so what's up with the taurus now>? do they get it back?

 

lol i know, i think it was something lame the wife had just come up w/. She only mentioned it once... then the rest they just apoligized and said they didn't know how it could have happened. Whatever it is, we exchanged insurance info... now i gotta figure out how to deal w/ the body shop... either get it completely done or get the money and have it done myself. Any ideas?

 

Take the money, find your own shop, get it completely fixed for your price, pocket the money, and buy some new mods. Sorry to hear about your car man, hope it works out.

 

yeah... that would be cool. I don't know if I wanna go that route because I've heard that superblack is one of the hardest colors to match... and usually the bodyshops that they recommend me to go to for estimates and stuff aren't great at all. If I choose to just take the money from insurance, they'd give me a check for the new door + paint + so-so labor work. The problem here is it has to EXACTLY match my paint! i aint driving a car w/ a door that looks awkward...

I think I'm just going to find an expensive and ORG member-recommended body shop that does insurance work, have them do the work, and send the bill to insurance.

What do you guys think?

It's monday today... that taurus is going to be back today. It's going to be interesting when the neighbors actually see the damage on their car... i wonder if they'll still deny knowing anything about it.

 

i think that's a good idea...you should get it done to your satisfaction. good luck w/everything

 

Take it to the shop of YOUR choice. Look in the phone book and see who does work on Mercedes/BMW/Porsche etc... They will match your paint fine. Pearls are probably harder to match than any black is. Then tell THEIR insurance where you got the estimate from and let them pay for the work. If you bill the insurance, they might refuse to pay. THEN what are you going to do?? Tell them you want the work done at XXX shop period. If they say it's too expensive, tell them to tell their policyholders to drive more more carefully!

 

cool, i'll check that out then. I'm still waiting for their insurance agent to call me and give me the claim number. In the meantime, I'll be looking up shops.

So you guys think I should just get the work done immediately, rather than taking money from insurance and doing it later? Damn superblack hahah, i could have used the extra moola for a lip or somethin. O well

 

Just find a high end repair shop. Take it there and have them give you an estimate. Take a copy of the estimate. The call the stupid insurance company and find out who is handling the case. Get their fax number and fax them the copy. That copy should have the $, the bodyshop's name/address/contact person. There is absolutely no incentive for insurance company to be in ANY particular hurry, so it's up to YOU to get the ball rolling.

 

Insurance companies will usually budget for painting the adjacent panels as well to help the color matching. When my 96 was in a fender bender it was only the front right fender and bumper that was damaged. But the insurance company (her's) included the cost of repainting the right front door and hood as well (got rid of all those nasty stone chips). A good body shop will "blend-in" the new paint with the old paint making any difference unnoticeable.

 

Definitly take it to a shop of your choice. I'd be cautious on taking my car to the shop that the other persons insurance company reccomends. Their insurance company only wants to pay as little as possible. Alot of those insurance rec. shops are into quick repair and don't pay attention to detail.

 

First, don't accept cash or a check from the insurance company until you KNOW the repair is done or will be done to your liking. Look at it this way, your car was parked, your neighbor hit it(the theft story will not hold up with their insurance company), you have zero fault in this accident. Their insurance company has a legal responsibility to repair your vehicle to your satisfaction. This doesn't mean that they have to totally repaint and fix every little ding on the car but, they do have to restore it to the previous state before the collision(the insurance term is called indemnification). Insurance companies make money from denying claims or reducing them, it is in your best interest to protect yourself and your investment. Just be thankful that you did file a police report because this is the best evidence that you have in your favor! If you have any major problems with the insurance company contact your states insurance department and explain to them what happened and ask to file a complaint against the insurance company. These complaints will be reviewed when the insurance company has their state audit as part of their insurance licensing. I hope this helps sorry this is long but, I am a insurance auditor and have some experience in this area.

