Located in Southern California
My passenger dinged the middle of another parked car while getting out of my vehicle. The driver was still in the other car, cussed out my passenger, told him to be more careful after my passenger apologized, and we left it at that. Later on the driver knocked on my family member’s door claiming his mirror was dented and he needed my insurance info so we could pay for the damage. On the day of the incident, driver said he would like to handle this as cheap as possible outside of insurance but ideally have entire mirror replaced as his car was brand new. Driver sent me a quote from dealer for the entire mirror despite the damage only being this scratch on the cover. I personally called the place the driver got the quote from and the parts guy said the cover can be replaced on its own if the mirror assembly is not damaged (which it’s not unless the driver tries to say it is), thus making the cost much more reasonable, by at least $400.
Picture of damage from day of incident: https://imgur.com/a/YgKjYiS
Quote from dealer for full mirror replacement: https://imgur.com/a/fE7BBy1
Is the driver justified to request this? If I went through my insurance would they typically agree to replace the whole part or argue that was not necessary given the damage and only agree to pay for the paint?
Passenger dinged another driver’s mirror while parked. Is the driver’s request justified given damage?
byu/daphcrav inInsurance
Posted by daphcrav
8 Comments
If it’s not damaged then it doesn’t be repaired or replaced. He isn’t entitled to replace parts that don’t need replacing because they were not damaged by your passenger. From the photo it looks like the cover can be replaced and that’s more than reasonable given the minor scratch. The dealer shouldn’t be doing more than needed to return it to pre-incident condition.
File a claim with your insurance and let them deal with the guy. You’d be liable for your passenger in this situation but you have better things to do than argue with someone over what you owe. This is what you have insurance for, let them handle it.
You pay that and they’ll pocket the $408 and just have the cover fixed.
Let your insurance company handle it, that will ensure they’re only paying what is owed.
If your client admitted they dinged the car, like your title says, they damaged another vehicle and are liable for it.
Are you stupid?
I see the scuff and that won’t come out. I rarely say pay out pocket, but this is cheap in general. Tell them to get a quote from a BODY SHOP. Dealerships charge quadruple as its mechanical, and this is a body repair.
I would try to reason with the guy to just pay for the cost of the mirror cover. If he is not willing to settle for the cover replacement only, then buy the guy a new mirror. You could ask your passenger if they would be willing to go in 50/50 on the cost.
The reason I am making this suggestion is because you have to think, how much will your monthly premiums increase if the guy files a claim. This would be an at-fault accident on your insurance. You would probably come out cheaper overall by just buying a mirror than going through your insurance.
There’s no way this is worth filing a claim. Talk to the guy, maybe get the dealer to print out the parts diagram and show him that the cover is replaceable, he might not have that information because he might not have asked the right question at the parts counter.
You owe it to him to restore his car back to its original condition. If you reason with him he shouldn’t make you pay more than you need to. And your friend should pay for half of the final cost if not all of it.
Again, don’t make an insurance claim unless you absolutely have to.
Would this even be a covered loss for OP?
I feel like this is a comprehensive claim for the other driver. Just like if a kid on a bike hits your car.
The car was stationary, and the passenger was the one operating the door.