[Tanqueray]

I was traveling on the right lane on a three lane road. Right lane was ending so I turn on my signal and saw that there was a car on my left but I knew he saw me and was able to make a close but safe lane change.

But he decided to gas up and push right next to me, which got me worked up... I'm such an idiot for getting lured into it... I stepped on my gas and I tried to enter and his passenger side tire contacted my driver rear side side skirt and rear fender right above the rear wheel.

Nothing is bent, dented or loose. The paint on skirt and lower portion of the door is burned from rubber and fender is very lightly scratched.

So this other driver gets out of the car and starts getting very aggressive in no time. I asked him to exchange information and be on our way, he says things like "I want you to pay for the damage you've done to the car" (his car had same extent of very light damage; same rubber burn on paint and very minor scratched). And he also claimed that curb rashes on his rims are from the incident (at which I laughed pretty hard)

So it this case, I understand I'm mostly, if not all, at fault. I can take that and call up my insurance on Monday. However, what I'm wondering is, what if that guy claims other damages that I'm not responsible to the insurance company (i.e. curb rashes).

Also, is it worth mentioning to the insurance company that he actually sped up when he saw me trying to enter his lane? How do I prove it? I don't mind being 100% at fault for my sake but I don't want him to get away with no fault claim.

Thanks for the help guys.

p.s. I'm glad this is just a rear side skirt repaint and bottom of door repaint and rear plastic fender replacement. Nothing being is broken and my rims are fine

 

[Monsoon]

Hey Glad you're ok. Never admit anything(fault). Do not apologize. Let your insurance company work it out. You can say he hit you. Say what you have to...you entered the lane safely and he changed lanes and sped up ...whatever. Don't admit a thing. Do so and you're at fault.

 

[Tanqueray]

Hey Glad you're ok. Never admit anything(fault). Do not apologize. Let your insurance company work it out. You can say he hit you. Say what you have to...you entered the lane safely and he changed lanes and sped up ...whatever. Don't admit a thing. Do so and you're at fault.

Thank you for that advice. I will tell the insurance company the facts. I was doing a lane change and he sped up to block me (which can be partially proved by the fact my rear is damaged beyond the rear door)

My wife also in the car and she was amazed by that guy's behavior before and after the accident.

 

[Ohio Joe]

First off its good no one was injuired. The other guy sounds like a jerk... Did you get a police report? Normally I would say that the report may add to your grief but from what you said I would be concerned thay guy may start talking about hit & run... I would agree with above about contacting insurance an see what they say. Good luck!

 

[Tanqueray]

First off its good no one was injuired. The other guy sounds like a jerk... Did you get a police report? Normally I would say that the report may add to your grief but from what you said I would be concerned thay guy may start talking about hit & run... I would agree with above about contacting insurance an see what they say. Good luck!

Police was called and I have the officer's name, station and call number. Even the police officer was shaking his head at him when he wanted to "press charges"...

He must have called his insurance company right after the incident because I got an email from my insurance company about the claim.

I will contact my insurance company and explain every little detail about the incident and what kind of a jerk/goof he was being and also provide the officer's contact number to them.

 

[Monsoon]

I will contact my insurance company and explain every little detail about the incident and what kind of a jerk/goof he was being and also provide the officer's contact number to them.

The other party's insurance company might contact you...ask what happened...are you ok, etc. Do not answer them. In a civil, kind, firm manner tell them to get any details from your insurance company. Do not answer them.

I pm'd other info to you...

 

[Tanqueray]

The other party's insurance company might contact you...ask what happened...are you ok, etc. Do not answer them. In a civil, kind, firm manner tell them to get any details from your insurance company. Do not answer them.

I will do that.

Thanks!

 

[Q3User]

I concur - don't admit to fault nor even hint at your culpability.

You are at much to have a right to your piece of the road as the counterparty.
It's share the road - true?

Most importantly, the police didn't fault anyone I assume.

I can speak from experience as this exact incident happen to me except I was the guy in the left lane & the counterparty tried to force his way into my lane AFTER he had run up to another car's tail in the right lane.

We traded some wheel touches & the police assigned no fault to either party.

 

[Tanqueray]

Thank you for all the replies. I spoke to the insurance company and I didn't admit anything except explain the situation and the guy's "jerkish" manners. My claim rep said we need to prove that he sped up and did nothing to avoid the accident. He said he will update me soon. I also mentioned that the other driver spoke of trying to get me to fix something that I didn't damage (his wheel, which is clearly from curb rash) and the rep said if he claims those things, they will get team to measure and prove that was not caused by the particular accident.

After a deductible of $500, my car will be fixed on Wednesday at Mercedes collision center (Audi wasn't on a select program list of collision service providers in the area).

I really doubt the damage for each of our car will be over $2000. I don't even know why I'm going through the insurance for such small incident (If I think about it, I guess getting the insurance to deal with a hot head like the other driver will save me from the stress)...

I just hope my premium doesn't sky rocket from such a small incident... (being my first accident on record, nor tickets)

Thanks guys

 

[Tanqueray]

Most importantly, the police didn't fault anyone I assume.

You are correct, the officer basically said, all he can do is provide a piece of paper to exchange driver information.

That's when the other driver asked "Can I press charges"... At that point, I started laughing pretty hard, which got him worked-up even more >

 

[Monsoon]

Get the Q fixed up and go back to enjoying it. Nobody got hurt.
You handled everything correctly.....fortunately the guy had insurance. Fortunately no hit and run...and no road rage. You did the right thing letting the insurance handle the claim. The other driver is going to get cute with his claim somehow.
I'm currently in Florida. The drivers just do things. It is hairy out there. I trust no one. I try to anticipate their actions. I tend to lag if someone is merging and let them in or make sure they are paying attention to the situation...which is rare. The drivers we deal with are seniors that should not be driving, the reckless, the Textr's, DUI's. No turn signals, turns from 3 lanes over, red light & stop sign runners. I'm sure I missed something....and oh yeah....I think statistically 3 out 5 cars have guns in them. I bite my finger a lot.

