I will say that right off, my Mother didn't do the right thing which was to report it immediately to the police. This occurred in Hidalgo County.
She was stopped at a stoplight and she was hit from behind. It wasn't horrible, but it was enough to puncture her rear bumper on her Maxima maybe the size of a dime with a few gouges to go along with it. Also, the other vehicle left the ink/slight impression of 1/2 the car's license plate numbers.
The kid hopped off and it turned out that he didn't have a license (just 15 yrs old). The kid begged and pleaded for her not to report it because his dad was a lawyer and "everything would be taken care of". So, the kid wrote down his name, his dad's name, his insurance information, his permit info...etc on a piece of paper and handed it over. She also spoke to the father on the phone (there on the spot) and he assured her that everything would be taken care of and thanked her for not filing a report.
Well, some time later, the lawyer told my mother that he wanted to be sure that she wasn't driving around with a messed up bumper and that he wanted to touch up the car until it could be properly repaired. So went by my parents' place and "buffed out" the license plate ink and used some touch-up paint to cover some scratches. Yes, imagine a lawyer working on a bumper of a car! The gouges remain and same for the minor punctures.
My mother had gotten a quote from a body shop to repair the bumper (JUST the damage received from the lawyer's kid). She talked to the lawyer a few days ago and he NOW says that "he's not going to pay for other people's mistakes" (my mom had a few scratches on her rear bumper prior to accident, paint only, nothing major). He said that it was too much and that he was not going to pay it.
Needless to say, she didn't take pictures although she has documented the times/dates she's spoken to him.
HAVING SAID ALL THAT:
1. Is there a statute of limitations for filing a report?
2. Can she even file a report AFTER the fact (happened back in mid March)?
3. What else can she do to "report" this guy (if anything - ie: Texas Bar?)
It angers me that she didn't tell me anything until *AFTER* everything had transpired :fm: . Sad that this guy is trying to take advantage of your average "do the right thing" mom.
I think that because she's a woman, he's counting on her not following up. There's got to be some things she can do to let him know that he's not going to take advantage of her. Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks a ton!
-N
She was stopped at a stoplight and she was hit from behind. It wasn't horrible, but it was enough to puncture her rear bumper on her Maxima maybe the size of a dime with a few gouges to go along with it. Also, the other vehicle left the ink/slight impression of 1/2 the car's license plate numbers.
The kid hopped off and it turned out that he didn't have a license (just 15 yrs old). The kid begged and pleaded for her not to report it because his dad was a lawyer and "everything would be taken care of". So, the kid wrote down his name, his dad's name, his insurance information, his permit info...etc on a piece of paper and handed it over. She also spoke to the father on the phone (there on the spot) and he assured her that everything would be taken care of and thanked her for not filing a report.
Well, some time later, the lawyer told my mother that he wanted to be sure that she wasn't driving around with a messed up bumper and that he wanted to touch up the car until it could be properly repaired. So went by my parents' place and "buffed out" the license plate ink and used some touch-up paint to cover some scratches. Yes, imagine a lawyer working on a bumper of a car! The gouges remain and same for the minor punctures.
My mother had gotten a quote from a body shop to repair the bumper (JUST the damage received from the lawyer's kid). She talked to the lawyer a few days ago and he NOW says that "he's not going to pay for other people's mistakes" (my mom had a few scratches on her rear bumper prior to accident, paint only, nothing major). He said that it was too much and that he was not going to pay it.
Needless to say, she didn't take pictures although she has documented the times/dates she's spoken to him.
HAVING SAID ALL THAT:
1. Is there a statute of limitations for filing a report?
2. Can she even file a report AFTER the fact (happened back in mid March)?
3. What else can she do to "report" this guy (if anything - ie: Texas Bar?)
It angers me that she didn't tell me anything until *AFTER* everything had transpired :fm: . Sad that this guy is trying to take advantage of your average "do the right thing" mom.
I think that because she's a woman, he's counting on her not following up. There's got to be some things she can do to let him know that he's not going to take advantage of her. Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks a ton!
-N