What is a fender bender ?
A fender bender is any minor accident, resulting in minor damages to vehicles involved. The term ‘fender bender’ was coined because most of these accidents affect the fenders. Fender benders usually occur in large parking lots, wherein drivers often compete for the best spots and at intersections when a car makes a sudden stop, causing the vehicle following it crash into the trunk or bumper. The typical result of a fender bender is low-speed collision.
Most insurance agencies include coverage for injuries and damages by a fender bender, but most increase a driver’s premiums after the report of an accident. As such, many car owners prefer to settle the damages between themselves.
While fender benders rarely cause major damages or injuries, insurance companies require all their clients to report both small and large accidents. Meaning, an authority figure, such as a traffic enforcer or police officer should come to the scene and take down notes about the accident, while the drivers involved should take photographs of the damages caused by the accident to support possible legal claims.
Some insurance companies cover the entire cost of medical claims and repairs, but other legal issues that may arise from a fender bender may not be covered. Depending on the insurance company, an occasional fender bender may be overlooked and no increase on your premiums would occur. While people involved in a fender bender can work out their problems privately, many experts recommend avoiding too much out-of-the-pocket payments on accidental damages. As a general rule, always estimate the damages caused by a fender bender and compare it to the insurance deductible.
For some fender bender cases, damages acquired are only cosmetic in nature, so they choose not to make repairs. Since minor chipping of paints would not affect the mechanical condition of cars, they could go on driving normally. However, car experts recommend fixing dents of vehicles as exposed metals are prone to rust damages, creating additional problems in the future.
