Model S Rear Ended Hit-And-Run

[Brett]

Last night at ~7:30pm, I was rear ended while stopped at a light, actually listening to Ryan's "Ride the Lightning" podcast. I was northbound on Figueroa, in the left turn lane to make a left (West) on Olympic Blvd, right outside Staples Center. There was a Kings game and hundreds of people and traffic police were out.

I took a few seconds to process what happened, then got out of the car. As soon as I closed my door, the driver that hit me made a U-Turn and headed south on Figueroa. I yelled to the traffic cops, "Stop her, hit and run!!!". It was actually quiet. Everyone heard it and looked. The traffic cops tried to stand in front of her and block her, she drove up on curb and got around them. It was a whole scene. I got back in my car, made the same u-turn, and the traffic cops told me through the window, "She got away, we didn't get a plate, we saw her make a right (West) on Pico, you can catch her". Really. That's what they said. Sigh. Like I'm going to chase someone like that.

Damage is minor, I'm OK. I'm so careful about my car. I park far away. I rarely valet. Now this. Could have been worse. These things happen sometimes.

I really should have installed my DashCam by now. It's sitting in my garage in a box. Argh...

Should I go through my insurance company? That's what they're there for, right?

 

[taurusking]

Sorry to hear this.

My car was hit when parked and nobody left a note...I ended up filing uninsured motorist claim with my insurance. Still had to pay the deductible though.

In few days before even the car was repaired...I had dual dash cam installed.:smile:

You should do the same as well. Dash cam are worth each and every penny. There are some owners who will disagree with me though.

 

[sorka]

I would never own something like a Tesla without something like a dual channel BlackVue.

 

[vdiv]

This sux. Glad you're OK.

If having a dashcam is considered such an important feature then I really hope that Tesla builds it in every car. It already has the cameras and it has the media SD card, though it would be better to be able to use and external USB drive. Wonder how many people with a leased Tesla would consider adding a dashcam.

 

[Festerfeet]

Sorry to hear about your unfortunate incident, pleased no one was hurt at least.

That's disappointing that the police are encouraging a civilian to chase a hit and run. Maybe policing is different in the US

 

[Edmond]

I would rather be the one in charge of my dashcams than anyone else. Otherwise my car could be subpoenaed to testify against me.

 

[AB4EJ]

Whether you should file on insurance or not depends on your deductible. If your deductible is $1000 and the damage can be fixed for $1100, I wouldn't file it and have it on my record, because it might drive up next year's premiums; but of course that's your call...

 

[vdiv]

I would rather be the one in charge of my dashcams than anyone else. Otherwise my car could be subpoenaed to testify against me.

Your stand-alone dashcam can be subpoenaed too. In fact the blackvue has a hi-fi recording of all your humming and singing along with the radio while driving and is saving it in a cloud folder called blackmail

 

[MsElectric]

Sorry to hear about what happened but at least it is minor damage.

Another reason to have a dual channel dash cam.

I wish someone would make a high quality 1080P front and rear dash cam but with encryption for video files.

 

[ryanjm]

I'd say thanks for listening to the podcast, Brett, but I'm totally angry on your behalf instead. What the other driver did was reckless, especially after the incident occurred. Glad you're OK and hopefully your car will be good as new again soon!

 

[CHG-ON]

After reading other posts about the value of the cams, that is exactly why I got the Blackvue dual cam. Hopefully I'll never need it for that. Sorry to hear about it.

 

[vdiv]

Looks like your car will need a new bumper shell, it has to be painted, and there may be damage behind it. I would call insurance even if you have a high deductible. However I would consult with Tesla service for a recommended body shop to do the work. You will probably have to get a new HOV sticker too. But hey, if everything goes smoothly you may have you car back in a week looking perfect.

I had a CR-V back into the front bumper of my Volt, smashing the turn signal as well. Didn't get the driver info either. If I remember correctly the body shop was able to fix the bumper shell into shape and replaced the turn signal assembly for just under a thousand dollars and with my $1,000 deductible I did not file an insurance claim.

 

[whitex]

Come on, something outran your P90D? ;-) Personally, I would have chased just to get the plate, then circle back to get the badge numbers of the cops who witnessed it and have them file a report - that's worth at least what your deductible is plus whatever your insurance will increase sue to a collision claim. If you wanted to do more, call 911 while chasing and inform them that you are chasing the vehicle and since a P90D is very expensive to fix tell them you believe that the person you are chasing has committed a felony (damage above some threshold amount - 911 operator may even tell you what that amount is) and therefore are you going to perform a citizen's arrest using the necessary force to do so - that's likely to get their attention to come help you. Cops are people, policing is their work. They don't want to do work any more than they have to, just like employees on any other job - if they can, they will usually try to stay out of things. Once you tell them you're going to physically confront the person and they can't talk you out of it, they know they'll have to go there anyways so might as well get involved before things get ugly. IANAL

 

[Max*]

If you wanted to do more, call 911 while chasing and inform them that you are chasing the vehicle

The cops will ask which road and mile-marker you're at, and ask you to pull over to the shoulder safely (at least here in VA)

Ask me how I know?

 

[Brett]

Update: I spoke with DC Autocraft in Burbank and they assured me the car will look good as new. I did file a claim with Progressive and am waiting to hear back from them. I want this fixed ASAP and DC Autocraft can take the car Monday.

I'll have to do a "damage sticker" replacement submission with CA DMV.

I also contacted Elie at Al & Ed's for my BlackVue.

 

[y2kcurt]

Took over 3 months to get parts from tesla after my rear ending. Hopefully you wont run into the same issues, but I wouldnt count on getting them as quick as you would think/hope. Just trying to help set a better emotional expectation for you...just in case.

 

[ElectricTundra]

Really sorry about what happened to you. I'm wondering what kind of cops you have that didn't get make, model, color, license, and driver description? One (or more?) were able to attempt stopping the car and should very easily have been able to provide quite detailed descriptive info. That's a very basic element of cop academy (and it is a part of traff school for those that only do that).

 

[whitex]

The cops will ask which road and mile-marker you're at, and ask you to pull over to the shoulder safely (at least here in VA)

Ask me how I know?

I agree. However 911 operator is not the law, and you don't have to do what they say (actually they are usually very careful to word what they say as suggestions). They don't want to liable for things.

Ask me how I know ;-)