Thread: Being the good neighbor

So on Saturday, I couldn't fly because the ceiling was too low so I worked on my girls car with the help of TTP. I was walking back and forth between my car and her car to get tools and such. At one point, i saw the neighbor across the street exit his house and he gave me a big wave. I gave a big wave back. A little later, I hear him start his shiny red Toyota Tacoma and then 5 seconds later, WACK! I turn around and see my F150 shaking.

He ended up bending the RF portion of my bumper. He said he didn't want to use his insurance and said that he wanted to pay for the damages out of pocket. I was able to convince him to give me his insurance info anyways and told him that I would get an estimate for him so he could pay out of pocket if he wanted to.

I think the guy was thinking, "new bumper, can't be that expensive"

What the guy didn't realize is that, I believe my vehicle should be returned to its original state. Anyhow, I took it to a Ford Dealership with a collision center and they did an estimate. $1645 was the amount and 2 weeks is the time to complete the damages. Ford included a replacement RF fender since the tab that attaches to the bumper is bent back as well. Technically, they could bend it back and it wouldn't be noticeable on the outside. With that, paint time will be included. It hiked up the price quite a bit. Also, a rental car needs to be included.

Well, I showed the guy the estimate and he was shocked that they included the RF fender. In the back of my mind I was thinking "what did you expect, I was going to take it to some crappy cheapo shop." I'm a firm believer in "you pay for what you get." I also kind of believe that he is responsible for the fender seeing how it never had any bends in it before. You can bend that tab back into place and you wouldn't be able to see it but it is now in a weakend state. That's bullshit, my car needs to be returned to it's original state.

Anyways, he asked me to get another estimate for him to compare. He also doesn't realize that new parts aren't availabe for a 2001 Ford F150 as I was told by the Ford Dealership so I'm limited to "hard to find used parts."

I'm kinda worried because it's not good to wait too long to consult your insurance and I almost went behind his back to call his insurance company when he didn't answer his door the first time, but I gave him another shot.

I got in a accident involving 2 cars in december, it was my fault, my half ton SUV couldn't stop on the ice fast enough and I hit one car and bounced into the oncoming lane and hit another. We payed out of pocket to fix the second car, we offered to pay for the first car. Keep in mind the first car I hit had a slightly dented trunk, a crack of about 5 inches in the rear bumper, and of course, they blamed their already broken taillight on me. Now we told them to go to a few different shops to compare prices, she went to her honda dealer, and claimed that it would cost <b>2500</b> to fix. I had to replace my whole bumper, and get it painted, and get my towhook bent back. It costed me 850$ Her car was a 2000, mine is a 1998, should be THAT much of a difference. Anyways, we told her to get more estimates and call us back. She never called us back, instead, she called the insurance company and it fucked our insurance over since I'm 16 and it was technically my fault.

Don't go behind his back on this shit man. It sucks, hardcore.

Personally, I would return my own car to its original state if I was paying for the damages myself. Though, I can't exactly afford to pay for that out of my own pocket. The question of what I would do and what I can do are two different things. Obviously, if I had the money, I would pay for a complete repair. I did call my own insurance but since I have liability only, there was nothing they could do for me. They didn't offer to take notes or anything. Right now I'm pissed off because everytime I hit a bump, the corner of the bumper scrapes my tire. I just hope I don't get screwed on this one.