So I plowed into the back of a parked car. Does this seem right?
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So I plowed into the back of a parked car. Does this seem right?
I know I smashed the rear window with my head. I think I also dented the trunk lid.
But the damage estimate was $3900. On a 2001 Honda Civic. (Trade in value $3300)
Would it have also been enough force to bend the bumper? That's what they're claiming.
How much damage can a bike possibly do to a car?
But the damage estimate was $3900. On a 2001 Honda Civic. (Trade in value $3300)
Would it have also been enough force to bend the bumper? That's what they're claiming.
How much damage can a bike possibly do to a car?
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I know I smashed the rear window with my head. I think I also dented the trunk lid.
But the damage estimate was $3900. On a 2001 Honda Civic. (Trade in value $3300)
Would it have also been enough force to bend the bumper? That's what they're claiming.
How much damage can a bike possibly do to a car?
But the damage estimate was $3900. On a 2001 Honda Civic. (Trade in value $3300)
Would it have also been enough force to bend the bumper? That's what they're claiming.
How much damage can a bike possibly do to a car?
The total for repair could easily reach $1000 or more, realistically (depending on who's doing the work) - but there's no way it'd get up to $3000+
All cars sold in the U.S. have 5mph bumpers - which means that it would be practically impossible for you to do anything more than scruff up the paint (a couple hundred of dollars right there) with your bicycles.
Last edited by Mos6502; 01-09-10 at 09:16 PM.
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i'm in the midwest so labor may be different but here goes my best guess:
if bumper cover needs painted remove, paint, install runs about $500
worst case senario the trunk dent cant be pulled, on a car like this they will locate a junk yard lid, paint it to match, and install maybe $1200
back window is dual compound with defrost new maybe $400
that gives you $2100
if the bumper cover and inner support are damaged beyond repair (possible i guess but not likely) that could easily add another $1000
now we are at $3100 the extra price difference may just be the higher labor cost in CA
keep in mind i'm no adjuster and im just guessing high on parts cost. i did have a 1991 firebird that had had minor bumper/hood damage from a co worker and the bill for a new hood, bumper, and paint was $2900
if bumper cover needs painted remove, paint, install runs about $500
worst case senario the trunk dent cant be pulled, on a car like this they will locate a junk yard lid, paint it to match, and install maybe $1200
back window is dual compound with defrost new maybe $400
that gives you $2100
if the bumper cover and inner support are damaged beyond repair (possible i guess but not likely) that could easily add another $1000
now we are at $3100 the extra price difference may just be the higher labor cost in CA
keep in mind i'm no adjuster and im just guessing high on parts cost. i did have a 1991 firebird that had had minor bumper/hood damage from a co worker and the bill for a new hood, bumper, and paint was $2900
Last edited by thirdgenbird; 01-09-10 at 10:51 PM.
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Since it was difficult to get a good look at the car from inside the ambulance, I just want to make sure I'm not paying for anything I didn't break. Not sure how to go about doing that, though.
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oh my, are you alright? have a helmet on?
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You gonna eat that?
There is foam under the bumper cover which may or may not be an integral part of the bumper. If that is damaged, it could be that yes, you damaged the bumper beyond repair.
Do you have insurance?
Do you have insurance?
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No you didn't break the bumper, like somebody stated they're designed to deflect a 5mph impact from a car. Obtain the evidence from the police collision report which should include photographs of the damages.
You have the right to shop the repairs yourself if you are paying and are found at fault.
Act in haste repent at leisure.
You have the right to shop the repairs yourself if you are paying and are found at fault.
Act in haste repent at leisure.
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I know I smashed the rear window with my head. I think I also dented the trunk lid.
But the damage estimate was $3900. On a 2001 Honda Civic. (Trade in value $3300)
Would it have also been enough force to bend the bumper? That's what they're claiming.
How much damage can a bike possibly do to a car?
But the damage estimate was $3900. On a 2001 Honda Civic. (Trade in value $3300)
Would it have also been enough force to bend the bumper? That's what they're claiming.
How much damage can a bike possibly do to a car?
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No you didn't break the bumper, like somebody stated they're designed to deflect a 5mph impact from a car. Obtain the evidence from the police collision report which should include photographs of the damages.
You have the right to shop the repairs yourself if you are paying and are found at fault.
Act in haste repent at leisure.
You have the right to shop the repairs yourself if you are paying and are found at fault.
Act in haste repent at leisure.
