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Original poster

Bumped a car, excessive quote

139 replies

lilsquish · 11/11/2020 08:20

morning, last week i bumped a car in a school car park causing slight damage to both cars.

I exchanged details and took photos of the damage. Very slight, scrapes - no dents. The owner stated she would take it to a garage to get a quote for repair. All fine.

When i got home, my huaband wiped down the scrapes with some T cut and it was good as new. I contacted the other owner and suggested she try this however she wanted to take it to a garage instead.

My husband had a quick look at her car the next day (it was in school carpark) and 100% certain the damage was less than my car and would buff out.

Now iv just had the quote from the garage through and i feel its very excessive.

Theyre quoting £550, itemising repair abd repaint in two areas and refitting the bumper.

Has anyone had any experience if this and know what i can do?

I wanted to settle it without claiming insurance to prevent premium going up etc but i feel this quote is ridiculous.

Its definitely a real quote etc, I dont in any way think the girl is trying to get anything more than she is due, i think the garage tho has bumped up the bill as they think insurance is paying........help!!

OP posts:
ExclamationPerfume · 11/11/2020 08:22

You damaged her car. She is entitled to have it repaired to how it was before.

SadderThanEeyore · 11/11/2020 08:25

She should get 3 quotes for balance. Take photos and ask a garage yourself too if it helps. Check your policy excess too, as you could still end up paying a lot via insurance.

Rettyea · 11/11/2020 08:25

@ExclamationPerfume the OP has not disputed that Hmm

OP I would get your own quote if you can and if much cheaper ask the owner if you can do it at the other garage, or ask her to shop around. I guess a lot will depend on the make of the car, if a merc for instance, could be expensive compared to a ford due to parts etc

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SoupDragon · 11/11/2020 08:26

100% certain the damage was less than my car and would buff out.

Is he a car repairer? Did he fully examine the bumper to check for damage to the fittings?

Unfortunately, you damaged the car and you have to suck it up. If you are paying, pay the garage and not the car owner.

Dddaddy · 11/11/2020 08:27

You crashed into the other car.

🤷🏼‍♀️

JoJoSM2 · 11/11/2020 08:30

Similar thing happened to me once. I took photos too and you couldn’t see any damage in the photos. It was so minimal that you’d buff it out in 5 minutes. The woman fleeced the insurance company for several grand including a replacement car for 3 weeks Hmm
My insurance premium went up a bit.

AvoidingRealHumans · 11/11/2020 08:31

Why are people so rude on here and take the time to post the obvious?
Op is aware that she is at fault and is not trying to get out of that. She's asking if the quote is excessive or not.
It does seem excessive to me but I know 2 people who have done similar and the quotes were equally excessive.
You definitely need a couple more quotes to see if the first one was reasonable but the other person may not be willing to take the time out to get them.
I hope you get it sorted

PlanDeRaccordement · 11/11/2020 08:35

The bumper could have internal damage not visible as cosmetic scrapes depending on how fast you were going when you bumped into them.

You see bumpers have shock absorbers and crumple zones to absorb the impact. Unfortunately, they are single use. So a minor bump in a car park can result in entire bumper needing to be refitted. And that is not cheap.

You might want to get your own bumper checked out as it seems you’ve only focussed on the cosmetic damage and not looked at the internal state at all.

I do agree with pp who said to get three quotes. That is always good practice.

JacobReesMogadishu · 11/11/2020 08:38

Sadly I doubt you'll get a better quote. I had similar damage done to my rear bumper last year. It only just wouldn't t-cut out and all the quotes were in that region.

I just had to have a new bonnet and garage quoted me £950, they knew it wasn't insurance paying. I actually got it done for £450 at mates rates. A new bonnet cost £180 to buy. So even £270 for spraying at the second place sounded a lot to me.

FundamentallyFucked · 11/11/2020 08:40

Theyre quoting £550, itemising repair abd repaint in two areas and refitting the bumper.

Hand it to your insurance company to deal with. That's what you pay them for. You have to notify them anyway, have you done that? This bizarre obsession people have with 'premiums going up' and avoiding using a service they have paid for is batshit. Tread carefully here, you could be in for a personal injury claim in the future and some policies every raise the excess of you don't notify them within a certain time frame.

user1494055864 · 11/11/2020 08:41

Someone went into the back of me once. There was no visible damage when we exchanged details. Later on I discovered I was unable to open my boot, and it was crumpled inside. The woman didn't believe me and denied she had done it, and it became a real hassle, with me having to argue with MY insurers. Don't be that person.

BrokenBrit · 11/11/2020 08:41

Honestly, if you can afford it I would just pay it. If not, pass it to your insurance.

I know the protocol is 3 quotes and I did do this but I found this such a PITA when someone crashed into my car, I don’t live in a big town with lots of suitable garages nearby and like most people I am busy and work and don’t want to be traipsing round garages. I wanted to use the one near me who was excellent at bodywork and would lend me a courtesy car, as I still needed to get to work. I imagine with the current lockdown it may be even harder, so just get it done if poss.
Glad it’s just a minor bump and you are all ok, that’s the main thing.

