Body work on car or not -- what would you do?

braumeister

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A crazy driver of a semi swerved out of his lane and hit me. He stopped to check if I was OK, but then refused to provide any information (I couldn't understand him because his native language was one I've never heard before).
I tried to file a police report but they said they wouldn't do anything.
I asked my insurance company and they said they would have to just chalk it up to my comprehensive coverage.

So, kind of a bad situation. The damage is minor, just an ugly dent in my driver's door. It's a new car, just bought in March.
I went to the best local body shop for an estimate. We have used them in the past so I know they are good.
They said it would likely be $5 to 6K at a minimum, they couldn't get to it before November, and they would need it for at least 4-5 weeks. Of course I would need a rental car in the meantime, so add another thousand.

Another issue is that since it's a new model with limited availability, there could be a lengthy wait for the shop to get that new door after ordering it.

My feeling is that since it's purely cosmetic (the car is perfectly driveable) I'm OK with just leaving it alone. When I eventually sell it, years from now, the hit for that dent won't be anywhere near the current cost of repair.
 
I'd go ahead and file with my own insurance company. That's what you're paying for in the premiums.
 
I'd go ahead and file with my own insurance company. That's what you're paying for in the premiums.
Yeah. I don't get the "chalk it up to your comprehensive coverage" comment. You basically had a hit and run accident with someone who likely has no insurance. Did you get a license plate number?

I also don't get the police comment. I don't care if they don't follow up. You want it on file.

Just my 2 cents.
 
Yeah. I don't get the "chalk it up to your comprehensive coverage" comment. You basically had a hit and run accident with someone who likely has no insurance. Did you get a license plate number?

I also don't get the police comment. I don't care if they don't follow up. You want it on file.

Just my 2 cents.
I agree. The police just need to file your report of essentially a hit and run. That should make it considered collision by the insurance company. And, yes, I would get it fixed. You don’t want to be looking at that and reminded of this for the years you’ll have that vehicle.
 
I also don't get the police saying that they wouldn't do anything? This person caused property damage of $5-6K! Maybe you didn't get a plate number or photos of the truck so they couldn't locate the guy and truck?

This is just like stealing to me and it should be investigated.
Interested where this took place , maybe the police are overworked and understaffed.
 
This is just like stealing to me and it should be investigated.
Interested where this took place , maybe the police are overworked and understaffed.
That's not uncommon. Where I worked they didn't write accident reports unless at least one vehicle had to be towed and/or someone was injured. But we would make sure everyone had a driver's license, the vehicles were registered and had insurance. If not, appropriate charges would be made. But policies vary widely by jurisdiction.
 
Why would they need the car for 4 to 5 weeks?
I would work with your insurance company and get a few more quotes. 5k to 6K seems pricey for a dent.
Its a new car and you shouldn't have to drive it like that.
Did you get any pictures of the accident and ID of the truck that hit you?
 
Auto body work is insanely ridiculously expensive.
Can you get the insurance money and just bank it?
I'd consider that if I could.
 
That's not uncommon. Where I worked they didn't write accident reports unless at least one vehicle had to be towed and/or someone was injured. But we would make sure everyone had a driver's license, the vehicles were registered and had insurance. If not, appropriate charges would be made. But policies vary widely by jurisdiction.

Yeah, it was a weird situation. The cops rolled their eyes when I told them it was a semi. They said it was generally impossible to prove anything against a big trucking company, and especially in this case which was essentially a hit and run. My photos of the truck and its driver didn't impress them at all.
They told me I could fill out an accident form but they would just immediately close it and do nothing.

The body shop said they don't write estimates for USAA because they don't accept any estimates but their own. They said I could go ahead and make the claim but I would only get a small fraction of the actual cost. "That's why USAA has such great rates. It's fine until you need to file a claim."

The USAA claims folks pretty much agreed with that opinion when I talked with them. And they said that without the details of the trucker's insurance they would have no way to follow through.

It's a nasty case, but I'm actually OK with it. Just disappointing, since I expected better.
 
