Ok, well long story short, I tapped a lady’s bumper and she got 2 scratches (somewhat deep not really, more like the paint chipped off) on her Nissan Sentra (probably 5yrs old or around there).
She calls me a few days later after the accident and says her mechanic is going to charge $700-800. She gives me the option of going through insurance or not. She does not want anyone else to touch her car but her mechanic.
What should or can I do?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
$800 to paint a bumper sounds steep.
That is outrageous…
I would ask her to get you 3 different quotes, or a detailed quote from her mechanic that you can take to an independent body shop to verify.
You should take into consideration how much your premiums will increase if the repairs are put through insurance.
Shitty situation man, hope it works out.
Edit: if it was over $700, she should have gone to the reporting centre… did she?
nah man her mechanic is lying… u say u want to take it to get a quote to your guy ill give you the number for ART autobody or just ask jon he knows it i got my car painted there. they can do it for like 300 max. if anything go threw your insurance cause shes trying to scam you same thing happened to me a while back. and what does a mechanic know about paint jobs??? its nothing mechanical so her mechanic wouldent be the one touching it anyways. shes trying to rip you off man be carefull. when i had my civic i had my whole bumper fixed and repainted for 400 dls and it was cracked hard core. dont let her take u for a fool… im serious. insurance wont be hard on you for a small accident but if its been over a few days might look bad on you.
ask jon for ginos number he knows the place if you ask him . i got my whole damn car painted for 1500 that time so 7 to 800 is wayyyy to much and its a nissan also. if she says no then say ok fine ill go threw insurance and do it. and she will change her mind cause itll affect her insurance also.
just a heads up
fyi, I got my body kit painted and fitted for $800.
lol see 800 is a rip off
Request 3 different quotes, and if there all ridiculous ask to see the quote sheets, scratch filler and a drive way with nissan touch up paint 20.00 come on. but get your shit togeather, shes trying to play you the job is prolly 100-200 and shes pocketing 6,
DON’T PAY THE 800 I GOT A BUMPER PAINTED FOR 250 AND IT WAS MINT NO ORANGE PEEL. BUT THAT WAS A BRAND NEW BUMPER WITH NO SANDING.
Screw that!!..
actually, screw her!
Work in a few sexual experimentation to get a discount? 
Actually, my mom’s Jetta got rear ended and left with scratches similar to what Samson mentioned.
I took it to a those OEM dealer body shop for a quote. Guess what? It’s $800. Why? They replace the bumper with a brand new OEM one and paint it as well replacing the styrofoam inside. Altogether costs $870ish. I saw the invoice for the breakdown of parts myself and was shocked. In the end, the other party forked over the $800 because going through insurance is not a good option especially premiums increase pretty fast.
My suggestion is to convince her to take it to a shop that REPAIRS the bumper, not REPLACE. That’s where you’ll save the money.
could be worse, at least he didnt steal my turn in Battle gear like a jerk while rabbit and i wanted to play :A
did you hit her in a parking lot? private property? if so, then insurance doesn’t really apply to it. so you could get away with that. but if its on public roads, different story.
well anyways, $800 sounds like they are replacing the bumper and painting it.
yeh if it was just a tap and paint chip its way to much
oh yea, this reminds me, someone dinged my 06 rolla’s rear bumper at a parking lot (it was at a go-train station, so i wasn’t around) and a rear piece of metal, and I got the bumper and that metal piece REPLACED for around $450 outside of a dealership.
Considering the fact that the sentra is 5 years old like you said, there’s no way even replacing a bumper would cost $800. Definitely ask for a detailed bill before going ahead with your decision.
^Bumper was $500 from dealership unpainted, then add labour and paint and little pieces here and there. Just under $800.
My 350z front bumper was replaced and I think the price for that was $480ish unpainted… Very easy to add up if your getting brand new parts, (even including new bolts!).
i’m just saying you’re comparing a 350z bumper to some 2002 sentra bumper…and the front bumper for the Z is abit more complex than the rear bumper of the sentra.
i’m sure it could add up, but not $800…plus most shops get shop discounts when buying OEM parts…so the number they gave you on the bill on the bumper isn’t the price they paid.
If it’s still out of the stealership, it’s still going to be around the same price. Not like Jetta isn’t the same class as sentra (bit better maybe).
$800 sounds about right if you’re going through a dealership and getting the bumper replaced and re-painted.
$400-500 for a brand new rear bumper
$200-300 paint
$100 labour
a while back someone bumped into my rsx and i had the entire bumper removed, sanded and re-painted for $450.
age of car won’t change prices for new parts.
The body shop more than likely did get the bumper from a dealership, so prices are always marked up.
Since they know you’ll be the one paying, getting the best price for the repair isn’t a concern for them.
well, as much as i hate to admit it theres nothing really you can do…since you were the one at fault the balls in her court.
if someone told me to get them three different quotes id probably flat out tell them no, even though i do agree 800 bucks is on the steep side for some scratches.
worst comes to worse i guess youll just have to pay up or go through insurance…either way it still sucks