[nano]

Quick question guys, first time I have got in an accident and was wondering what the procedure is now...

last night I rear ended someone (basically he was in front merging into traffic and I was behind merging into it as well, there were no cars in the merging lane and when I shoulder checked to merge in and by the time i looked back in front of me he had stopped for some reason and i bumped him....luckily we were going at very slow speeds so damage was basically a small scratch (no dent in either bumper). I know i will probably be at fault for this since I was the one that bumped him, even though I have no reason why he came to a stop...but we exchanged information and I guess he went to report it to icbc.

anyways the next day i get a call from icbc and they want me to go in to make a statement as well as check my car, and apparently the driver is claiming for injuries too wtf...I am assuming based on the damage ICBC is not stupid and will not fall for this idiot claiming injuries?....basically the bumpers were scuffed and maybe even be able to be buffed out, this guy was in his mid 20's too so its not like I hit an old lady...

anyways I am just wondering when I go in on friday what I should say to icbc or just keep quiet and let them deal with it...and what can I expect can happen in terms of insurance premiums and or any money I have to put up front because of this accident....and is there a difference between a bumper clean up as opposed to this guy getting something for his 'injuries' in terms of money coming out of my pocket?

thanks

[sonick]

As far as I know (I've only been in one accident, same thing, I rear ended somebody), ICBC deals with all the injury claims and such, you lose the same amount of discount with or without injury. If they take it to court, ICBC deals with the lawyers and such.

To you, there should be no difference in terms of money out of pocket.

[FerrariEnzo]

last night I rear ended someone
anyways the next day i get a call from icbc
wow.. did they call you at 8am sharp today???

That guy has a 24hr family doctor? im pretty sure he will need a letter from a doctor claiming of such injuries, and it seems fishy that he claims to be injuried between last night and this morning. Not to mention he would need a doctors note to claim such things.

[kkttsang]

this happened to me before i bumped a guy while stopping at a red light (i was super tired) but i was going very slow just crawling to a stop and accidentally bumped him then he claimed whiplash but ICBC denied his claim. ICBC has a low velocity collison claims so you don't have to worry, heres a pdf i found on ICBC regarding that.

http://www.icbc.com/claims/Injury-claims/low-velocity.pdf#search=%22low%22

[gdoh]

just curious what race was the person you hit?

[Volvoman]

As long as you hit him from behind, it will always be your fault. He doesn't need a reason to stop.

I rear ended someone years ago. He was making a U turn at a three way intersection on Granville (illegal) but it was still my fault for rear ending him.

[kkttsang]

i should clarified icbc only denied his injury claim but i still had to pay the deductible for his scratched bumper.

and i dunno if the race matters but he was Caucasian.

[terryjai]

just an FYI...ICBC wants to see your car is because they want to see if the "damage" would cause injuries that the person is claiming and confirm stories.....but in this case...if there is no visable damage and just a scuff....ICBC would tell that guy to go take a hike...


and what you should say with ICBC....just tell them like how you told us on this thread.

premium wise...it would go up if it's your fault...but by how much? i'm not sure....check with your broker

[nano]

thanks for the reply guys, yeah I know from reading past threads and hearing stories from people, that the person who rear ended the other car is responsible most of the times,
which i will accept.

What makes me mad is the fact that this guy is trying to take advantage of the situation by trying to claim for injuries. Now if he is actually injured I apologize but I strongly believe based on the force i touched him at and the proof of the damage (scrape), that he was not injured, i dont think someone can get injured with the same force as a small push from behind by a friend. Anyways, hope icbc doesnt give him jack all, and they should penalize people like him who try to claim bs injuries which causes everyones premium to go up.

on another note, does the severity of the damage reflect the increase in my premium?...i would hate to think my premium would go up a significant amount over such minor damage.

[kkttsang]

in my case the damage to the bumper was minor so it would makes sense for me to pay for me to pay for his damages instead of letting my premium go up. ICBC will give you a choice to either pay for his damages yourself and ur premium stays the same or let icbc pay and ur premium goes up so depending on how much they quote you, you may want to just pay out the damage and your car will not get fix or again pay for it yourself, which was what i did.

