antonch

This morning on my way to work I got into a fender bender w/ a cabbie.
Both of us were waiting at a red light. I guess he thought it turned green while it was still red.

Anyway, the license plate took most of the damage. The bumper visually looks OK.
Do you I need to worry about any possible damage behind the bumper? There is a styrafoamy piece that is kinda loose.

cal

iTrader: (9)

You should be fine, but keep his information just in case. I believe bumpers are designed to take at least a 5mph hit without any damage these days.

STiForFun

iTrader: (6)

foam piece may be busted.

if the bumper isn't cracked, still lines up okay on the sides/under tail lights, the trunk still opens/closes okay, and "it'll buff out"...then at the most you need a new crash foam piece back there.

Choku Dori

iTrader: (2)

File a claim on him anyway, just in case anything got cracked or bent behind the bumper cover.

Javirex23

iTrader: (17)

beat the crap out of your car and claim it....then go widebody lol

pleue

iTrader: (8)

if nothing is broke, don't sweat it. No point in filing a claim that would jack his or her rates up for no reason. rear bumper cover covers the foam piece and a large steel beam. I highly doubt if the bumper cover lines up and is unscathed that anything else is damaged.

Choku Dori

iTrader: (2)

It's nice that you're being a good citizen, I admire that, but I've seen damage behind the bumper cover with little damage to the cover itself before when cars roll into shop. Most common is the foam absorber being split or a bit of metal being bent. Not life or death, but not something you want to deal with down the line.

Always best to let insurance handle the headache for you, IMHO.

antonch

So do I take it to a shop or what? I wonder if there is damage underneeth also.
I don't remember the foamy thing to be so floaty.

Choku Dori

iTrader: (2)

Did you get the cabbie's insurance info? If you did, call his insurance company and tell them that you're filing on XXXXXXX person with policy YYYYYYY. What will probably happen is that they'll take down info, and one of their adjusters will contact you in one or two days. He'll need to inspect the damage, and I suggest you take it to the shop of your choice and tell the adjuster to look at the car there -- taking it to a shop means the bumper cover can be removed so that everything inside can be seen.

After he has a look at it, he'll issue a check to get it fixed assuming that liability has been placed on the cabbie (probably will be pretty cut and dry because he rear-ended you). And, that's pretty much it, at least summarily.

If you didn't get his insurance info, though, well, you're kinda outta luck.

antonch

Good deal.
I got his info and the company that he works for. Didn't take down his insurance info though .
Should I call my insurance company? I have full coverage.

Choku Dori

iTrader: (2)

I'd call his cab company and tell them what happened, and that you need to file an insurance claim. They should be fairly forthcoming about providing you their insurance policy number and contact info since it's probably going to be a small claim. If they refuse, tell them that you'll file a police report.

Some people say to just call your insurance company regardless if you're at fault or not in an accident and let them handle it, but I don't like to report things that I don't have too -- the fewer outside parties involved in a claim, the better, I say. I've seen some screwy stuff happen in cut-and-dry claims when too many parties get involved, plus too many records of repairs can affect your car's value and certain underwriting issues involving your policy. In a straightforward claim where you were the victim of a rear-ending, I'd just file a claim with the the insurance company of the guy that rear-ended you. Only if they reject your claim for some crazy reason or another would I suggest getting your own insurance company involved.

A lot of people on BAIC like to discount what I have to say about insurance claims, but just know that I used to be an adjuster for a multi-national insurance company. What I suggest is often what is the most efficient and effective way to process a claim with minimum "damage" to you. I almost want to post a thread with generic info regarding insurance claims, but I know I'll probably just get flamed by people that think they know all about auto insurance. Well, that and I don't know if I want to do for free what I used to be paid to do!

P.S. Don't take my advice on this thread as the end-all be-all for all accidents, I'm just suggesting what you should do given the situation at hand. Different tactics for different sorts of accident, after all!