 

[Q3User]

You are correct, the officer basically said, all he can do is provide a piece of paper to exchange driver information.

That's when the other driver asked "Can I press charges"... At that point, I started laughing pretty hard, which got him worked-up even more >

My situation was with a lawyer as the counterparty.
He kept insisting we leave the scene since the cops were not going to issue a citation for non-witnessed -he said/he said type of incidences.

But I insisted on staying until we gave our stories to the police.
Which of course was his word against mine & sure enough he acted liked he was the victim; leaving out the facts that he was a nuisance prior to the incident weaving in & out of traffic & tailgating & squeezing into people's safe following distance gap.

So I've learned that it's either me or him in the real world unfortunately.

 

[Tanqueray]

Get the Q fixed up and go back to enjoying it. Nobody got hurt.
You handled everything correctly.....fortunately the guy had insurance. Fortunately no hit and run...and no road rage. You did the right thing letting the insurance handle the claim. The other driver is going to get cute with his claim somehow.

Great advice. Thank you.

I got a call back from my insurance today that I am "at fault". He understands that the other driver may have been as ass and try to block me from coming into his lane but there is no way to prove without a witness.

I can live with that. I was changing lane after all.

However, what really upset me was the fact that the other driver did, in fact, try to get his curb-rash fixed through this incident. I told my insurance that the damage on his wheel is clearly not from the incident and it is from the curb rash. His response was, he would have to look at the damage on his car and my car.

The other driver's car was a 2000 mercury. His wheel offset doesn't protrude the rims out or even be flush with the body.

I will be claiming insurance fraud if he continues to proceed with his story of wheel damage.

My car

His car

In order for me to damage his rims, my car would have to have extensive body damage and/or my rims would be damaged if it made contact with his rims.

However, damage on my body is only superficial. No deep scratches (so how could I damage his rims?)

Did my rims make contact with his rims? NO, my rims are perfectly fine (black stuff on my rims in the picture is just tire dirt from the rub).

If he continues to be an ass and decided to get his free rim repair from this, I'm going to file insurance fraud.

 

[Quatto]

If you don't have a front (and even rear) dash cam, it may be time to get one. That technology can help greatly in situations like this.

 

[Tanqueray]

If you don't have a front (and even rear) dash cam, it may be time to get one. That technology can help greatly in situations like this.

I was actually looking into buying one!

 

[Monsoon]

Great advice. Thank you.

I got a call back from my insurance today that I am "at fault". He understands that the other driver may have been as ass and try to block me from coming into his lane but there is no way to prove without a witness.

I can live with that. I was changing lane after all.

However, what really upset me was the fact that the other driver did, in fact, try to get his curb-rash fixed through this incident. I told my insurance that the damage on his wheel is clearly not from the incident and it is from the curb rash. His response was, he would have to look at the damage on his car and my car.

The other driver's car was a 2000 mercury. His wheel offset doesn't protrude the rims out or even be flush with the body.

I will be claiming insurance fraud if he continues to proceed with his story of wheel damage.

My car

His car

In order for me to damage his rims, my car would have to have extensive body damage and/or my rims would be damaged if it made contact with his rims.

However, damage on my body is only superficial. No deep scratches (so how could I damage his rims?)

Did my rims make contact with his rims? NO, my rims are perfectly fine (black stuff on my rims in the picture is just tire dirt from the rub).

If he continues to be an ass and decided to get his free rim repair from this, I'm going to file insurance fraud.

Screw your insurance company. Dispute it....see what happens. He signaled you in and drove into you. Whatever. Anyway try let it go and move forward.

 

[Monsoon]

If you don't have a front (and even rear) dash cam, it may be time to get one. That technology can help greatly in situations like this.

Where do we get these. Who installs them. Is there a certain brand to buy?

 

[rnlabas]

Unfortunately, nothing ever good comes from these kinds of things. Be grateful that brush DIDN'T turn into a bump and spin and cause some SERIOUS injury and damage - from the sound of it, it could easily have been a whole mess. Everyone above has contributed some positive advice. Stay calm, speak of the facts, admit to no wrong-doing - ever. Your insurance company will process everything unless or until you are charged and need to show up in court. Dispute with them what you can prove or counter claim - if he has no witnesses, it will become a mutual draw. DO NOT admit fault just because you were making a move - that doesn't yield the road or other 'common courtesy of the road.'

As for cameras, consider them an almost necessary thing these days - just take a look at the Russian roads and their driving behavior - it's UNBELIEVABLE and most folks just drive off and leave it to their pocketbooks (if rich) and insurance companies if they even have one. YIKES! Try blackboxmycar.com, perhaps a bit pricey but some of the best hardware out there...

 

[Monsoon]

Try blackboxmycar.com, perhaps a bit pricey but some of the best hardware out there...

This is totally new to me. Know nothing about it until this thread. I'd like a concealed camera as I'd have to remove it every time I parked.

 

[Tanqueray]

I was quoted today for my damage.

TOTAL $601, no parts need to be ordered. After $500 deductible, insurance is paying $101.

I called up my insurance again to remind them AGAIN to be cautious of the other driver's claim on his wheel. I sent them the pictures and the details of the quote so they can compare the damages and be wise about the non existent possibility of me damaging his wheel.