Most small cars aren't economical for crash repairs:
Ford Focus performs the best; Rabbit
& Prius are the worst in bumper tests
First results of new crash tests: most car bumpers don't work in low-speed crashes; 3 cars sustain $4,500 damage in 6 mph test while old Ford Escort sustains little damage
"In a series of crash tests, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently assessed how well the bumpers of 20 small car models would protect the vehicles from damage in low-speed collisions. The worst performers are the Hyundai Elantra, Toyota Prius, and Volkswagen Rabbit, each sustaining about $4,000 damage or more in a single test. The Ford Focus performed the best, with about one-third that amount of damage in its worst test.
"Small cars are supposed to be economical, but there's nothing economical about three or four thousand dollars in repairs after a low-speed collision," says Institute senior vice president Joe Nolan. "Ford did the best job of putting bumpers on a small car that largely do what they're supposed to do. In 3 of the 4 tests, the bumpers on the Focus protected sheet metal and most other expensive parts from damage."
"Bumpers on most cars aren't worthy of the term," Nolan says. "Even the best bumper in this group still allowed more than a thousand dollars damage in one 3 mph crash test. Some simple changes could prevent a lot of damage to cars, and expense and headaches for consumers."
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Sept 4, 2008
edit: maybe your laws are different, but here in iowa, the vehicle owner has full right to decide what body shop is doing the repairs. it does not manner who eats the cost.
Last edited by thirdgenbird; 01-09-10 at 09:49 PM.
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My guess is 10-15. It was at the very start of my commute home, across the street the school where I teach. It was exactly 100 yards from where I had just made a u-turn. I wasn't warmed up. I was accelerating, but not that aggressively.
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Originally Posted by MrCjolsen
My guess is 10-15. It was at the very start of my commute home, across the street the school where I teach. It was exactly 100 yards from where I had just made a u-turn. I wasn't warmed up. I was accelerating, but not that aggressively.
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I think I was either looking down at something or fiddling with my computer. I may have moved over to let a car go by. I hit just on the outside.
I bent the frame of my Surly Crosscheck. But the front wheel didn't even go out of true. The frame took the worst, the fork almost seems straight. Barys may have been tweaked. One brake lever was pushed sideways.
I bent the frame of my Surly Crosscheck. But the front wheel didn't even go out of true. The frame took the worst, the fork almost seems straight. Barys may have been tweaked. One brake lever was pushed sideways.
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I think I was either looking down at something or fiddling with my computer. I may have moved over to let a car go by. I hit just on the outside.
I bent the frame of my Surly Crosscheck. But the front wheel didn't even go out of true. The frame took the worst, the fork almost seems straight. Barys may have been tweaked. One brake lever was pushed sideways.
I bent the frame of my Surly Crosscheck. But the front wheel didn't even go out of true. The frame took the worst, the fork almost seems straight. Barys may have been tweaked. One brake lever was pushed sideways.
if you can, i would try and get pictures of the car like already stated.
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Given how heavy my bike is most days, and that I can easily maintain a 15 - 20 MPH speed, coupled with the fact that I have a front pannier rack mounted to it. I can see that IF I were run into either the rear-end or side of a car that I could do some damage to it.
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You should probably request a copy of the body shop estimate.
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This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
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Anyways, i doubt he totaled the bumper... but who knows - he doesn't.
#23
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Do you have auto insurance? If yes, they may be obligated to cover you as a driver; regardless of the vehicle you were driving.
What do you mean by (Trade in value $3300)? If that is the blue book value of the car, tell the owner that you consider the car totaled, you will only pay the blue book value in exchange for the title. Then you can sell the car to recover as much of your pay out as possible.
What do you mean by (Trade in value $3300)? If that is the blue book value of the car, tell the owner that you consider the car totaled, you will only pay the blue book value in exchange for the title. Then you can sell the car to recover as much of your pay out as possible.
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New parts are sometimes hard to come by, for older vehicles, and that can make them much more expensive. Car companies are notorious for making changes so that parts from one year do not fit on another of the same model, even though they look identical. Body panels are large, and older cars that are involved in collisions are often not repaired, because the cost of the repair exceeds the value of the car, so for the car company these parts will be discontinued first. Many cars that have air bags are written off, even though the collision damage is much less then the value of the car, because the airbags deployed and it costs thousands of dollars to replace each one. The car companies know this, and they stock parts accordingly, so finding a trunk lid and bumper for a 2001, in new OEM parts may actually be very difficult. Used parts in good to excellent condition, may actually be very easy to find and fairly inexpensive. New non-OEM parts may be available, but a good used part with no rust will probably be a better repair.
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The OP can "tell" the car owner anything he wants about "value" and "title exchange", that doesn't mean the owner has any legal or contractual obligation to accept such an offer.