Street Parking Scratch

Gravitron · 08-22-2011, 10:46 PM

So I parked my car on the street in DC and when I came back there was a nice big scratch on the corner of my rear bumper. I checked out the car behind me and sure enough my paint was right there on the corner of their front bumper.

I left a note on the window telling them to call me but, surprise surprise, I didn't hear back. I did, however, take pictures of their plate and of the damage on both cars. Is there anything I can do with this to get their insurance to pay for the repairs? I don't want to go through my own insurance as that would definitely cost me a deductible and could possibly make my rate go up.

As a result of all of this I've gone ahead and gotten a garage parking space to avoid any more idiots on the street. Even then, who knows what bonehead could throw their door open and cause another headache. If only the whole world was full of car enthusiasts...

hyunminyo · 08-22-2011, 11:19 PM

i had this experience when some idiot scratched my right rear. there was a big red paint on my right rear and there is this guy who parks on my right side and he drives a red car. i left a notice on the red car saying call me but he never did. i called police and thought they would take care of it since there was a security camera on the parking lot and the paint left on my car is clearly from the car parks next to me.. but surprisingly police told me they cannot do anything about it but just filing a hit and run report for the insurance company.

Dackelone · 08-23-2011, 08:03 AM

Contact your insurance company to hunt the offender down! They should go after them. You could always file a police report too.

shodanusmc · 08-24-2011, 08:28 AM

First call the police, fill out a report. THen, call your Ins Co and give them the info. They will pay the claim, and go after the other party thru subrogation. Will not cause your rates to rise.

Gravitron · 08-27-2011, 10:19 PM

Thanks for the feedback. So I took the car to a reputable shop around here (D&V Auto Body) and got a quote from them. Turns out the quote was as much as my deductible so I just went ahead and had them take care of it that day. Picked the car up yesterday and it looks good as new. They even buffed out a couple of unrelated scuffs under the front bumper. Needless to say I won't be parallel parking in DC any more. Paying for a monthly garage spot will probably still be cheaper than dealing with idiots on the street.

Now that this is done with it's time to replace the base stereo with something decent! Looking at some options from musicarNW plus talking to some local shops. Let me know if anyone has an installer they can recommend in the DC metro area.

08-22-2011, 10:46 PM	#1
Gravitron Enlisted Member 5 Rep 39 Posts Drives: '10 135i Convertible Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: DC iTrader: (0)	Street Parking Scratch - What Can I Do? So I parked my car on the street in DC and when I came back there was a nice big scratch on the corner of my rear bumper. I checked out the car behind me and sure enough my paint was right there on the corner of their front bumper. I left a note on the window telling them to call me but, surprise surprise, I didn't hear back. I did, however, take pictures of their plate and of the damage on both cars. Is there anything I can do with this to get their insurance to pay for the repairs? I don't want to go through my own insurance as that would definitely cost me a deductible and could possibly make my rate go up. As a result of all of this I've gone ahead and gotten a garage parking space to avoid any more idiots on the street. Even then, who knows what bonehead could throw their door open and cause another headache. If only the whole world was full of car enthusiasts...
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08-22-2011, 11:19 PM	#2
hyunminyo New Member 3 Rep 14 Posts Drives: 328xi Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: chicago iTrader: (0)	i had this experience when some idiot scratched my right rear. there was a big red paint on my right rear and there is this guy who parks on my right side and he drives a red car. i left a notice on the red car saying call me but he never did. i called police and thought they would take care of it since there was a security camera on the parking lot and the paint left on my car is clearly from the car parks next to me.. but surprisingly police told me they cannot do anything about it but just filing a hit and run report for the insurance company.
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08-23-2011, 08:03 AM	#3
Dackelone European Editor 10539 Rep 22,992 Posts Drives: N54 e82 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Bayern, Germany iTrader: (1)	Contact your insurance company to hunt the offender down! They should go after them. You could always file a police report too.
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08-24-2011, 08:28 AM	#4
shodanusmc Captain 21 Rep 774 Posts Drives: 09 135 Vert Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chicago burb iTrader: (0)	First call the police, fill out a report. THen, call your Ins Co and give them the info. They will pay the claim, and go after the other party thru subrogation. Will not cause your rates to rise.
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08-27-2011, 10:19 PM	#5
Gravitron Enlisted Member 5 Rep 39 Posts Drives: '10 135i Convertible Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: DC iTrader: (0)	Thanks for the feedback. So I took the car to a reputable shop around here (D&V Auto Body) and got a quote from them. Turns out the quote was as much as my deductible so I just went ahead and had them take care of it that day. Picked the car up yesterday and it looks good as new. They even buffed out a couple of unrelated scuffs under the front bumper. Needless to say I won't be parallel parking in DC any more. Paying for a monthly garage spot will probably still be cheaper than dealing with idiots on the street. Now that this is done with it's time to replace the base stereo with something decent! Looking at some options from musicarNW plus talking to some local shops. Let me know if anyone has an installer they can recommend in the DC metro area.
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