[gossame1]

Hello Gang,

A bit of sad news, My 300 was hit this morning while I was waiting at a red light. The car suffered minor damage to the rear bumper fascia. Luckily there were no injuries to myself or to the person who rear-ended my car.

This was my first accident, and not one that I caused. I ended up calling the police to file an accident report and to make sure the damage to my car would be taken care of. I'm still a little bit shaken up, but I'm trying to keep my mind off of the damage that was done to the car.

I know that there were a few other people that had a similar experience on the boards, and I was wondering, what did it end up costing to have the bumper fixed. The tails and the trunk are OK, but I am curious to see what kind of damage if any is located under the skin of the bumper fascia.

The officer that was dispatched to the scene was very helpful and understanding (Reminded me of one of our finest on the boards-Angie! )

I will keep everyone posted as to what transpires over the next several days, while I am waiting for the insurance adjuster from the other person's insurance to get back to me.

Sincerely yours,

Brian T. Carotenuto

 

[AF300C]

Glad to hear that no one was injured... but sorry to hear about the car.

 

[frank29]

Man, you've gotten nailed in the front and the back....this may be your first legitmate accident; but, didn't some jerk( :AR15firin ) back into your front grill in a parking lot? I seem to remember that posting some time ago.

A big second to AF300C's comments.

Good luck.

 

[First300COwner]

Life throws another curve ball. It's alright, as long as your alright! :wink1:

 

[gossame1]

We're all OK, just my pride and joy got hurt in this whole thing...

Thanks for all your support during this time.

Sincerely yours,

Brian T. Carotenuto

 

[gossame1]

The people are all OK, no injuries

 

[MOBMOM]

Thank gooddness no one was hurt, as well be thankful you were driving a 300, i have heard they hold up very good in case of inpact and usually not to much damage, good luck and hope you feel better

 

[wantasrt8]

Sorry to hear about the accident

I suggest you take the car to the repair shop of your chosing, get an estimate for your records. As the other person caused the damage, you should be able to take the car anywhere you want and would not be limited by provisions in your policy. Perhaps others on the forum will give you advice on a good shop in your area.

Oh, you are entitled to loss of use-meaning you get a rent a car while your car is out of service.

Good luck.

 

[HEMEEE]

So sorry to hear about this Brian. Glad you're not hurt and hope your car is good as new, with as few headaches as possible, very soon!

 

[JMatt]

A warning to all:

Modern bumpers are fairly flexible. Often in a rear-end collision, the bumper is pushed in, and bounces right back out. People get out - look at the bumper, and see only minor paint damage, and think its only a couple of bucks, so they don't call the police, don't get good info from the other party and move on.

Then the surprise: It's the crash-absorbing material UNDERNEATH the bumper that you can see that takes all the damage. Many collisions that look like virtually no damage, end up costing more than $1,000.

So - what to do:

Write down the other person's Driver's license number
Write down the other person's License Plate number
Write down the other person's VIN

You'd be amazed at how many times the "insurance card" people are shown turns out to be long expired, or a complete fraud.

As long as you have the 3 numbers from above, the person can be tracked down almost no matter what.

Always assume a minor fender-bender is hiding at least $1,000 in damage.

 

[srt8danno]

A warning to all:

Modern bumpers are fairly flexible. Often in a rear-end collision, the bumper is pushed in, and bounces right back out. People get out - look at the bumper, and see only minor paint damage, and think its only a couple of bucks, so they don't call the police, don't get good info from the other party and move on.

Then the surprise: It's the crash-absorbing material UNDERNEATH the bumper that you can see that takes all the damage. Many collisions that look like virtually no damage, end up costing more than $1,000.

So - what to do:

Write down the other person's Driver's license number
Write down the other person's License Plate number
Write down the other person's VIN

You'd be amazed at how many times the "insurance card" people are shown turns out to be long expired, or a complete fraud.

As long as you have the 3 numbers from above, the person can be tracked down almost no matter what.

Always assume a minor fender-bender is hiding at least $1,000 in damage.

You’re absolutely right! In 1994 I got creamed while driving a Crown Vic. It knocked my tag off- car looked great. However, the damage was unseen, just as you said, and was around $1500!!

