Car AccidENt w/ Real Pics!!

[The Mic]

Car Accident w/ a Drawing!

Ok so this is what happened tonight. I live in a gated community. so you have to be careful about ur speed or might might hit something or someone. Well it was 8:50 pm, i went through the gate and into my friends neighborhood. Theres a divider in the cul-de-sac so i went right to comeback around left and to my house. now when i was going left i was going slow like 15 mph slow. while i was leaving the cul-de-sac this silver minivan pops outta no where so its heading towards my direction head on. so i brake and im going into the stationed ( staioned van belongs to same person in minivan, it created blindspot, so minivan couldnt see me bc of HIS own vehicle) van but i reacted quick and braked, i stop about a foot b4 the other van and avoid collison. but the silver minivan swerved right and hit my friends car. Well the minivan backed up and i was looking at him (couldnt see face) the entire time bc my drivers windows was down. So i just went to my house . I called my friend right after and we looked at the damage, his drivers side fender is dented, big scratch where teh paint came off. When i told my friend he immidiately accused his neighbor across from him. his neighbor has a silver minivan. so it was prob was the smae minivan making a left to get into its driveway. now this isnt my fault right? and my friend look out his window bc he heard a crash when this happened. ok so what can he do about this guys legal-wise? were open for suggestions!

heres a pic to give you a better idea:

-thanks, mike

[Soy]

Ok... so from what you're telling us here, you didn't hit anything, but you watched someone else in a silver minivan hit your friends car?

So here's some questions:

Did you get the license plate number off the van?

Did you actually watch the collision take place?

Did the person in the van stick around, or take off?

If all of these are yes, then you definately have a case. You were a witness to a collision, where the offending person fled the scene. If you have a license number, you're golden. You personally have no responsibility in this collision, because you didn't hit anything, or force someone into a collision. The person driving the minivan could have easily STOPPED, rather than swerve into your friend's car.

If you want 100% answers on this, call up an insurance adjuster or civil lawyer - they'll be able to tell you exactly what the law is in your area.

[The Mic]

Did you get the license plate number off the van?

no, but when the minivan crashed it made a liud enough sound to make my friend look out his window. He saw us both at a standtill. Then he saw me leave and he saw the same silver minivan go around the cul-de-sac like i did then pulled into his driveway

Did you actually watch the collision take place?

yes i did

Did the person in the van stick around, or take off?

well he went around the cul-de-sac, and pulled into his driveway . Hes a neighbor right across from my freinds house. He just went inside his house like nothing happened. its a gated community so the houses are close together.

oh and yeah i didnt hit anything, HE did

[Soy]

well, seems to me like you've got a pretty decent case against this guy. He hit a car, there's likely to be minor damage or scrapes on his van, you saw where he went... I see no reason why you shouldn't call the cops and have them do an accident investigation in this matter ASAP.

[DAEDALUS]

Yeah, no kidding. Probably hit and run charges, even though he lives right there. Call the police and file a report. Hurry up though, the damage on the minivan is evidence; you need to get it documented ASAP.

[The Mic]

thanks jjg25 for your help. SO what can my friend do about repairs and such? would insurance cover it??? ill get pics of his damage later on. what was damaged was his drivers side fender. The paint was scraped off in a line around the edge of the wheel well. also he has a medium sized dent and bits of more scrapped paint. how can he get this repiared and in what manner?

- thanks, mike

EDIT: Oh and i almost forgot,

WELCOME TO NICO jjg25 , Ur NOw mY neW besT frieND!!

[offtheline]

It depends what kind of insurance he has. I only had liability on my last car. When it got totalled in a hit and run, my insurance company wouldn't even talk to me about it. So, I had to talk to the other person's insurance on my own.

[C-Kwik]

The simple fact is that the guy hit a parked car. He is responsible. He may try and say he swerved to avoid another vehicle, but with no contact, it's difficult for him to prove it actually occurred and that it contributed to the accident.

[C-Kwik]

Yeah, no kidding. Probably hit and run charges, even though he lives right there. Call the police and file a report. Hurry up though, the damage on the minivan is evidence; you need to get it documented ASAP.

Police Reports are not evidence. The damage on the vehicle is. Take a few photos. That's all you need. Police Report, while helpful for insurance adjusters when investigating losses, are not strong enough by themselves to prove liability. The officer is merely reporting the statements and facts he sees after the accidentahas already occurred. Even if the Officer were to testify to the validity of the information he obtained, it is still hearsay. For the most part, I had only used them to obtain the information for th eparties involved, as eyes on the scene as officers usually note certain distances and locations, and to see if there is anything that was told to them that someone may be holding back from me. I made it a point never to stand on a police report as evidence. Nor did I let other adjusters do the that to me.

