tim32311

Hit and run in Lowes parking lot. Many witnesses saw and recorded tag number. Officer took statements, hunted down and cited guilty party. How do I pursue diminished value?

updated with pic below


TIA,
Tim

JOEHAWK

That really sucks....

Kent1999

It's just another damage claim to the guilty party's insurance company, like a rental car or a doctor bill.

They'll probably say that they don't pay such claims ("our policy doesn't cover that"), and you say "Good thing I didn't agree to be bound by 'your policy' then". If they still refuse, then it's "I don't accept your offer. See you in court".

Unless the guy doesn't have insurance (or it falls under "No Fault"), in which case it can get tricky, as YOUR policy will have to cover damages. Depending on the laws in your state, getting DV *might* be difficult from your own policy.

EDITED TO ADD:
You didn't mention the amount of damage/severity of hit. If it's just the typical parking lot "little paint on the bumper", it might be difficult to show DV.

Grand Slam

My C5 was hit 5 times - all in parking lots. The first one bent the B pillar slightly and caused a Bent Frame notation in CarFax. I didn't know at the time the effect of diminished value it would cause. Fortunately, when I bought my new GS in January, my dealer agreed to a trade-in even though he had said for years he would not.

blackmagicZ

Here in Calif., only if the damage is over $1,500.00 it shows up on Car Fax. It may be the same everywhere. Good luck with DV.

FX VETTE

tim32311

Here is a pic of the damage.

Maxpowers

Man that sucks. At least there were witnesses and the cops found the guy.

RipcordZ51

And my wife says I'm crazy to park away from everyone and send her into Home Depot

rmorin1249

I successfully filed a DV claim with USAA but the at fault party was also insured by USAA so I don't know if that had any bearing on my claim. My car was a brand new Audi with less than 1000 miles and about 30 days old. Good luck with your effort.

tcinla

Did the police arrest the guy for the 'run' part ? Isn't that a crime ? (running)

tcinla

Looked it up : In CA, 'Hit and run' is a misdemeanor (fine and possible jail time) if it was property damage only. If there was injury, then it's a felony.

tim32311

Same here in Fl. The perp was issued a citation.

GR Jay

That is such bullshit. How is this any different than stealing several thousand dollars from someone?

Jimbob26

Just the picture and the idea that the douchebag drove away thinking he could get away with it pisses me off. Glad the police caught up with him. Would be interesting to see if he's even insured and/or driving without a license.

tcinla

Here in los angeles you just have to have uninsured motorist coverage and hope for the best. I've had 2 instances where the accident was the other party's fault and on the first MY insurance company had the pictures and statements as proof but just decided to pay my claim. I guess it was not worth pursuing the other company.

On the second instance, I had a copy of the guys drivers license (a picture i took) AND and pic of the license plate and my insurance company (a different one from the first instance) said they couldn't locate the guy!!!! So either it was a face driver's license or he had a 'hook up' to game the system. Either way, the reality is you get the justice/redress you can afford (out of pocket).

iclick

Not crazy. I make a policy of parking at the furthest corner of the parking lot as far away from other cars as possible. Besides, the walk to the store is good exercise. So far so good, knocking firmly on wood.

CP

How did the cops have any jurisdiction in a private parking lot?

blackmagicZ

My Caddy was hit in a private parking lot. I called the police anyway. The officer wrote a police report that explained what happened. Turns out the kid driving the Mustang that back into me was not insured.

TulsaVette

Private parking lot accessible to the public. They cannot issue a traffic citation but can issue a criminal citation such as hit and run.