Well 25 year record of not being in an accident ended Friday.

So in the parking lot at like 10pm I called the non emergency police number. Because I didnt know and a lot of people in the comments here dont know either. The dispatcher said "If I were you Id come in and make a report. That will protect you if it goes sideways."

so I drove to the station. Pictures, copys of her license, insurance and registration all my paperwork.

I described the situation to the police officer.

His first statement "Do you get the feeling she is trustworthy?"

I said "as far as I can tell, but I dont trust anyone. Tell me what to do. Ive NEVER been in a accident"

"Well, then get a private quote to get it repaired and see if she pays it. I have all the details and all the files. If you get sideways you went and came here right after the accident I can make the report official. "

I asked "is this normal to have someone just pay for the repair?"

"Yes, this is very minor she tapped you with a big SUV. If it goes sideways I will give her a call and that will usually stop the nonsense. It sounds like you did everything right so far"

"You could go to insurance any time you want. You have the report READY to go if you tell me we need to make it official. Save your dashcam footage.. all those great pictures etc. 25 years of doing this. You will be fine"

I didnt know.. this was three local police that advised me when I was sitting in the police station.

so I went home.. got on youtube and figured out how to take it off.. and I did.. no damage underneath.. everything on the passenger side matched the dimensions of the drivers side. No other panels were involved. The parking sensor underneath wasnt damaged. The system still works fine. (minus the sensor saying something is close)

SO I looked found that the panel is easily replaceable and got it ordered.

When I pounded the part back out everything fit nicely.. no plastic is broken.. just went well.

I started thinking too. This isnt a damn ford mustang that will fall apart. You have an offroad toyota Tacoma. This thing can take getting bumped by another car.

I was curious

In doing the various mods Ive done to the truck I have noticed all over, inside.. underneath.. in the engine bay, that a Tacoma is built better than anything I have ever worked on before. So I was curious how this bumper came off.
I took it off.. got under the truck.. Wow.. modular.. it is like the expect you to clip the bumper caps.. Wow.. no broken plastic.. nothing bent in. OK.. how much is the part? That aint bad.. pounded out the other one.. it fit back perfect other than the creases from the plastic being bent. You can hardly tell in person. (So i have a backup)

so here we are.. so far so good.

Total $260

What happend is ZERO difference to me bumping a tree 10 years from now backing out of a mudhole. It will be fine. If not.. Ill post it.

Im not worried one bit. She offered to Venmo me when I give her the final total. If Im not happy with what comes.. i can escalate it.

The only thing I am worried about is that the paint color wont 100% match.. so I was going to call them Tell them the truck is basically brand new. I gave them the right vin and the paint color name. Dont trust the paint code I told them. Their reviews look pretty good.. 5.0 and 89 reviews. Not bad.

 

I appreciate all the comments about my driving record being intact. lol

Police said the same thing. I shouldnt have parked at that bar. I KNEW that.. hell i was waiting for her to move so I could back into 3 spots NEXT to her that just cleared.

NOPE.. <BUMP>

 

Go through your insurance. I had someone hit my truck about two weeks after I bought it. Minor damage; tail light, bumper cap, paint, and a bed sticker. I went through my insurance to pay for it and they recovered the costs including my deductible via subrogation. By doing it this way, I had control of where and how it was repaired, what was replaced, my rental car, and I knew the repairs were quality and used Toyota parts. If you go through her insurance, you have less control over the outcome and her insurance company is interested in reducing their cost. If you deal with her directly, that almost always becomes a hassle when she finds out what the repairs cost and you'll end up playing "Let's make a deal", or having to sue her. More hassles, more BS.

Mine was pretty expensive even though it didn't look like much. I think the sensor recalibration alone was $400. Look out for your interest and don't worry about her nonsense. If you are not at-fault, none of this will raise your rates. It will all get reported to Car Fax no matter what. Get your truck fixed right and get a rental for the time you are without it.

