What to Do If You Find Your Car Dinged, Dented or Worse Following An Accident

Auto accidents are already one of the most sudden and inconvenient situations that can happen to us. Add to that situation unexpected dings, dents, or scratches on your vehicle and it can be a major headache. Depending on what type of insurance you or the other driver had, the process of getting your car repaired has the potential to be lengthy. There are also situations where the other driver is not even present or has simply left a note. Let’s take a look at some possible scenarios along with the steps you can take immediately following any incident.

Hit and Run Accidents

The vast majority of hit and run accidents involve things like rear-ending and sideswiping another vehicle. A responsible person with insurance coverage will most likely pull off to the side of the road and offer you their assistance and insurance information. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, the other driver either doesn’t want to deal with the consequences or doesn’t have insurance on their vehicle so they drive away. If you find yourself in this situation, resist the urge to chase the other driver, but instead try to write down or commit their license plate number to memory. From there you can contact the police and your insurance company to file a report and open a claim.

Parking Lot Dings and Scratches

Almost every driver has had the experience of walking into a store to do some shopping only to come out and find that your car has been severely scratched or dented by another driver. This can be caused by another driver carelessly opening their door, driving too fast through the parking lot or even losing control of their shopping cart. Most of the time, the other driver will either wait for you to come out of the store or leave a note with their phone number so you can call and exchange insurance info. If there is no note and no sign of the other driver, give the police and your insurance company a call. Even if you have very little information you still may be able to file a claim. Also, be sure to take pictures of every part of the vehicle that was damaged.

Injury in a Parked Car

If you are sitting in a parked car there is always a possibility that another driver could run into your vehicle. While this is a semi-rare and unfortunate situation it is still worth mentioning. If you are in any situation in which you have been injured, you should seek medical attention immediately. Even if you feel fine at the moment because of stress and shock you may still have an unseen injury like whiplash. From there, the steps are exactly the same as in other situations. Contact the police and exchange insurance information with the other driver. If the other driver is uninsured, or not present your insurance provider likely has conditions built into the policy that can help you.

Depending on your insurance coverage, you may be entitled to having a large portion of the bodywork on your vehicle covered. Our team at Kustomz is well acquainted with the dent, dings, and scratches that can occur in everyday life. Give us a call today so we can get your vehicle back on the road and looking it’s best.