“Parking Lot Accident”

Sorry if this is not the proper place for this post, it seemed to be the most related. I would greatly appreciate help.

The other day at work I parked my car in the lot. While I was in the office the cable for my hand brake broke (standard car) and the vehicle slowly rolled in the parking lot (there is no hill). My car gently collided with another. When i was advised of this i quickly went to move my car. I assessed the damages and there were some smudges on the bumper that i could remove with my finger. The plastic piece that holds the license plate had broken off. I left a note on the windshield explaining what happened and asked that he contacts me if he wanted to. Later that day we spoke on the phone and both agreed that there was no damage to the bumper and that i would be more than happy to pay for replacing the plate holder as well as the grill as the plate holder was attached to that and a small piece of the grill broke. I told him to get the grill and i will repay him. Now he comes back to me and he wants to get the bumper repainted and tells me it will cost 733$!! There is no damage to the bumper.

What are my options at this point? He is obviously trying to take advantage of my good nature. I have heard multiple times that parking lot accidents are 50/50, meaning his insurance pays for his damages and mine for mine. is this true? Can I tell him that since i was willing to pay for the "actual damages" and now he is taking advantage of me that he can deal with it on his own?

My understanding of the fault determination rules in your circumstances would make you 100% at fault. If there is a dispute over the actual damage done, you may have to involve your insurance provider or go through the Courts.

phoenix wrote: Now he comes back to me and he wants to get the bumper repainted and tells me it will cost 733$!!

Why don't you ask him/her to give you 2 and/or 3 quotes from licenced body shops? This would come with company logo on it...then decide with him/her which one is to be used and pay the body shop direct. That sounds reasonable to me.