I backed out of a spot and hit the SUV behind me above the right rear
passenger tire. Damage was a tiny crack, maybe an inch, in the the
fiberglass just above the tire. It was my fault, and the guy asked if
we could settle privately. I gave him my contact and told him to bring
me an estimate. He never showed. I ran into him a month later, same
conversation. Again, he never showed. I finally saw him yesterday,
and he tells me that he was hit by someone else, and brought his car in
for all the repairs at once, saying my share of the damage came to $450
bc they had to replace the entire fiberglass panel to avoid further
cracking, then something about a paint job and blah blah blah. Anyone
know if his repairs and price are accurate? Should I get my own
estimates done and offer settlement? I want to be fair but not an
idiot...
Kevin - 22 Jul 2006 02:38 GMT
>I backed out of a spot and hit the SUV behind me above the right rear
> passenger tire. Damage was a tiny crack, maybe an inch, in the the
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> estimates done and offer settlement? I want to be fair but not an
> idiot...
No way to know how much damage you did without seeing it, but it sounds like
you are getting off pretty cheap. A similar thing happened to me lately. I
backed into a Toyota Tundra and put a small dent right above the rear tire
opening. The owner took the truck to my son's body shop at my
recommendation and it cost me 3,000 dollars for the repair. My son did the
repair as cheaply as possible but making sure it was done correctly. It is
easy to do a lot of damage with what seems like a very minor collision. Body
repairs are very expensive. For the most part it is probably worth $450.00
just to keep it off your insurance record.

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Kevin Mouton
Automotive Technology Instructor
"If women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy"
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