i dozed off and rear ended a car in traffic. the damage appears to be cosmetic: paint and scratches. i asked the lady to not let insurance involved, and i'll settle the repair fees on the side. she agreed. however, she later called and noticed me that she has filed a record with her insurance, but are not going to make a claim on mine for repairs.
will that bump my premium up? and do i have any rights to suggest how she can do her repair? she has a BWM, the damage can be repaired by a new paint job, but i am prepared to buy her a new bumper worst case...

 

if she just filed a record with HER insurance, you're fine because your insurance doesn't know about it.... i believe your premiums only go up when you file a claim with your insurance.

But, i'm no expert and insurance always finds a way to ding you.

 

if she has a relatively new bmw i'd want my insurance to swallow that.

 

A bumper cover and a respray will be WAY less than what a greater-than 51% at-fault accident will do to your premiums for the next 3 or so years.

 

Possibly, but if that bumper needs to be replaced...plus it's a BMW and their paint is significantly more expensive than say a subaru.

 

it is a mid 90s 325.

 

The paint is more expensive? Uhhh no.

 

ok, i'm done with this internet argument. All I know is my dad had to replace the hood on his five series awhile back and the paint wasn't cheap.

 

paint is expensive for most applications. three stage paints are expensive and thats what the mbp has.



her insurance company will appraise the damage and then send the info for the cost of repair to your insurance company. For a minor fender bender I don't imagine your rates going crazy but you may notice a small change in billing. If the original bumper is ok, the cost of repair and rental car should be around the $1000 mark. What kind of deductible do you have?

 

Your rates won't go up unless her insurance reports it to your insurance, you can head that off by telling them (her ins) that you want to pay direct. You have zero say in where she gets it repaired or what actually they do to repair it (i.e. repair the bumper vs replace it), none at all. A new bumper for a mid 90s BMW plus refinish time and all the other nonsense involved at a regular shop you're looking at $700-$1500. BMW's are teh suck for repair costs.

 

I'll head this one off at the pass, it's liability coverage he would be dealing with, there isn't a deductible. Most insurance companies can only raise you're rates if it is an at fault accident where the insurance pays over $750 in damage, each company is a little different from that point on but those are the bare minimum requirements.