Front Bumper Minor Damage Advice?

[damian33]

Hi,

Was at a wedding yesterday and some idiot reversed into my car in full view of several witnesses. I say idiot because they were apparently showing off by trying to reverse into the very large space quickly, didn't have their mirror folded out, had parking sensor(!) and didn't have the courtesy to come and apologise at the very least.

Now luckily there is only a small dent (and minor paint scuff) on the front bumper, some small scratches and chips (possibly from their previously damaged rear bumber) and some markings on the registration plate. The hotel contacted me with the name and phone number of the person but they went before I could discuss the matter with them, luckily 2 hotel employees witnessed the bump.

Now in all honesty the damage appears to be minor and cosmetic (I'll just get the local VW dealer to check that it is nothing more) and if I was responsible for damage, I probably wouldn't progress replacing the bumper, reg plate, and pay a £400 insurenace excess.

Out of interest however, does anyone know the rough cost of just a Mk6 front bumper (GT model) in graphite blue. Also any opinions on whether you would progress this. The lack of aology is anoying but when you have gone to great efforts to look after your vehicle, it is frustrating that others are less careful. Needless to say, I haven't yet been able to get hold of the person on the phone number they have given, although my insurance company have confirmed it is insured.

Many thanks for any opinions on this,

Damian

[Keithuk]

Now in all honesty the damage appears to be minor and cosmetic

Out of interest however, does anyone know the rough cost of just a Mk6 front bumper

Well a new front bumper cover primed is £280 then you need to get it painted.

Without seeing any photos its hard to say how bad it is, can you post some? ;)

[SC03OTT]

I wouldn't be going through insurance personally. A lot of hassle and cost down the line for what is a relatively small and cheap repair. However, seeing as the other person has essentially done a runner, are they likely to pay for work you get done privately. Probably not.

With regards to the repair, have a look for a second hand bumper and cost up a respray at a reputable body shop. They will be cheaper than a main dealer, and the quality of the work should not be any less just because they are independent.

[dcdick]

Hi Damian

Don't see the problem here ?

1, You have witnesses
2, you are clearly not at fault
3, your ins company has confirmed the other car is insured.

Why do you think you are going to have to pay an insurance excess ?

If it was the other way around, would the other driver "let you off" ?

Take this to your broker/insurance company, & also a third party legal expenses company if you have one (usually called legal expenses)

If you are not at fault & your insurance co has somebody to claim against you should not be involved in any cost & should be able to claim for expenses etc..

Very interested to know how this goes

****.

[vwcabriolet1971]

The more these kind of people get away with this kind of thing the more they think it's acceptable behaviour . If it happened to me I'd call the police. They would track down owner and his address and insurance details. You could then claim on his/her insurance. With your witnesses it would be and open & shut case case with no impact to your no claims bonus or insurance cost. These people need to be made accountable for their actions.

[Gerryf]

Hi Damian, maybe you should present your car to a Smart Repairer ? less hassle all round.

[PhilDon]

The more these kind of people get away with this kind of thing the more they think it's acceptable behaviour . If it happened to me I'd call the police. They would track down owner and his address and insurance details. You could then claim on his/her insurance. With your witnesses it would be and open & shut case case with no impact to your no claims bonus or insurance cost. These people need to be made accountable for their actions.

agree entirely that the moron shouldn't get away with it, but reckon the chances of the police taking an interest are in the region of zero

[vwcabriolet1971]

agree entirely that the moron shouldn't get away with it, but reckon the chances of the police taking an interest are in the region of zero
I agree that the police are unlikely to volunteer to get involved but they would have to assign an incident number which would be useful for any insurance claim and of the insurance company would say "why didn't you report it to the police".

[PhilDon]

I agree that the police are unlikely to volunteer to get involved but they would have to assign an incident number which would be useful for any insurance claim and of the insurance company would say "why didn't you report it to the police".

fair point - I'd overlooked that aspect

[david25]

Try Chipsaway, standard price is £160 for bumper repair.

[garygttdi]

Hi Guys I would offer the following from a recent experiences although this one was entirely my fault. However I have found some interesting and worrying aspects to the MK 6 and I suspect most modern cars.


Rolled into the back of a coach on the motorway in a stop go que,did the normal took my eyes off the road for a second to adjust air con and bump, stupid I know and the first time its happened to me.


Did not stop as on Mway and thought it would have just scratch bumper, stopped at services and you would think I had hit it with a sledge.


Being all rigid plastic it has no give and just shatters if taken beyond its stress limits, and worse was to come.


Drove car all weekend end then popped the bonnet on Sunday night to fill washer bottle, Fatal mistake the whole front of the car moved as it was being held in place by the bonnet, all the fittings inside including headlight fasteners were broken ( all plastic) Bonnet catch had moved once released so bonnet will not close although nothing wrong with it. Oh and by the way if bonnet is not fully closed wipers do not work neither do washer!!!

Apparently they are so bad even the crash repair companies prefer to strip them before they do estimate as so much breaks and cracks and they have been caught with uncovering damage they never expected to find. So better fuel economy and better emission is great but in order to do it cars are becoming more and more fragile, I can only see insurance cost going ever higher as the industry struggles to cope with very fragile cars. Bet my bills tops out at £2K for a minor bump, you have been warned.

Bet I was doing not more than 3MPH !!
:Blush2:

[vwcabriolet1971]

It is a amazing how much damage was done at such low speed . We use to have 5mph bumpers that absorbed any impact without damage . This requirement originated from the american market due to their "bump parking" technique. I was obviously naive in thinking that the MK6 was better than most in this respect.
The lower sharp "crease / corner" lines of the MK6 front bumper must reduce the flexibilty to some extent.
The whole emphasis on todays car designs seem to be on safety ( 5 star rating) and emissions. Durabilty & ease of repair seem to have a much lower priority. I suppose this must reflect in the MK6s' insurance rating.

What this example says to me that it's important to get VW to effect any front end repairs rather than trust the insurer's nominated approved repairers. These repairers will often take short cuts on the normally unseen damage to keep their insurers happy and also do not have VWs' quick part identification & ordering systems.

[Ravens]

A friend of mine has a BMW series 7. Parked in a Hotel/Golf Club car park thrre weeks ago. A hotel guest practising golf shots in the wrong place hit the car with a Golf Ball on the passenger front door leaving a large depression. Witnesses aplenty. Hotel guest told my friend the hotel would supply his address. Guy was not interested and did not pay. An ex-policeman present said the police would not be interested. He did suggest relieving the guy of his golf clubs but things would then get silly! Really it comes down to personal reponsibility Some people just don't give a damn.