My friend recently hit another car from behind, the driver of the other car took her DL infor. is that OK?

Question

It didn't look like any damage was done, the driver of the other car asked for my friends DL information and work phone number and said, "Don't call your insurance company, it'll just make your rates go up. Everything looks ok, I'll call later." He ( the driver of the hit car) called later and said not to worry about the bumper, it was kindof an old car and he said it didn't make any difference to him if it had a dent. He said the alignment was out, and told my friend (who hit him) that if he wanted to reccommend his own mechanic, he would go there to have it fixed. Or if he wanted to get quotes on the price he could just pay the average or he'd go to whichever one he picked. Also, my friend didn't have his insurance card with him and the other driver said that if they called the police he would get a fine for not having it in his possession. Is this true? My friend called his insurance co. when he got to work and reported the incident. We're all debating on who should have done what.

Answer 1

There would be no fine for not having proof of insurance in the vehicle. If your friend had called the police, they may have cited him for not having proof of insurance, and all he would have to do is show up for the court date and show proof of insurance and its over.

Better to go ahead and let the insurance company deal with the damages to the other car. They will be able to compensate the other party - and why deal with it if you don't have to? You never know what the other party will come back with and you do not want to dig yourself a deeper hole.

Answer 2

It's always hard to decide if you should call your insurance or not when you have an accident that does not have lots of visible damage. The other driver was right--- your rates DO go up (sometimes substantially) when you report an accident, and it sounds like the damage is so slight that your friend's deductable won't even cover the repairs, meaning he is going to pay the repair bill out of his own pocket anyway.

I'd recommend your friend selecting the mechanic that the other driver takes the car to. You can cause an alignment to go out of whack in an accident, or it could have been like that for a long time; it's very hard to say when the damage was done but by not allowing the other driver to pick the repair shop, your friend at least prevents the other driver from having a friend "in the business" that writes an over-inflated repair bill.

For what it's worth... you should ALWAYS call the police when there is an accident, even if it is minor; it keeps people honest, so if this guy is scamming, he might not have tried it with the cops around. You don't need to report an accident to your insurance just because you called the police, either. And while technically it is true that in some states you can get a ticket for not having your insurance card with you, the cops usually don't fine you for that unless you are acting like a jerk, or getting a bunch of other citations at the same time.

Answer 3

OK, here is the legal answer:
When involved in an accident you must call the police and have a report filed as well as notify your insurance company ASAP. Then let the insurance companies handle it.
Here is why some people dont like to do that:
Any time you call the police to report an accident, they fill out an accident report and it shows up on both drivers records. This affects your insurance rates even if nothing is paid out.
Also, once you call an insurance company to report an accident, it will show up on your claims record... again, causing your rates to go up.

It seems like the other guy just figured it wasnt a big deal and didnt want the accident on his record. That's fine... the only bad thing that could come of this is if this guy calls his insurance company and says that it was a hit and run or that he is injured or something like that.
Otherwise, you did the right thing by not calling the cops, telling the insurance co...

Answer 4

The answer is no, she can not sue the city. She can, however sue the driver. Now this may or may not be a good thing depending on his ability to pay. The best option is to find out about the other drivers situation and go from there. If you have a police report, witnesses, etc. and he is at fault (which it clearly sounds like he was), he is liable for the damages. Also, for medical treatment, look into Medicaid. All those taxes that come out of your check every month? This is what it pays for.

Answer 5

Your friend did the right thing. They guy may be trying to do nice and help him out which is fine. However it's possible the whole thing can turn very ugly really fast. It is best your friend contacted his insurance and let them know of the situation. This way if the guy does turn nasty the insurance company already has a case number and can go to work on it at a break neck speed. your friend is wise. Just because you know your rates will go up is no reason to not protect yourself. Good job...

Answer 6

Exchanging details is compulsory. Hopefully your friend got the other driver's details as well.

Your friend was correct in reporting the accident to his insurance company. He should possibly report it to the police though most jurisdictions have a minumum damage amount that requires reporting and it sounds like he may not have exceeded that.

Although failure to produce proof of financial responsibility will get you a ticket at the scene, if you produce the proof in court the case will be dismissed in virtually all cases.

Answer 7

In most states, you can be fined for not having proof of insurance in your car.

However, hitting a vehicle from the rear wouldn't affect the front wheel alignment in the least on the car that was hit.