Had something similar happen a while back at a classic car meetup. Was backing my '68 Mustang into a tight spot and just barely tapped the bumper of a gorgeous old Corvette behind me. My heart sank, but luckily no visible damage. The other guy laughed it off, said "these old bumpers were built for this stuff," but I still snapped a quick pic just in case. Never hurts to have a little peace of mind tucked away on your phone...
Did you check underneath the bumper at all? Sometimes the outside looks fine, but the brackets or clips can get bent or cracked, especially on older cars. Happened to me once—thought everything was cool until I noticed a slight sag weeks later. Good call snapping a pic though, better safe than sorry... Did the Corvette owner seem concerned at all, or just totally chill about it?
Yeah, that's a solid point about checking underneath—I wouldn't have thought of that either. Honestly, as someone who just got insurance for the first time, I'd probably report it just to be safe. Better to deal with it upfront than worry later if something pops up. But hey, sounds like you handled it pretty well already, especially getting that pic. Hope the Corvette owner stays chill about it... these things can be stressful enough as is.
Honestly, I get why you'd report it just to cover yourself, but I'm not totally convinced it's always the best move. A buddy of mine had a similar thing happen—barely tapped someone's bumper, no visible damage at all. He reported it thinking he was being responsible, and his insurance ended up hiking his rates anyway. Felt kinda unfair since nothing ever came of it.
I mean, yeah, better safe than sorry makes sense, especially with something as pricey as a Corvette. But I wonder if there's a threshold where reporting actually does more harm than good? Like, does anyone know if insurance companies have some kind of informal rule about minor incidents like this? Would be interesting to hear if anyone else has experience with how insurers handle these borderline cases...
Yeah, I feel this. When I first got insurance, I called them about a tiny scratch I caused in a parking lot—no claim filed, nothing paid out, but my rates still went up. Seems like reporting can backfire even when you're trying to do the right thing...
