Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

[RC]

My daughter has been driving for nearly two years with no accidents. Yesterday she hit a sign post. (02 Durango) She says she swerved for a cat but I believe she was distracted by either her music or her phone. The damage was to the bumper, bumper cover, grill, A/C radiator (not sure proper name), small dent in front of hood and some other minor damage. Not sure if we should report this or not. The car will certainly need repair but maybe the bumper, cover, grill, and A/C can be done by myself? We could live with the hood dent for a while but this is what I tow my boat with so it would need to be repaired at some point. Worried what the insurance rates will be for her/us after this. Am looking for some advice and this place always has lots of it. What do you all think we should do?

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

I guess that depends on your deductible ?

 

[rjlipscomb]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

I'd call my agent and ask what the increase would be by reporting it. He is or should be on your side. And, he should know.
I'd compare the cost of repair, less deductible to the increase if any. Usually, there is little increase due to one or two small accidents (my experience and my experience only). Three or more and you could be looking for new insurance.

Good luck.

 

[lowkee]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Some insurance will give you a waiver for the first claim (no upping of rates), only because they know if you ever switch, your rates will be higher elsewhere, so they have you hostage from now on. That said, I would make the choice by informed decision.

Go to a crash place and get an estimate on repair. If it crazy high, then you may want to file a claim. If it is reasonable, do the work yourself or pay out of pocket. As a nice cheat, you can ask for an itemized estimate so you will know what to order. Keep in mind, you don't have to fix everything or do everything yourself. If you are afraid to fix a radiator yourself, dismantle it all and have them replace it, then finish it up yourself.

You have tons of options, it isn't just a question of claim or no claim. Your deductible could buy most of the parts you need, especially if you aren't anal about vehicle appearance.

EDIT: I forgot to mention, if you financed or leased your vehicle, you may be required to have it repaired by a qualified shop. Car loans, if you read them, require the vehicle to be professionally, and fully, repaired after any accident. They do this to cover themselves in the case of repo.

 

[RC]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Thanks, some good advice so far. It's been years since we've filed a claim so this really helps. Our deductible is $500 and the car is paid for. Biggest concern is what could happen with our rates. I do want the car repaired right and time is a bit of a concern. I will call our agent and run it by them.

 

[ziggy]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

if ya can pay yourself, i think the less you report the better off you'll be...

it's been a while since i had an incendent. but, a few years ago i backed my trailer hitch ball into someones grill that parked right behind my van. 6-$700 of damage. i told them i'd take care of it w/o going through insurance. they insisted i give them my insurance info though. well, they told my insurance company about it. while i paid for the repair myself and a claim was never filed. my rates still went up....

 

[RC]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Just got off the phone with the insurance company. The dollar threshold they use when they consider a rate increase from a claim is $750. I found that hard to believe. What kind of accident is going to result in a claim for less than $750. Anyway, they were able to give me an idea of what would happen with our rates. An increase of $260/$270 per six months. This accident would follow my daughter for 3 years with this company (Geico) and maybe longer with another company. We've been thinking about dropping our collision coverage since this car is an 02 and is an SUV and has lost much of its value. The six month premium is $264. Dropping that with the increase would be a break even. But if something happened again we would be in trouble. Although it likely wouldn't take much more damage to total the car.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

my sister had Geico, nephew, dodging a rehab bus, that ran a stop sign, hit a fire hydrant. took out the complete front end of his Toyota 4 runner. insurance did not go up.

 

[gonefishie]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

If a police report was filed then you might as well call it in because the rate is going to go up, unless you have accident forgiveness like State Farms.

 

[JRJ]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Was the accident reported to the police?

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Get an estimate for repair and go from there.

 

[bsktball55]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

when I was in high school I had an accident. I was going to fast and fishtailed into a guardrail. The cost to repair my car was $1800. We turned it into our insurance and they jacked up my rates $900 a year for the next three years. I learned from that experience. That was 10 years ago, but the insurance company is going to get their money back so unless it is going to cost a lot to fix, I would look at paying for it yourself.