[!LittleDragon]

Chances are, his injury claim will be denied. I was rear ended, maybe $500 damage to my bumper, just needed to be resprayed. I tried to claim injury (main reason being, I couldn't turn my head for 2 weeks) and it was denied. Sucked for me because I had to pay for 10 months of physio out of my own pocket...

[Redlines_Daily]

The accident is your fault, but fight the injury claim if it goes through! You can choose to reject ICBC's decision and fight it. The reason I say this is because if an injury claim is made, ICBC will not give you the option to pay out of pocket to cover the damages, they will increase your premiums.

[nano]

thanks for the reply guys....whats the maximum amount of damage that would be more beneficial for me to pay out of my own pocket rather than increase my premium?...Im not exactly too sure how the increase in premium works, is my premiums go up for how long?

[Redlines_Daily]

It depends on what discount level you are on, and are your previous driving history. Call ICBC 1-800 number and they can explain to you. IF you remain accident free for the next 3 years then your premiums will go back to what they were at before the accident.

[sonick]

Your ICBC adjuster should have the calculations for cost of premium increase vs. estimated outright repair cost.

As for premium increase, I believe it's a standard 6 discount levels per accident, at 5% per level. So if you were at 35% discount, you will be at 5% discount. If you were at 10% discount, you'll be at a 20% premium.

[MrGoodbar]

http://www.icbc.com/autoplan/costs/claim-record/CRS

your premiums are relative to the base rate. since you had an accident any discount you have will go down a certain number of levels, if the number of steps you go down is below the base rate, then you will have a surcharge on the claims rated scale. There is a way that you can get your discount back up to where it was as long as you drive a certain time without incident. I can't remember the specifics. Damn my insurance license expired long ago.....

[alex.w *//]

just pay icbc back for the other persons claim, so you won't have to use your premiums

[Redlines_Daily]

just pay icbc back for the other persons claim, so you won't have to use your premiums

ICBC usually will not let you do this if there is a personal injury claim involved

[vafanculo]

Don't be too quick to judge. Even though it was a slight bump, those are enough to usually make you feel pain the next day. The guy did the right thing by going to a doctor. As for his claim with icbc, that will be dealt with him, icbc, and any lawyers he hires.

Expect to be at icbc for 45 min. They gonna check your car, and you will be in the office giving statements, and probably signing a few forms.

The only time you have to worry about injuries, is if you have insurance that won't cover them.

[bloodmack]

if your injured from a slight bump in the rear of a car, dont go outside you pansy ass. (not directed to anyone just people who try that kind of BS).

My accident my car hit a curb and ended up hitting a guy in the front passenger side of his car and I got 100% at fault cause my car came from behind and hit him.. can you believe that one? Spinning out of control and its my fault, HA.

Edit: also he brake checked me thats why I hit the curb

[LP700-4]

ICBC should issue a 2 minute minor for DIVING. jks in other words have like a strict policy that if you try to fake an injury and there is no sufficient proof, then have the guy pay for his damage

[MrGoodbar]

if your injured from a slight bump in the rear of a car, dont go outside you pansy ass. (not directed to anyone just people who try that kind of BS).

My accident my car hit a curb and ended up hitting a guy in the front passenger side of his car and I got 100% at fault cause my car came from behind and hit him.. can you believe that one? Spinning out of control and its my fault, HA.

Edit: also he brake checked me thats why I hit the curb

:facepalm:

[bloodmack]

cant fail me :troll:

[nano]

ICBC should issue a 2 minute minor for DIVING. jks in other words have like a strict policy that if you try to fake an injury and there is no sufficient proof, then have the guy pay for his damage

yeah i agree, pisses me off that hes trying to do this considering he was perfectly fine when i talked to him (which wasnt a surprise considering i only nudged him haha)

[Geoc]

yeah i agree, pisses me off that hes trying to do this considering he was perfectly fine when i talked to him (which wasnt a surprise considering i only nudged him haha)

These are the same people that will attempt to sue a fast food place if they spill hot coffee over their own lap.

