Honestly, this is exactly why I get paranoid about even the tiniest bumps. A couple years ago, I barely tapped someone’s bumper in a parking lot—no scratches, nothing obvious. We both looked, shrugged it off, and left. Then, three days later, the guy called saying his sensor was acting up and wanted my info for insurance. I felt stuck between a rock and a hard place.
On one hand, I don’t want to be that person who runs to insurance for every little thing and ends up with sky-high premiums. But on the other, what if there really is some hidden damage? Or worse, what if they try to pin something totally unrelated on me? I guess I’d rather play it safe and at least document everything, just in case. Does anyone else take a ton of photos even when it seems like nothing happened, or is that just me being overly cautious?
Honestly, I get why you’re cautious, but sometimes I feel like we might be overdoing it with the photos and insurance stuff. I just bought my first policy a few months ago and the whole “report every little thing” advice kinda freaks me out. Like, isn’t there a risk that if you report even tiny things, your premiums go up for stuff that barely counts as an accident? I mean, I get wanting to cover yourself, but if there’s no visible damage and both people agree it’s nothing, do we really need to make it a bigger deal?
I’m not saying ignore actual damage or anything like that. But I’ve heard stories from friends where they reported a scratch, then their rates jumped for years. It makes me wonder if the insurance companies are just looking for any excuse. And honestly, if someone called me days later about a “sensor issue” after a tiny bump, I’d be skeptical. How do you even know it was from your tap and not something else that happened after?
I guess what I’m saying is, yeah, maybe take a couple pics for your own records (just in case), but I wouldn’t rush to involve insurance unless there’s real, obvious damage or someone’s hurt. Otherwise it feels like you’re just opening yourself up to more headaches and higher bills down the road. Maybe I’m being naive but... sometimes it seems like common sense should win out over paranoia.
I get where you’re coming from, but I’ve seen way too many cases where “no visible damage” turns into a headache later. Even a light bump can mess up sensors or alignment, and if the other driver changes their mind, you’re left with no proof. Reporting doesn’t always mean a claim—sometimes it’s just about having a record. It’s not paranoia, just covering your bases.
I get the logic behind reporting, but isn’t there a point where it just adds unnecessary hassle? I mean, if both people check things over and agree there’s nothing wrong, does it really make sense to involve insurance or file a report? I’ve had a couple of tiny parking lot taps over the years—never reported, never had issues later. Maybe I’ve just been lucky, but sometimes it feels like making it official just complicates things for everyone.
I get where you’re coming from. Honestly, I’ve had a couple of those “barely touched” moments in parking lots too. Most of the time, if both people are cool and there’s zero visible damage, I just take a few pics for my own records and move on. Reporting every little thing feels like overkill, especially when it’s just a scuff or nothing at all.
But I’ve heard stories where someone changes their mind days later and suddenly wants to claim damage, so that always makes me second-guess. Guess it depends on how much you trust the other person and how risk-averse you are. If it’s truly nothing, I’d probably skip the report—but I’d keep those photos just in case things go sideways later. It’s a bit of a gamble either way.
