So, somebody ran into my parked car today

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daholl01

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So today I was parked on the side of the road at a college campus and noticed my front licensce plate was ripped off and sitting on my winshield. On it also was a note from the university police that my car had been in a minor accident and the number to call.

All the accident apprears to be is that someone, I am assuming, backed into the front of my car and ripped off my liscense plate and put a few gouges into my bumper. The bumper is also feeling kinda flimsy but it could have been that way before.

I talked to the officer and they gave me the name and number of the woman who hit my car, and she appartently said she would pay for the repair, or the officer said I could go through my insurance.

I have never been in this situation and I was wondering what the heck do I do. I don't even really know my rights in all of this. I have thought about calling the woman and telling her I would get a quote and have her pay for a new bumper. Although I just have a plastic bumper and am wondering about maybe just trying to fill the gouges and liscense plate holes with something and having them repainted (a lot of the plastic is discolored from being flexed). I've just got a 1999 Grand Cherokee, but I don't want to have it looking too beat up.

What would you do?
 
Get a few estimates for the repairs. A simple "bump" could have actually done a bit of damage to the car that you cannot see. If it was hit hard enough to rip the front plate off, it was hit hard enough to do some damage. Be sure to have your airbag checked. It would really suck to have that dude fire off for no reason while you were driving down the road.

You should be able to get estimates without a commitment. Then you will have some basis to make your decision on whether you want to fix it yourself or have the nice lady pay for the repairs.
 
Try working with her directly but if she gets hinky or it isn't dealt with in 20 days, Let it run through your insurance company.
 
Jeez, you're lucky. I got hit by a lady in the JCPenny parking lot. It was a hit and run, but several people saw it and left me notes on my windshield along with a note from the mall security. Unfortunately, the woman was from out of state, and since it was a misdemeanor, there was nothing the police could do to get the person. It wasn't that bad, so I didn't go through my insurance. (My parents feared it might raise my rates). So, bascially I filled out a bunch of paper work, and heard nothing more. They knew exactly who she was from her license plate, but they said if she didn't reply to their letter, that they couldn't do anything.


What a bunch of BS. But, oh well I just sold that car yesterday :)
 
Get an estimate from a good repair place...find out who your insurance would use.....give the lady the estimate tell her you need her to pay it by the next day....if she does pay...keep the money and buy some beer stuff....if she doesn't call your insurance it won't go up.
 
definatly get it looked at, my grandmother had someone back into here front bumper and it turned out to push it up and push something else into another part that caused like 700 bucks to repair.
 
Get your insurance company involved, that's what they do for a living. Modern bumpers are not simple. With many cars, smacking the bumper can compromise the crash-control systems. If the car has one-use impact absorbers, they probably need to be replaced.
 
Treat her like you would like to be treated if you accidentally banged into someone else's vehicle. Get a quote (or three) , Tell her what it's going to cost to fix and give her 7 days to cough up the money. If she doesn't pay, sick your insurance company on her. If you are not at fault, they will pay to have it fixed and go after her (if she's not inusred) or her insurance company to get their money back.

Good Luck!
 
Treat her like you would like to be treated if you accidentally banged into someone else's vehicle. Get a quote (or three) , Tell her what it's going to cost to fix and give her 7 days to cough up the money. If she doesn't pay, sick your insurance company on her. If you are not at fault, they will pay to have it fixed and go after her (if she's not inusred) or her insurance company to get their money back.

Good Luck!

+1, give her the benefit of a doubt and send her some quotes, if she is a decent person she'll help pay for the damage, if not... release the hounds.
 
These days it seems like insurance companies handle all the paperwork. If she is going to go through her insurance company I would speak with your agent, generally they have you get the repair while they get compensated from her insurance company.
 
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