So one of my vehicles isn't fully insured, only if I cause damage or if it's stolen or burnt.
Today I saw a "lady" hit it with her car door which left a big scratch, taking the paint right back. As I approached she took off. I got her rego details though.
What are my options now?
(I will be pursuing the matter with the local bikie club also.)
Technically it is… it is illegal to leave the scene of an accident (regardless of how severe)
The woman hit the car with her door (HIT)
She got in her car and left (RUN)
HIT + RUN = HIT AND RUN
Rubbish. Try and prove it. No chance, I have given OP the best advise.
it happens all the time in crowded car parks and not so crowed ones.
i was sitting in the driver seat waiting for someone. a benz came and parked front first next to my side. the lady driver alighted and hit the side of our vehicle with her door. she turned around and looked at the passenger asking if they wanted something from the shop, then left as if nothing had happened. it left a 20 cent dent on the side panel.
I assume you returned gesture when you got out to look at the damage ;)
You just let them leave? How could you possibly not confront them when they damaged your vehicle in front of you?
confront her and do what? i had no dashcam vid and no third party witness. it would be a she said, i said situation.
The paint of her car in your car…
Her car damaged in the spot that hit yours?
You absolutely correct. Everyone here a bunch of wanna be lawyers who have no idea.
Smack her posh face into her car (if your a lady) if not kick in her window…
Smack her posh face into her car (if your a lady) if not kick in her window
counter-productive.
Evidence?
That's what I was thinking too. Even though I witnessed her do it, I don't have any recorded evidence or witnesses.
make a police report, they will contact her and get her details for you.
she will probably be scared enough to make a claim through her insurance (if she has any) or allow you to commence civil proceedings against her to recover your costs.
I might give it a go. To be honest, I don't care too much about the scratch. I can fix it myself pretty easily. It's the fact that she took off with a shitty look on her face when she knows I saw her and approached her. I probably would have told her not to worry about it. It would be good just to give her a little bit of a scare so she doesn't get away scott free!
@subywagon: If you can fix it yourself and dont really care, just move on with your life
The world isnt fair and just
Mark from the other vehicle.
Cops wont do anything unless the lady admits to it. Had someone hit me and drive off, got the rego and went to the cops, they called him up and he denied it, because i didnt have any witnesses it was my word vs his and nothing they could do..
That's incorrect! They should investigate it by looking at her vehicle and see if it's consistent with the right spot/damaging panel and paintwork etc and look to see if there are any CCTV footage of where the car was parked etc and ask questions as to who was driving the car and where was it at a certain time and place ….
@caferider: it was while we were driving down a main road, he tried to sneak into a right turn lane and hit the rear panel. He continued to turn so we followed him and got his rego before he lost us in traffic. We were advised by cops we should have stayed at initial spot and asked for witnesses details however wouldnt have gotten the rego if we did that
Correct!
They should investigate it by looking at her vehicle and see if it's consistent with the right spot/damaging panel and paintwork etc
to much csi?
@caferider: you watch to much CSI… The cops just gonna go meh, it's not worth the effort, not pulling prints and DNA to prove they drove lol.
@Slippery Fish: I was a cop , and that's what I/we did… if the copper you spoke to brushed it off, he is lazy… insist in speaking to his Sgt or senior Sgt
I was a cop , and that's what I/we did
why would you as a police officer investigate what looks like to be a civil property dispute?
@whooah1979: because it's an offense to not stop if you're involved in an accident and not report it and an offense when you fail to exchange name and address.
That person committed several offenses and therefore is enough to pursue those offenses if the evidence is there.
We do it all the time and if it's out of our patrol area, a brief is sent to the closes station of the offenders address for an officer to investigate/interview the offender and provide that to the initial officer. It's no csi crap you're referring to , it's real!
I will say this again, if the officer you reported it to fobbed you off, speak to his sgt!
bikies
Why is "lady" in quotes?
Coulda had a dik, drove off before op could check
Sexism: real ladies wouldn't do it or something.
Neither would a gentleman.
A true 'lady' wouldn't slam her door into a car and walk off…. hence the quotes.
A true lady will wait for a gentleman to open and close the car door.
Cops will send her a fine, but you'll still need to take her to court to get any money out of her. You can't claim costs in local court either…
going to be difficult to any money from her.
Cops Wll NOT send her a fine. Only if they attend the scene and then only maybe. They leave this up to insurance companies to sort out.
So bottom line is that OP should have had comprehensive car insurance. Thier miskake really!
Yet another example of skimping on car insurance and then asking us to bail them out. OMG!
So bottom line is that OP should have had comprehensive car insurance.
What makes you think the insurance company would take the OPs side?
This happened to me once. I gave their rego and a description of the driver to the cops.
In the end it was a complete waste of time. They went to the guys house and spoke with the guy who matched my description and he denied everything. The cops then said you can exchange addresses if you like. The cops assured me the guy didn't have a record. But I let it go.
Happens all too often.
Wear your OzB membership with pride and drive a shitter instead. Heaps around Launy. Even more when students are leaving.
Yes, I always drive used cars purchased for no more than $5,000. Much easier to just write-off such incidents. Much cheaper comprehensive car insurance too!
