Meh. Cold, rainy, dark... Another normal morning commute in DC... Approaching a red light on a 3 lane street in the middle lane... Light goes green right as I'm about to hit the small pack who was stopped for the red light, but the right lane is clear. So I jump into the right lane, and continue at cruising speed (~25mph on that road), wondering why the stopped cars hadn't started moving for the green yet. Then I see the ambulance, so I stop, just ever so slightly in the intersection. Look in my rear-view to see someone making the same manuver around the stopped pack, and skidding into my Mini.

Damage doesn't look too bad, and the Marine said he wanted to pay for it out of pocket. I don't think he knows what he's getting himself into. He bent the Milltek & put a nasty ding in the tips. It's less than a month old, and I don't think I should settle to have stuff hammered back into place for a new system. So the fog light, exhaust, battery heat shield, & rear bumper need to be replaced...

The Marine wants to work it out, but when I gave him my initial estimate he got a little hostile (~$1500), saying that he shouldn't have to pay for new when it could be repaired. My co-workers are telling my I'm a moron for not reporting it to the police & insurance company asap, and trying to work with this guy. So should I call my insurance now, or give him the benefit of the doubt and try to work with him? I do know he's military like me, and if he works were he says he does, then has a clearance which makes him a little more trustable than 'Joe Thug' in my humble opinion. But my co-workers say that opinion is going to get me the short end of the stick when it comes to getting the $ for the repairs/fixes.

I'm still at work, so no pics yet. All I've got is a little drawing of what happened to share. Pics later.

http://mappage.net/images/rearended.jpg

 

what can be repaired should...like paint or a fog light ...but your exhaust...I think that is something that should be replaced...did you at least get all his info and insurance etc?

sorry about what happened

So therefore call you insurance...cause I'll tell ya from having built or repaired a few minis now....taking off, sanding, repainting and reasembling a bumper could be as much as a grand right there....

if you think you can trust him...then don't...

 

claims of "wiplash" and other things come in mind. CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY!

 

Sorry, but I agree with your friends! You definitely screwed up by not reporting it immediately, and trusting this guy to make things right, even after he started getting touchy about your estimate. Definitely call your insurance company immediately; I assume they'll then ask you to file a police report, and get the other guy's insurance info. It will probably be more difficult now, but hopefully you can get it repaired properly.

Does your insurance company know about the Milltek, and cover you for it?

Good luck!!!

 

+1

 

I have GEICO & had a wreck a few years ago. No police report was filed & they were fine with it when they had to pay $3700 in damages. Hopefully your insurace company will be ok with it

 

+2 and I am sorry to see that your car will be back in the shop

 

Oh dear... yeah.. you want a police report and insurance claim on that.

My 04 was rear ended and the damage didn't look too bad.. but the nature of MINIs meant $1,900 to repair it. And that was with no damage to internals or my exhaust.

 

Sorry to hear this.
Also don't forget that a $1500.00 estimate is just that, an estimate. Once the rear bumper has been removed there may be hidden damage. If you need another $500.00 or so to complete repairs it will be much easier getting the additional from the insurance than the man that hit you.

 

yes for god sake call the insurance company and file a police report over the phone! who knows where this will go and his initial reaction doesnt bode well

 

YES, I agree.

Earl

 

This is where you play the CYA card and make sure EVERYTHING is documented. Last thing you want happening is this guy claiming that you zoomed out in front of him on a rainy road.

 

Oh Nos! Jenna and I are sorry to hear about BatMINI's injury
Coming from someone that just crashed her MINI... Report it... It WILL cost more than you think to replace it! and good luck with that marine!

 

I agree with everyone's economic advice. If the guy is insured, the purpose of the insurance is to pay for such things. Of course, it's the "gift that keeps on giving" to the insurance company, because this guy's premiums will go up and this is, undoubtedly, why he wants to settle in cash.

But to play the other side, do you feel like if you take everyone's advice you'll somehow feel slimy? Maybe you don't want to be a litigious american. Maybe you want to "do the right thing" with a fellow serviceman. Even if you pay for the repairs youself and are thus worse off economically, will you somehow feel better about the whole thing? All I'm saying is that there is more to it than the money.

