Accidentally scratched a car - help?

[Idkw2d]

Hi Mumsnetters and a Merry Christmas to you all,

I am a new driver and have got myself in a situation.

As I was leaving an Asda car park this morning with my child, I managed to reverse too far back and scraped the side of someone’s very big car. I say big because it didn’t look like a scruffy runaround car, it was a big shiny car.

I am usually incredibly careful and slow, especially as I only passed my test in January this year. I am insured as an additional driver on my husband’s car and it’s just a small scruffy car that is easy to drive.

I have managed perfectly fine in this car park for years but due to a number of factors, I was somewhat caught off guard and managed to reverse too far (a driver was zooming up onto my right while another came right up to my backside). The car I scratched was sticking out of its parking slot by a fair margin, which is why I didn’t expect or realise what I’d done until it was too late :(

The bottom of the back of the car had visible marks where some black paint had come off and there was one very very very tiny scratch on the body. A few bystanders said “it doesn’t look too bad at all” and I took photos.

I waited for the owners to show up, told them what happened and gave my name, number, reg and home address. They said they would get a quote and get back to me, but if I didn’t want to pay then we could go through insurance. They said it could be around £200-300 to “paint over the panel”. said as it was my fault I was more than happy to compensate them. They haven’t gotten in touch yet so I’m still waiting.

Anyway, this is my first experience of anything like this and I have been a mess. I’m embarrassed to say I have cried over this multiple times today. I feel stupid for getting into a situation like this but even more stupid for now having to fork up what could be potentially a few hundred pounds.

Long story short, I had some questions:

1. If they ask me to pay, say, £300 and I agree, can they turn around and claim through insurance as well? I am a ‘new’ driver and worried about how this could affect my status.

2. Should insurance be informed regardless? I’ve heard conflicting info and don’t want to get in trouble.

3. Did I deal with this right? Some people have said I shouldn’t have given my home address.

4. Any advice or words of support? I feel so disappointed in myself today and am worried the owners will take advantage of the situation and charge me extra. I’ve heard and seen so many scams where people are forced to fork out exaggerated amounts for minor damage.

5. I’m also annoyed because they were parked in a Child & Parent spot when they clearly didn’t have any with them! Just makes it sting a little more lol.

Slight correction - I didn’t scrape the ‘side’. I scraped the very back sticky-out bit. Like I said it was a big Land Rover and it was sticking out of the parking spot. The very bottom part of the back bumper(?) was marked. It’s black and the paint has been peeled off.

Honestly in my head I was thinking ‘this can’t be too hard to fix?!’ And the “scratch” on the body was like a paper cut.

Personally I would always go through insurance. I've learnt that the hard way.

You did the right thing though by waiting around and giving your details

Also, try not to dwell on it. It happened, you swapped details and it will get sorted.

It would cost about that amount for a decent bumper respray on a large 4x4. If you go via insurance you'll have to pay your excess, and you'll have to declare the accident meaning that your insurance will increase next year and for a few years after that (you have to declare accidents for 5 years). If you pay them the cash, the problem goes away, just get them to sign a bit of paper saying that you've paid them the sum of £x amount for the damage and keep quiet. Likewise, there's no incentive for them to tell their insurance company as their premium will go up even though it's your fault. Don't be too hard on yourself, we all make mistakes when we drive and park, as with anything in life it's how you learn from them that matters. Hope that you get it sorted.

Oh dear - try not to blame yourself too much, these things happen!
Perhaps offer to pay directly to the repair person. Last time this happened to us we got the woman to pay one of those mobile repair people.
It was your fault, but honestly these things happen but you'll get more confident as time rolls on. Just put it down to one of those things and move on, don't let affect your confidence. One big rule, don't let other people rush or fluster you too

Drive off really quickly?

You do have to inform insurance even if not making a claim

Sorry it’s caused you worry but honestly the fact they overhung the parking bay isn’t relevant. You need to be aware of what’s around you at all times, what if it had been a person?

This is why we have insurance. Let them deal with it and don’t let it spoil your Christmas.