It's nothing but a attempted cash grab. Don't stress yourself over it, the system will sort them out.

[!LittleDragon]

yeah i agree, pisses me off that hes trying to do this considering he was perfectly fine when i talked to him (which wasnt a surprise considering i only nudged him haha)

My neck issues didn't show up til 2 days later from a little nudge...

[cressydrift]

^ dude are you kidding me. Good thing it was a nudge because you might not be here if it was a bump!

[Eff-1]

I had the same situation a few years ago.

I rear ended someone and it was very very minor. She was driving a large old pickup truck. My car took quite a bit of damage but hers was untouched.

She tried to claim injury. I said it wasn't possible. Those disputes are then sent to the LVI committee who will make the decision. Luckily for me, the other driver decided at the end of the day not to claim injury and I paid out the damages.

Something to consider: Unfortunately it is possible for people to suffer injury from small collisions. For example, let's say it's an elderly person with a bad back. One small hit from behind is all it takes to mess it up. They will now be able to receive an injury claim.

Here is information on the LVI process: http://www.bc-injury-law.com/icbc-low-velocity-impact-program.htm

[!LittleDragon]

^ dude are you kidding me. Good thing it was a nudge because you might not be here if it was a bump!

I used to think the same way until it happened to me... I've been rear ended 4 times and t-boned once prior to that... didn't bother with injury claim because I was fine. Unfortunately, what happened with the nudge... I was looking left and wasn't sitting square in the seat and all it took was a nudge to shift a vertebrae. Of course the claim was denied because of the speed involved and I'm out $5k+ in physio fees.

[nano]

I used to think the same way until it happened to me... I've been rear ended 4 times and t-boned once prior to that... didn't bother with injury claim because I was fine. Unfortunately, what happened with the nudge... I was looking left and wasn't sitting square in the seat and all it took was a nudge to shift a vertebrae. Of course the claim was denied because of the speed involved and I'm out $5k+ in physio fees.

fair enough, i don't want to jump to any conclusions because I have never experience being rear ended before. I will let the system work itself out, i am sure they will make the right decision...I am just highly suspicious of his claim, considering he seemed like a rather 'buff' guy in his mid 20's and the incredibly minor damage done to the vehicles and impact felt when i rear ended him.

[Edison_Chen]

If there is any injury paid out during the claim, 99.9% of the time, the claim cannot be repaid back.

Another example, if initially there is only vehicle damage, and no injury claim, ICBC will let you repay the claim back. However, if after several months, if the person claims injury, ICBC will refund the claim repayment, and the claim will affect your discount 'then'..

[smoothie.]

if damage is minor and you dont care about fixing your car.(AND icbc denies injury claim)

you can pay straight up for the damage done for that car, ie if it cost $800 to fix, you can pay that so your insurance doesnt change and you dont lose your discount.

[nano]

if his injury claim gets denied and it turns out to be better for me to pay upfront for the damages so it doesnt affect my premium....does his car get fixed by icbc or at this point do we deal privately?...knowing his character I dont want this kid to somehow charge me $1000 for a $300 job

[Edison_Chen]

I would let ICBC fix his car first and then just pay ICBC back afterwords before it affects the renewal or a new plate. If you deal privately and then he goes through ICBC it'll get ugly.

There was a scenario where person A settled privately with person B. Not long after person B went to ICBC and went through the claim process. It kinda got messy after that..

[smoothie.]

it can go through icbc. and it should too, if you think theyre sketch

[LW]

If the scratch could really be buffed out, it'd be hard to believe that caused injury. ICBC adjusters are paid to no pay, so if they can deny the guy they will. Good luck.

[FerrariEnzo]

take pics and post it up here of the damage on your bumper..

there are some people who are bodymen or used to be, and can tell you right away how bad it is and if the injury is reasonable.