 

[Fly Rod]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Every state is different.

Check with insurance company to see if you will be paying a higher premium.

Estimate from autobody shop. You have 500 deductible. Then determine if you should put a claim in with insurance co. or pay out of pocket.

In Mass. a person at fault would pay an extra premium of about 400 dollars per year for four years above the current premium. A person under 21 in Mass would get socked for more.

 

[scoutabout]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

I'd try to avoid the claim if at all possible. Accidents with youngsters at the wheel are going to cost you considerable money over several years. Unfortunately it sounds like that one is going to cost you a couple grand anyway if done professionally. If nothing structural is damaged replacing all of those parts is pretty straightforward if you are handy.

On a realated topic, how about working out a bit of a payback arrangement with your daughter? Obviously she'll have limited resources and you don't want to be too hard on her but maybe it couldn't hurt to have her feel a bit of this if you think it truly was carelessness.

 

[joed]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Stopped at a red light I was rear end about 6 months ago. 07 explorer 4 door. New hitch, bumper and rear gate. Totally paid by other guy but bill was $5200. Auto repair isn't cheap especially if you have damage to AC.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

The damage was to the bumper, bumper cover, grill, A/C radiator (not sure proper name), small dent in front of hood and some other minor damage...

A/C radiator is called the A/C Condenser, for future reference.

If the body labor rates where you are at are anywhere near $50/hr, what you have described is in the neighborhood of $2500 damage, if the bumper needs to be replaced and the hood can be repaired. If the hood can't be repaired, and/or there is radiator support damage, then you are talking $4000. Used parts may be an option, since PLENTY of those vehicles were taken in on the Clash for Clunkers. Either way, WAY WAY WAY above the threshold for a rate increase.

Is it worth paying $500 deductible, then pay $1500 more in a premium increase over the next three years? I would think so, but maybe not.

This all may be a moot point if the government entity that owns the sign sends you the bill for its replacement. You're gonna be shocked at that amount. And worse, if they send the bill to Geico, and they pay it, your rates are going up, even if you don't turn in the Durango damage!

 

[roscoe]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Easy answer.

Drop the collision coverage.
Repair what NEEDS to be fixed to remain functional and safe.
Leave the dents and scratches be.
Don't let the daughter drive any of the other vehicles.

Cars don't need to be pretty, and you'll go broke trying to keep them pretty forever.

 

[sprintst]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

If she said "swerved to hit a cat" I'd say no problem...I'll pickup the tab

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Easy answer.

Drop the collision coverage.
Repair what NEEDS to be fixed to remain functional and safe.
Leave the dents and scratches be.
Don't let the daughter drive any of the other vehicles.

Cars don't need to be pretty, and you'll go broke trying to keep them pretty forever.

I disagree. Answer is not easy.
Can you really afford to lose $6000+ if it became a total loss? That's just about the minimum a 2002 Durango is worth. (And I based that on a 2wd SLT with 120k miles) If you've got $6000 laying around, sure drop the collision coverage. If not, keep it.
Repairing what needs to be repaired will cost $1000 easy, and then you have a beat up truck that is not worth as much, and if it's damaged later, you are gonna lose money due to prior damage or reduced value.
Minor dents and scratches can be left alone, sure.
Let her drive whatever vehicles you want.
A little bit of effort, not a ton of money keeps a vehicle looking nice. A nice looking vehicle stays worth more and makes you feel better about it.
Best of luck to you.

 

[RC]

Re: Teenager Car accident / Insurance Question

Well, decided to go the insurance route. I just don't have the time to mess with it and we need it back in service. Think it may be worth it in the long run. I want to keep this as a part time vehicle to tow the boat with so I would like it in as best condition as possible. No govt entity will be sending a bill anywhere because no one saw it happen! And yes, daughter will chip in and pay the $500 deductible as long is it takes.