to her car since it is much higher up, its like an SUV style care she has

heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 06:39 PM

Yeah the police needed to be there, however she said she was in a huge hurry, on the way to the airport and she couldn't wait for police or she would miss her plane. She left the scene of the accident entirely.

heidi30 · Oct 18, 2010, 06:39 PM

Of course after she got my insurance information, then she flew out fast

JudyKayTee · Oct 19, 2010, 06:13 AM

I'm a liability investigator - I have a couple of concerns.

She "fled" the scene. Did you stay and wait for the Police? If you didn't, then you BOTH fled the scene.

As far as where the damage is - as Wondergirl said, the insurance investigator/adjuster will make a determination about the age of the damage, whether it is possible from the accident you describe.

You told the insurance company that it was not your fault. She was turning and stopped and you hit her. Unfortunately you are responsible for having total control of your vehicle at all times, responsible for being prepared for anything that could/might happen. Are you saying that the accident was her fault because she stopped short.

I worked an accident yesterday, very similar. Crossing guard stepped out, first car stopped, second car did not. Not too much damage but second car claimed it was fault of first car - without even realizing WHY first car stopped. Guess whose insurance is going to pay for it? Right. The second car.

As far as being sued, you won't be sued. If worse comes to worse a claim will be made with your insurance company. That is NOT the same as being sued.

I would be grateful that she isn't claiming sore neck or shoulders or whiplash or whatever - and I have worked accidents where there was a scratch and the person who was struck claimed thousands of dollars in damages.

heidi30 · Oct 19, 2010, 06:52 PM

Wow people will do anything to get a buck! One scratch and thousands of dollars!! HAha. I think I will just let insurance take care of the whole mess. Like I said nothing is really wrong with her car however she wanted to get extra so she can try

heidi30 · Oct 19, 2010, 06:52 PM

Doesn't mean she will

Fr_Chuck · Oct 19, 2010, 08:08 PM

I slightly bumped a car about 8 years ago, did not even scratch my painted fender of my truck, I saw one scratch on her car.
Again, sob story not to call the police,

Well 15,000 law suit latter for her frame bent, medical bills and more, I learned a serious lesson, always get a police report, even if you get a ticket from it.

We found out latter she had filed 4 or 5 other law suits for damages also, This was her business.

heidi30 · Oct 20, 2010, 01:30 PM

If u don't mind me asking, did you file this with your insurance or was it expired? Im turning this over to insurance I'm assuming that it is covered. Anyone know?

anesha12 · Jun 12, 2012, 08:33 AM

I was a accident April 5 2012 I called the police but I didn't file a report because she said she was going to fix it.But all she doing now is giving me the run arounds so what do I do now?

AK lawyer · Jun 12, 2012, 08:45 AM

Originally Posted by anesha12

I was a accident April 5 2012 i called the police but i didnt file a report because she said she was going to fix it.But all she doing now is giving me the run arounds so what do i do now?

If there is anything in the previous posts that pertain to your situation, say so. Otherwise I see no need to read them. This is why you really should have started a new thread.

Did you get the identity of her insurance company? If so, make a claim with the insurer. If not, you left yourself few options. You might want to contact the police or the DMV to see (assuming there is a mandatory insurance law in your jurisdiction) to see if they can get her to prove she has insurance. If she does, you will then know who the insurerer is and then file a claim against it.

Of course you should also notify your own insurance.