 

Record shows the vehicle being in an accident. A potential buyer could run a Carfax and nope out of the deal. All things being equal, if I am in the market for a Taco and I have to chose from one with an accident on its record and one without, I'm going for the one without.

 

As soon as it's repaired, it will have a CarFax entry.

 

Amazing.. I ordered the painted Toyota Bumper cap OEM part Friday at 3pm Est. 6PM TONIGHT (after calling them to verify the color code - they told me it would ship 10-12 days) I got a UPS shipping notification

So far a fantastic experience.

 

Man that sucks, I’m sorry to see that.

I had a similar thing happen last year. A teenage girl backed into my truck in the parking lot of a restaurant while I was inside.

I only found out who it was because one of the waitresses watched her do it and then try to leave. They stopped her and made her leave a note. At least some people aren’t jerks.

 

congratulations on winning the free HC lottery

You have insurance. Police report is statement of facts documentation to provide to them.
You give them her information.

They issue payment to repair. And then get that money from her insurance.
If it’s not your fault deductible is waived and does not go on your record as an at fault collision to do things like raise rates.

was slightly rear ended. No frame damage. Have pictures. Upgraded rear bumper. Threw out old bent rear bumper.

Not a nope thing.
Bound to happen on any vehicle.
Statistically someone is going to hit you once a year whether that’s a tap In a parking lot when you’re not there or otherwise.

carfax is worthless. They do not report accidents. Easy way to flush $40 down the toilet.

 

Sorry that you got hit, but it doesn't look too bad. Hey, where did you get the CB antenna mount? tia.

 

I have a mount similar, I haven’t finished the radio installation yet, but the mount uses existing 10mm bolts and doesn’t rub the tailgate. OP may have a different one

here is the link:
Rago Fabrication CB Antenna Mount...

$56 CB Antenna Mount or Whip Flag Mount for 2016-2023 Toyota Tacoma 3rd Gen | Passenger Side | Made in The USA | Truck Bed Mounted | Rago Fabrication

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BXR3XDHP?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

 

Thanks, that looks very strong - that's what I'm going for.

 

I did a thread about it.. Was cheap too.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...n-this-combo-is-amazing.816919/#post-29299644

 

Nothing from me to help with this thread, but...

When I first hired on with an airline (1980) and was learning the ropes on the ramp, they told me that if I ever damage an aircraft with any ground equipment to just leave my ID on the seat and go find another job. The repair costs were just way too high to justify keeping me.
(I never damaged anything and am still working at the airline.)

 

I feel your pain....
I backed into a metal box and damaged bumper cap, parking sensor, and BSM module.
I was able to repair the BSM module connector with epoxy, had to replace the parking sensor with a generic one from Amazon, it works.

 

Nice thread! Thanks.

 

I tried those $15 china bsm sensors and they work but only from like 1 foot away. I tried a few of them from Amazon and ebay and they were all the same so eventually I bought an oem one from ebay for about $70 and that one works like the original one (senses from much farther away).

Here's where the truck is facing the garage and only the middle and right sensors are picking up the walls and the china sensor is on the left and not picking up anything. I could also only see it get 1 bar most of the time from a foot away while the others would get 2.

 

Yeah...then the insurance company raises the other parties rates for 5 years after paying out for $400 worth of damage. That's bullshit. Minor stuff like this, just handle between the 2 parties and move on.

 

And if the at-fault person thinks your repairs cost "too much?" What about paying for a rental car? And if you're doing the work yourself, shouldn't you be compensated for your time, just as a shop would be? These situations almost never end well when you try to let the at fault person pay out of pocket. And as far as the at fault person's rates going up, well, it sucks to suck I guess. Don't hit someone's car.

 

Bingo. You have insurance for a reason, use it. If the BSM system stops working a month down the road, guess who is going to tell you to kick rocks? Not an insurance claim.

 

As a side note: plastic parts that are not badly crinkled can be warmed with a hair dryer then a press with the heal of your hand will be returned to original shape.