Minor damage to borrowed car - next step?

October 25, 2007 10:51 AM

I backed into a rock and damaged a borrowed car. The owner won't return until Monday. What should I do?

My mother and stepdad are out of the country and let me borrow her car, a Toyota Solara. At a low speed, I backed into this rock at the end of my neighbor's driveway. I didn't immediately notice any damage, but upon my return two hours later (after driving 40 miles), I noticed that the rear panel had come loose on the driver's side (picture 1, 2, closeup 1, 2) Here's the undamaged side for comparison.

I have all of her insurance information. I have no auto insurance of my own. (I don't own a car - I am a licensed driver.) Should I contact her insurance company? Should I wait til she returns? Is there any reason to contact her overseas (I'd have to call the hotel, no cell phone)? Should I try to get it fixed myself? (I am dirt poor at the moment.) I am a car idiot, will this get worse if I continue to drive like this? When she reclaims her car, she will have a 90 mile drive back home.

If it affects your response, my mother's reaction will likely be "mildly annoyed" rather than egregiously upset. I am not going to hide this from her. Rather, I'd like to take responsibility and pursue the correct course of action here.

posted by desjardins to travel & transportation (25 comments total)

I seriously doubt her insurance company will take any action unless they hear from her directly. I would get an estimate on having this repaired on your own, and if is out of your budget you can take the appropriate next step (contacting your mom and letting her decide how she'd like you to proceed)
posted by The Gooch at 10:58 AM on October 25, 2007

IANAM, but that looks like you could probably snap it back together by hand. If you don't feel so inclined, take it to the shop and have them do it for you. It looks very minor, however, and I'm not surprised that you didn't notice it right away.

If you take it to the shop, they really shouldn't charge you for a thing like that. Just don't take it to Sears or some other big-ass chain. Go local.
posted by Pecinpah at 11:02 AM on October 25, 2007

Do NOT ring the insurance at all. It is not your policy, and not yours to make a claim on. Adding a claim to a policy has significant ramifications..

Especially considering the damage is extremely mild. All I can see if a snapped clip on part of the plastic rear bumper. Tape it back (on the outside is fine) to prevent any further damage for now and fess up.

To fix it, you (Or whomever) will need to loosen the fasteners holding the bumper that side and either glue the tab back on or use some sort of silicon/adhesive to hold the bumper back in place when it is refitted.

Don't panic. You could easily bodge that (perfectly functionally) in very little time if you have the skills...
posted by Brockles at 11:02 AM on October 25, 2007

There's no reason to hurry - it's a one-person accident, so even if you are going to go with insurance (which I wouldn't for that) you can submit the claim just as easily in a week or month from now as tomorrow. I don't think you're in too much danger of it getting worse, though with it out like that it's prone to catch the wind and could be hooked on something and pried out further.

Define the 'low speed' at which you hit for us. Most bumpers are rated to protect from damage between 2.5 and 5 mph. Above that and you theoretically could have more than cosmetic issues.

Chances are what you have is just a cosmetic issue. How cheaply you can get that fixed is pretty random and highly dependent on the shop you take it to. If that Solara is like my old Honda then the actual shock absorption happens at a few posts. That bumper that you see if mostly fascia and those edges probably popped loose when the center of the bumper was depressed, pushing the ends out somewhat.

I can't tell from the pic how they attach but that might be something you can re-attach by pushing down and in (they look like little sockets for teeth). The cost is going to depend on if the attachment bits are intact or torn and how hard the shop pushes you to get new parts. A full bumper replacement and repaint (since that bumper is a match to the car color) will get expensive fast.
posted by phearlez at 11:02 AM on October 25, 2007

Relax! Accidents happen.