 

You should have called insurance if you knew that you only wanted new parts! By him asking you to keep it "off record" I think it is a fair assumtion to repair rather than replace components whenever possible.

Be fair but firm. work with him. Get a quote from a place he recomends. Just tell him your standard of quality, and what you expect. Personally, I do think it is a shame that more issues can't be worked out between two people, without making a bunch of lawyers rich just because we don't want to talk to one another

 

When i had my accident, if the damage was under 700$, i could offer to fix the guy's stuff. Anything over, it'd be best to do it through insurance. The estimate was like 750$, and i ended up letting my insurance pay, my insurance skyrocketed, and i learned my lesson.

Call your insurance company asap, and call his as well. They should still be put on notice. If he decides to pay for it after theyre on notice, they shouldn't up his rates, and it shouldn't go on his record. But it's better to be safe than sorry.

Next time, call the cops. I had a VERY minor accident, and the first thing i did was call the cops. Didn't move til they came, and they didn't even ile a police report cause the damage was so insignificant. Sounds like yours is more serious. I don't think they'll be able to write a police repot now, though... and it doesn't sound like you have any witnesses, so just worry about insurance.

Go to the doctors for a checkup as well, just in case.

 

I'm guessing since you and the Marine are both military, you probably use the same insurance provider, USAA. I am a USAA customer and have been in two accidents in the last decade. One was my fault, the other wasn't. I recommend calling USAA immediately. The police were involved in the first accident and the other driver was given a ticket for failure to obey a traffic signal. The second accident was my fault, and involved sliding into a Subaru wagon during the height of a winter storm. The driver and I exchanged insurance info, the cops weren't involved, and USAA paid for the other driver's damages, as well as mine.

So, basically, if you have USAA, they'll take care of you. They aren't the number one insurance company for nothing!

 

Called DC police, and they won't write a report since they were never present at the scene.

Called USAA and filed a claim. I feel bad for telling him we could take care of it on our own, and then going to the insurance company like that... But I was reminded by USAA when I called for 'guidance', that it is part of my contract to report accidents and incidents. I've reported all previous, so why should I risk so much on someone who's gotten a bit hostile already with regards to damages he caused?

 

good job calling them I think it's all for the best!

 

You did the right thing.

just my opinion

edited for redundancy

 

Agreed... mine started at abut $1400 and was $1900 when all was said and done.

 

When the wife got hit the other driver said that she wanted to handle it with out the insurance company. When she got home I called both USAA(mine ins co) and All State (their ins co) and the other driver had already filed a claim saying my wife hit her. So we had to let the insurance Co's fight it out. We won but It took time.

 

Wow, sometimes people really suck.

 

Adjuster just called back, and it seems it's a good thing I called.

She called him at work, and he said the car is covered under his father's policy, and gave her a # for his dad. She called his dad's #, but it's a bad number. She tried to call him back, and he's no longer answering his phone.

So he is military, I know because he answered the phone 'Sgt Davis' when I called earlier... And I'm 95% sure of where he works. We got the tags from the car... Pretty much have this guy.

Adjuster commented that this guy was being quite short with her as well.

I'll let the insurance work it out. I already feel stress relief.

 

I'm a lawyer. If I am cut, do I not bleed? If my Mini is crunched, do I not cry?

Sorry to hijack the thread, but let's not take shots at others during one of our brothers/sister's hour of need.

That said, you absolutely did the right thing, Wagnbat. May I point out that even though you reported the claim to your insurer, it does not mean this is the end of it for the marine. You have protected yourself to make a claim under your policy if the marine doesn't step up to the plate. But, if he does what he promises, then the whole matter will die in your insurance carrier's computer. The marine will not have a problem unless HIS insurance company has to PAY for your damages. They won't raise his rates for an accident for which he was not ticketed unless it costs them money. So, I would keep open the dialogue with the marine . . probably no need to tell him you reported it an unnecessarily freak him out.

Another thing to consider: If you make a claim against your own policy to repair the damage, then you will have to pay your deductible, which could be a large percentage of the repair cost. So, you would then have to pursue the marine for your out-of-pocket. So, even though your company is notice, it is in your best interests as well to work with the guy.

Please tell batmini to get well soon.