Got into a fender bender. No insurance. What will happen?
Hi. I live in the state of Indiana. I got side swiped by a guy trying to go around the person in front of him when he slammed into my car. I will just honestly say that I don't have insurance because I don't have a lot of money. I'm not after money. I'm not trying to get my car fixed. And honestly, it's just a tiny gash and a little dent in the side of my door. I honestly don't even care about fixing it. The guy was really nice and didn't seem to be sneaky or anything. He admitted it was his fault and then he gave me his business card, his number, name, insurance and license plate number.
So here is the question. What will happen to me? I don't want to get my license taken away or something. And I really could care less about that tiny dent. What are my options?
Seb2012-05-09T00:27:20Z
Favorite Answer
You can be fined up to $10,000 and 90 day license suspended. You have no say, its up to him whether he wants to report it to the police and his insurance. If its a really small dent on his car as well, he might consider. Not worth the increase in his insurance policy. If he does not have your license or plate # or even name, dont call him or contact him. Let him file a claim, they wont know you at all.
To legally drive in Indiana, you must be licensed and have valid insurance. When you register your car in Indiana, you have to list the name of your insurance company and policy number on your registration. So either you have lied on your registration or shown none. (I live in the state of IN).
It sounds like you are not at fault for this accident, which might be in your favor. Did the police come to the scene of the accident? If so, then they will require you to complete a form that you MUST complete w/in 10 days, that will list your name, address, license info and YOUR insurance company plus policy number. The insurance company MUST verify if in fact you had insurance or not, and if not, then they can suspend your license.
Now if no police came to the scene, it is unknown if the insurance company (for the other guy) will report that you had no insurance to the BMV.
You better hope that they do not find you at fault for this accident, and if so, then you will owe for the damages. A lawyer cant do a thing for you, since what is your defense, "well, I can't afford car insurance, so if you cant afford, you are not legal to drive period...........
IF, the BMV does find out that you were driving w/out insurance, then to keep your license active, you will then have to buy insurance and the insurance company by LAW, must submit proof that you have indeed paid for and not cancelled it.
One other thing to consider. In the state of Indiana, the license record goes back 10 years.......It will show all points, be it open or closed and the dates of each.
He gave you the information and admitted fault. Therefore, you technically don't need insurance at all in this situation. You should call his insurance company, then take your care to a body shop for an estimate. The insurance company will either pay the body shop directly if you choose to get it fixed, or they will cut you a check for a slightly lesser amount than they would pay the body shop.
It is state law to have auto insurance, but since you were not at fault in the accident, your insurance wouldn't be involved anyway, even if you had insurance.
If you're at fault then you can expect the other person to go through his/her own carrier and for them to then decide whether to pursue you directly through a subrogation action, or collection, or a civil suit if you don't agree to pay. And as Cowboy Bill said, you could be in trouble beyond that. The benefit of having insurance, beyond the obvious, is that your carrier could see this other person's car and pay based off an insurance estimate, not some inflated estimate that this person got at a shop. Now, if you want to pay for this yourself, work out the amount by asking for other estimates (good luck with that!) but make sure you get a release signed by the other person that says in exchange for this payment, they agree this is the final disposition, that it's binding and they agree not to sue you. Wow, that sounds exactly like what insurance companies do!
Options? You had the "option" to buy insurance if you wanted to drive. Since you foolishly drove without insurance, you will probably be cited and fined for driving without insurance and your license may be suspended His insurance will pay to repair your car but you may be walking for a while.
If you ever get into an accident with many people, including me and don't have insurance, you can be sued for everything you have or will ever have.
I'm betting (hoping) that his insurance company already has your information and already has reported that you were uninsured. People like you who drive without insurance, are one reason why our insurance rates are so high.