Should I file a claim...???

[white widow]

I am a Connecticut driver insured with Travelers. I have a 100% clear and clean driving record (no accidents, tickets, claims for more than 7 years).

I was involved in an extremely minor fender bender yesterday and I need some advice about how to proceed. Basically, I was coming down a steep hill in the middle of bad snowstorm, and at the bottom was a car that had slid out and hit a telephone pole (doing minimal damage). The car was perpendicular to the curb, blocking perhaps 50% of the road, abandoned. The driver had left the car and was off in some local shop calling AAA. I was going very slowly down the hill (1st gear), and although I tried to stop, I hit some ice and slid into her car at about 5 mph. There was no damage to my car at all, but the bumper of the other car developed a good-sized crack as a result. Other cars had also bumped her car sliding down the hill, but the crack was definitely the result of my car bumping hers. Instead of leaving the scene, I went to find the lady and tell her both what happened and advise her to move her car since it was in danger of being hit muxh more seriously.

At her insistence, I called the police, but due to the bad weather they were very busy and straight refused to come. So, we traded information and went our separate ways. The woman (very nice lady) said she was going to get an estimate on the bumper and get back to me. What I need to know is:

1. Am I at fault for the damage to her bumper?

2. How much will it affect my premium if I file a claim for her bumper (assuming I am at fault) as opposed to paying out of pocket?

What else should I now know or do going forward?

Thanks!

 

[teflon_jones]

1. Am I at fault for the damage to her bumper?

Yes

2. How much will it affect my premium if I file a claim for her bumper (assuming I am at fault) as opposed to paying out of pocket?

It may not affect your premium at all. Some insurance companies will allow minor claims such as this without raising your rates if you've had a clean record for a long time (7 years qualifies). However, it depends on your particular insurance company. Call your insurance agent and ask them.

What's your deductible? If it's $500, and your insurance company does have a policy of allowing one "freebie" claim for safe drivers, it may be best to save that "freebie" for something worth a few more $$$.

 

[white widow]

Ok. I spoke with agent who first assured me that it was, in fact, my fault. However, unless the claim in greater than $1500 it won't affect my premiums, and since that bumper wasn't made of gold, I expect it to cost less than that.

 

[shashmk]

I have a property/casualty agents license in Texas, so I am not sure if the laws are different. I do just want to say to be careful, if you can afford to pay out of pocket, my advice is that the is the best way to go. We had a woman who was with our agency for over 25 years and had not had a ticket or accident in over ten years, and prior to that only one minor fender bender. She was in a minor accident where she rearended someone at a yeild. Now, all agencies work differently, but our agnecy (I was not an agent there) raised her premiums on her next renewal. She was understandably very upset because she was assured it would not effect her premiums. I don't mean to scare you, I am just very skeptic these days. I hope it all works out

 

[teflon_jones]

Ok. I spoke with agent who first assured me that it was, in fact, my fault. However, unless the claim in greater than $1500 it won't affect my premiums, and since that bumper wasn't made of gold, I expect it to cost less than that.

I strongly suspect this $1500 limit relates to you being classified as a safe driver. Once you make this claim, I don't think you'll still be classified the same way, and the next claim won't be eligible for this. So if you claim this, and have a $500 deductible, you'll pay $250 out of pocket. So it's a $250 gamble whether you'll have another accident for > $750 in the next 6-7 years, which is the normal period to receive a safe driver discount.

But I've been wrong before...