Found mirror shattered on the street. Four days later, rear ended by a Camry.

[nookandcrannycar]

Last week was not a good week for my Yaris. On Tuesday I was legally parked on a city street. Upon returning to my Yaris, I noticed the passenger side mirror in the folded in position, the mirror glass shattered on the sidewalk, and the Bayou Blue cover for the mirror also on the sidewalk (broken into two pieces). The perpetrator didn't leave a note . If I had to guess what happened, I imagine someone was wheeling a delivery to a business and just kept going. I didn't want to get pulled over for not having a mirror, so I stopped by a Toyota dealer on Tuesday evening and ordered a new mirror ($48.97 including tax -- comes affixed to a plastic backing that allows a 'snap on' installation). I was on the fence re buying a new cover or trying to repair the old one. I now think I'll probably buy a new one.

Four days later (Saturday 1-25-2014), I was on my way to the Houston Auto Show and.....got rear ended by a woman in a Camry . I hope I have followed the right steps so far (I've never been in an accident in Texas), but any input would be helpful.

I was traveling East on Louetta Rd. I crossed over Interstate 45 (the Louetta Rd overpass is 2 lanes in each direction). I then turned right onto the cloverleaf that goes to the feeder road. This cloverleaf is oblong, rather than circular. Many freeways in Texas have 2-4 lane each (on both sides of the freeway) what they call 'feeder roads' to facilitate getting on and off the freeway (very effective IMO). I pulled up to the end of the cloverleaf at the feeder road (feeder road heading South to use next onramp to I-45 Southbound). I waited for the traffic to clear on the feeder road. I was just starting the 'clutch gas motion' and...BAM. She knocked me into the slow lane of the feeder road. The last car that had cleared past me left a tremendous gap, so no other cars were involved. We meandered a few feet under the overpass, and then both pulled into the Starbucks parking lot immediately to our right. She asked if I was alright. Her tone, combined with (unfortunately) my cynicism (and having encountered too many people with a machiavellian nature during my life) prompted me to truthfully say "I don't know". In hindsight, I think she was just being human, but at the time thought she was trying to bait me into saying something that might help mitigate liability (my family is chock full of attorneys, but they all practice in California). She then asked if I needed an ambulance. I said no. Neither of us was sure what to do next. I have AAA insurance and noticed on the right half of the 8.5x11 sheet they sent me (proof of insurance cards = left hand side of same sheet), step by step instructions re what to do after an accident. We followed that exactly (exchanging Names, Addresses, Plate numbers, DL numbers, and insurance company names and policy numbers) and also took some pictures. The next step for me (per the instructions) was to call my insurance company. I told her I would and would follow their instructions. Both of us then left the parking lot.

I drove toward the auto show, and then stopped at another Starbucks (parking lot) and called my insurance company on my cell phone. I have really high liability limits, but I don't have comp or collision. The person at the 800# on my proof of insurance sheet told me he'd make a notation that I called, but that because I don't have collision that I needed to contact the other person's insurance company myself.

I continued to the Houston Auto Show and had a great time. After the show, I went to a different Starbucks. By that time I already felt fine (no soreness). Sometime between 9-12 years ago (my last accident), I was rear ended in my Swift at a stoplight by a guy in a F series Ford pickup. I was sore for about 3 days, and then I was fine after that. While I was at the Starbucks, a Harris County Sheriff's Deputy (on duty) walked in. I wanted to know if I had covered my bases re following the law. I explained the situation to the deputy. He said if you think there has been more than $1,000 in damage then a LEO will come out and do a report (if that is what you want), but the law only requires the exact exchange of information that we executed. He told me I should call the woman's insurance company (Nationwide) on Monday (today).

Today I went to a local shop (the one that did my control arm bolts and a few other things), and asked the rep some questions. He said there was nothing special I needed to ask the rep at the body shop and said the dealer (Fred Haas Toyota World) was a good choice re having the insurance work done. He also said to call Nationwide claims department TODAY.

I next went to Fred Haas Toyota World. I picked up the mirror (from 4 days before the 'rear ender) and called Nationwide's claims department (on the way from the shop to Fred Haas I passed by a Nationwide agent's office and stopped in to get the 800#). The call with the claims office was pretty routine. I did tell him I'm not going to file a medical claim, but I don't know if he believed me. I learned that I needed to leave the bumper cover on until the adjuster sees the car (naturally...but ugh), precluding a detailed estimate. The parts rep showed me the bumper layout and then directed mr to the service department.

The service department told me to use a screwdriver to pry the old plastic miiror backing off (snap off). They also gave me some other valuable information. They told me that once the collision repair equals of exceeds the value of the car (obviously a 'total'), that the insurance company cuts you a check and then you can pay them a salvage amount to keep the car...but that entails having a salvage title. I asked if one can accept less than the value just to avoid a salvage title and was told no. Another rep chimed in and also said that getting a salvage title wasn't possible in Texas re also registering the car in Texas.

They sent me to the collision department to get a preliminary estimate (just under $700.00). I asked that rep what the basis is for a total. He said 75% or more of retail Blue Book.

Next...sent to the used car manager to get the retail Blue Book value. Very interesting. He took my mileage (272,491) and my vin # and asked a few questions. He plugged the information into his computer and out came a report (NADA southwest region). The thing I found most interesting was the 'mileage hit' (the same for all levels of condition) -- $ 2,060.00. The NADA Base Values are -- $3,600 for 'Rough Trade In' -- $4,450 for 'Average Trade In' -- $5,150 for 'Clean Trade In' and $7,175 for 'Clean Retail'. The NADA Total Adjusted Vehicle Values = $ 2,060.00 less for each ($1,540, $2,390, $3,090, and $5,115). The '75%' the collision rep mentioned = 75% of $5,115 per the information he gave me.

I hope I've touched all the bases I've needed to so far. Any suggestions, tips, etc?

P.S. I left out one thing. My insurance (AAA) via the 800# told me (I asked) that a not at fault accident in Texas is not held against you by either the state or the insurance company? Is that the case? (the 800# rep was I Iowa).