So, I was in a car accident and rear ended a few weeks ago by another driver in a rental car (Enterprise). I filed a claim through Enterprise/Elco, and they said they will send an adjuster for this, which has not happened yet. Since then, someone hit the right side of my rear bumper in a hit and run, while my car was parked. This is all Repairable damage (deep scratches/small dents) - I doubt Replacement is needed.
What can I do in this situation? It is two separate damages to the same car part (rear bumper).
Is there a strategic way of repairing the car? Thank you
I would call the other persons insurance and just get it fixed, they should take care of it and provide a rental.
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Just let your insurance handle it. Make sure you find a BMW certified collision center. There wonât be any issue returning the car as long as it is fixed professionally.
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As long as itâs repaired back to OEM standards, there isnât a problem. Just demand OEM parts and not aftermarket. Thatâs one of the benefits of leasing. BMW will take the added depreciation hit on the car when itâs time for them to sell it, not you.
Call their insurance company, like @joeblogs said, and handle through them. If you donât want the aggravation, call your insurance company, file a claim, pay your deductible and let them deal with it, along with fighting the at-fault insurance to get your deductible back. Either way works. It just depends on how much you want to deal with it yourself.
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So my question is, if I do get a estimate from BMW Dealership, and they know about the damages, will this affect me when I want to return the car at the END of the lease? Will the appraiser who inspects the car at the lease turn-in KNOW about the damages and double check that the repairs were done right?
Am I incriminating myself in a way by informing BMW about this rear bumper damage?
This is a repair, not a replacement using new parts
As long as itâs repaired properly, there is no issue. Take it to a BMW certified center if you want to be extra cautious.
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You can easily take the vehicle into any BMW Certified Repair center or any center approved by your insurance. Handle the entire situation through Insurance - after all you pay a premium- use it. Or⌠take it to a reputable body shop that handles insurance claims for their customers if you donât want to hassle around (NY has tons). As long as the vehicle was repaired per original standards and used the correct intended parts there will be no problems on your lease end inspection that relate to this particular accident/damage.
That demand totally depends on your insurance policy/coverage. Most policies have âOE equivalentâ coverage and you have to pay extra to get actual OE parts. I have OE coverage on the S2K, equivalent on everything else. Well, except the van, that doesnât have collision coverage so itâs duct tape and zip ties 
But anyway on a lease return - who cares as long as an inspector wouldnât notice.
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This must be a state by state thing then. I donât pay extra for it, but have to make sure itâs documented I want OEM parts or they can put aftermarket on. And yes, while I agree with you that itâs a lease, who cares, sometimes the aftermarket stuff doesnât give the same fit and finish, which might cause an issue come lease end time.
If itâs not OPâs fault (and he has a police report to go with it) then they should go to the other personâs insurance company instead. In NY State, the at-fault partiesâ insurance company would take care of it.
Never make a claim with your insurance company if someone elseâs can pay the bill, itâll make your premiums go up 35% even if your insurance company is reimbursed by the other one.
I learned this the hard way in NY state.
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They will know about the repair just by looking at the car and testing the paint density. They can immediately spot a repair by eye that you or I wouldnât notice. That said, you could have 50k in damages that wonât matter when you turn the car in provided it wasnât slapped together in your backyard with a couple of your buddies and a case of beer. If itâs done right, it wonât matter at all
Just to pile on, the service department (or collision center) at any given dealership doesnât know and doesnât care whether your car is leased, financed, paid for, whatever. Itâs irrelevant to them.
They will get you a quote, perform service or repairs, and move on to the next guy. They donât keep secret notes and call BMW FS late at night saying âmake sure to check out Mr. Bobâs 330i extra carefully at lease turn inâ, or anything like that.
Youâre not incriminating yourself getting it fixed at a BMW dealership vs an independent shop, the black helicopters wonât be coming for you.
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Check your policy. This has been the case for me in NY (years ago) and also in MI, with several different name brand insurance companies.
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Not necessarily, the service centers do a walk around every time you bring a car in, documenting anything on the vehicle. That report goes to into a file on the vehicle which is reviewed on turn in.
LOL.
The service departments do a walk-around to note any dings or scratches so that when they return the car, the customer cannot say âhey you scratched my car!â and try to blame the dealership.
It is laughable to suggest that they keep some secret file with all the dings or scratches they noted and that this is somehow reviewed between the bank and inspector at lease end. Come on.
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Ha, dealers donât have the time or resources to do that, other than maybe an exotic. And the dealer doesnât give a rip about an asset that doesnât belong to them. If you have more insight on this Iâd like to know the details
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Thatâs good to know. I live in CA and I usually have lawyer handle it for me so I donât need to spend time talking to different parties involved. I always ask my insurance to repair the car for me so they can start the job right away. If you want to work with other insurance company, it takes weeks to get the police report and have the permission for the bodyshop to tear down the car for estimates.
My premiums didnât go up in my last two claims. If thatâs the case in NY, it really sucks.
TBH if what may happen at turn-in/inspection is giving you this much anxiety, leasing may not be right for you.
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yeah i donât think I would call the dealer first. Try to take care of it with the other personâs insurance because he rear ended you
Iâm gonna chime in with my theoryâŚ
I think the OP wasnât rear ended, but damaged the bumper himself instead, hence the lack of mention of a third party at fault, or police/report, or insurance.
Letâs keep the conspiracy theories rolling. 