Model 3 rear-ended in stop-and-go, slight rear bumper damage - go through insurance?

[kai2002]

Hey,

our Model 3 got rear-ended in stop-and-go on the 101 in LA at like 5mph (a story as old as time). Wife even accelerated a bit to avoid collision but no luck. Other person at fault, other party has insurance. Got dashcam video from accident:

https://imgur.com/a/5zCZrbJ

Got dents + scratches in the rear bumper, went to Tesla approved body shops, got quotes over $1850. See pics.

The other party offered to pay out-of-pocket to avoid her insurance going up. Only got the body shop quote this morning, gotta check if she's still willing to pay that much. I was wondering if we should just keep the cash and not get it fixed (or just filled) since everything works and I don't really care and rather bank the money. Also, I have the suspicision this is gonna happen again at some point anyway.

Few concerns about going through insurance:
- accident might show up in Carfax and therefore diminished value? (biggest one)
- bumper won't match color-wise?
- will have to get rental car and all that although we're both working from home right now

How do I make sure I'm getting reimbursed for diminished value?

Thanks guys!

- Kai

 

[UncertainTimes]

If the damage is all cosmetic and you don’t care and the at fault driver is willing to just give you cash then I’d keep the cash

 

[jjrandorin]

When the person that hit them hears "its $1850" they are likely going to suddenly say "no way its that expensive, you are just trying to rip be off, I know a person who knows a guy who says that should be $150 tops".

Its unlikely their insurance would go up enough to cover $1850 over three users. they are offering to pay because they think its going too be " a couple hundred dollars, for a bumper".

At least, that is what my money is on Op finding out. I would personally just get it fixed, because its unlikely the person is going to pay enough in cash to actually cover it.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

We had a similar low speed incident in one of our Model 3s a while back. The guy was in his work van and offered to pay instead of going through insurance. The rear bumper looked fine except for two tiny screw holes from the work van's license plate. We got a quote of less than $1200 for a new bumper installed by Tesla. After confirming the repair with Tesla and the other guy, we scheduled the repair. When Tesla was finished installing it, they called the guy and he paid via credit card. Had he tried backing out, we had everything on dashcam and would've gone through his insurance.

 

[richrootes]

Insurance every time. The other party might be in the habit of such encounters, and keeping them off of their driving history enables them to continue unpunished

 

[kai2002]

Thanks for the replies so far - yeah that's kind of what I'm thinking too, might just be too much for that person, I'll send her the estimate later today.

My other concerns:
1. Will this go onto the carfax? Do all body shops report this?
2. Will the value go down and if yes, how will I get diminshed value reimbursement?

 

[jelloslug]

Take the cash and fix it yourself. A factory painted rear bumper cover is ~$900 from your local Tesla Service Center and installation is 2 hours of labor. If there is no insurance claim, there will be no Carfax note.

 

[GeorgeC1]

Be aware that most insurance companies require accidents to be reported within a certain time frame after the accident. If you call the other guys insurance company a month after the accident don’t be surprised if they ignore you.

 

[usb3]

What did you end up going with OP?

 

[CKwik240]

Be aware that most insurance companies require accidents to be reported within a certain time frame after the accident. If you call the other guys insurance company a month after the accident don’t be surprised if they ignore you.

Only to your own insurance and they can only deny your claim of the delay materially affects the outcome. It's a complicated matter to deny a loss for this reason.

For the other person's insurance, only the statue of limitations matter. Unless they try to deny coverage to their insured for the same matter above.

A month is nothing to work about...

 

[Hiline]

Yeah I don’t know if I’d take a hit on the carfax report just to make the other driver pay via his driving record and insurance. A car with an accident, especially a car this highly valued, is going to be a hard sell.