In order to get the damage fixed to your vehicle (if that is what you want to do) and NOT lose your no claim bonus, you need the details of the other party that allegedly caused the damage. If you cannot provide this then the insurer will charge you an excess and it is likely you will lose your no claim bonus. If it is only a small dent, I would not bother, and get it fixed by a mobile dent repair company (We have them here in Adelaide) they come to your house or workplace and (in most cases) can remove the dent without damaging the paintwork. If not, then you may have to go to a crash repair workshop or just live with the dent.
OP doesnt appear to have comprehensive car insurnance. Yes, another one. OMG!
Police dont care. Its not really a car accident. You have No options. bad luck. Thats how it goes. Just give it a polish with cutting compound or Kitten No.2 polishing cream and it will mostly go away. Thats life.
Mate you sound like you have a chip on your shoulder
You are making incorrect statements…
1) The police WILL investigate as an accident occurred and one party is asking them too.
2) The woman left the scene which is a crime no matter how severe the accident (or minor in this case)
3) The OP has plenty of options and they have been spelled out here
I personally had a similar situation, i was insured however but i did not see how it was fair i should pay an excess when i was not at fault. I had the rego of the car, i went to police, about 2 days later they provided me with the other drivers contact information, the insurance companies communicated and my car was repaired at the other parties cost (my insurance company sued them for the money)
The other party had insurance but they would not pay as the other party commuted a crime and was charged with leaveing the scene of an accident.
Do not claim police do not care, regardless of how minor if an accident occurs they WILL investigate if you provide them with enough grounds to do so.. in may case the rego was enough.
Dream on buddy. This is the reality of policing today.
Police have more important things to do than to chase people for minor scratches. This is left to insurance companies to sort out.
You can report the matter at a police station and fill out a form and thats as far as it goes.
I will guarantee you that the woman will just deny the incident and that will be the end of it.
Police will only attend an incident if the damage is significant and someone has been injured.
Should have immediately done it back to her car. Not really obviously.
Ahh…. the good old Australian driving culture and "right of way".
How everyone deserves to "be on the road". How we are so lenient with driving offences, yet everyone believes people are capable of exceeding our speed limits by 900%
The police really won't care. They can help you get her details and put you in touch with her.
No insurance? You will have to spend your own time, money (be prepared to spend lots of money here) in order to try get a cent from her. Get the damages values, letters from solicitors, time in small claims court etc. Dude, maybe she didn't even run into your car? It is just your word against hers. Maybe all that time, money and effort will be wasted when and if court time arrives?
Your best bet would be to go down to super cheap auto, grab some spray-paint and do a quick respray of your door so there is no rust and leave it at that. It is just a car. It's ok to get a scratch. The scratch hasn't impacted the cars ability to move you from one point to another.
The police really won't care. They can help you get her details and put you in touch with her.
why should the police use valuable resources to assist op with what sounds like a civil matter? neither parties were driving at the time of the alleged event.
True; they will probably turn you away.
This is why I love my dash cam, caught 1 person out of 2 accidents, that hit the side of my card, dash cam is hardwired with a 128GB microSD card, always recording, got the number plate and everything, evidence was that the cam shook no other cars in view. I didn't file a hit and run, after reading these comments I should, I just let the insurance company deal with it.
This is why i like parking next to walls/corners/pillars, less foot traffic and cars next to mine. I need a cam for the back though, dashcam for the front only atm.
I've got a dash cam. I should look into hardwiring it too. I wouldn't have caught the plate though due to the angles, but mayb epicked up the car door hitting. In my next vehicle I get when updating, there will be cameras all over the show! lol Plus it will be a bit more expensive, so full insurance.
I normally park next to walls and away etc, but it was rainy and I had kids… I had an ominous feeling too and I wasn't surprised when it happened!
I wonder if would be a good investment to put a 360 camera on top of the car instead!
is that dash cam hardwired to the car battery? or it has a lithium battery?
what exactly is the dashcam btw?
i'm thinking of getting one
You get a "adapater" for example, the dashcam would most likely be 5V different current draw depending on the camera you buy, car battery is 12V.
Most known dash cam brands will include one in a kit, or you can buy them from the store, or it can be powered by the cigarette power.
Cars have multiple circuits, things that stay on 24/7 for example the clock, or the radio where it only comes on when you start power on the accessories.
If you want the camera to record 24/7, obviously wire it to that circuit vs accessories. Also get a large 128GB MicroSD card, to have a nice library of recordings if needed.
Simple solution.Use your mobile phone take pics from your car damage area & her car number plate ( try take her image as well if u can ).
Ask her ID details for insurance claim.
( if she walk away !!)
1-report to police.
2-smash her car window & drive off.
If u have new car. I suggest u always park next to other new car ( avoid next to L or P plate , also never next to old cars ).
I always park that way and only had 2 little dents with my 3years old RAV4.
Park further away from people, wayyyy away from them
Don't look for spots out the front of shops and walk the 20meters
You need to report it to the police as a "hit and run"..
https://www.police.wa.gov.au/Traffic/Reporting-a-traffic-cra…
Link for WA