The damage will almost certainly not get worse if you drive it further, although of course keep an eye on it. Since there are no other parties involved, I would definitely wait until your mother gets home before contacting her insurance company; she may prefer not to file a claim through them (or she may not have comprehensive coverage at all). I would also wait to try to have it fixed - she may already have a trusted source for body repairs.
posted by Wavelet at 11:02 AM on October 25, 2007

If you do tape it as Brockles offers as an option, go to the hardware store and get some blue easy release masking tape. Duct tape and the like will work better but is more likely to leave residue and might pull paint or clearcoat off when you remove it.
posted by phearlez at 11:04 AM on October 25, 2007

That rear panel is one large piece. Some body shops may tell you that it needs to be replaced. Do you have friends who have trustworthy relationships with a body shop or body mechanic? If so, having a personal introduction to one can help you get someone who will give an honest appraisal. Hopefully, it can be remounted without having to buy an entirely new rear panel. If that can be done, I suspect that it'll mostly be labor costs with minor parts required.
posted by ericb at 11:10 AM on October 25, 2007

Strongly seconding Brockles' advice above, especially the last part:

Do NOT ring the insurance at all. It is not your policy, and not yours to make a claim on. Adding a claim to a policy has significant ramifications..

Insurance companies can (seemingly capriciously) penalize you for just about any interaction you have with them. Contacting them in any way regarding this incident could indeed have negative consequences for your mother.

My auto insurance agent advises that if I ever have any sort of accident, I should, if at all possible, contact his office first. Then his expert staff can help determine if contacting the insurance company itself is the best action.
posted by tippiedog at 11:12 AM on October 25, 2007

Yeah, avoid the insurance company if at all possible. It doesn't actually look 'broken'... those panels are designed to be snapped on and off. Take it to a shop and it should be cheap to fix. Again, don't bother with the insurance company.
posted by ReiToei at 11:18 AM on October 25, 2007

Why hasn't anyone pointed out that, since you have no insurance of your own, the accident will not be covered by the insurance company. This has been my experience, anyway. If you get pulled over in

To rephrase, the person is the insured one, NOT the car. That's why, with insurance, you can drive your friends car. Without insurance on yourself, regardless of what's carried on the car, an accident in that car caused by an uninsured PERSON is not insurable.

Again, that has been my experience with multiple companies where I am. I could be wrong about you.

If I'm right, the LAST THING you want to do is call them, or refer ANY kind of claim.
posted by TomMelee at 11:29 AM on October 25, 2007

Looks like that thing might just clip back on. Bumper skirts are purely decorative (not structural) and attach to the body with plastic clips. Got any friends who can take a look at it for you. Doesn't look like that big a deal to me.
posted by Mr.Me at 11:38 AM on October 25, 2007

It IS broken though - you won't be able to just "snap it back on".

You can see in the picture labeled "Closeup 1" that the frontmost hole that clipped on has broken right off - the little part that is jutting out on an angle used to be attached to the bumper itself.

So you won't be able to get a 100% fix by just snapping it back on.

You may, however, be able to snap the other clips back in, tell the owner of the car and let her determine what plan of action to take (as in, she may be able to live with the bumper in its slightly damaged state)
posted by davey_darling at 11:40 AM on October 25, 2007

This just happened to me. A woman backed into my Civic and knocked off the bumper panel. My mechanic just remounted it and screwed it back on in about 3 minutes for free. Find a hot shot mechanic in town and ask if they can remount it. If you take it to a body shop they might see $$$ and a head shaped like a lolipop but a mechanic would probably do it for a nominal charge.
posted by any major dude at 11:53 AM on October 25, 2007

I'd find a guy on craigslist who can put it together cheap.
posted by thilmony at 11:58 AM on October 25, 2007

Agree with d_d 123%. Except that, although slim, there is a possibility that even though the clip is broken, the bumper will perfectly well stay in place by using the undamaged clips that remain. It *should* be fixed eventually, but if you can clip it back in, by all means do so. If not, I recommend taping it together with duct tape to make sure the bumper cover does not catch on something and rip off more.

