Rant over fender bender [plus collision advice na din]

[OTEP]

Just doing a lil bit of ranting. As some of you guys know, I accidentally backed into my cousin's '01 Civic as I was backing out of the garage (it was parked directly across the street). The car was dark colored, the street was not lit and the weather was bad at the time.

My left bumper corner hit the point where the Civic's bumper, decklid, and right outer taillamp meet. The bumper got scratched when my rear bumper overrode it, the lower lip of the decklid got pushed in a bit (less than 0.25" inwards), same with the sheetmetal at the base of the taillamp. The right outer taillamp's lower edge was shattered, however. My rig was undamaged.

I did recognize my fault. Initial plan was to have insurance handle it and I just supply a taillamp to lower the participation cost.

I'm just ranting because now my cousin texts me that a surplus taillamp will not be good enough since it has small scratches and imperfections [even a brand new lamp will not stay perfect for long once exposed to the elements, right? And how perfect was the 5-year old lamp I broke?] and that the insurance accredited repair facility is not good enough for them also.

What they want is a brand new taillamp and the seemingly minor repair to be done by ALEX Car Restoration (one of the most expensive shops in the area). And ALEX wants Php12k to do the job. Unfortunately, the insurance only sees the damage as worth Php6k and that's just how much they gave my cousin as their cash settlement. So now my cuz wants me to cough up the difference.

It's not really the money that irks me. Nakakaasar lang kasi parang hindi kami closed knit family (dalawang families na lang kaming naiwan sa 'Pinas). Ang dami kong kakilalang shops who would do the job for even less than the insurance estimate and still do a good job. Still they insist dun pa sa pinakamahal dalhin. It's just a minor rant but it was something I didn't expect especially coming from close relatives. The vehicle isn't even anywhere near mint condition to deserve Alex's work.

Ayun lang, sana pala winasak ko na lang para mas sulit ang bayad sa Alex...
Hindi naman ata nagmamadali sa bayad, medyo nagulat lang ako sa pagpa-pagawaan.

***btw, this thread might be deleted in a few days...

[Horsepower]

Hmmm baka mapakiusapan mo pa.. 5yrs na pala yun eh dapat 5yrs old din palit mo bakit bnew hinihingi??? parang ginugulangan ka na nun ah

[OTEP]

Ayoko namang isiping ginugulangan.

Pero siguro kung sasakyan ko naman ang nabangga nila with the same level of damage, hindi naman ako mag-iinsist na sa mahal pa ipagawa using all brand-new parts. In all probability, I'll just have my vehicle repaired sa shop na kakilala para hindi magastos. Pumayag nga akong gawing DIY project ni chieffy yung bumper ko back in his Caltex days [salamat nga pala ulit, chieffy].

Nung nasabit ng Patrol ni odell Pajero ko, hindi na din naman ako nagdemand ng malaki sa kanya. Pambili lang ng pintura at konting pang-abot sa pintor nagka-ayos na kami.

[NightRock]

ganyan talaga hindi lahat ng tao katulad at kasing bait mo Doc Otep.. charged it to exp. nalang.. pero ang mahal naman ng atras mo 12k hehehe

[CaRGirL]

oh well... you really can't expect much from a family member, no matter how close you are...

[Trajano]

it's harder to settle trouble with a relative kasi mas alam nila ang capability mo to pay. nangyari na rin yan sa akin. like what you said mas mabuti pa na winasak mo na lang, mas sulit pa. pero syempre talagang nakakaasar pero sa bandang huli you would still love them. dahil sabi mo nga dalawang pamilya na lang kayo na nandito sa pinas. lambing lang nila sa iyo yan, yon na lang ang isipin mo.

[BoEinG_747]

tama ka ,hindi ang pera or gastos ang nag papasama ng loob mo

kundi iyon pag balewala ng pagiging mag kamag anak ninyo .
lalo na ilan na lang pala kayo natitira dito sa pinas na mag kamag anak
na dapat nag dadamayan at nag uunawaan ,
sad to say hindi pa nila naibigay sa iyo

wish lang sana hindi yan ang pag umpisa ng pag ka roon nyo ng alitan
at mag bago sana desisyon nila sa ipagawa sa mas cheaper na shop or sa kakilala mo

[the_wildthing]

What do the old folks say?

Legally there's no escape, but if treated as a family matter, maybe the parents/grand-parents can help straighten things out.

[Trajano]

well, if you're capable to pay the damage, then do so with much gusto. that way, they won't see you so-so. there's a lot of juice in you than them. at least now, you already know those relative of yours who are worthy of you favor.

[ian_rex]

sir otep, supposed you give in to their demand. ok lang yun. pero next time ingat na lang. saby biro: "that wold be the last time you can rip me off". tapos iwas ka na lang. nakakalungkot lang kasi may mga taong ganun...