I’m very sorry Brian your beauty was hit, but thankfully no one was hurt. Just keep an eye out for your neck and back- sometimes those types of injuries don’t show up right away. Hang in there, she'll be as good as new very soon!

 

[Ride Slow]

A warning to all:

Modern bumpers are fairly flexible. Often in a rear-end collision, the bumper is pushed in, and bounces right back out. People get out - look at the bumper, and see only minor paint damage, and think its only a couple of bucks, so they don't call the police, don't get good info from the other party and move on.

Then the surprise: It's the crash-absorbing material UNDERNEATH the bumper that you can see that takes all the damage. Many collisions that look like virtually no damage, end up costing more than $1,000.

So - what to do:

Write down the other person's Driver's license number
Write down the other person's License Plate number
Write down the other person's VIN

You'd be amazed at how many times the "insurance card" people are shown turns out to be long expired, or a complete fraud.

As long as you have the 3 numbers from above, the person can be tracked down almost no matter what.

Always assume a minor fender-bender is hiding at least $1,000 in damage.

Excellent ideas, and truth about the $'s. May I also suggest a disposable flash camera in the trunk. Pictures of both vehicles, from 8 points, including the license plate, and the driver, may be worth much, later.

 

[tekhen]

Brian,

Sorry to hear! As long as you're okay, a car can be replaced!

Ride Slow.....great advise.

 

[gossame1]

Accident update....

Hello Gang,

I ended up taking the day off to have the car looked at this morning. By accident, I ended up hitting the trunk button on the key instead of the unlock doors button. The trunk opened and wouldn't close properly. BIG MISTAKE on my part. I called the shop that will be handling the repairs and asked them if they could take a look-see and try to get the trunk to close.

The technician that will be doing the repairs said that aside from the bumper skin, the trunk latch needs to be replaced and possibly the actual bar underneath the skin. He gave me a ballpark figure of about 1K in damage. (Kind of what I was thinking in the beginning.) The decklid is OK and I'm sure they will find some minor things that may need to either be replaced or adjusted. He had said that they have all the spec sheets for the gaps and he will make sure that they all match and look like new.

I will report more when I meet with the adjuster from the insurance company to see what he has to say for his examination of the car.

Sincerely yours,

Brian T. Carotenuto

 

[Rambit]

Hello Gang,

I ended up taking the day off to have the car looked at this morning. By accident, I ended up hitting the trunk button on the key instead of the unlock doors button. The trunk opened and wouldn't close properly. BIG MISTAKE on my part. I called the shop that will be handling the repairs and asked them if they could take a look-see and try to get the trunk to close.

The technician that will be doing the repairs said that aside from the bumper skin, the trunk latch needs to be replaced and possibly the actual bar underneath the skin. He gave me a ballpark figure of about 1K in damage. (Kind of what I was thinking in the beginning.) The decklid is OK and I'm sure they will find some minor things that may need to either be replaced or adjusted. He had said that they have all the spec sheets for the gaps and he will make sure that they all match and look like new.

I will report more when I meet with the adjuster from the insurance company to see what he has to say for his examination of the car.

Sincerely yours,

Brian T. Carotenuto

Sorry to hear about another bad news experience for a forum member Brian. Just like jMatt said, it's the unseen damage that ends up costing big bucks. Hope everything turns out to your complete satisfaction.

Rambit

 

[mikes]

Glad everyone is o.k. and hope that you get it fixed without incident.

 

[gossame1]

Thanks again for all your support during this difficult time!

Hello Gang,

Just wanted to thank everyone for the support during this rough time for me. I know the car will be OK in the end.

Brian T. Carotenuto

 

[gossame1]

One Image from the accident...

Hello Gang,

I am posting some pictures taken of my car after the accident.

I know it's not a pretty sight, but I promised I'd share what happened with the group.

Brian T. Carotenuto

 

[gossame1]

Here's pic #2

Hello Gang,

Here is pic #2

BTC

 

[gossame1]

Here's #3

Here's #3-It'll be fixed soon.


BTC