Merging Errors

I’m late with today’s post because I was in a minor fender bender while running an errand this morning.

Fortunately, it wasn’t anything big, nobody got hurt (unless pride counts, of course). I simply tried to merge my big Ford pickup over a little plastic car that I didn’t see. There were reasons, of course – the sun was shining so that I didn’t see the little black car, there was a big semi in the middle of the road trying to make a turn and the little car came around it, but the reality is, I didn’t have the right of way and I zigged when I shoulda zagged.

The damage to a 10 year old pickup is infinitesimal. Had I walked out to the parking lot I likely would not have noticed it, and if I did I would have thought, “Hmmm, wonder how that happened,” and went on. The corner of my front passenger bumper nicked the rear drive’s door on the other car, then scraped along it until the back wheel well.  There are far worse badges of distinction as to how I've used the beast over the years, and this on hardly merits mention.

I’ve hit parking bumpers harder.

The sad reality, though, is that parking bumpers are harder than little plastic cars. They’re probably less expensive to fix, too.

We pulled into a mini-mart, got out and looked at his car – after all, the damage to mine was self-inflicted --and exchanged information. Had the damage been in the low-dollar category, my intent was to simply pay for it rather than submitting it to the insurance carrier and being subjected to higher premiums.

Part of what surprised me was the other driver’s reticence to take the information I gave at face value. Color me naïve, but I dutifully wrote down my name, address, telephone numbers, insurance carrier and policy – all that good stuff you’re supposed to swap.

It never occurred to me that someone would give false information like that, but he was thinking that might happen.

After waiting about half an hour with still no sign of a police officer in sight, though, we both were ready to be on about the day. I finally convinced him that the data was accurate by showing him my driver’s license, insurance card, and letting him call my cell phone so that he could hear the phone ring.

Eventually, we parted ways. About an hour after I got home, he called with an estimate from a local body shop. The cost for my little lapse of judgment is now going to exceed $1,500.00, including a rental car for the two days his car will be in the shop. Given that, it’s been turned to the insurance carrier who assures me that it won’t cause me either to be dropped or the premiums to go to something just shy of the national debt. They’ve already called for my statement and confirmed that there’s coverage, even for a rental car for the other driver, so other than a bit of nuisance things should be back to the way they were in a few days.

It’s kind of a sad commentary on society, though, that we have to be so suspicious about other people, especially if we think they’re going to be untruthful, or not, “. . . do the right thing.”  I totally understood the other driver's reticence and thought he was pretty sharp about it; I woudln't have thought of the cell phone thing, but will file that lesson away, though.  I may as well get something out of this mess, after all!

The tuition for that pass/fail class was bit expensive, though, and I’d just as soon not repeat it if possible.