Fender Bender in Rental, No Insurance

[ttenneborac]

My question involves a traffic accident in the State of: CA

I was just involved in a minor accident while returning a rental car to the rental agency. A vehicle stopped suddenly in from of me in an intersection and I hit his rear bumper going less than 10mph. No real damage was done to the rental car I was in, but his bumper was damaged. I do not have private insurance (don't own car) and declined rental insurance as I thought I was covered by my American Express credit card, with which I paid for the rental. Well, turns out that only covers the rental, not liability. The driver of the other vehicle was on his way to school; we did not call police or insurance companies and decided to talk this afternoon about settling. I returned the rental car without mentioning the incident. He has the rental car license number, my name & phone number....I do not believe he has contacted his insurance company. Should I tell him to get repair estimates and try to pay out of pocket? Did we need to call the police over something so minor? If so, is it too late? What am I liable for? Obviously I don't want to get taken to court over a minor incident, but don't think I have any insurance to cover it! Please help, what should I do and how much time do we have to do it?!

[That Guy]

My question involves a traffic accident in the State of: CA

I was just involved in a minor accident while returning a rental car to the rental agency. A vehicle stopped suddenly in from of me in an intersection and I hit his rear bumper going less than 10mph. No real damage was done to the rental car I was in, but his bumper was damaged. I do not have private insurance (don't own car) and declined rental insurance as I thought I was covered by my American Express credit card, with which I paid for the rental. Well, turns out that only covers the rental, not liability. The driver of the other vehicle was on his way to school; we did not call police or insurance companies and decided to talk this afternoon about settling. I returned the rental car without mentioning the incident. He has the rental car license number, my name & phone number....I do not believe he has contacted his insurance company. Should I tell him to get repair estimates and try to pay out of pocket? Did we need to call the police over something so minor? If so, is it too late? What am I liable for? Obviously I don't want to get taken to court over a minor incident, but don't think I have any insurance to cover it! Please help, what should I do and how much time do we have to do it?!

Depending on how much damage the accident caused to the other driver's vehicle, you are required to report the accident to the DMV within 10 days of the accident date. Don't be surprised if what you think is "minor damage" ends up costing more than $750 to repair. So ask him to get a couple of estimates, and based on those, you can determine whether you are required to report it to the DMV.

I guess you can try to settle with the other party by paying him out of pocket. If that happens to work out, I would make sure to get him to sign a release of liability so that it doesn't come back to bite you in the future.

I am quite surprised that the rental company even allowed you to drive off their lot without some sort of proof of liability insurance. Usually you are required to either provide them proof of insurance OR you would be obligated to pay for theirs.

[ttenneborac]

...in that case, would it be worthwhile reporting it to the rental agency? they didn't check for any proof of insurance, just quickly checked "declined" on the contract and off I went...there is seemingly some clause about CA specifically- might I be covered for liability by the rental agency, even if I declined "extra" insurance? I'd ask Avis but don't want to incriminate myself. Thanks!

[That Guy]

I'd ask Avis but don't want to incriminate myself. Thanks!

Read your rental contract and it will explain to you exactly how their insurance works. As far as I know, and unless you pay for their insurance, they as well as the other party would have a valid civil claim in case of an accident.

In other words, and if the other driver was to go through their insurance for the repairs, there is a good possibility that Avis' insurance will come after you for the amount of the claim that they paid to the other driver.

If in fact they failed to enforce their policy of "no insurance/no rental unless you buy ours", and even if that means they should not have rented to you, I highly doubt that it will your saving grace... You can still be held liable for damages to the other vehicle.

Also, keep in mind that your reporting the accident to them, might suggest that they will report it to the DMV. That will put you in a double bind... One, you will be held liable for the damages to their vehicle as well as the other vehicle and TWO, and since the DMV had no proof of insurance information covering you while you drive, your license can end up getting suspended for being in an accident while driving without insurance.

With all that being said, I am by no means suggesting that you should not report it to Avis, nor am I advising you not to report it to the DMV (if the damages exceed $750). I am simply outlining your options along with the possible consequences stemming from each. The choice as to which way you choose to proceed, is ultimately yours!