 

"superblack" is not any different from the regular black from 95-96. Just look at your ID plate on the firewall... it has the same paint code. "superblack" is more of a marketing ploy.

 

o yeah, i know that

Thanks for your help w/ the insurance stuff!!

Well new developments... we as neighbors became more... neighborly? We usually don't really talk, unless it was a hi/bye situation. They came over today to let us know they informed their insurance and stuff. They asked us a huge favor though... call and change the police report from an "hit/run" to "just an accident." At this point, I really don't care and would rather prefer that because they are our neighbors, we'll be living across from one another for many years to come, and also I'm familiar w/ their daughter (went to same school as I did during elementary and intermediate).

I don't know the process really, but my dad is going to call the police dept. and see if they can have it changed or do something about it. In the meantime... i'm lookin for a top-notch bodyshop to get my work done. This situation turned out weird, it brought us 2 neighbors closer LOL. My parents have invited them over for dinner this weekend... what has the world come to.

edit: oh yeah, they still claim to know they don't know how it happened... but accept the fact that it was their car who hit me.

 

I'd say hell no till they change there story and admit they hit you. If they can't do that, screw em'

 

well, i think the towing + impound fees were enough to learn their lesson... i hope.

blah it's so hard to find a bodyshop nearby...

 

Make sure that the insurance policy number you have is for the Taurus.........if not their insurance won't help you with repairs... Why did they give you the insurance for their other car....hmmmm.... maybe the Taurus has no insurance. just my 02 cents, i've seen this happen before and i say BEWARE!!!!

 

hahaha those pictures were hella funny nadir, hope everything works out for ya.

 

D'oh, sorry bout the damage man. I dunno if you can do anything about the accident report - I thought leaving the scene was an independent traffic charge that couldn't be 'removed' by say, the party who got hit. Have the neighbors said if the police was charging them or not? Leaving the scene/hit and run is a pretty serious charge in most places (here it's a 12 point offense I believe, which means auto revocation of license).

Good luck on getting it fixed. When I had a new quarter panel installed on my black acura, you could see a slight difference in texture on the paint in the right lighting. I thought the shop that did it was supposed to be pretty reputable too

I'd follow Jeff's advice.

 

you know what just ran through me head ...do they have like any unliscenced drivers...like a younger daughter or son...that would definately be in their interest to cover up..then the police would be on their butts for unliscenced drivig and a hit and run (which they are trying to get rid of all of a sudden.

 

While I did the detective work on mine, that is exactly what I did. That Monday (I was off work, anyway), I had it towed to the body shop. Lucky for me that the shop I chose is highly rated in terms of repair quality and customer satisfaction.

 

screw that.. if they wanted it to not count as a hit and run, they should have talked to you when it happened..

wJ

 

if you dont change it, whats would happen? they get points added onto their licence??

 

Something definitely sounds fishy. They may only seem to more friendly so that you can change the police report. With the report changed to "accident" they still might claim that they didn't do it and that maybe even you hit their car. I tend to think whoever drove the car wasn't insured or maybe even unlicensed (as others have said). Until you get word that their insurance is going to cover things, I'd drag my feet with changing the police report. It almost discredits you to the police because you now are lying to them when you change the story. If the neighbors are telling you they don't know what happened, you can definitely bet that they are telling the insurance co. the same thing. Insurance companies don't like to pay out settlements and will look at any angle to get out of this seeing how the accident/crime was unwitnessed. If you change your story, you could be letting them off the hook. Don't think that just because they are your neighbors that they wouldn't screw you. Neighbors do it all the time in this day and age. Their behavior already establishes them as dishonest and shady.

PROCEED WITH CAUTION

 

hmm... damn

well I talked with their insurance today and their agent gave me the claim number and told me to go ahead and either go w/ one of their certified AAA shops or find my own. There's still a chance they can screw me over?

