Hello All,

Wish I could be making my first post under better circumstances. I had a minor accident with my IX MR, i was at a gas station pump about to gas up when a dodge van backed up into the front of my car . It looked like the only thing that made contact was my front bumper and the spare tire hanging on the rear of the van. It left a nasty dent in the bumper and scratched the grill mesh into the bumper and left a scrape. The dent later popped out on its own but the bumper is still warped in that area.

So the whole thing I have to figure out right now is what I should do about this. I already reported it to the van owner's insurance company, geico. The damage is very minor and maybe I can have it fixed for very little. The reason I hesitate to have their insurance pay for it is because, correct me If I am wrong, this car will now have an accident on its record which could severly damage the value.

Im looking for advice on what you guys think is the wise thing to do. Also, if I sell this car in the future, what would you guys think about it having an accident like this as a potential buyer? I took pictures of everything to prove its not very serious.

any help is appreciated.

 

I may be wrong here, but I believe when you reported the accident to his insurance that it will now be tracked on your vehicles VIN. I think the time to avoid that would have been right then and there and make it a cash deal. Either way, if you don't plan to sell the car it shouldn't matter much, but if I were you I would fight for diminished value through his/her insurance either way to make up for the loss of resale value from the accident. I would find a few of the better body shops in your area and have them take a look and price it out. Sometimes they will work with you and will buy parts you specify with the insurance check, which works in your favor if you can find the parts cheaper than them of course, then sometimes they will cut you a check for the difference. Try to find the parts used/painted so its a quick swap then see if the insurance will do that and cut you a check for the difference. Worked for me once before, so it's worth a shot! Sorry about the car!

 

To the best of my knowledge you are in a good spot right now.

Get quotes on the damage (preferably from a mitsu dealer) if they tell you too. The insurance may have you take it to a specific shop for a quote if they want you to.

Take the check from the insurance if they give you enough. (those 9 bumpers retail for like $600 or more not including any paint or install) My guess is you should get close to $1,000+.

(to the best of my knowledge)Once you have the check you are not obligated to get it fixed at the shop you got the quote from.

I would cash the check, buy a used bumper if you can find one and fix it yourself. How to video below
(To the best of my knowledge) If you don't take it to a shop to have the repair done, it will most likely not show up on a carfax down the line since the other driver was at fault and their will not be a shop record of the repair.

In the end i would not worry much either-way. If it shows on the carfax at the end of the day it should be easy to explain especially since you took pictures. Keep those pics incase you need them at time of sale!

Good Luck!

 

even If reported. I doubt this will affect the value at all

 

Take pictures of everything and keep your repair receipts. That way, when/if you sell it, you can show the potential buyer exactly what happened. Sadly an accident that results in a body panel being replaced does lower the cars value. That is why people check for matching VIN numbers on all panels.

 

Yea it's not going to effect value much if any. There's not many CT9As left that are cosmetically 100%.

Just have it fixed and move on

 

i think you might actually be right. The way the geico agent was explaining it to me, it sounds like the shop that repairs it will be the one reporting it. I would hate for something 100% cosmetic to be reported as an accident. Maybe I will take this opportunity to get a rexspeed RA lip

 

What he said is correct. You can get your quote and ask for a check to take the car to a shop of your choosing to be repaired. Go to Mitsubishi dealerships and get quotes and also call up the local Porsche / Lambo / whoever dealership and ask what bodyshop they use and get quotes from there

 

Update

Geico took a look at the damage and cut me a check, which happened to be less than two previous estimates I received. He said if the body shop deems the cost to repair is more then they will provide more money. Looks like the bumper will not be replaced, just fixed so I will still have all my matching vins. He did mention that after he cuts the check, the info of the accident automatically gets sent out to the state, so it doesnt look like the body shop is the one that reports the accident (unless he didnt know what he was talking about)

I guess that means the car will have an accident on record...

 

Just choose a shop and if there is a supplement the shop can contact Geico and provide the information. Are you referring to state or companies like Carfax? Even if you were going to sell it the average car has been in three accidents. Sucks, but like others have said, time to just get it fixed and move on.