[pwhoyt]

Got rear ended at a stoplight by a guy in a truck, towing a concrete mixer. The guy took off but I had him on dashcam and the police caught him. Of course he has no insurance...

Question: Given that the car is fixable (I don't have an estimate yet, but the damage doesn't look as bad as you'd think, and the car is drivable), are there any suggestions on avoiding diminishing the value of the car when the day comes to trade it in...?

This was a lesson I learned the hard way, when 5 years ago my wife backed into a fence post and we turned it in to insurance. In that case, we'd have been better off NOT turning it in to insurance, because it went onto the CARFAX report and decreased the value of the car at trade-in time.

Of course the damage to our new BMW is a bit worse. We'll get it fixed, and it'll be fixed "right", and I'm sure we'll enjoy the car for many years. But still, I kinda think that at the end of the day I'm just plain screwed here...

This is our first BMW. Our first "really nice" car. We ordered it the way we wanted it. Not a lease. Wife had just filled the gas tank for the 1st time the day before. We haven't even made the first payment yet.

- Pat

[MrLizzzard]

unfortunately your insurance will probably state that you have no choice but to declare any damage.

Of course you can chose not to but if they were to find out (in a subsequent incident) then they could chose to invalidate it...

Having said that, if i was in your position i still might try and fix myself... not sure ive helped there...

[rcracin]

There’s always the diminished value claim route as well. Each state is different and it’s always a mission, but it’s worth looking into.

[unluky]

I'm no help, but this story is sickening to my stomach. I hate people. I am sorry for your incident - that would make me furious.

[dscabra]

The real issue with high-end "luxury" brands is that ANY damage to the paint/body will diminish the value of the car, even if it's properly repaired and no sign of the damage is visible. When I was shopping for my M550i, one dealership had one that the previous owner had damaged by hooking the front valance over a concrete curb and then backing off. The car had just over 8K miles on it and was being offered at a very good discount with the promise that the damage would be fully repaired. As tempting as it was to get a nearly new car at a great price, I walked away.

[6oclockshadow]

The uninsured driver....Whats his story?

[clone1008]

Any work done through an insurance company is going to generate a report on services like CarFax. This is going to drastically affect the value of your car. Plus it's impossible to hide body work from a trained eye no matter how good the work is.

[TTG]

Exact same thing happened to me when my 5 series had 300 miles on it, all was caught by the dash cam but the driver who hit me did not take off and was insured.

I called BMW, asked them where they want me to take their car and got it repaired there. Beauty of leasing.

Carfax showed it as "minor damage" as nothing but rear bumper was replaced. I would of definitely filed a diminished value claim if I actually owned the car.

[paulb15480]

First off, I am so sorry to hear about the collision with your brand new BMW, especially since it is your first one. It is heartbreaking for sure. I sounds like the damage isn't too significant, so that's a good thing. Hopefully you have an excellent body shop to make the repairs.

But ... it still sucks. The same thing happened to me with a new car I had many years ago. I was sideswiped by another driver who changed lanes into the side of me without looking. They had insurance fortunately. The body shop sucked, but the new paint processes are really good so even though they left a bunch of mechanical issues wrong, the paint looked really good and you couldn't tell there was any damage when they were done. I eventually got the mechanical issues fixed, some of which I did myself.

The important thing is to absolutely file a diminished value claim with your insurance. I would assume you have uninsured driver coverage. I filed it through my insurance and received a nice check that definitely covered the diminished value when I replaced the car many years later. My insurance agent was very helpful throughout the entire process for me.

Good luck, and I feel your pain. The other car was replaced with my first BMW (2017 340i). Unfortunately it was totalled out when another driver did a left turn in front of me at an intersection in May of 2020 (what a sucky year '20 was). They obvioiusly didn't see me and I was so close when they made the turn I absolutely had no time to react. I loved that car and it broke my heart. But it all worked out in the end thanks to good insurance, BMW incentives, and really low interest rates. Now driving a 2020 M340i and loving it. (But I will always miss that first BMW though)

[EXE46]

Sorry to hear OP, something ought to be done about these jerks driving around without insurance. In South Florida this is very common and as such the insurance companies punish us for having coverage by way of higher rates.

[hayko_M340]

Originally Posted by dscabra

The real issue with high-end "luxury" brands is that ANY damage to the paint/body will diminish the value of the car, even if it's properly repaired and no sign of the damage is visible. When I was shopping for my M550i, one dealership had one that the previous owner had damaged by hooking the front valance over a concrete curb and then backing off. The car had just over 8K miles on it and was being offered at a very good discount with the promise that the damage would be fully repaired. As tempting as it was to get a nearly new car at a great price, I walked away.

I can agree with this, any damage in my eyes greatly diminishes the value no matter how well the work is done. With all this EPA bs most bodyshops are forced to use water based paints which will come out nowhere to a OEM factory finish. To each their own I guess, but I hate the thought of repaired cars or going anywhere near bodyshops. (As my car is at a shop for a hit and run :/ )

[VetteGuy]

Originally Posted by hayko_M340

I can agree with this, any damage in my eyes greatly diminishes the value no matter how well the work is done. With all this EPA bs most bodyshops are forced to use water based paints which will come out nowhere to a OEM factory finish. To each their own I guess, but I hate the thought of repaired cars or going anywhere near bodyshops. (As my car is at a shop for a hit and run :/ )

I believe most manufacturers worldwide, including BMW, are using water-based finishes.

[tturedraider]

Originally Posted by VetteGuy

I believe most manufacturers worldwide, including BMW, are using water-based finishes.

That is correct. Even BMW’s factory paint jobs are water-based.

[pwhoyt]

Originally Posted by 6oclockshadow

The uninsured driver....Whats his story?

We got the police report.

He doesn't have insurance. He doesn't have a drivers license.

He doesn't own the truck, and the trailer was owned by yet a third person.

For an ID, the report says “99” which means unknown.

At this point we don't know if he even gave the police his real name or not. I rather doubt it.

I checked out the address he gave. The house looks abandoned, with plywood nailed over the front door and windows.

My hunch is that this guy is in the country illegally, and that he's already long gone, and that we'll never hear from him again - or until he runs afoul of the law again...

(edited with updated info).

- Pat