Need Quick Advice - DH was in a fender bender

[Jamauk]

DH was just pulling his truck out of the airport parking lot. There was a huge van parked next to him and he couldn't see a thing. He started backing out very slowly and a woman in a tiny BMW sports car was flying down the lane and rammed into his back bumper.

Washington is NOT a no fault state. DH and this woman exchanged info and she's now gone. DH said her car is a complete mess, he has only a small scratch on his truck (one more reason why I love owning large vehicles!)

She's admitted to never having been in an accident before and didn't know what to do, so she left. Does DH call to file a police report? We don't really want to call our ins. company as we probably won't file a claim with them at this point....

What would you guys do?

[itsahumanzoo]

A police report is only valid if you are still at the scene. She should not have left. Can your DH call and get her to come back and then call the police? I always call no matter what, to cover all the bases. Otherwise you have no witnesses and you are fighting over whose fault it is, unless she already admitted it.

[MomToTwoBoys]

Since Washington is not a No Fault state, it's really hard to say. If she left and there wasn't any police called to the scene, then she really can't have any case to stand on if she tries to sue your DH later on for damages to her car. Any lawyer would laugh in her face if she tried to bring up a lawsuit because a) there's no proof that your DH did it and b) there's no police report that was filed at the scene of the accident when it happened.

If it was me, I would still file the police report and tell them that she fled the scene after exchanging the info. They can direct you in the best direction possible. They could technically hold her at fault because she left the scene without wanting to call the police.

[Lady_V]

Here in MA, you don't have to have police at the scene. You do have to file a report and he should probably call his insurance company so they won't be left in the dark if this woman tries to file a claim.

I found this -- hope it helps...

• Exchange information with all involved drivers. Be sure to get name, address, phone number, license number, and {IE{http://www.dmv.org/wa-washington/car-insurance.php} insurance information.}

• Get names and numbers of witnesses.

• If you're carrying a camera, snap photos of damage to all involved vehicles. This will help in the event of an insurance claims dispute.

When to File a Collision Report

If law enforcement investigates your accident, you are not required to file a collision report. Otherwise, you MUST file a report within four days of the accident, if there was bodily injury or a minimum of $700 in damages. Get a blank accident report from your local police department, sheriff's office, or the Washington State Patrol.
Collision Report Information on Your Driving Record

The Division of Licensing (DOL) will add a collision report to your driving record only if the accident involved injury or topped the $700 mark in damages.
No fault or cause of accident will be listed to your record. Instead the DOL will add: date of accident, number of vehicles involved and whether they were moving or parked or had occupants, and whether any injuries or deaths resulted from the accident.
To request a glimpse at what accident information has been added to your record, mail a letter containing your name, date of birth, and collision date to:

• Accident Processing Unit

• Department of Licensing

• P.O. Box 9030

• Olympia, Washington 98507-9030

Requesting Another Driver's Insurance Information

If your accident resulted in personal injury or over $700 damages, you can request insurance information on the other driver or drivers. Send a request with the name of the other driver or vehicle owner, collision date, the birthday, if known, of the other driver, the collision report number, and a check for $5 to:

• Accident Processing Unit

• Department of Licensing

• P.O. Box 9048

• Olympia, Washington 98507-9048

[Jamauk]

Lady V ~ I googled and googled and googled! How did you find that so fast? Maybe because I had DH on the phone and he was talking a mile a minute?

Thanks for the info! DH is on the phone with the Port of Seattle Police Dept right now. I'll let you know what he has to say..

[Jamauk]

Phone rang as I hit send....the police said they really couldn't do anything since they were both gone from the scene already. At this point its "he said, she said".....

[Greebo]

She's got the damages and DH's insurance info? Better to call them first before she or her ins. co does. He should give his side of the story completely and honestly.

[Holly]

Here they would both get a ticket for leaving the scene
of an accident. He should have call the police first then
got her info.
Also here if you pull someone out ( say a ditch ) you get fined $100.00
Yes he needs to call the insurance company.
Glad he wasn't hurt

[suki]

It depends greatly. In most states if the accident is on private property (parking lot) the police won't get involved.

You should notify the insurance company.

[ktsmama]

She's got the damages and DH's insurance info? Better to call them first before she or her ins. co does. He should give his side of the story completely and honestly.

I totally agree with Greebo.

Does that mean I am a SmartA**, too? LOL

[Mom23boys]

She's got the damages and DH's insurance info? Better to call them first before she or her ins. co does. He should give his side of the story completely and honestly.

I agree! My DH backed into a lady in a parking lot once and before we could get home and inform our insurance agent, they were already calling us to find out what happened. So, I would go ahead and call your insurance so they will be prepared with his side of the story before she calls.