To think this is suspicious?

[iknowthatyouareanoldfashionedman]

I was out a walk with my dog this morning and came back to a note on my car. A lady had reversed into my car, her note was apologetic and she left her name and number. Upon looking at my car there are a few scratches on the front of it, I probably wouldn't have noticed if not for the note.

I called the lady this afternoon and said that I would be in touch with my insurance. She said she'd rather not go through insurance and could I just get quotes to fix the scratches and she will pay me directly? I said okay but after thinking about it am feeling a little uncomfortable. Surely that is what insurance is there for, why would she want to pay the fees herself? I feel I may be leaving myself in the position of getting ripped off here.

She also asked for my name etc. AIBU to follow my gut and go ahead and contact my insurance?

Yanbu it's entirely up to you

However for a few scratches, it's probably much more cost effective for her to bypass it - the repair might not even be worth the excess and then her premiums will take a hit for a few years.

So yabu to think you're being scammed but if you want to go via insurance then you're perfectly entitled.

Deductibles etc

This is fairly common as ppl would rather pay upfront than suffer increased premiums for years to come.

Lots of people do this to avoid their premiums going up. For minimal damage I'd probably go with it but not for something bigger.

If there are just a few scratches that you wouldn't have noticed, why do anything?

Why would I not? There are scratches there nonetheless.

It’s up to you but I would have said and done exactly as she did. Your choice of course but it’s often just easier to sort it direct and then no claims bonus isn’t affected.

I’ve found chips away great for this in the past. They’re a national franchise so might be one near you, they come out to you and the price was good compared to other garages. I couldn’t see where the scrape was afterwards

I dont see any reason to think it's a scam, as she could have just driven off.

If you claim from her insurance you're also reporting your car has been involved in an accident which you'll have to declare for the next 5 years. Both of you will face increased premiums because of this (technically you should do this anyway even if she pays directly).

This is why she wants to pay herself, it's likely the cost of the repair will be similar or less then her excess, so out of pocket is about the same. But then it'll be on record she's been in a crash and have increased premiums for ages. Its the wonderful scam of insurance, not worth claiming for the small stuff which regularly occurs, only in the case of write off/injuries claims.

Why would I not? There are scratches there nonetheless.

To avoid the hassle/worry about being scammed?

Not saying you shouldn't just curious - as someone who doesn't bother about marks and scratches on her car!

I've agreed to this before when a new driver drove into me. His dad sorted it for me and we didn't go through insurance. It was quicker for me and cheaper for them.

Because of this OP:

Both of you will face increased premiums because of this (technically you should do this anyway even if she pays directly)

Doubt it’s suspicious. She could have just driven off. As PP say, it’s common no to want to involve insurance for minor incidents.

It’s really common so people don’t take a hit on their insurance -nothing suspicious at all, we’ve done it when dd was a new driver. It was more cost effective to pay a £400 repair than for her to have a claim against her in her 1st year of driving

How could it be a scam? It was very honest of her to leave a note at all, she could have just left and you would have been none the wiser.
Going through the insurance is just punishing her for her honesty, and is of no value to you either.

Never involve your insurance company if you don't have to. Especially for just very minor damage.

I have done this with a scratch on a car. There were no issues and I paid (my next door neighbour) £150 and it was all settled.

When my car did more damage to someone I went through insurance.

It’s sensible not a scam, to not lose your no claims over something minor.

Not suspicious at all. She just doesn't want to raise her insurance rate for something very minor.

Why is this suspicious

For a few small scratches it's cheaper for both of you to not go through insurance

As you'll be buggered too fyi

Both of your insurance premiums will take a hit as both of you will have been involved in an accident which they ask you to declare even if you didn't cause it.
Her motivation is to not increase hers and your motivation would be to not increase yours so it works both ways when it is a small scratch. Say you want to choose the garage if you are suspicious.

If its literally just a few scratches that like you said you hadn't noticed just get a touch up pen and be done with it lol

I think one potential issue is when you get a professional quote, the culprit tries to back out of it or says they know someone who can do it cheaper ( maybe her son with a spray can?)
If you accept her offer get a fixed quote and get her to pay before the work is done.

I said okay but after thinking about it am feeling a little uncomfortable. Surely that is what insurance is there for, why would she want to pay the fees herself? I feel I may be leaving myself in the position of getting ripped off here.

This happened to me once and my car got fixed just fine.

Its not a scam or anything - if people claim on their insurance, their premiums will go up next year. Whether you can afford that or not, its undesirable.

The lady was honest and left a note to say she bumped your car. Most people would have not left a note and just driven off, even if the damage was severe.

(I bumped a car in a chuch car park once. A so called christian came rushing over to tell me not to say anything, even though the car belonged to another member of our own congregation - I was disgusted by this. I did tell the car owner and offered to fix it - but they forgave me and said it didn't matter, as their car was pretty old anyway. This restored my faith in Christians lol.)

The lady is clearly an honest and decent person who wanted to do the right thing. She would hardly leave a note and then try to scam you. She wants to get your car fixed, but - understandably - wants to avoid price hikes in her premium.

The only thing you have to make sure of is that you are happy with the garage which will do the repairs. Do some research on local garages - use google maps to check reviews. Then agree with her which garage you will take it to for an estimate and repair. If the damage is only minor, it wont cost much.

one driver that hit our parked car paid direct for the repairs, another one that hit my car outside work insisted on going through the insurance. The quote we had given her, should she want to pay direct, was the exact same amount of the cheque her insurance sent us. No scam and she would have had her insurance premiums increase.

Totally normal for people not to want to involve their insurers

It might not be strictly correct but perfectly understandable