would you guys contact insurance for this

[bobbyc]

i was approaching a light, light turns yellow...it's an intersection with the cameras, speed limits 45 so i get on the brakes pretty good and stop for the light. the lady behind me wanted to go on through the light and wasn't able to stop in time. luckily it wasn't a bad accident...and everyone's ok. i'm pretty meticulous with this car...it's my baby...along with the z. anyway, here's a pic of the damage, nothing significant, but definately noticable.

 

 

it made some nice indents in the bumper from the screws for her front plate. she was a nice lady, appologized, we traded info and were on our way. she was playing down the damage, i know it's minor, but the car is mint other wise, so this new small blemish definatetl bugs me. i know a lot of other motorist would shrug their shoulders and be thankful their appliance wasn't hurt any worse. being an enthusiast...it makes this situation completely different...i think.

[z2go]

Hell yes, I would file a claim! It sucks that the lady was nice, as that makes it harder to file a claim and feel nice yourself... but the reality is, she didn't pay close enough attention, and ran into you. If the car was a beater, and you had other damage otherwise, yea, it's not terrible. However, it is still damage, and personally, it would bother me.

 

It really sucks too, because when they go to respray the bumper, the paint will be close, but it is near impossible to get the paint to lay the same as original, so it will be slightly different.

[jas280z]

I would definitely contact insurance, and I probably would have gotten an accident report too. She may seem nice now, but for all you know she already contacted her insurance saying you stopped halfway into the intersection and then reversed into her. When dealing with something like this you should collect as much evidence as possible, so it doesn't come back to bite you.

[Xnke]

That's the nice thing about KY...if they hit you anywhere behind the rear tires, it's automatically their fault, unless your car is in reverse IN A PARKING LOT. Then it is a no-fault ruling.

 

That and the weather are about the only two good things, I can think of, pertaining to cars.

[bobbyc]

yeah...we'll see...if she's witch and does that then i'll fix it my self....my wife was in the car with me...along with our 2 little ones. i'm gonna stop by some shops in the morning and see what they say. i have heard of these poly bumper repair places, if that's the case i can get the dents out, wet sand, mist and clear the whole thing, keeping the original paint on the sides so no blending into the quarter needed.

Edited August 19, 2010 by bobbyc

[Tony D]

Can you afford the claim raising your rates for the next three years?

 

I may report it, but not file a claim. If I were her, I'd pay to have the bumper painted and paintball the damn intersection cameras that influenced your decision to stop short. That way nobody's insurance rates go up. For an accident repair less than $1000 it's cheaper to pay it up front than to report it and then pay an increased premium for the subsequent 36 months. Seen that happen before!

 

In California they are now starting to remove these cameras as they are realizing they influence traffic FLOW. Plus, the revenue stream they supposedly were to generate doesn't materialize in many cases. The incidents of accidents ADJACENT to intersections is going up where these cameras are in place, while intersection accident impact (the stated reason for installation) seems to be generally unaffected!