06 Aug, 19

What Do I Do If Someone Hit My Parked Car?

Hitting Parked CarReturning to your parked vehicle, only to find that it has been hit can be quite a shocking and upsetting situation. What can make it worse is discovering that the person who damaged your vehicle displayed cowardice and decided to not leave a note with their details.

Unfortunately, it is fairly common for this to happen, no matter where your car is parked. If you often leave your car parked whilst at work, the gym, or while shopping, there’s a risk of someone hitting it. It is a stressful situation to be in, but we will go through some solutions of what you can do if this happens to your vehicle.

The first thing to do is to make sure that you take a deep breath and try to remain calm, as it will allow you to deal with the situation better! So, here is what you should do…

Did The Person Leave A Note?

Firstly, you should check if the driver who hit your vehicle has left a note. On this note should be their details, such as a name, telephone number, address and license plate number. They may also leave their insurance details, but if they don’t you can always call them and find out whom they are insured with. Those who leave a note are usually decent people who have made a genuine mistake after hitting a parked car, however, people do not always adhere to this.

It’s a crime not to leave a note after you’ve bumped or hit someone’s parked vehicle. According to RAC insurance claims, the probability of someone hitting your vehicle and then leaving a note is only 9%, which essentially means that the remaining 91% will be victims of a hit and run. If you fall into this unfortunate category, read on for the steps you can take.

Check The Nearby CCTV Or Ask Any Witnesses

If they haven’t left a note, it is worth checking whether there is anyone who witnessed your vehicle get hit. Some bystanders could have seen what had happened and taken down the person’s details for you, such as the licence plate number. If someone can tell you what happened, you can use this information for your insurance purposes.

However, if you don’t have any luck with finding witnesses, you should check any nearby CCTV footage. This may be easier in car parks, as they usually have CCTV around all parts, especially if it is monitored for ticket purchases. Usually, the car park attendants/owners are willing to cooperate and provide you with the footage.

Take Clear Photographs Of The Car Damage

Make sure that you have taken clear pictures of the damage that has been done to your vehicle and where you were parked, as soon as you can. When you use your smartphone it will leave a time and date stamp on the pictures, so that the insurance company know these exact details. Most insurance companies now require photo proof of the damage that was caused to your vehicle in any kind of accident.

It’s also useful to take photographs of the damage so that you can get quotes for accident repair from your local car body shops, in the case you decide to fix the damage yourself or the person that hit your vehicle offers to pay for it.

Get In Touch With The Third Party

In the event that the third party left their details on a note, you should get in touch with them, in order to decide whether you will be involving your insurance companies or if you will deal with the matter privately. Another option is to pay for any minor damages yourself or contact your own insurance company and they may pay for any damages, as long as you weren’t at fault.

If your car was parked legally the other person will be at fault, which means you can then leave it up to their insurance company to deal with it. However, if your car is parked illegally, then essentially both parties are at fault, due to negligent behaviour; the car was not parked safely and the driver who hit the car wasn’t being diligent.

Often, the third party will be willing to pay for any damages themselves to avoid insurance companies getting involved. If you considering this you can always get a quote from car body repair shops. If the damage consists of scuffs and scratches, often they will be able to use touch up paints to repair the bodywork or other simple car paint scratch repair services.

Inform Your Insurance Company

If you decide to deal with your damaged car privately and not go through insurance, it is important that you still inform your insurance company about the situation. This is to make sure that you, as a driver are covered in any situation. Also, most insurance companies have a rule stating that they must be informed about any damage to your vehicle, failure to do so could result in your insurance policy becoming invalid.

Car Body Repairs With Bodyteq

It’s unfortunate if someone hits your car whilst it’s parked. It’s even worse if they did a hit and run. If this has happened to you and you need some vehicle body repairs, we, at Bodyteq, offer a range of services, from scratch repair to car dent repair.

If your accident damage is a dent, we offer traditional dent repair services, or if the dent in your vehicle hasn’t affected the top layer of paint, we can carry out paintless dent repair! To book in with us, either fill in our easy online form or give us a call on 0207 998 4712.

2 thoughts on “What Do I Do If Someone Hit My Parked Car?

    • Hi Pamela

      Thanks for the enquiry,

      It’s a great question – as the owner of the vehicle, it is always your decision where your vehicle gets repaired. Some insurers and third parties may pressure you into using their ‘approved’ repairers and this is usually down to them getting substantial discounts on the repair but be careful as sometimes repairers will cut corners to complete repairs with such discounts.

      All of our repair methods are Thatcham Approved to meet & exceed OE specifications.

      Kind Regards

      BODYTEQ

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