How much is a new bumper for an old Escort going to cost me?

December 21, 2005 6:57 PM

I put a 2x2" hole in someone's bumper the other day. Does one have to be insured to file a claim on someone else's insurance? and what do you think a brand new bumper for a shitty old Escort will cost me?

i havent talked to my agent yet, but is this something i should even claim on my insurance? Everything about my record and my insurance is in average to good standing.

posted by dthaspaz to travel & transportation (17 answers total)

The increase in your rates will last for three years at least and probably total well over $1000. If you make a cash offer to the victim, he can just decide to put some muffler tape over it, whereas with insurance he may need the repair reciept.
posted by StickyCarpet at 7:05 PM on December 21, 2005

I was in a minor fender-bender some years back (my own damn fault), and neither I nor my traffic-dance partner were terribly interested in getting The Man involved. I was extremely apologetic, and he was a nice guy, and we exchanged info.

He had a relative repair the damage to his satisfaction, on the cheap, and sent me the bill. I paid it, cheerfully, because I knew the numbers mentioned by StickyCarpet (eew!) would be the consequence of taking the other road.

I was lucky, maybe you will be too.
posted by BigLankyBastard at 7:16 PM on December 21, 2005

Where do you live? Is it a high insurance rate state, or area? If so, pay it out of your own pocket. Also, what is your deductible? If it won't cost you more than about a grand out of your own pocket above your deductible, I know this is serious coin, it generally pays to keep the insurance company out of it if possible. This damage sounds like about that much.
posted by caddis at 7:40 PM on December 21, 2005

50 bucks at a junkyard, most likely.
posted by cellphone at 7:47 PM on December 21, 2005

Just FYI it can be a misdemeanor to not report any accident with a damage over N dollars (N varies per state).
posted by kcm at 7:53 PM on December 21, 2005

Conversely for a $50 ghetto cruiser bumper this means you legally do NOT have to report it in some states. :)
posted by kcm at 7:54 PM on December 21, 2005

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, Walnut Creek to be exact. i think my deductible is $500.00. so caddis, you are saying that if it costs me less than $1500.00 (my deduct. + a grand), I should not-involve my insurance company and pay out of my own pocket, right?

so now that the guy has already contacted my insurance company, how would I go about cutting the company out of the situation? and how would I go about getting him to consider cheaper options or a handy-dandy repair job by his cousin or something? I was polite and apologetic at the scene of the fender bender, and he seemed quite reasonable, but i didnt bring up anything like handling the matter w/o the involvement of The Man. Do I just call him up? thanks for your help everyone.
posted by dthaspaz at 9:40 PM on December 21, 2005

Does one have to be insured to file a claim on someone else's insurance?

No.

and what do you think a brand new bumper for a shitty old Escort will cost me?

couple hundred, I guess.
posted by delmoi at 9:49 PM on December 21, 2005

Does one have to be insured to file a claim on someone else's insurance?

No.

no fair, in the case of a fender bender, i say. but I'l def take the "couple hundred" part.
posted by dthaspaz at 10:12 PM on December 21, 2005

Ouch, he already contacted your insurer? Call your insurance agent and see if you can settle privately and have the accident removed from your policy. It may be too late, but I am pretty sure my insurer only hits you with the accident if they actually have to pay money. If so, see if you can settle privately. Since your insurer already knows about the accident you can inquire as to exactly how much this will end up costing in increased premiums to help you decide your top end in a private settlement. Ask this question several times as it may involve several different charges such as loss of your good driver discount, an accident premium increase, perhaps a change in plan structure (usually not for one accident), etc. Be careful about signing anything, though. The last thing you would want is to absolve your insurer somehow and then have the guy submit a medical claim. Also, I think a "brand new" bumper will far exceed a couple hundred dollars. Good luck.
posted by caddis at 10:29 PM on December 21, 2005

It may well be too late. Some insurers will jack your rates just because you make an inquiry about coverage. They assume you're calling because you've suffered a loss and therefore they are carrying a higher risk.
posted by dhartung at 10:41 PM on December 21, 2005

Most of the above posters have done a good job with this. Couple other things. In some states (not sure about Calif, but I understand it to be the case in Ga), if the repair cost exceeds the value of the car (or maybe 80-90%, not sure), the insurer is supposed to total the car... which probably hurts the other driver, because he likely can't get another car for the cost of his bumper. If you're in that situation, I wonder if you might mention that possibility to him and make him an offer to "help him out". Then (I assume) he could retract his claim, if done soon enough.

However, as I mentioned in another AskMeFi thread, I once had my bumper dented, probably less than this guy did, but as part of a larger accident. I got about a grand from the insurer. The other driver in your case may know how adjustments can work and expects to be compensated nicely. Take that into consideration also.
posted by SuperNova at 11:05 PM on December 21, 2005

I put a similar *dent* in a previous model Corolla's bumper. Paid the guy three-hundred to replace it, cash (parts + paint). We met at a bookstore and exchanged the money there. (un)Interestingly enough, I actually ran into him (not with my car HA) at the mall about a year after the incident and we sat down and had a cup of coffee.
posted by mr.dan at 12:28 AM on December 22, 2005

Someone drove into my 'shitty old Escort' (1997 UK model) in September. The bumper is a moulded plastic-coated foam thingy, and, through the other driver's insurers, it cost around £600 to fix at a Ford main dealer. A non-dealer body shop could probably do it much cheaper.

I didn't put any claim through my insurer, because it was 100% the other driver's fault (I was parked in a supermarket car park and she reversed into me, several witnesses provided details and she left me a note in which she apologised and said it was all her fault.)

With moulded bumpers, they have to be colour matched. Mine may have been more expensive because the car is a weird colour (aubergine - looks black but is very dark purple).

As others have said, just contacting your insurers will put them on notice of an accident. So unless you've already contacted them, I would say don't, if you can afford to pay for the damage from your own pocket.
posted by essexjan at 2:36 AM on December 22, 2005

On an old Escort, the bumper is painted, not molded in. Additionally, I tried to find such a part in salvage yards last year when our son totalled our Escort to no avail. Basically, there is no such thing as a 10-year-old Escort that someone hasn't run into something (mine happens to be a 95 model).

On a happier note, the whole thing happened to our 17-year-old son who had his license only a month, the insurance paid us $2k and the other guy $5k, it was our son's fault and he was ticketed, and our insurance did not go up appreciably (we pay monthly and it was a few dollars a month difference... less than 10).

If you have an otherwise clean record and use a major insurer (we have State Farm), you may be worrying about almost nothing.

Good luck.
posted by Doohickie at 10:43 AM on December 22, 2005

For what it's worth, it's not uncommon for an insurance company to offer a cash amount (based on estimated cost to repair/replace), and let the party with the damaged vehicle decide whether to use the money for a full repair, a cheap/partial fix (pocketing the difference), or nothing at all (keeping all the cash).
posted by WestCoaster at 12:35 PM on December 22, 2005

Thank you SO MUCH everyone. I left a message at my insurance company just now - they are probably either at lunch or closed for the holidays, so I guess in the meantime I am going to find the guy's number and think about what i should do. i need to reread this thread i think and i'll update if anything happens. cheers!
posted by dthaspaz at 1:06 PM on December 22, 2005