Trying to help someone who hit my car

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 05, 2021 6:27 pm
Three days ago I got to my car and found a note stuck in the door. In the note the person apologized for hitting my fender and provided their phone number. I looked at my fender and sure enough, it had been hit.

I called the person and she explained that she was visiting a daycare center across the street, and as she was backing out she did not see my parked 2016 Camry, and dented my fender.

Given her honesty, I told her I would first try to see whether I could find an autobody mechanic who could do the work at a reasonable charge. This way we could avoid going through her insurance. She was open to this idea.

However, to my surprise, the two autobody shops I took the car to, in order to get an estimate, both said that I would have to order a new fender. Then they would have to paint the fender and the door in order for the paint to match. Both places said it would be at least $1500 and possibly more.

They said that for such work it's best to go through the insurance.

Does all this sound right?

I'll appreciate any feedback.

I'm attaching 2 photos of the damaged fender.

Thanks!

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PostPosted: Mon Sep 06, 2021 3:25 am
That guard is certainly repairable and, if the repair is kept tight there should be plenty of room to blend the colour without having to go on to the bonnet or door. The bar will have to come off anyway and I would blend the new colour into the bar to get a better match than you have now.

The time to do the repair either way is about the same, but a less skilled (and therefore cheaper) employee could do the panel swap whereas a trade qualified panel beater would be needed to do the repair. So, the only real savings would be the cost of the guard ($200?) and a bit of extra painting and prep work.
Chris

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PostPosted: Mon Sep 06, 2021 8:44 am
Kind of a sticky situation with something like this. If you do turn it into insurance it will probably end up on the CarFax or other reports out there. CarFax is doing a better job of reporting where damages are and if they are minor or severe. This would be classified as minor so your vehicle valuation may not take much of a hit however if someone down the road shops for "accident free" vehicles as the filter in the search your car would be eliminated. If you trade cars dealers will sometimes beat you up with accident on your report as well. The flip side of this is going no insurance and trying to get someone who just left a note on your car to pay that $1500.
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 9:04 pm
I would take it to a PDR (Paintless Dent Repair) shop
depending on where you live! I have seen far worse and a good PDR tech could do the job and save you from having to paint the car!
Dennis



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PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 8:15 pm
Hi folks,

I want to inform you of how things ended with my fender that was hit by an honest person who left a note in my car with her phone number.

After getting estimates of $1500 or more from two auto body shops, I decided to try the guy who installed a sideview mirror for me which I bought on eBay, after the original one was hit by someone who did not have the decency to leave me a note. This auto body mechanic said that he could repair the existing fender for $450.00. In other words, I did not have to order a new one.

I informed the woman who hit my car and she had no problem with the estimate.

The fender got fixed today.

I'm really glad that I did not have to go through the woman's insurance and that it was a much lower cost for her. This was my way of saying thanks for being honest by leaving me a note, admitting that she hit me, rather than just fleeing since I was not around when it happened. I had simply parked my car on a street near my home (I do not have a driveway).

I'm attaching before and after photos.

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