 

I think it might be a good idea to just tell them that the police were not able to change the report now that is has already been filed, regardless of what the police actually say. Or as someone already mentioned, take your sweet sweet time doing it, at least until your car is back to the way it was or better. Of course they're trying to be friendly... a hit and run is a pretty serious charge.

 

It will never be over until your car is fixed and the bill is paid. At this point, I doubt that the insurance company has started their investigation. A claim number just means an accident was reported. You could ask their insurance whether your neighbors are accepting fault or not, irregardless of what the police report says. A little skepticism never hurt anyone.

 

OK well my dad did go to the SJPD to pick up the forms...

it's basically a form to write an explanation of why you need to change it. Both parties need to fill it out...

my dad:

"Please change my case (#) type HIT&RUN to an accident.

Thank you"



my neighbor:

"the above mentioned report was written up as a hit and run. we would like to request that this be changed to a collision incident due to the fact that the collision occured unknowingly prior to leaving town for the weekend. Both parties have agreed and insurance will be covering all the damage."


is that ok?

 

What is it, hit and run on maxima month! These past months alot of people getting their maxima into really bad shape. I hope that everything is ok with the claims. BTW did they get their car back?

 

yeah lol, it's back. I also showed em where the damage was and they accepted that it was their car but still dont know how it happened exactly... "might have hit it during the night and not noticed"

maybe they're telling the truth.... lol

whtaever it is, so far i've gotten a claim number from their insurance lady. I gotta call and ask what AAA is going to do about my rental... i know last time they gave us an Enterprise car but I am 19 yrs old and they don't allow drivers under 21 or something.

As for bodyshop... i think I might have found one 7 miles from home. My cousin (previous owner of my max) owns a 2k2 E46 M3 and just got some body work done on his A-pillar... that place is suppose to be one of the best i guess. He also had some body work done on the maxima there (painting + 97+ conversion after an accident) so im gonna go check em out. I hear there's a month's waiting list though...

ill keep u guys posted.

 

As others have said... get it fixed to your satisfaction, and most importantly, PAID FOR, before requesting/agreeing to any change in the police report. Stick by your guns - there's time to reconcile later. Right now you've got the law on your side and that's tough for the insurance company to set aside.

Just remember, as helpful as they may seem, the insurance company doesn't want to pay claims... it's not how they stay in business.

Good Luck!

 

Like everybody else said, I wouldn't change it until their insurance has paid and all your work is done. Who knows, if you change it, the insurance might not cover as much, or at all. It probably still would, but you know they are covering you now, why risk getting f'ed over. Screw the neighbors, change it later when the car is done to your satisfaction.

wJ

 

Just b/c they didn't know they hit a vehicle doesn't mean it isn't a hit and run. Don't change that police report for anything. It's your entire leverage. Also, I highly doubt that impact went "unfelt" in the Taurus. He (the kid) probably whipped out backwards to get another vehicle out of the way and gave your car a good tag, knew it, then parked and went on "vacation" to get the story straight.

 

Nadir_s,
Just my .02...
I was in a simular situation when I was 19. Stupid kid from down the block smacked into me (head on, while trying to make a left turn). In hind sight, we should have never gotten the insurance companies involved - both our rates went up and it took forever to get the money from them. We should have just brokered a deal where they pay for our damages. (FYI - I still see that sh_thead around and everytime I see him I have the urge to whip out my Easton softball bat and take batting practice on his head). But at age 19 what did I know?

But since it's past the point of getting the insurace company involved, it'll be a while before you see a check.

BTW - I'm still amazed that the cops came and towed the car away in 45 minutes. It would take that long just for them to get their fat a--es out of Denny's around here. Someone has to get shot to get that kind of response time.

 

your insurance hiked up too? Well, I didn't have to inform my insurance about it at all. I'm working directly with their insurance.

I know the kid did it because that taurus hasn't been used the entire week... probably grounded from parents.

 

DON'T fiddle with the police report until AFTER they, or their insurance company specifically accepts liability IN WRITING.

