Been rear ended!

[Gwynleym10]

No not me the car!

After a very long weekend of moving house, was just about to turn out of my girlfriends old street when i spotted a cyclist with no lights!

Thought i'd better stop rather than hit him, then some stupid twat in a old toyota previa went into me!

The Lady and my self are fine, but I now how a dent in my rear panel, a slightly bent bumper and a cracked light All still drivable but anoying as i had literally just sorted the front of the car out!

Went to a body shop and they said it has to many creases for it to be pulled out succesfully, so a new rear panel will be in order!

spoke to my insurance "off the record" and they said that it would probably be written off as it not worth it.

The guy seamed pretty amicable, and I mentioned to him that it might be better for both of us to sort it out outside of insurance.

So I think a rear panel is around Ԛ£45 light and bumper say Ԛ£35 (second hand) plus welding the panel in and some paint would bring it to around Ԛ£250 or so?! (cheaply done)

I'm just getting quotes and seeing if the guy will just send me a cheque from these quotes.

I may then just buy another car...as my MOT/Tax run out at the end of the month.

Do you think i'm living in dreamland asking for Ԛ£250 just based on a couple of quotes?

Let me know like what you think.

[A1BMW325iSport]

just ask him for 250, i bet he would be more happy with that than it going through his insurance

[dazleeds]

sounds fair to me mate

[Daryll]

Sorry to hear about your bump mate. Hope you manage to sort it out without sending another e30 to the scrapyard in the sky. All the best.

[Cotty]

Do you think i'm living in dreamland asking for Ԛ£250 just based on a couple of quotes?

Let me know like what you think.

No your not living in dreamland. His excess might be anyhting up to Ԛ£500 so he would end up paying it anyway. You have proof with the quotes an he can always ring the garages to back them up.

[hoshy]

go for it. if the quotes are genuine then it'll be better all round, no need for that guy to end up getting screwed by the insurance company if it can be avoided. Always better to settle away from them imho.

As far as I can see insurance is just a safe guard against people who can't pay up, not something to "use" just because.

[E30Adam]

Don't make the mistake of being Mr Nice Guy and going for a private settlement.

If you find out at a later date that more damage has been done than originally thought then you're in a world of trouble. This is often the case with rear end hits. Even a small hit can put your chassis out of alignment and I don't think Ԛ£250 would cover that!

[Dan318-is]

my mates e30 316 got hit back and at 21 miles an hour an his was a write off due to bent chasiss

[fuzzy]

its sometimes best to go through the proper channels though, if theres no official involvement he could suddenly deny responsability!

[Gwynleym10]

This is the damage, not how the distance of the light from the main panel. I doubt its structural, but I am getting this checked out at the weekend.

As for going/ or not going through insurance i'm going to try and not go through insurance (after I have added all the cost up, Ԛ£250 was a very rough estimate...). If the guy doesn't budge then I have all his insurance details so it can be done that way.

Would be good if he has a high excess, might try and see if i can find out how much his is, tackfully of course!

Next question;
Would insurance companies/their fitters ever use second hand parts?

[E30BeemerLad]

Gwyn, I don't know the age/model/condition of your car, but if the insurers become involved, there is a chance of it being a write off, however the damage does not look too bad, rear panel replacement by the looks of it, so if it does get written off, the odds are the insurers would let you keep the salvage as it certainly does not look like serious structural damage which would render it Cat A or B salvage.

If you want to just deal direct with the other party then the best thing to do is get a couple of accurate quotes from garages that include both parts and labour, better still get a pro-forma invoice as this is as good as getting a fixed contract repair price with the garage. If you present this to the other driver and ask them to pay up then see what happens. If you get messed about then let me know and I can source who his insurers are.

Sure your neck is alright??

[beardymat]

if that piccie shows all the damage and your boot lid opens and closes fine with nice gaps then i think you have been to see some lazy ass panel beaters.personally i would always prefer to repair a panel over replacing it if its a weld on panel as they will always rust quicker once you have split the factory seems.its a shame youre nowhere near me as i would happily give the car a thorough check (14 years experiance)and tell you whats best for the car,not whats best for me and my wallet.

[Gwynleym10]

Sure your neck is alright??

When i spoke to my insurance company (off the record..not giving my name or anything) they advised me straight away to get checked out. So both myself and my girlfriend went to our doctors on monday. Was a bit difficult to tell what was aches and pains from moving all weekend or if anything was from the crash! But we are both fine really!

Matt, thats interesting; as I was told that as it is close to the light and the bend for the number plate it would be very difficult to get straight, and have a good seal around the light (which is needed so i don't get a leaky boot!) I am going to ask some other places and get a proper quote such as e30bemerland has suggested over the weekend.

Oh I know who his insurers are; churchill!

Thanks for all the help guys!

[beardymat]

it might be difficult but that doesnt make it impossible and it would mean a lot less upset for the car and a quicker repair time.plus there would be less paintwork inwolved as you can keep the paint to the rear panel instead of having to paint both quater panels too! all this adds up to a cheaper repair.beware of people who quote for the expensive replacement and then just repair it anyway and take your money!!!

[Gwynleym10]

Hmm looks as if the guy has given me false details, will update if i'm correct later on

[320Touring]

sorry to hear of this mate!

glad you and the lady are ok!

as for the car, can you remember the reg number so you can get his details?

repairing yours would probably be the best bet, but as e30adam says, check that the chassis isnt twisted

Have a look under the boot carpet for any "crinkling" of the boot floor etc.

also check that the rear wheels are centred in the arches and that all doors etc close.

hope this gets sorted for you

[Richy325iTouring]

mine got rear ended they wrote it off
needed new bumper rear panel both wings lights
the work involded its not worth the hassle
get a claim in as well for whiplash