Got rearended, .... and ouch! (w/pics) (1 Viewer)

[Mike Lenthol]

So I'm stopped at this yield sign on the ramp onto another major street, looking for the traffic to clear. I'm obviously leaning forward with my head turned back to see the cars. Then BAM!

A new VW Beetle rams me from behind, and my head goes into the handle near the windshield. The impact moved the rear view mirror and opened the sunroof shade a few inches, so I'm guessing about 5mph hit?

The middle aged chick driver and I get out and look over the damage. Since I got a hitch, the only damage was to the rubber plug in the receiver, and amazingly her car only had superficial damage. Black mark on the yellow bumper from the black rubber plug, maybe it was dented in slightly. Either way it was not worth more than staying in that dangerous intersection. We decided not to call the cops and just exchanged numbers, names and insurance info.

The guy in the LandRover who was behind the chick jumped out and asked if I was ok as I did have a nice bump on my forehead from the handle. I said 'sort of' and he gave me his name and number also just in case, a witness I guess. The bump went away in a few hours, but in case I wake up tomorrow with a migraine and would need anything, should I call up the insurance and tell them to open a case, just in case? Or it's a lost cause if no police report was made?

This happened near the Turnpike in SE Pennsylvania.

 

[Karl_Luph]

This kind of thing happens a hundred times a day down here in Houston. You did the right thing in getting the other person's insurance info,home and work phone number, license plate number and driver's license info. Having a witness and digital camera with you helps alot.(hopefully the lady that hit you gave you correct info and is honest enough to try to pay you to have your damage fixed.)We've got a problem down here with some lowlifes driving around with fake car insurance, fake driver's licenses, etc...sometimes they don't even stop if they have an accident or if the car is wrecked so bad they can't get away in it , they just get out and run away on foot if they can. That's why I drive a clunker in this city. Hopefully the lady that hit you will offer to pay for your damages. It never hurts to go to the doctor just to get checked out after an accident, the damage may manifest itself later on in a couple of weeks.

 

[Mike Lenthol]

But am I completely fault free here under say PA law? She can't come back and say I put it into reverse and hit her (I know ridiculous) but since there is no police report.

 

[KyleS]

She certainly can come back and say that. In Oregon if there was more then 500 damage to the cars then you have to claim it. Either way I would file a report with the DMV stating your case that she was in fact at fault and rear-ended you. I had a friend who got hit from behind. The man begged him not to claim it, payed for all the repairs, and then turned around and claimed it to the DMV. Well 2 months later he gets pulled over for speeding and come to find out that his liscence had been revoked by the state for failing to claim the accident even though he wasnt at fault. Lost his liscence for a whole year. Talk about ouch.

KyleS

 

[Evelio Figueroa]

Having a witness and digital camera with you helps alot.

A witness is good, but a digital camera won't do you any good in court. Digital pictures can be altered using photoshop. Its best to have a disposable camera in your car.

 

[Lee L]

Hey, you better have that hitch replaced. No way would I pull anything with a hitch that had been hit, no way to tell about structural weaking. Also, make sure someone checks the frame really well where the hitch attaches for damage.

 

[Matt Stryker]

From experience: You'll probably be pretty sore today, and perhaps for the next few days....thats perfectly normal after a rear impact. Get the hitch looked at and give her insurance company a call.

My $0.02: Always call the cops, especially if you know it isn't your fault. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain by doing so.

 

[Jeremiah]

Would a police report automatically send it to your insurance company or is it a "just in case" deal? I wouldn't file a report, get a repair price for the hitch and call her up and tell her what the cost is, and I wouldn't worry about her filing a report saying you back up into her b/c you do have the witness that saw the whole thing. Maybe if you didn't have the witness I would cover my butt but no need really in this case.

 

[Leila Dougan]

In some places, police won't even come out unless the damage is greater than $1000, so having them show up for a minor fenderbender may not work. Also, insurance companies often assign their own blame, even with a police report. If you're in a no-fault state, your insurance will be covering the repairs anyway. And if you're not, you may still be assigned partial blame or none at all. It just depends, but the best thing to do now is call them and give them your side of the story.

I also don't think the police report automatically gets sent to the insurance company, but I could be wrong.

 

[Paul_Fisher]

Would a police report automatically send it to your insurance company or is it a "just in case" deal? I wouldn't file a report, get a repair price for the hitch and call her up and tell her what the cost is, and I wouldn't worry about her filing a report saying you back up into her b/c you do have the witness that saw the whole thing. Maybe if you didn't have the witness I would cover my butt but no need really in this case.

Actually, I was in an accident similar to yours, but the just opposite. I was sitting behind an Expedition waiting for a parking spot, and he puts his truck in reverse and bumps right into my hood, causing $1700 worth of damage to my Accord. I called the cops and he wrote up the report stating it was the other person's fault. I then called my insurance company (Geico) and told them about the accident, and they said as long as it states on the police report that it wasn't my fault, it wouldn't go on my insurance.

BTW, the guy that hit me was over 70 years old, and after it happened he got out of his Expedition, looked at my car, and asked, "Did I do that?". I politely said, "Yes sir."

People like him should not be driving, they are dangers to themselves and everyone else on the road.