If it were my car (and my wife has in fact done this sort of thing), I would climb underneath and fix it up as best I could with screws, tape, etc., to make sure it is solidly attached, and never think about it again.

If your stepdad is handy, he'll probably do exactly that.
posted by Doohickie at 12:00 PM on October 25, 2007

If you take it to a body shop they might see $$$ and a head shaped like a lolipop...

Exactly. And there are some unscrupulous folks out there. "Oh, my. While this looks minor to you, there's really extensive damage to 'blah, blah, blah.' You really need to replace this rear panel. And since it being new it doesn't match the faded trunk paint. You should let us repaint that for you. And more 'blah, blah, blah.'"

Find a reputable, honest independent mechanic through friends and/or colleagues.
posted by ericb at 12:01 PM on October 25, 2007

Why hasn't anyone pointed out that, since you have no insurance of your own, the accident will not be covered by the insurance company. This has been my experience, anyway.

That's not my experience -- at least here in Massachusetts. In the past I have lent cars to friends. On two separate occasions accidents happened with friends driving the cars -- and I wasn't even in state when they happened. Although each offered to pay "out-of-pocket" I declined and insurance covered the repairs. Granted, I took a little hit on the premium being adjusted in following years, but that's one of the prices of friendship. In the end, no big deal.
posted by ericb at 12:06 PM on October 25, 2007

Don't call the insurance company. Wait until you can contact the car's owner.
posted by ikkyu2 at 1:36 PM on October 25, 2007

Don't Bodge the fix - DO NOT try and dupe the insurance company - it was just an accident no one was hurt - and there's not a lot of damage. Wait till they get back, come clean and offer to pay or chores. If your mom's been with the insurance co for a while, let her decide if she'll claim or not.

Anyhow - who's to say that the insuance co isn't looking for a Blue Toyota Solara, owned in Mass ... It's not worth it. Be honest, come clean - Life Lesson: don't borrow people's cars without permission and don't drive without insurance.

DO NOT try and patch it - If you can afford it get it repaired by a local Toyota Dealer - Get them to pick-up, fix and return. Your mom will think of it everytime she gets in the car if you botch it.
posted by Dub at 1:43 PM on October 25, 2007

Life Lesson: don't borrow people's cars without permission and don't drive without insurance.

Dub: READ the original post:

My mother and stepdad are out of the country and let me borrow her car

Furthermore, I know that if someone drives my car who does not have insurance, they are, in fact, covered under my policy. We never really established whether desjardins had coverage under her mom's policy as someone lawfully borrowing the car.

Oh, and.... don't be a dick.
posted by Doohickie at 4:43 PM on October 25, 2007

[b]Doohickie[/b] Engage your brain.

So, [b]desjardins[/b] got permission to drive uninsured?Right. Sure they'll pay up every time.

And someone driving your car without insurance, but with permission is still insured. Hmmm. I don't think so.
posted by Dub at 5:42 PM on October 25, 2007

IAAIA, but not your agent.

The insurance goes with the car, not the person. You would be covered in this case. However...

Don't call the insurance company. Aside from the fact that they won't talk to you since you are not the insured, this is a very minor claim that would probably end up costing less than a $500 deductible AND it would count against your parent's policy as a lending loss. A very bad thing to have.

Your best bet is do as someone above suggested, take the car to a local shop and ask them about it. Chances are very likely that it's a small fix. If not don't sweat it - just tell your mother what happened and let her handle the insurance claim if she chooses to do that.
posted by sephira at 5:58 PM on October 25, 2007

Well, then, Dub, I guess you're owned in this case.
posted by Doohickie at 6:33 PM on October 25, 2007

Fiancé was able to glue the broken bit and snap the piece back on until they can get to a body shop. Parents were not that upset.
posted by desjardins at 7:22 AM on October 31, 2007

Yay!
posted by Doohickie at 7:12 AM on November 9, 2007