Victim of a hit and run—again

You know, if it is really that much, then it would have been cheaper in a long run not to file an insurance claim and fix the car on your own. In your case, it may have to be fixed to pass the inspection because of the broken tail lamp, but I could keep driving my car like that, and just before trading in, I would take it to the cheapest body shop to get the cosmetics all fixed up without reporting the accident.

Or, does the use of a body shop to repair the car automatically put the accident record on the CarFax?

 

…ouch! Here over on the LeftHand side of t'Pond, I would say that you were the victim of Braille-Parking (particularly down in Boston, a place notorious for having a large number of visually-impaired drivers ). Good luck with the fix, although ChuggyPyg wears her minor scratches and dings like badges of honour! (…not that yours were minor - how about your insurance?)

Oh, BTW - here's a TIP: When parking, chose your spot very carefully. Try to park next to an exotic (Rolls, Bentley, Maserati or Lamborghini) as doing so will serve 2 purposes: (1) no "door-dings" since Roller owners/chauffeurs tend to be more careful when opening doors (2) any would-be thief will tend to go for the glitter of the Bentley rather than your humble Prius!

 

Many a time when parking our babies (a Mercedes coupe and an SL) in a remote part of a lot, we'll come back to find a beater almost on the door handle (sigh)! I suspect they may just be setting up for a potential smash and grab, so leave nothing of value visible.

As to parking lot damage, it seems an unavoidable fact of life... but I wonder if the Tesla cameras would capture enough info to track a perpetrator?

 

The last body shop just got back to me with his estimate. He visually inspected the car and took a bunch of photos. This is in addition to the already mentioned varying estimates I received from different shops.

Local Bodyshop2: $4,419.67 (parts $435, labor @$55/hr 61.5hr $3382m paint supplies $548, +misc&tax)

A wide range of estimates for the same repair makes me think some are totally off base. Either cutting corners to get the job done cheaply or bloating the job as much as they can to get away charging more than real cost to maximize the profit. I hate hiring any contractor worker including a body shop for this reason. There seem to be no job standards.

 

Yeah, that's exactly what I am doing. But I just happen to have a lot of time to think about this. The dealer body shop I will be using can't take my car in until late Jan. I was just wondering which shop would I have picked if the dealer shop was not in the choice?

 

Yeah, insurance is something I hope I never have to use it. But, if I am never going to use it, then why do I have it. That's why if I have to have insurance, then I usually pick the highest coverage I can afford. Fortunately, for me, the policy premium does not change much from lower coverage to highest coverage, so I have the most expensive with maximum coverage on my policy. On my policy, I have the most liability coverage they offer which is 20X more than state-mandated minimum liability coverage. I have no deductible to pay on collision or comprehensive. I also have the max amount of rental coverage.

For the rental coverage, the cost is only $12. That's only a $1 a month difference. A single claim in my lifetime would pay for itself. The dealer body shop where I am taking my car told me it will be 7 days repair. that means it is actually longer than 1 week since they don't count weekends. I will make an arrangement to have the rental shop pick me up at the body shop and also drop it off when I am done.

 

Yep, I have a maximum in every category. For a mere $38.70 more, I could increase the minimum coverage of $50K/$100K to a maximum coverage of $1Mil/$1Mil for uninsured, underinsured or hit-and-run motorist caused accidents.

 

Yeah, if you can fix it yourself to your satisfaction. That would be a good choice.

 

When you get to removing the lamp, take your time and double triple check the one hidden clip that attaches the lamp to the bumper. I did it without the manual and that (one clip ) was the tricky part. The rest is just getting all the screws pins bolts undercovers back in the way they came out and the bumper cover lined up with the quaterpanels and all buttoned up nice a snug.
Get some youtube tips on howto touchup paint, some of them are really good. And test your paint on the inside of the bumper cover to see how well it matches. It doesn't take much.

 

I've got the Plus so no sensors to worry about here. I'm not sure I have printouts for the bumper but I'll take a look though what I have.
I'll mention you don't have to separate the lower from the upper bumper cover, My estimate got the two parts mixed up 2 years ago, which kinda through a monkey wrench into my disassembly sequence. But if the sensors are down at the bottom, once you get the undercovers off, sneak under there and take a look before starting the full cover removal.
I'd be in the same situation is I had to deal with sensors back there. And I don't like having to disconnect the 12volt unless absolutely necessary, which is why I want techstream professional and a mongoose, (one of these days).
edit: My most recent estimate from the dealer also has some mistakes. Sometimes just getting lucky at having paperwork all match up would be nice. (last month a deer rammed my driver door, butt swung around denting the front fender than his/her body slide along the driver side and dented the rear door too. as best as I can figure what happened, it was ptich black and I only saw the deer for a split second as it hit the driver door. Than it was gone before I knew it, I'm still wondering where my rearview mirror glass went. cause that's the only part I haven't found). mirror glass $110 +shipping. Fuill estimate was $3800.00 an change.