I agree. The police just need to file your report of essentially a hit and run. That should make it considered collision by the insurance company. And, yes, I would get it fixed. You don’t want to be looking at that and reminded of this for the years you’ll have that vehicle.
And you don't want people to think that you are one of those OLD people that have a little fender bender monthly.
 
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Perhaps ask around your friends and acquaintances, you may have a contact that does body work on the side and can handle this, which seems minor. I have a friend like that, he limits whom he works with but he has done work for me for several hundred dollars for which the estimates would be in the several thousands.

It will not help you in this situation, but situations like this is why I have installed dash cams in our cars. It made a difference in a similar situation, albeit with another car.
 
I still don't get the insurance thing, and would fight with them tooth and nail. But, if you are OK with it, who am I to judge.
 
Do you have any identifying info from your pictures of the vehicle? I’d file the police report, then I’d track down the company. It would irritate me enough that I’d want it fixed and I wouldn’t just accept no for an answer on the first try.

I don’t understand the comments about the insurance company. They should fix it at least to the extent of your deductible.
 
If you’re willing to live with it, I’m assuming that it didn’t scratch the paint? If not, look up a paintless dent repair place in your area.

If it did scratch the paint, you’ll need to get that sealed, at a minimum, to prevent premature rusting.
 
I would file with the police that it was a hit and run..

I would file with insurance that it was a hit and run...

I would get it fixed and only pay the deductible... mine is $1,000... no way I would pay $5K to $6K...

If insurance did not want to pay, I would sue them...

IF I had enough info on the driver I would think about suing them... or their company...

I did get hit by a semi and their wheel lugs put a nice hole in the side of my car door... had to flag the guy down as he did not even know he hit me... the police were all of the guy.... found many violations on his truck... but his insurance covered it all...
 
Sorry to hear that happened, what a PITA.

Regardless of who pays I think I would want the door fixed, but that is just me these days. However, if it is just a dent and no paint damage then I wouldn’t bother. My wife once reversed into a stationary road roller and dented the rear bumper. I left it as and 2 years later when trading it in the dealer didn’t even mention it, and the trade in price was in line with what I was hoping for.
 
You didn't bother to get a picture of the license plate on the truck or the name on the door?
Anyway, go to www.car-part.com. Find a perfect door from the salvage yard in the same color (verify with paint code), buy it and bolt it on. That way it's not reported anywhere and the Carfax stays clean. Not a big deal.
 
This will be a collision claim on your vehicle and I'm not sure how the shop could spend 5-6K
on a door dent. If the estimate is legit, you have more than a simple door dent. There is no way
I would not repair a new vehicle with damage that may include unibody mis-alignment.
I would get your insurance company involved to get the vehicle repaired correctly with more
than one estimate of damages. I am a former Collision shop owner and retired auto damage
adjuster. A few of the answers above are why the internet is not the best place to get advice.
 
In 2012, we bought our 2nd ever brand new car. Before we made the second payment, a large dent was placed in the passenger door in a parking lot. After chasing down different roads to get it repaired it was always out of our pocket. 14 years later seeing the damage still ticks me off, but car still runs fine.
 
This would be considered a collision claim, not comprehensive.

It would not be a "hit and run" incident, that requires to you be legally parked.

Depending on the insurer it could be considered an at fault accident if they're unable to collect from the other party (subrogate). Questions for your agent.

I put a cosmetic dent in my 10 year old Chevrolet pickup a couple years ago. I'm not fixing it.

If I had a newer car that I know I would be trading in someday I would definitely fix it.
 
It would help us to determine if it should be fixed if you posted a photo of the damage.
 
What an odd situation.

While I do have dash camera's , I have been pretty nervous passing semi's as many put the Roman Chariot wheel shredders on their front wheels what is with that ??

Lesson here to me is: somebody hits me and doesn't want to show license & insurance, I should immediately dial 911 and get a cop there... (after all driver might be drunk, dangerous).

As for OP, his insurance seems lazy, knowing the plate # and truck and time of accident, there is a record of the driver (who may not actually be licensed) as the trucking companies don't send someone off to deliver goods and "hope" he shows up. It's all well tracked by the company and dept of transportation.
 
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