While it's better to have one than not, it is not absolutely necessary. In fact, many police agencies won't even write a report if there are no injuries, no major violations(DUI), and no dangerous circumstances. And frankly, police rarely do a thorough investigation anyways.

[C-Kwik]

It depends what kind of insurance he has. I only had liability on my last car. When it got totalled in a hit and run, my insurance company wouldn't even talk to me about it. So, I had to talk to the other person's insurance on my own.

That's the advantage to having collision coverage. And it's not so much the fact that you pay more, but legally, if the insurance company does not pay anything out for your damage, they have no legal right to asking for the money. Technically, what the insurance company can go after is the damages they paid out that someone else is responsible for. In most cases, a company wioll ask a responsible party for your deductible and perhaps out of pocket expenses as a courtesy, but if the responsible party refuses to pay those, then there is little the insurance company can do. Ultimately, for the damages the carrier pays out, the file may go to inter-company arbitration or court, but it will only be for what they paid out. You would have to present your own claim in court to pursue it. In inter-company arbitration, you may get your deductible back though if your company receives a favorable award.

[240Knightrider]

His insurance agency should be the one to pay for the damages, make the police report get pictures of his van before he tries to make them go away. With the police report file a claim against his insurance company. That should take care of it. But remember you gotta work fast.

[C-Kwik]

thanks jjg25 for your help. SO what can my friend do about repairs and such? would insurance cover it??? ill get pics of his damage later on. what was damaged was his drivers side fender. The paint was scraped off in a line around the edge of the wheel well. also he has a medium sized dent and bits of more scrapped paint. how can he get this repiared and in what manner? frieND!!

Tell him to take it to a body shop and get an estimate.

[James @ ID-M]

Hit and run. Try to verify that it was the right Van. File criminal and civil charges.

[The Mic]

Well my friend talked to the owner of the minivan who hit his car this morining. Get this, he says to my friend that I HIT the car, not he, and that i was speeding. I busted out laughing when my friend told me this today. anyway here are pics of the damage.

Friends car that was hit (1989 NiSSAN Maxima)

More damage

corner light debris from pic above

Minivan

anyways my frend knows i didnt hit him bc he saw us when it happened. The minivan is sayin I HIT THE CAR, AND HE DIDNT!!!wtf!! hahHAHAHAHAHA. man anyway he denies the whole thing so im telling my freind that we talk him into settling or we go to the cops. BUt the thing is my friend is acting stupid and doesnt want to go to teh cops. He says theyll Charge or something. Hes gonna read this so can you guys convince my friend that he should NOT be afraid and that they wont charge and the worse possible scenario. And its A fellow NIssan Driver@!!! Thanks guys

EDIT: BTW we could not find any scrapes or chips on the minivan suprisingly , best we could find is that pic i showed u above. would that work against his case? oh and I DID NOT HIT ANYTHING AT ALL THE DRIVER IS BSING!

thanks a bundle- Mike

[SeVa-S13]

Aslong as that rub rail thing is at the height of the damage, it should help...and making sure there is no corresponding damage on your ride.

[Soy]

From the picture you posted, it looks like silver paint and scratches on the black rubber guard on the van - that's evidence enough right there. Make sure to take some pictures that include identifying marks on the van as well... i.e. shots from further out, of the front and back of the van, etc.

As for the police charging anyone? Nope - won't happen. What they can do is file a report on this, nothing more until you take the case to court, if it gets that far. What the police CAN do though is look at the damage on both vehicles, listen to your explanations (both sides, that is) and make his assumptions from there. Obviously, a minivan is going to stand up against a maxima better than a 240 can, plus, you don't have any damage to your car!

So don't worry about the cops - they're your friends in this situation (for once)

[BoostFab]

i would have call the cop at that moment, instead of letting the issue carry over another day. the report from the cop and pictures will be the best material evidence against the suspect.

tell your friend to "step up to the plate" and protect his property.

[Supafly]

hold a tape measure up to the damage from the ground in the pics to verify the height of the damages;) that will be a little better documentation in the pics.

[StrangeLove]

Compile all of your evidence, and show it to the minivan driver. Tell him to settle it now, or you are going to see him in court. If what you say is true then you should nothing to worry about.

If possible find out who he has for insurance, and contact them. It works wonders...