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Fender bender help

post #1 of 13
10/21/09 at 7:47pm
Thread Starter 
Someone in school was backing out of an awkward parking space and hit my car (she was driving a Dodge Dakota). It pushed into the side and brought the metal inward. The bumper got pushed down a little and the paint damaged was buffed out. She stood there the entire period waiting for me to come out to tell me and offer payment etc. She had called her father who offered to pay the fees for it to be fixed. I being a rather new driver (licensed last February) acted poorly by calming her down and saying that it was probably fine and not to worry. The reason I acted that way was because of a book I read, The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, but I won't get into that now. I believe in forgiveness and remembering what is important, it is just a car. My parents found out and want an estimate and for her to pay for it. The girl did say that even though I rejected her offers to get it fixed (really because I didn't want to tell my parents), I could contact her about a payment if I needed it. I know I acted poorly but I thought I was doing the right thing, but what I care about is what would this probably cost to get fixed (I live in NY if it matters) and any other info I may need to know about this kind of damage.

Here are the pics:










The car is owned by me, it is not leased.

The has cap is a little lose but it is working fine and opens and locks fine.
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post #2 of 13
10/21/09 at 8:06pm
So she was pretty hot, eh? What is the issue here... Her father has offered to pay for it so it's not going to be a financial burden on her. You're going to get your car fixed and your parents will be satisifed that it is fixed. Do what adults would do and simply bring it to a shop and get an estimate.
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post #3 of 13
10/21/09 at 9:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sonick View Post
What is the issue here... Her father has offered to pay for it so it's not going to be a financial burden on her. You're going to get your car fixed and your parents will be satisifed that it is fixed.

Do what adults would do and simply bring it to a shop and get an estimate.
This.
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post #4 of 13
10/21/09 at 10:15pm
Thread Starter 
What I am wondering is how expensive and tough do people think the repair might be. I did contact her and told her I am going to look for estimates, and she informed her parents and they recommended someone, which personally made me go WTF to myself lol.
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post #5 of 13
10/22/09 at 12:07am
If there's no serious panel damage, which is difficult to tell from a photo, a body shop would probably just need to repaint and blend a couple spots. I'd expect it could be done for less than $500. Perhaps a lot less if you went to one of the cut-rate places such as Maaco.
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post #6 of 13
10/23/09 at 7:28pm
Thread Starter 
$1700, there turned out to be an issue with the back light, water got inside because of the rain and messed things up.
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post #7 of 13
10/23/09 at 7:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by PaoloM View Post
$1700, there turned out to be an issue with the back light, water got inside because of the rain and messed things up.
It's a lot, but seems reasonable. I've had minor scrapes and whatnot that were just as costly.
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post #8 of 13
10/23/09 at 7:59pm
Yeah, for a new car it sounds reasonable. Especially if they're replacing with brand new parts for the taillight housing.
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post #9 of 13
10/26/09 at 4:35am
just a question- doesn't car insurance there cover these things?
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post #10 of 13
10/26/09 at 9:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by acidicboy View Post
just a question- doesn't car insurance there cover these things?
If the other party is agreeing to pay for the whole thing, it might be better so nobody's insurance rates go up.
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post #11 of 13
10/26/09 at 11:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by PaoloM View Post
Someone in school was backing out of an awkward parking space and hit my car (she was driving a Dodge Dakota). It pushed into the side and brought the metal inward. The bumper got pushed down a little and the paint damaged was buffed out. She stood there the entire period waiting for me to come out to tell me and offer payment etc. She had called her father who offered to pay the fees for it to be fixed. I being a rather new driver (licensed last February) acted poorly by calming her down and saying that it was probably fine and not to worry. The reason I acted that way was because of a book I read, The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, but I won't get into that now. I believe in forgiveness and remembering what is important, it is just a car. My parents found out and want an estimate and for her to pay for it. The girl did say that even though I rejected her offers to get it fixed (really because I didn't want to tell my parents), I could contact her about a payment if I needed it. I know I acted poorly but I thought I was doing the right thing, but what I care about is what would this probably cost to get fixed (I live in NY if it matters) and any other info I may need to know about this kind of damage. The car is owned by me, it is not leased. The has cap is a little lose but it is working fine and opens and locks fine.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PaoloM View Post
What I am wondering is how expensive and tough do people think the repair might be. I did contact her and told her I am going to look for estimates, and she informed her parents and they recommended someone, which personally made me go WTF to myself lol.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PaoloM View Post
$1700, there turned out to be an issue with the back light, water got inside because of the rain and messed things up.
There is a lesson here somewhere
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post #12 of 13
10/30/09 at 2:58am
Dude, if it was her fault, then let her or her parents or one of their insurance companies pay for it. If they want to pay out of pocket, fine. But if you are not at fault, then you do not have to pay anything. In the future, you should report it to the DMV though because it is the law and I had a friend who got burned where he was waiting for the other party to pay up and they ended up reporting it to the DMV and he didn't. If you know the family it probably won't happen in this case. What begs the most poignant question here is, why in the fuck you are wearing Birkenstocks?
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post #13 of 13
10/30/09 at 3:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tiecollector View Post
What begs the most poignant question here is, why in the fuck you are wearing Birkenstocks?

This IS Styleforum!!!


Regards.
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