@mp11477 fair point, but insurance rates won’t necessarily go up. I have had a few hit and runs in the past and my insurance never went up. Was for similar issues where my car got hit in a parking lot and rear bumper got damaged. Insurance paid me out directly and I went to a shop to get it fixed on my own and my rates didn’t go up.
Could be a hit-and-run or the driver that hit OP might have stayed and given their information. It’s just a big jump to make that assumption without a lot of details. We’ll figure it out, though!
@NDS, it’s good you have an inspection scheduled. I wouldn’t say anything to the inspector about the damage when they come to do the inspection–I think that no matter what you say it won’t help and could only draw their attention to something they might not notice. Just hand them the keys and let them take a look. The pre-return inspection on my Infiniti was fairly forgiving, and you might luck out (especially if you didn’t notice the damage for a while). I would also bet that the IFS charges would be less expensive than having the work done yourself if you have to pay out-of-pocket.
Do you have the other driver’s insurance information? It kind of sounds like you don’t, but if you do, you have more options here. You are in a little bit of a corner, though, if you have to submit this as a comprehensive claim because you don’t have the other driver’s insurance info.
If I were you, I would call around to a few body shops in your area to see who has fairly open availability right now, explain the situation (in case you don’t end up needing the work done), and try to get a quote and an appointment for Tuesday (or even Monday after your inspection). That way, if for some reason the inspection is really unfavorable versus getting it fixed yourself, you have everything in place to get it fixed as quickly as possible. If it’s just replacing, painting and blending a front bumper, I wouldn’t see it taking more than a few days (recently had very similar work done on one of my cars, took about 4 working days). But, I’m not an expert on body work so YMMV.
Pro-tip: don’t wash the car! The dirtier the better at pre-inspection and turn in!
@CaptArbitrage your forgiving comment reminded me of a G37 that I had returned once. The car was actually side-swiped on a dual right turn (the guy crossed over the lane into my car) and it had blemishes along the entire rim of the rear right wheelwell. Fortunately it was not dented and the car was grey and dirty, so you had to have known it was there to see it. The inspection didn’t note it and I didn’t have to worry about it.
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Folks, thanks for all the feedback and tips!
@CaptArbitrage - I don’t know who dinged my car, so I didn’t get the driver’s insurance. I do need to call a couple more repair shops tmrw just to see if one could squeeze in the work in the next 7 biz days, but rating the odds as low. Plus if the comments here are right, IFS charge likely less than my out of pocket to fix, and even though i’ve got a high deduc on insurance, can apparently file claim and get some $$ back even if I’ve returned the car.
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Oof. $1500 in end of lease dings. Was far less on the bumper than quoted at a repair shop though, so at least that’s something…
wasn’t the quote that much for the bumper alone from a body shop? Sounds like you got a good deal
Fingers crossed. Depends on whether the charge provided on the inspection report is the actual charge from IFS
There shouldn’t be any reason it isn’t. Unless you trash the car before turn in. Just take photos when you ground it.