 

[RafaelB]

Almost the exact same thing happened to me a little over 2 weeks ago. I was at a stop sign trying to get onto the Rock Creek Parkway in DC and the guy that hit me, didn't realise that there was a sign there and, even though trying to turn on the curb to avoid me, he still rear-ended me. The passenger side of my car was bashed in and I was lurched forward and hit my rear-view mirror. He admitted it was his fault, we exchanged info and, even though I was in shock and my neck and shoulder hurt, I drove home called my insurance and his (he had called his as well) and went to the emergency room.

Knowing what I know now, I would have called th police immediately, but when I called them the day after, they said exchanging info was the best thing to do.

The soreness is almost gone now, though, after seeing a chiropractor and I've now got a new car

But, now I have to deal with his insurance co (he accepted all liability) to get reimbursed for medical fees and time off from work, so I'm thinking of getting a lawyer.

Rafael

 

[Seth--L]

Always good to file a report and to call the police just incase the "middle aged chick driver" comes back a week or two later claiming that you rammed her and caused thousands of dollars worth of damage.

 

[Carl Miller]

Similar accident last year...I was stopped and waiting to merge onto the road. A car two cars back honked their horn. The driver directly behind me, talking on a cell phone I might add, heard the horn and hit the gas without even looking and rear ended me. She obviously wasn't going fast coming from a dead stop, but she was in a Navigator and hit me high and hard enough to make my trunk buckle.

I had seen the woman talking on a cell phone, which is illegal here, and she said she didn't know how the accident happened. Here's where it gets silly:

She denied being on the cell phone even after I told her I saw her talking on it while looking in the rearview mirror and even after getting out of her car with her cell phone in her hand and a little voice coming from the phone saying Mary are you ok, are you ok!

She begged me not to call the police, but there was no way I was going take her for her word when she said she'd cover the damage to my car. It's very hard to trust people these days, especially when they're lying to your face.

My rule is always get a police report, otherwise you have no way of knowing the info exchanged is valid.

 

[Mike Lenthol]

Lee, come on man! A VW unibumper vs. a ladder frame Toyota 4x4 with a class III hitch? Don't think I'm even going to replace the rubber plug as it's not looking any worse than it did before the introduction to VW. The plug probably retails for

 

[Ted Lee]

i think it's really good that the other gave offered to be a witness. that is *key*.

my old boss drove to work in his brand new mercedes. he was side-swiped, but because he didn't have a witness the insurance company denied him.

if i ever get into an accident, the first thing i'm gonna do is look for someone i can use as a witness.

 

[Eric Kahn]

if there is no tear in the bumper of the VW, there is no way that there would be damage to your hitch, the bumper of a new beetle is made out of styrofoam covered in plastic, with a folded piece of sheet metal behind it, it will absorb a 5 MPH hit but is destroyed in the process even though no damage shows

also, a new beetle weighs 3000 pounds empty, so it is not as light as you think

I own a yellow one just like the one that hit you

 

[Cary_H]

Three words.......witness, witness, and witness.
Get as many as you can before they leave.
I won't bore you with all the situations I've had, and/or seen go wrong for the driver who wasn't at fault.
Simply, you run a big risk if the other driver accepts blame and all you do is trade info with them. Without a witness or two to back up your side of the story you just might find that down the road the person who ran into you "pulls a witness of their own from thin air" with a story that says you were to blame.

With regard to the submission of a Police report issue.....filing one inside of 24 hours is probably the law. It is where I live.

 

[AllanN]

I've been rear ended twice. Both times stopped at a red light. Also a turkey flew into my windshield on the highway. Two times I called the police (first rear ending & the turkey). The third a police officer saw it happen. Both times I got rear ended they put on the report it was the other persons fault and there insurance company paid for the damages. Unfortunately the turkey was not cited at fault, probably did't have insurance anyway and I had to pay $50 deductible for a new windshield.

The moral of this story always call the police, the worst they can do is say it's to minor of accident and not come out.

 

[Sam R. Aucoin]

Mike:

As a civil defense attorney who deals with this sort of thing EVERY day, I recommend that you immediately report the accident to your insurance company. Usually, there is a provision in your policy that REQUIRES you to report any accidents within 24 hours - some policies allow for a longer period.

In Louisiana, rear-ending someone creates (legally speaking) a "presumption of liability" against the person who ran into the other person. In other words, in a vacuum, the law assumes that people who are driving properly do not run into the back of other people (i.e., if you are not following too closely, you are not speeding, you are looking directly in front of you, and the tail lights of the person in front of you are working properly) without being considered negligent. The burden then shifts to them to show why they were NOT negligent in rear-ending someone else (e.g., tail lights of person in front were not working).

As someone mentioned earlier, a worst possible nightmare scenario would be (1) the other driver claims that your lights were not working, (2) that you stopped and shifted into reverse, and (3) your insurance company finds out about the accident FROM THE OTHER PERSON (thus prompting a call to you asking you why you did not report the accident per policy instructions).

I am NOT giving legal advice with this post - I am licensed to practice in Louisiana only (as well as U.S. Supreme Court, but that would not matter in your case), and I posted this ONLY to give "friendly advice" to keep you out of trouble

Regards,

Sam