I had a minor accident in my Ford F150 2004. Only damage was to front bumper. It was just concaved a bit in the center. I was stopped at a traffic signal on a hill and was second in line. Had about 1/2 car length between me and car in front.The elderly gentleman in front either drifted back or reversed into me. I blew the horn, but he hit me anyway. He pulled over to exchange info and admitted fault. Said he had just got the car and was relearning to drive a manual trans vehicle. My truck is in very nice condition, but I thought about just letting it go without filing a claim.Then I thought better. I have full coverage because the truck is very nice and thought what if he says I hit him and what am i paying insurance for anyway.I called his ins co. and reported it. They called back later to say he called and gave the same story as me. Thank goodness for honest people. His Ins. Co. said to take it to their authorized repair center for an estimate.I was then asked if I wanted it repaired or a cash settlement. Does anyone know if the cash settlement is the same as the estimate or do they reduce the amount if cash is taken? The bumper isn't expensive and I can change it myself if I decide to.

 

From my experience you should be able to fix it yourself. The insurance company will give you an estimate and then cut you a check minus your deductible.

 

The problem is what happens when you dig in and find the repair is more than what the claim is if you do it yourself? Get the truck fixed professionally.

 

Good to hear that the guy was honest. If you are going to get it repaired just let insurance take care of it. Don't waste your time on a daily driver. If you want the cash then take the pay out and put the money in your Olds.

 

You typically only pay the deductible when it is your fault.

 

If the other party's carrier is paying your claim, there is no deductible against you. They should pay you the formally agreed damages based on an appraisal completed by the shop of your choice or a licensed appraiser that they send out to inspect your truck.

You'd also be entitled to claim rental reimbursement for costs incurred during the repair period. If you elect to accept a cash-out settlement in lieu of having it repaired, the carrier should include an allowance for anticipated rental costs based on the number of days estimated to repair the bumper.

This should be a fairly simple transaction either way if the damages themselves aren't being disputed. -

 

Unless you are in a "no fault " state like Minn. Then you pay the deductible no matter what, you make a claim you pay the deductible.

 

If you don't want it to show up on carfax, take the insurance chk payable to you. Fix it yourself or take it to a body shop of your choice.
Pay them cash and explain that you don't want a minor accident to show up on the carfax.

 

The issue you're going to run into is the fact that even though he admitted fault to you, with out a police report his ins company will reject the claim. Yours might as well due to the nature of the collision.
The only way that you would be able to prove that you did not hit him would be video evidence. With out that, I wouldn't expect much from his insurance.

 

Police reports are helpful but not necessary. Nothing wrong with exchanging info and parting ways. Take the cash and then decide whether to get it fixed.

 

If an insurance company issues a check it will be on carfax.

 

If you do not mind the report on Carfax, let his insurance pay for it and a professional fix it. I do not know about rules in different states but in Maryland his insurance pays the whole thing and there is no deductible for you to pay. Also, I do not know what you consider "expensive" but bumpers can get up there. My wife's Santé Fe had her rear bumper tapped by someone and their insurance paid for fixing it. But between a new bumper, paint and replacing one of the brackets behind the bumper, total cost to the guy's insurance was $3200.

 

I'd take $3200.00 and run as fast as I can. It is a chrome bumper. I think I saw them online for under $200.00It looks like minor damage, but you guys are right, I just don't know. I have an appointment tomorrow morning at a repair center his ins co. told me to go to. It is a Ford dealership. I'll let you know what the estimate is.

 

If the bumper can't be economically repaired, the shop will either write it for an aftermarket replacement if available (new) or a LKQ (used) replacement - I'd be surprised if they wrote it for a new OEM part (assuming still available) unless that was their last option. And considering it's a 2004 model, doubtful they'd write it repairable at all for $3200 v. totaling the truck out if damages got that high. Insurers typicall total vehicles out at about 70-75% of their ACV and $3k is about all that truck may be worth, give or take a few hundred.

Assuming repairable, you'll get the same claim value outcome regardless of whether you cash out or have the truck fixed - only way you'd save $$ on the back end on a cash-out deal is if you had a local shop connection who agreed to fix it at a discount below what you collected. As to Carfax reporting, it's a 2004. I wouldn't be worried about it at this point in the truck's life...

 

A bumper OEM FORD under $200 ? NEW ??

Good luck at the dealership. If other guy insurance is paying , Let FORD dealer install the new one and be done unless there is some crazy co=pay or deductible that you would be on the hook for

All the best

 

I had something similar occur - someone backed into the rear quarter panel of my F250. The way my insurance company handled it was for me to take my vehicle in for an estimate to their (my insurance company's) chosen professional auto body repair shop, my insurance company rep met me at the auto body repair shop where they received the estimate, my insurance company cut me a check for the same amount as the estimate on the spot, and then my insurance company was reimbursed from the other insurance company. I did not pay any deductible. I did nothing other than show up. They also covered the expense of a rental for the amount of time I was without a vehicle. I didn't even have to have my vehicle repaired at the auto body shop which performed the estimate. In fact, I had a different auto body shop I had been very happy with who had performed previous work for me perform the repair at the same price estimate. This is North Carolina - we are an At Fault Insurance state.

 

I have someone hit my bumper at least every other year. As long as you are comfortable with the settlement that is all that matters. I can get a bumper for my van for about $150.00 and it takes about an hour to change it out. The last time, a painter backed out of a driveway and hit my van parked across the street so I just settled for $200.00. He gave me cash and nobody's insurance was notified.

 

If insurance covers (pays) claim it will sell the info to Carfax.

In my experience (30+ yrs managing body shop) that $200 Tong Yang bumper will last MAYBE 2 Pittsburgh winters before it looks like it was blasted with a blunderbuss full of rust pellets. A quality aftermarket U.S. made chrome bumper will cost $400-600, OEM likely $100-200 more than that. OE typically superior chrome, coated on back side, properly shaped holes in the right places, etc. Insurance company will try to give you AT BEST the good aftermarket but much more likely the cheaply unless your vehicle is within 12/12 of new or you really state your case, possibly through 2-3 layers of management + promising not to go after diminished value claim.

Not to say these are absolute givens but very much the trend. If you get a cheapy paint the back side w/ POR-15 and keep the chrome waxed regularly, same w/ waxing the OE. Apply a coating of wax rustproofing or similar to the back side of either and you greatly increase the life expectancy of the bumper.

We have a very aggressive buying program through Ford dealer that frequently helps us buy OE at a price where we can bypass upper line aftermarket parts or have the customer pay $50-150 to get the real deal which IMO is money well spent if the fight is not fruitful or worth your time & exasperation.

 

Done deal. They are going to send a check for $844.00. Ford said the bumper is around $240.00 new from Ford with a Ford part number. I don't know if that means OE or something else. I have some doubt if Ford still makes these bumpers new.

 

That's what I dont like about the carfax. Not enough detail. I'd buy a car with minor sheet metal damage or involved in a minor bender with details of what was damaged, but certainly, shy away from anything deeper.
Its an advantage for you when you are looking at a used vehicle with a negative fax and a disadvantage when you trade it in. Craptastic!
The fax will say "been involved in an accident" and or will state "frame damage" if it occurred but in my experience, it's not enough detail.
I traded a truck in with a negative fax. It was hit from the rear and dinged the bumper. Big deal right? The other econo crap box that hit me was totaled. That's why I like F250s But that was worth 5K off the trade for a bumper dent. Im not sure about the whole carfax thing. It needs to be tunned up with more detail to be worth a sheet. Or better yet not entered into the system at all. Fix it yourself. Eat the few hung. You will be happier when its time to trade/sell.