My mom hit my car while backing out, should I ask her to pay for the damages?

[EthanTheFrogMan]

So my mom and dad are separated, and my dad pays for insurance on my 2010 Corolla. My mom lets me park in the garage, and often huts my car with her door(another story), and she also parks very close to the center of the driveway, over the middle, making it hard for me to pull in, and this is partly due to her not thinking and being aware of herself as she backs out. I came home from work last night, opened the driveway to see that she parked so close there was no space for my car, and i did not feel like moving her car, so I parked in the driveway, assuming that if she needed to move my car in the morning, my keys would be on the counter, and I would probably be up by then anyway. So I come outside this morning and my car has a large scrape on the front bumper, so she must have scraped it. Should I ask her for money for the damages? Btw I own my car

 

She is generally not very careful, as she left a mark on my door from her car, which I then asked her to pay for supplies for me to remove.

 

Thanks for your guys's help.
 

[maulemall]

how much rent do you pay?

[greaves1111]

I wouldn't personally, man. That's just me though. I guess it depends on the dynamic you have with your mother

[Suika]

I would simply ask if she knows what could have possibly caused that much damage, and hope for an offer of reimbursement. There's not much you can do otherwise unless you're willing to risk hurting a relationship.

[EthanTheFrogMan]

31 minutes ago, maulemall said:

how much rent do you pay?

I don't, im 16 and instead of paying rent I do the maintenance on her car, as well as pay for the internet. 

[EthanTheFrogMan]

10 minutes ago, Suika said:

I would simply ask if she knows what could have possibly caused that much damage, and hope for an offer of reimbursement. There's not much you can do otherwise unless you're willing to risk hurting a relationship.

True, I told her about it, and she said "oh". I guess im just hoping she will learn to be more careful when she is parking, opening doors, and backing out so she does not damage my car in the future. A crack was made as a result of her hitting the bumper, and I will eventually need to get it replaced, at a cost of $200-250, which I can afford, but I would rather not have to pay for.

[maulemall]

1 minute ago, EthanTheFrogMan said:

I don't, im 16 and instead of paying rent I do the maintenance on her car, as well as pay for the internet. 

If you are old enough to drive you are old enough to fix it.

Tell your Mother about it but since you don't pay any bills you need to be respectful and defer to what ever judgement she makes.

[EthanTheFrogMan]

1 minute ago, maulemall said:

If you are old enough to drive you are old enough to fix it.

Tell your Mother about it but since you don't pay any bills you need to be respectful and defer to what ever judgement she makes.

True, and I can fix the bumper itself, it will just be rather expensive.

 

Thanks for all your guys's help.

[maulemall]

Just now, EthanTheFrogMan said:

True, and I can fix the bumper itself, it will just be rather expensive.

 

Thanks for all your guys's help.

Not really. Call local junk yards.

[EthanTheFrogMan]

2 minutes ago, maulemall said:

Not really. Call local junk yards.

I have, and none of them have ANY parts for 2009-12 corollas

 

I also checked ebay and I can get one, but it will only about $20 less than a new one painted. 

We don't have many junk yards here, and getting the right color will be difficult too

[AMICLG]

Last time I checked that why you pay monthly for car insurance. 

 

Eh, just say you were in a parking lot and you came back to the damage.

[maulemall]

who's name is the car in?

If it's in your dads you need to ask him as well.

[EthanTheFrogMan]

1 minute ago, AdamIsaacLang said:

Last time I checked that why you pay monthly for car insurance. 

 

Eh, just say you were in a parking lot and you came back to the damage.

mm, insurance fraud, that's a good idea!

[Suika]

1 minute ago, EthanTheFrogMan said:

I also checked ebay and I can get one, but it will only about $20 less than a new one painted. 

We don't have many junk yards here, and getting the right color will be difficult too

You can also check craigslist for parted out vehicles. I like doing so for finding cheap factory parts, typically for interior work but each parted out vehicle is different.

[EthanTheFrogMan]

1 minute ago, maulemall said:

who's name is the car in?