Personally I'd pay them directly if that's the likely cost. You'd probably have a similar excess anyway and you'll lose your no claims bonus and/or your premiums will rise.

Technically you are meant to inform your insurance company but it's common practice not to for lower cost repairs.

Honestly. These things happen. I'd just pay the garage direct if you're happy with the quote. I know some people will say don't. But I've done it both ways. Scratched a car, they got three quotes and I paid the one we agreed direct.
My neighbour who'd only passed her test four weeks before hit me, it was a plastic weld and respray. Cost about £200 at the time. She just paid the garage for me.

Honestly, I think you did exactly the right thing - others would have zoomed off and not cared at all. So be proud of yourself for doing the right thing. Mistakes happen and absolutely no-one can say they haven't made them.

I'd make sure you see an actual receipt of the repair cost and ask them to sign a waiver afterwards confirming that they won't go through insurance. It seems unlikely they would, as I think it'd also then show on the insurance info, but better safe than sorry.

Try not to worry and enjoy your Christmas break if you have one. These things happen and you handled it exactly as you should have. Take care.

If you just pay cash for the damage then I wouldn’t inform insurance. That would be stupid.

Also as you haven’t long passed I would try to stay away from insurance.

Just ask for a copy of the quote or the company they will be using but £200-£300 would be about right.

My husband is a paint technician so I know rough paint repair prices.

Only a mug would inform insurance if they pay cash.

This happened to me earlier in the year and I was in bits too. I did notify my insurance and they said that because I wasn’t making a claim to repair my car, I did not have to pay any excess. I gave them the other driver’s details and left it with them. No idea what has happened since, but interestingly I have renewed my insurance since then and it didn’t affect my no claims bonus or my premium. My premium did go up, but not by much and insurance is more expensive generally this year.

Don’t beat yourself up, especially not today! These things happen, it’s just a car. It will make you a better driver. And perhaps it’s a little karma for them parking in a parent and child space.

Don’t beat yourself up about it, these things happen. It was nice you waited to speak to the driver. Someone once scraped the side of my car in the supermarket car park and just drove off!

I have been driving for 20 years and I accidentally scraped someone’s car recently. I too was very upset when it happened but as my DH said nobody is injured, it’s just a car and not to let it get to me. (I left my details under their windscreen wiper, just name and phone number though).

if you don’t mind, what was the hard way? I have also heard conflicting opinions about going through insurance and that’s what is worrying me the most as this happened around 9am and it’s now midnight and still no text message or anything! I stupidly didn’t take their contact details, just their names.

My friend once paid on the spot for a similar situation only to find out a week later that the people she’d paid had filed a claim through insurance. So I don’t want to get myself into more trouble!

thanks for your message ❤️

I'd be surprised if it was only £200-300, similar thing we had about 10 years ago we had cheapest quote for double that for our much cheaper car.

It's Xmas Eve (or it was). They won't be able to get it to a garage for a few days for a quote. I wouldn't expect you to hear from them for a few days.

Don't beat yourself up about this, we've all done silly mistakes at some time or other. Plus you waited and owned up to it, which is more than what many drivers do, often damaging your car and driving off. I've had prangs to my car and people haven't left contact.

I would go through the insurance, and that will mean having to tell your insurance too.

Just report it to your insurance and forget about it until they get in touch, these things happen it's not the end of the world

Absolutely I agree! That’s why I said even them parking in the wrong spot is irrelevant, but it just stung a bit more. Luckily it was more of a graze rather than hitting or bumping the car.

thank you ❤️

Oh and just checking you took photos of the damage? I don't think I saw that in your post. But always take photos so then they can't dispute anything.

I wouldn't have given them home address. Any incident its just reg numbers and phone numbers that's it

I bumped into the back of someone at some traffic lights once, left a small scratch on their bumper. I gave my details, then waited... and then heard nothing about it ever again.

I did take photos and they did too.

I also went instore and asked if there was cctv footage of the incident (before I spoke to the owners) because the ‘graze’ was so LIGHT that I barely felt anything and wasn’t even sure if the paint coming off was because of me or from before!