Dddaddy · 11/11/2020 08:43

The bumper might be cracked and need replaced. They’re plastic.

And the garage will have to take it off and inspect.

They might be able to plastic weld it, and repaint, but it’s not your car. You might well do that if it was you but it’s not you and the other car owner is entitled to get it replaced if it needs it.

If you don’t want to pay that, put it through your insurance.

Rettyea · 11/11/2020 08:43

I agree would pay direct if you can. If the insurer pays out then you might lose any no claims bonus etc.

MoonJelly · 11/11/2020 08:45

Pass it on to your insurers, they will know whether that is a reasonable quote or not.

FundamentallyFucked · 11/11/2020 08:47

Sorry I realise I mentioned personal injury but you haven't mentioned if there was anyone in the car at the time, so that part may be relevant.

I agree would pay direct if you can. If the insurer pays out then you might lose any no claims bonus etc.

It's not going to rise by more than £500 for a minor bump though, what's the logic?

Inastatus · 11/11/2020 08:56

This has happened to me OP. The first time I was bumped into by a friend in a car park - his brakes failed on his van and it rolled into the back of my car. Because it was still under warranty it had to be repaired by the VW garage. They really did push it to the limit and said the parking sensors had to be replaced in case of damage (fair enough) but also wanted to replace the whole bumper ‘just in case’. I accepted the sensors but not the bumper and I was still really embarrassed to go back to my friend with the quote.

The second time was my fault. I went into the back of someone who stopped suddenly to let someone cross the road (at a random spot - not a crossing). The collision was very minor, my seatbelt did not even tighten, no airbags went off and there was barely any damage to either car but she claimed whiplash and fleeced the insurers 😡

I think it’s worth asking her for another quote.

Original poster
lilsquish · 11/11/2020 08:59

wow, had to check i hadnt posted im AIBU there!

Yes im at fault, yes I damaged her car. Thats not the issue.

I will clarify some points....

It was an extremely low speed impact when i pulled into the space next to her car (she was not in the car, so no i won't be pursued for an injury claim Hmm )

Her car is a Vauxhall Adam, over 5 years old and i really dont think it warrants a respray of the side panel and bumper.

I didnt want to claim as this puts the policy up for the next few years so overall will cost a fair whack for very minor damage.

Anyway, i just wondered if anyone had any experience. I do expect il get similar quotes elsewhere as i believe garages tend to over quote anyway never mind if they think its insurance paying.

The owner was lovely and I dont want to mess her around, after all it wasnt her fault.

OP posts:
Jessbow · 11/11/2020 09:00

You are obliged to tell your insurance company that you have had a bump, whether you claim or not.

user1493413286 · 11/11/2020 09:03

I was bumped into by another car and as my car is a relatively expensive one the quote was higher than this woman has given you. I could have had it repaired cheaply but I didn’t see why I should when the damage wasn’t my fault. In all honesty your DH can’t know if the damage will buff out; even if he was a body repair expert he’d still need to get under the car to look at the bumper. The bumpers are made to give so break and bend easily.
You could ask her to get another quote from a garage to see if it’s fair but I don’t think the garage is likely to be over quoting her as insurance companies have their own chosen places they send people to so the garage she went to for a quote won’t necessarily get the business so will want her to use them.

Dddaddy · 11/11/2020 09:03

It’s not up to you to decide whether or not it warrants a respray!

That marks you out as a CF!

I had damage to my car. The person responsible for paying (it was a child who scratched my car with a stone) wanted me to accept a buff out. I said I’d see and went to get it buffed and I could still see the scratches.

So I got it resprayed. She was raging and said it was an older car (7 years old) and she didn’t see why a buff out wasn’t acceptable to me.

The car was metallic paint and I could still see every scratch.

AND I had to do without my car for 3 days while it was painted.

Rettyea · 11/11/2020 09:07

What’s a CF?

FundamentallyFucked · 11/11/2020 09:11

It was an extremely low speed impact when i pulled into the space next to her car (she was not in the car, so no i won't be pursued for an injury claim Hmm)

No need for the eye roll OP. I wasn't making any judgement on you. It's amazing the amount of personal injury claims that pop up later.

ExclamationPerfume · 11/11/2020 09:12

@Rettyea the OP wants to do a cheap job on the other persons car. The garage are better qualified to know what needs doing.

CF means cheeky fucker.

Lochroy · 11/11/2020 09:14

I was with you until you said the make, model and age of her car doesn't warrant a respray. Either you are now a qualified car repairer to make that assessment or incredibly rude.

Plenty of people have pride in their cars and have them looking immaculate at 10+ years old. She's entitled to a proper repair job.

I don't think it's unreasonable for you to ask for a second quote.