The Shoulder
The Shoulder
66
plain-crane-089

Someone hit my parked car and drove off — do I even have options without full coverage?

So this happened two days ago and I'm still kind of stressing about it. I was parked in a garage near my workplace and came back to find my front bumper completely cracked, side mirror hanging off, and a big scrape running almost the whole length of the driver's side door. No note. Nothing.

I only carry liability on my car because it's older and I figured full coverage wasn't worth the cost. Now I'm realizing that might have been a mistake.

Here's the thing though — I don't think I'm totally out of luck. The garage has cameras, and when I asked the attendant on duty he said they do keep footage for at least a week. I haven't officially filed anything yet but I got the attendant's name and he seemed willing to help. There's also a woman who was walking to her car at the same time and saw it happen — she actually came and found me inside to let me know. She gave me her number.

I filed a police report that same evening. The officer said they'd look into it but kind of gave me the "we'll see" energy, you know?

My main worry is: if the other driver is eventually identified, can I go after their insurance directly even though this was a hit and run on a parked car? I don't want to drag my own policy into this if I can avoid it — I'm already stretched thin and the last thing I need is my rates jumping.

Has anyone actually navigated something like this and gotten the at-fault driver to pay? What steps should I be taking right now while the evidence is still fresh?

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9 replies

  • 12
    curious-grouse-456

    Almost exact same thing happened to me in a parking structure last year. The camera footage ended up being everything — seriously, push hard to get a copy or at least confirm it's being preserved ASAP. Mine got overwritten before anyone pulled it and I was so mad at myself for waiting. If they ID the driver, yes, you can absolutely go through their liability insurance. That's exactly what it's there for.

    • 9
      tired-dreamer357

      Going through something similar right now. Did following up actually move the needle for you?

  • 7
    steady-swan-691

    Do NOT just casually call your own insurance to 'ask questions' thinking it won't affect anything. Even informational calls can get logged and flagged. If the other driver gets identified and you end up going through their insurer, you may not need to involve your own policy at all. Stay quiet on your end until you know more.

    • 19
      hearty-beaver-915

      Former adjuster here. If the at-fault driver is found, their bodily property liability (yes, property — not just injuries) covers damage they caused to your car, even in a hit and run situation where they're later identified. You'd file a third-party claim against their policy. You wouldn't be going through your own insurance at all in that scenario, so your rates shouldn't be affected. The tricky part is actually finding them, which is why the footage and your witness are gold right now.

    • 9
      steady-kestrel-321

      Three things: get that footage secured today, not tomorrow. Text your witness and confirm she's still willing to give a statement. And get a written repair estimate this week. You're in a decent position right now but evidence gets cold fast and witnesses get busy and forget. Stop thinking about it and start doing.

  • 10
    curious-fox-019

    A few things worth doing right now while everything's still fresh: 1) Send yourself a timestamped email documenting everything you remember — time, location, what the attendant said, your witness's contact info. 2) Get repair estimates from at least two shops even if you're not ready to fix it yet. That creates a paper record of damages. 3) Follow up with the police report number in writing if you can — sometimes a quick email to the precinct referencing your report # keeps it from going cold. You don't need a lawyer for any of this yet, just staying organized helps a lot.

    • 9
      calm-newt-067

      Not a car damage question, but — were you physically in the car when it happened, or was it truly unoccupied? Sometimes people get jolted just moving toward a door or jumping out of the way and don't think of it as an 'injury.' If you felt anything weird physically, even just stress-related tension, it's worth noting down. Probably nothing, but worth being aware of.

  • 5
    careful-bison-015

    Ugh, this is the worst feeling. You didn't do anything wrong and now you're the one scrambling. I really hope the cameras come through for you — fingers crossed the garage actually cooperates. Keep us posted on what you find out!

  • 10
    quiet-badger-194

    Just to clarify — did you actually see the footage yourself, or are you going off what the attendant told you? Because 'we keep footage for a week' and 'footage that clearly shows the incident' are two very different things. Garages often have blind spots or low-res cameras that don't capture plates. I'd want to verify what's actually on there before counting on it too heavily.