If it's in your dads you need to ask him as well.

The car is in my name, cause I bought it from my dad. When he gets home he is going to look at the damage

[maulemall]

1 minute ago, EthanTheFrogMan said:

mm, insurance fraud, that's a good idea!

that's why you need to ask your dad.

[Gale]

19 minutes ago, EthanTheFrogMan said:

... she said "oh".

That is the response of someone who doesn't want to admit their mistake. It's irrelevant if the damage is easily fixable, I would expect an apology from her.

[Godlygamer23]

24 minutes ago, EthanTheFrogMan said:

mm, insurance fraud, that's a good idea!

Terrible idea.

[Security]

Just discuss it with your mum...

[Arty]

how did she get license if she is constinatly like this? 

[dalekphalm]

38 minutes ago, EthanTheFrogMan said:

I don't, im 16 and instead of paying rent I do the maintenance on her car, as well as pay for the internet. 

Are you still in High School? If so, you should not be responsible for her mistakes (Not that you should be even if you were an adult, but if you were staying at home for free as an adult, then there would be some leeway).

34 minutes ago, maulemall said:

If you are old enough to drive you are old enough to fix it.

Tell your Mother about it but since you don't pay any bills you need to be respectful and defer to what ever judgement she makes.

I disagree. Sure, he's hold enough to fix it. But why should he? He's young, and his mom caused the damage.

27 minutes ago, AdamIsaacLang said:

Last time I checked that why you pay monthly for car insurance. 

 

Eh, just say you were in a parking lot and you came back to the damage.

I don't know hot it works where you are from, but here in Canada, and in the US, most car insurance policies have something called a Deductible. It's a set cash amount that you have to pay out of pocket before your insurance kicks in. Here in Canada, $500 is the most common deductible. Your Insurance Premium (The amount you pay per month) is affected by your deductible. Higher deductible, lower premium. You can in fact have no deductible at all, but the insurance rates become quite expensive as a result. Furthermore, as a young male under 20, his rates are gonna be expensive enough as it is.

 

So, assuming he has a deductible, then he can't claim it with his insurance anyway, as it's too minor a problem.

[BOT Edward]

I would mention it to your mother and just say that this is the second time she has damaged your car and to be more careful. 

Have you got a picture of your driveway? there could be things you can do to make it less likely for it to happen again.

 

After mentioning it to your mum just say that you are looking at options for the repair but don't say prices. Have a chat with your dad and tell him you feel uncomfortable asking your mum to pay for it and chances are he will have a talk with her and she will offer to reimburse you for the damages.

 

Maybe for mothers day/xmas/her birthday you can get her a reverse parking camera? they are very cheap from ebay and very simple to install (about $50 AUD and wires just tap onto existing reverse light wires) you can also get the cameras separate and can hook onto the mirrors, make it turn on when the appropriate indicator is turned on. It will be beneficial for you to prevent things like this from happening at all and she will also love it for the fact that general driving will be easier for her and will add value to her car.

(Look at the honda HR-V for example, they have this type of thing stock but they call it "lane watch" and "reverse parking assist") 

 

 

 

[maulemall]

6 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

 

I disagree. Sure, he's hold enough to fix it. But why should he? He's young, and his mom caused the damage.

 

because being a whiney dick is always respected and fixing things on your own and being mature is soo yesterday.

 

 

 

[SkilledRebuilds]

Put a sign on the garage wall... right in front of her car.

 

Objects in Mirror are closer than they appear... Please take your time.

 

 

Callous... maybe, but it beats you having to bring it up yourself and is a constant reminder "in the moment" right then and there.

[TacticlTwinkie]

As to the repair of your bumper, a cracked bumper can be fixed and look like brand new by a body shop if their bumper repair guy is good. Luckily, at the shop I work at, our bumper guy is the best I have ever seen. I would go to a couple of local body shops for an estimate. Take a picture of it an put it on here. I can tell you if a good bumper repair guy can fix it or not.