My car was parked in a restaurant parking lot, when a guy decided to let a young lady back out his Lexus RX300 into the rear of my car....(we were the only 2 cars in the lot too). Theres a big dent on the right rear corner of the rear bumper, as well as dents below and around the taillight. Assuming the guy doesnt try to say anything funny with the insurance company (he would have to be REALLY creative) i think they will end up writing me a check. QUESTION: Will an aftermarket bumper be cheaper or the same price as getting or fixing the one thats on there? How should i deal with this to the insurance company or body shop? Im not sure of the process..... Is there a rear piece made that will look decent with the factory SE-Limited side and front pieces without looking too overdone? Thanks for any advice on how to deal with this whole mess is appreciated......

I can construct a proper sentence, i swear.....

Sorry to hear that. Someone backed into my left rear bumper at NEIU's campus while I was at class. There only a significantly small scratch :mad:

I would just get an oem bumper. How heavy/deep is the damage? Do you have pics? I'm not sure if the carbon-fiber(like) piece can be purchased easily. Make sure the lexus owner writes you a nice big check :) Good LUCK!

why oem? I think the CF looking piece is fine. The damage is around and below the taillight, and the bumper looks as though someone threw a bowling ball into it.

The Lexus owner's insurance will have to pay for it right, so this is what I would do. Get quotes from the highest quality body shops in town for an OEM bumper. Then when you get your check, if you want, you might be able to find a cheaper aftermarket bumper.

Of course that may be a little dihonest, but I'm not a complete saint either.

U did call the cops, right?

!!?!?! what can they say?

well, in that case i hope you don't get screwed, especially if there are no witnesses. u should always file a police report that way there is an official record of it for the insurance companies to go by. otherwise the guy can say "i don't know what u're talking about". did u at least get his address and insurance information?

i don't know about texas but in california the cops won't even respond unless the accident is on PUBLIC property, not parking lots unless there is an injury reported

I live in Lawrence, KS and nothing ever happens around here.
If you get pulled over for not coming to a complete stop you'll have at least two additional cars roll up besides the one that pulled you over.

haha same way im my town to it was funny. my mom's works alarm went off so she got called and the cops are supose to be there and they wernt but when i got in a little fender bender 4 cops rolled up and when i got pulled over for speding 2 cops they have nothing better to do.

The insurance called me. The wanted me to set an appointment at one of their approved body shops so they can give me an estimate. After that i can either have it done there, or they will give the check to a shop of my choice...... Is this the normal way to do it? Is it better just to have it done there (since im thinking the estimate will be lower there than anywhere else).....

From what I know, it's normal for insurance companies to use one of their approved body shops to get an estimate. It keeps them from getting screwed.

Originally posted by 99SEL
The insurance called me. The wanted me to set an appointment at one of their approved body shops so they can give me an estimate. After that i can either have it done there, or they will give the check to a shop of my choice...... Is this the normal way to do it? Is it better just to have it done there (since im thinking the estimate will be lower there than anywhere else).....