unlimited90

alright guys, so my car was hit this afternoon at school while it was properly parked within the white lines divider. the car that hit me did not leave a note, but the car(honda crv) that i believe hit me was parked beside me. i was hit very lightly on my driver's side door( i get a pretty long scratch, with a shy bump on the door) and after checking that crv, i found a fresh side bumper damage right on the spot where i have expected it to be.

i assume the driver did not realize that he hit me, and i left a note telling him to call me and letting he know that i have taken pictures including his license plate and would file a police report. so now its 9.08 pm and three hours has past since i left the note, and still i have not get any call back. realizing my mistake for not waiting for him, i drove back to college( my school is pretty close btw) trying to see if the car is still there, but unfortunately not.

anyway, the only evidence that i have right now are pictures and witness(my classmate). although the damage is minor, i just hate the fact that he/she not wanting to take any responsibility for damaging other's property. hence, i am thinking of not letting this go that easily. so, long story short, i would like to ask for advice from you guys about what are the steps that i need to take to hold him responsible for his/her actions. thank you.

ps: i live in california and the location of the accident is at the parking lot of De Anza College, Cupertino.

ssibaroma

did you call the police and file a police report at the scene ( the parking lot )?
If you have the police report then the insurance company will cover the damage. If you have not file the police report then you have 24 hours from the time of the incident to make the police report.( it varies by the state i think )

But it all depends on your state law and your insurance policy.

I hope it all works out for you.

e6t.lab.rat

sorry to hear this bro. looks like a trip to small claims court may be in the works. call your insurance immediately. at least you got pics. same thing happened to me too in school but i was fortunate that the student left me a note. she being honest with me voided all animosity i would of had. too bad this didn't happen in your case. good luck

v_therussian

1. Sorry about the car.

2. Good thing you took pics, but I hope you have more pics than what's posted - I'd say, this is not enough to prove anything.

3. Unless your classmate actually saw the CRV hitting your car, your witness won't hold up.

4. Police report in this case is really kind of a formality.

5. If the owner of the CRV gets in touch with you, IMMEDIATELY take his/her insurance info.

6. What you basically have to do is somehow run the plate of the CRV and find out the insurance info (a cop can do that or an insurance agent, I think - check on this, not sure about Cali laws). Once you have the insurance info you'll be in an uphill battle against the adjuster. If they are reasonable, they'll most likely pay the damage and forget it, but don't be too sure. You'll have to have your damage appraised at a reputable body shop (strongly recommend BMW approved/certified), and submit that estimate along with a claim to the CRV's ins. co. They'll most likely deny it, citing insuficient evidence, but IMO it is well worth the trouble, bc there's also a very good chance they'll pay it - they'll contact their customer (the owner of the CRV) and question him/her and based on that they'll determine whether you're lying, in layman's terms. Most times ins. cos. are really good at determining that btw - they're not a court, so they're not bound by reasonable doubt. They just look for discrepancies in people's stories, mostly.

You could also simply let a body shop handle the claim, but in your case, I'd talk to the ins. co. myself.

Hope this helps and good luck!

v_therussian

^ this may be true - again, I don't know the specifics of Cali property damage claims laws, but in NY you don't have to file a Pol. Report if there's no bodily damage - only property. Here property damage can be handled through ins. co. wo PR

v_therussian

I'd not go anywhere near the small claims court until both - the owner of the CRV and his/her ins. co. expressely - and in writing - declined to pay damages. You should always try to get these things taken care of out of court - court is for when you alread have undeniable evidence that people refuse to take responsibility for their actions, which caused harm to your property. just my 2 cents on the courts...

tex_phil

Looks like you parked too close to the line.

e6t.lab.rat

this is basically what i was alluding to. true, last resort would be to go to court. there is a good chance that the other driver/insurance will not admit responsibility (there really were no witnesses at the time of "accident," no witness no proof). and when they do decline to pay damages, then it all goes to an arbitrator. and based on my experience, sorry to tell you this, but it wont be in your favor as well. all your insurance can then do and will do is ask if you want to have these damages taken care of through your comprehensive coverage less deductable. now this may or may not increase you premium. finally, it'll be up to you to go futher and persue this in small claims court, at your expense. trust me, your insurance will not go to court for you with this type of claim. should you and is it worth the trouble? thats for you to decide...good luck

newt

I dread parking/driving anywhere in the South Bay, too many drivers from countries where rules of the road are more of a formality than something to follow.

v_therussian

1. Totally forgot: try to see if there are any security cameras in the area and see if you can obtain a copy of the footage - there might be clear footage of your car beeing hit.

2. Having this fixed under your comprehensive coverage DEFINITELY should not increase your premium. If it does - you need to switch to a proper insurance co. - not a scam. My car once got hit while parked on the street and the damages clocked in at 9500!!!! That's way more than what you have. And my premium did not increase one cent - even though the accident happened out of state. This also happened to one of my best friends - his damages were "only" like 3 g's - no increase in premium what-so-ever. So if you want to pay the deductible and save yourself the headache of worrying about it, don't even think twice. Also, make sure to submit your pictures and any witness statements to your insurance company - they'll definitely attempt to collect the damages from the insurance co. of the CRV, so they'll need all the evidence they can find. They also have easier access to any security cameras in the area and might actually find footage of the CRV hitting your ride.

3. I wouldn't even bother calling my insurance company, until I have been benied by the owner. And still, I would pursue the CRV's insurance co. and owner until I'm blue in the face. But I'm just like that - I believe that if I'm wronged, I have an undeniable right to retribution.