Something like; "I, (neighbor), do hereby accept liability for damages caused by my vehicle, Green Ford Taurus, Unit #x on police report xxxxx, to the Black Nissan Maxima owned by (your name), Unit#x on same police report."

I agree with everything you've done so far. Nice job!

 

new developments...

my neighbor came over today again... this time with a sad and desperate face. He told me that his family would have to pay an extra $1500 for annual premium... and then asked if he could just pay us to repair the damages. I told him that we got a rough estimate of about $2000 (which we really did... $1968) but that is subject to increase. Now that's just for bodywork... my gf just reminded me that we were going to get a rental too...

He was quite shocked at the estimate ammount... I guess he thought it was about $500 worth of damages or something. He also probably thought that we would just take the money and not get the thing repaired... obviously watching me slave over my car everyweekend didn'g give him a clue about how much i cared about the car.

Oh well, he said that he'd have to talk to his wife to see what they will do... either fork up the 2000+rental or whatever... or just go w/ insurance. But DAMN, 1500... i feel hella bad. If it was anyone else, i'd tell em to screw themselves and just work w/ their insurance but I dunno...

Oh yeah, we held off on the police report... we plan on changing it after my work is complete, like u guys mentioned. Thanks for the feedback guys!!

 

$1500. Well thats the price of having Teens on your policy. They do something stupid, they have to pay. It sux, cause I'll feel like they probably arent out to **** you over, just looking out for themselves as well. I'm sure the thought has crossed their minds that you could be trying to get as much money out of them as possible. I'm not saying you are in any way, but that kinda crap does happen. In the end, their gonna have to cough it up, and too bad if it's gonna cost them an extra $1500 a year. At thing point, since it's been reported, and the insurance has it on record, even if they pay the repairs out of pocket, they're gonna get their rates jacked up.

 

One of the immutable laws of driving is that nearly all of us will be involved in at least one car accident, and that they are expensive. If they'd have hit anyone else on the street then they would still wind up paying.

If his insurance is gonna jack him $1500, then he must have some other bad history with them... You don't get a middle-aged driver with a clean record have his rates upped $1500 for one accident! Heack, I pay only $1000 for a year of full coverage on 3 vehicles, and my agent tells my my rates won't get raised until my 3rd at-fault accident! (haven't had any so far!)

 

Have you read the thread at all or just went to the last page? He was hit by the teenage son and because of having an underage driver under the policy that caused an accident the insurance is going to increase.

 

Yes, I read the whole thread. I've been folloing it since day 1.

What I'm saying is that even with a teenage driver on the policy he must have other claims or tickets in his history for them to raise his premiums by that much. I mean what's the frickin point of insurance if the additional premiums are basically as much as the cost of the damage? He'd be better paying the damage (if his insurance works on a no-payout=no-penalty system)

My brother-in-law got in an accident when he was 17 and his parent's insurance didn't increase after that - even though he caused $16k in damage to the two cars.

Point is - it's like the 3strikes rule - You know the "25years for the 3rd felony" clause that some states have. You shouldn't feel bad for a guy who gets 25 years for a simple burglary if it's his 3rd felony. Just as you shouldn't lose sleep over a guy who loses his license for his 6th speeding ticket. Just as you shouldn't feel sorry for someone with a bad insurance history who's insurance goes up after getting in another accident.

Ok, question for parents of teenage drivers... Can you specifically exclude your child as a driver on your policy to get the rates reduced? Or MUST they appear on the policy? How about getting them their own insurance?

I'd feel sorry for them if they admitted it up front - but whoever did the damage just drove away hoping it wouldn't come back. It did. Life's a beeyatch.

Can you ask the neighbor next time he's round why the rate hike is so high? Do they have previous tickets or accidents? I'd be much more willing to make a deal with him if this was a one-off deal - but is he already has bad history then really it's difficult to feel sorry for him.