# Fender Bender- what is my best option?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fender-bender-what-is-my-best-option/513727>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 14, 2009, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fender-bender-what-is-my-best-option/513727 "2009-10-14T00:54:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![cdsilv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cdsilv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cdsilv)\
**Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fender-bender-what-is-my-best-option/513727/21 "2009-10-15T18:36:52Z")

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No police report, no payment from insurance company. Count on it. No 3rd party verification that this is not a ‘scam’…

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**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\
**Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fender-bender-what-is-my-best-option/513727/22 "2009-10-15T20:27:15Z")

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> [@cdsilv](#):
>
> No police report, no payment from insurance company. Count on it.

If by this you mean: “No police report = no payment from insurance company” then I respectfully suggest you continue other discussions about which you have a clue.

Otherwise, what are you trying to say?

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**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\
**Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fender-bender-what-is-my-best-option/513727/23 "2009-10-15T21:08:33Z")

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> [@cdsilv](#):
>
> No police report, no payment from insurance company. Count on it. No 3rd party verification that this is not a ‘scam’…

The insurance company likes for you to call the police just to be on the safe side, but in the case of an accident with damage below a certain state-mandated figure (usually $1000 or so), police reports are not required and, in fact, the police might not even come if you call them.

Of course, the limits are usually ridiculously out of date considering how much even minor accidents cost these days, so even if you’re over that limit not having a police report isn’t that big of a deal. But if you had a major accident without a report, you might have some explaining to do.

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