My MS3 got hit in a parking lot, assed out since I'm considered at fault

[bast525]

So pissed....

I was parked in a parking lot, had vehicles on either side of me. I couldn't really see past the cars parked next to me, so was backing out very slowly. I got out about a foot and see this silver minivan zoom by at way over the 5mph parking lot speed limit. I slammed my brakes but didn't react fast enough... the side of his rear bumper scraped the driver's side of my rear bumper.

The law says that no matter what, the person driving through the parking lot has the right of way, so my insurance says I am at fault. There were no witnesses. So I'm assed out.

The damage isn't that bad... you wouldn't see it until you were five feet from it, unless you knew about it and were looking for it. The estimate for the damage is roughly $800.... new bumper + paint + install.

I'm glad it wasn't worse and has had no affect on the car other than cosmetically, but damn.... I have barely had the car three months.

On top of that, I haven't been in an accident in like fourteen years, and was not at fault in that one... and for this to go on my record as my fault... just BS.

 

[CaSHMeRe]

holy crap.

i scraped my front bumper and fender, and i got everything done for $80 per piece = $160 total.

Install it yourself. and paint shouldn't cost more then $100-150 at the most

 

[bast525]

yeah you nailed it. Dude at the dealer told me it's $380 for the bumper, and should be right around $100-150 to paint. I probably will do the install myself... I got a friend who's been really good about loaning me his garage for stuff like this.

 

[macklum]

yeah you nailed it. Dude at the dealer told me it's $380 for the bumper, and should be right around $100-150 to paint. I probably will do the install myself... I got a friend who's been really good about loaning me his garage for stuff like this.

Can the orginal bumper be repaired ,if it can that may be the cheaper way to go

 

[bast525]

the painted part I'm sure could be repaired, but the black plastic part got badly scraped up too (the lower part where the license plate and reflectors are).

I'm trying to figure out if the bumper is actually two seperate pieces, the painted and the unpainted parts. I asked the parts counter at the dealer over the phone but the answer the guy gave was not really clear (you'd think it'd just be 'yes' or 'no')....

If I could replace the plain plastic part and get the rest repainted, yeah that would be the cheaper way to go.

 

[SPEED305]

my neigbor backed into me last night and slightly dented the front right fender. $350! it doesnt look that bad and you can barely see it unless you look for it, but i let him have it. comiendo mierda!

 

[Kosh]

Welcome to the club. I got $1,200 worth of damages on monday and I wasn't even in the car. I got lucky and my neighbor confessed after having the police out there 2 times. Parking lots are weird places because they are privately owned so unless alcohol is involved the only thing the police can do is force you to give insurance information.

It really sucks that you had no idea someone was coming and they were going too fast for being in a parking lot and I got your back saying you shouldn't be at fault.

Getting the bumper repaired might actually be more expensive. Repair shops charge by the hour and the rates aren't cheap. Taking the bumper off, making the repairs, painting and all that could be more expensive than just getting a new piece putting it on and painting it. My accident covered 3 different body panels and will take 6 days to complete. What looks like $200 in damages is a lot more because of time.

 

[zoom-zoomhatch]

Cops can file a report on what they atleast think looked like happened and take both sides of the story, that goes a long way when it comes to insurance companies trying to argue who's at fault. This helped with me atleast, I'm in Texas though, not sure if there are different laws or whatever.

 

[bast525]

my wife is a cop and filed the report, didn't seem to make a difference. My own insurance co. was like "nothing we can do sorry you're at fault".

 

[Kosh]

After reading this I am pulling out of spaces real slow like

 

[jtom]

The same exact thing happened to me four years ago. I was in my protege pulling out of my high school parking lot, there were two big trucks on either side of me. It was starting to snow, ice was on the ground. I was backing up and this girl was coming down the parking lot isle and she kept on coming even though she could see me backing out. However, because of the trucks, I could not see her. Anyways so she keeps on coming because I guess she thought I could see her even though it was impossible for me to see her. So she keeps on coming, I am about five feet out and still have my reverse lights on, she thinks I will eventually see her and actually tries to go around me.

I hit her car at the front left headlight of her car. The damage wasnt that bad and she said "dont worry about it, I dont like this car." She then starts laughing about the whole thing and drives away.

An hour later there was a knock at the door, her dad was here with the car. He wanted me to pay for the damages even though his daughter specifically said to not worry about it. The weird thing is we are unlisted in the phone book, we didnt exchange any information, and yet her dad knew exactly where I lived.

The whole thing ended well though because I just paid him under the table. However, within two months, three more people rammed into my bumper in a parking lot while I wasnt in the car so I got estimates and pocketed the money from the first two and the last accident I got it fixed using the last persons money.

The girl was an idioit though, if I was out that far, had trucks on both sides, I dont see her. But unfortunately in this case that doesnt matter.

Isnt it common knowledge that when someone is backing out in a parking lot you wait and not try to go around them?

BTW, I was outside looking before I got in my car to make sure no one was coming, she was going well over the speed limit in the parking lot.

The funny thing is I ran into her dad a year ago and she is currently at the police academy.

 

[bast525]

I don't even think this jackass tried to go around me... I think he saw me coming and decided "crap I need to get past this guy or I will have to wait for him" and floored the gas.

I would estimate he was going at least 15 or 20mph when he flew by me... in a 5mph parking lot.

I don't see how this is legally my fault... I think that is utter bulls***. That rule needs to be looked at. Too many times when you are parked nose in you are going to be in a situation where, if you have cars parked next to you, you are not going to be able to see.

It should be the responsibility of the person coming down the isle to STOP or go around, since I'm sure he could see ME while I couldn't see HIM... why is it my responsibility?

Retarded...

 

[jtom]

I totally agree with you; when I hit that girl she was trying to go around me as I was backing out. I guess I thought it was standard procedure to wait if someone is pulling out.

When I hit the car, I hit it about a foot behind the headlight. So you can see that she was trying to go around me.

The weird thing is though one of my friends was also in the parking lot and he said that she was driving very slow in the isle before the one I was in. He said when she turned into my isle, he said she floored the gas and started speeding, much faster then in the previous isle.

When I was talking to her dad about it, he mentioned that he was a painter. Since this was feburary and since he also said that "he has alot of time off because of lack of work" I thought that this whole scenario could have been staged in order to get extra money. The dad also strongly wanted the check in his name. He said he could do the work himself.

Makes you think........

 

[bast525]

anyone with any advise on how to fix the black plastic part of the bumper?

I tried sanding and then wet sanding and it came out okay as far as texture, getting the scrapes out, but now instead of being gloss or flat black, it has this cloudy/patchy faded look to it.

I would have thought that sanding it would have left it black.

 

[macklum]

anyone with any advise on how to fix the black plastic part of the bumper?

I tried sanding and then wet sanding and it came out okay as far as texture, getting the scrapes out, but now instead of being gloss or flat black, it has this cloudy/patchy faded look to it.

I would have thought that sanding it would have left it black.

Try a finer grit of sand paper , You are now going to have to take out the sanding scratches ,keep going finer and finer until you have the look you want ./ You can use water to help lubricate the sand paper as long as you use wet/dry sand papaer
As for getting the scratches out you can use Flexable bumper repair kit ,it is a 2 part epoxy that when set is just like the plastic on the bumper , use thin coats and gradually build up the scratch to fill it in ,then start sanding

 

[zoomzoom mazda5]

I just back into a parking space away from everyone, so went i come back to leave i just pull out with no problems. learn my lesson many yrs ago from watching dumb people speeding thru parking lots.