Long story short, 14yo kid on bicycle is cutting through property and goes into the road without checking for traffic first. I'm maybe doing 10-20mph. He hits my car with his bike, and stumbles off using my hood to stay up (as I'm stopping). He didnt hurt anything and of course I'm ok but my baby isn't:





Despite no one being hurt and the cops finding him at fault (if not lucky to be alive), I'm still depressed.

So far as I can tell, I need a new lip as this one is fractured. Perhaps the bumper needs work too- but the scratches from the bike's impact are actually very deep and who knows what happened to the bumper near the lip. Since body work on this island is outrageously expensive and the quality unbelievably poor, it was suggested that I just get a new bumper. This will likely be cheaper and in look better- even if they dont have the original car in front of them.

My quesiton is this: My car is 18 months old and has been kept (painfully) clean for 90%+ of that time. The closest it's seen to a winter is 65 degree weather. Could I have a place in the states paint a new bumper to match a new black G and send it to me? Would this look good installed? Or would my paint have already faded enough to make a big difference?

Any experience or thoughts would be really helpful

 

damn, you hit a kid! I dont think cops would be on your side for that no matter what really happened. I wouldn't pursure it with the kid, the cops cant find him at fault, hes only 14 its not like he has insurance. Their gonna put it on you.

 

wow........thats a first i have heard on the forums........good luck with whatever happends (hopefully you dont go to jail).........yea you can get a new front bumper (i dont know about pre painted).........but it would look fine

 

accidents involving bikes or people walking smack in the middle of the road without being careful can be that person's fault and not the drivers....cops make the call after doing an investigation.....

 

the cops came and found him at fault. it happened in a private neighborhood though so no citations or anything were issued. i was driving like 10mph and he came out of a bunch of bushes and into the road at full speed. it was impossible for me to see him and i wasnt speeding.

after all is said and done the accident report will state that it's his fault, but if he/his father refuses to pay then i have to take them to court. i hope it doesnt get that far though i just want my car fixed like how it was.

anyway anyone know if a bumper painted to match a new black car would look good on my car? also, does anyone have any suggestions on who to contact in the states? where i live body work is very poor. im going to contact grubbs and see who they suggest but beyond that i just dont know ...

 

+1... if it was me... i would have gone after the kids parents. they are responsible for any damage he does in the real world as he is a minor. too bad about the bumper though... best way to colour match is through a local body shop imo. hope it works out for u though.

 

after the accident first thing i did was ask if the kid was ok. he said yes and offered me money on the spot. i couldnt believe it. ihad him take me to where he lives and i explained to his parents what happened. immidiately the father became defensive and started constructing his case for the police, demding that i go back to the scene, asking for my license and registration, etc.
im glad i was ultimately in the 'right' in this terrible situation...

color matching with a local body shop isnt an option though... im hoping i can find a place that can help

 

Kids are stupid and don't think before doing things. Just because they're minors doesn't give them a 'get out of jail' pass. Everything is based on the location of impact. ie - if the kid was hit at the front grill area, the driver is most likely at fault. Side impacts are good indications that the vehicle was first and that whoever involved did not watch line of sight and ran into the vehicle.

If I were you, I'd contact a Infiniti dealer in Florida. http://www.infinitihelp.com/Infiniti...rs/florida.htm

 

Tek, where exactly are you located?

 

+2...
C.

 

looks like you are going to have to take him to small claims