Recently passed and hit a parked car.

Hi everyone.

So, I finally got my driving license a few weeks ago and picked up my new car yesterday. Drove it home 10 miles on my own! So was really proud of myself and had been so cautious on the roads. However, I think the excitement got to much and I stupidly decided to drive it last night. Coming down my road (road was slippery from rain anyway), the windows were also slightly steamy and I misjudged how close I was to the parked cars and managed to hit one, causing damage to the front bumper and one of the headlights. :frown:

I'm so ashamed of myself thinking it was a good idea to drive in that situation. My car has damage to the front bumper, headlight and the reflector. I left a note with my number and they would like to go through insurance. I'm so disappointed in myself and will never make such a silly mistake again. Just wondering if anyone knows roughly how much my insurance would be increased by in this situation? I know that's a little vague but need advice and support on how to stop beating myself up over it :frown:

I'm meant to be driving to work next week and I know everyone will ask where my car is, not sure what to tell them without feeling like a fool. Any advice much appreciated.

Reply 1

Wolfram Alpha

tell em you crashed it on your second drive

Reply 2

Betelgeuse-

Hey dont feel stupid it happens. A month after passing my test i took my car to garage to look at something when i picked it up i turned engine on and they had left it in gear, bumped into a car a few feet in front of where they left my car. Luckily there was no damage and they did not pursue a claim. I dont know what price your insurance premium will be hit by :/

Reply 3

the bear

look on the positive side:

i) nobody was injured or killed

ii) you still have your licence

iii) you are not being prosecuted

iv) you are insured

Reply 4

lucyfloss

can't give you an actual number but I wouldn't have thought it would be too much as it's only a bump (which happens all the time) If you had actually crashed/flipped/completely totalled your car then yeah it'd go right up but for a bump I wouldn't worry too much!

Reply 5

nevershear

I had a write-off on my provisional and it cost me £600 extra on my premium when I passed, but everyone's situation is different, I don't need to declare it from June 2019 (so still some time to go yet). You can ask him to advise his insurer and get quotes, but if you've damaged the paintwork he'll have to get the whole bumper area sprayed which can be up to 300 quid if he gets it done properly and isn't entirely unreasonable for him to do especially since they aren't paying for it lol. But the problem is where a lot of people stall and don't play ball with paying up that's probably why they want to go through insurance. Did you remember to take pictures?

Also fair play to you leaving your information. It may work in your favour if you ask to pay for the damage yourself.

Reply 6

IWMTom

Original post by lucyfloss

The value doesn't really make a difference; a claim is a claim, and it'll send the premiums skyrocketing.

Reply 7

JJB103

I did a very similar thing with my first car about 2 weeks into driving. It was an old golf so no power-steering etc. In bad conditions I misjudged a corner and scraped against someones car, I left a not but knocked the door just in case. He was fine with it, albeit a bit annoyed when I first told him. He didn't even pursue a claim, My parents and I payed for the scratch to be repainted and that was the end of that.

Good luck, hope the dude was nice and reasonable about the incident :smile:

Reply 8

Kirstles94

So I've been told it will cost me around £300 to get it repaired so not as bad as imagined but still a pain in the butt! It needs the headlight fixing as it's smashed in.. anyone know how long this is likely to take?