[retiredguy123]

I don't think you need a police report in this case. If the cleaning lady has insurance, her insurance should pay for the damage. If not, then you can file a claim under your collision insurance. A photo of the damage should be sufficient to prove the damage. If your insurance company requires a police report to prove that your car was damaged, I would find another insurance company. Typically, the police do not respond to this type of accident. Your insurance company can sue the cleaning lady, but they probably won't.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Drrichross

Thanks for the info. Yesterday wasn't a rental, that was a few years ago. She called our agent last night, so we have his info, actually a friend. He just wasn't sure if there were different rules in Florida. She got photos of car, cleaning lady license, insurance, etc. Hopefully all is good. Down side is She is flying back home this morning, so now needs to plan a trip back soon to get the car fixed. Poor gal ������

This is like - basic stuff that anyone who has a car should do.
You call 911. You do NOT talk to the driver of the other vehicle other than to tell them to wait for the police.
The police don't answer 911, the emergency services dispatcher does. You tell them there was a car accident at [insert address], with damage to at least one vehicle, and no one appears to be injured. You let them ask questions, answer them simply and truthfully, without adding in information that has nothing to do with the need for police or the situation.
The police will come, because it was sent by 911 services. They might be there within a half hour since there are no known injuries.

They'll take your statement, they'll take the cleaning lady's statement. They'll check insurance cards and ensure that the insurance information has been exchanged. You'll give them your e-mail address. They'll submit the report when they get back to the station and e-mail the report to you. If they don't take the e-mail info you can call the PD's non-emergency number and request the report, which they'll provide to you.

You call THE CLEANING LADY'S insurance company - not yours. To tell them that the cleaning lady drove into your car, and you will have a police report made available to them as soon as you receive it. You do this within 48 hours of the accident so it's on file.

When you send them the report copy (a file, by e-mail or fax), do /not/ let them convince you to do your own appraisal of the damages with your cell phone camera. Tell them you want someone to come out. Insist on it. If you do it yourself they will devalue and offer you a low-ball cash settlement that will NOT cover the cost of repairs. If they tell you to go ahead and just bring it to a repair shop, make sure the repair shop is in touch with the cleaning lady's insurance to get the damage repair cost approved before he starts the work.

If you try to go through your insurance to get this done, YOUR premiums will go up.

[Bill14564]

Florida's no-fault status does NOT apply to property damage. Florida's no-fault status ONLY applies to personal injury, property damage is still covered as at-fault. (according to five out of five law firm websites)

[ElDiabloJoe]

If the desk officer knew you were in The Villages, he may have been "screening" the calls. I've seen some refuse to write a report. Even if there is no crime, an "information only" report can be written. Kinda weird, but cops write lots of reports, but many hate them.

Some see traffic reports as doing the insurance companies jobs for them when they could be out conducting speed enforcement which is proven to reduce accidents and save lives.

If the desk officer legitimately thought you were in a gated community then normally he would be correct. Generally law enforcement does not respond to traffic issues on private roads or in private communities.

They can enforce traffic infractions, but rarely do so unless community request, outrage, etc. That's because private communities are just that. They focus their efforts on public roads, where state grants, death rates, probable cause, etc. all come into play.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

This is like - basic stuff that anyone who has a car should do.
You call 911. You do NOT talk to the driver of the other vehicle other than to tell them to wait for the police.
The police don't answer 911, the emergency services dispatcher does. You tell them there was a car accident at [insert address], with damage to at least one vehicle, and no one appears to be injured. You let them ask questions, answer them simply and truthfully, without adding in information that has nothing to do with the need for police or the situation.
The police will come, because it was sent by 911 services. They might be there within a half hour since there are no known injuries.

They'll take your statement, they'll take the cleaning lady's statement. They'll check insurance cards and ensure that the insurance information has been exchanged. You'll give them your e-mail address. They'll submit the report when they get back to the station and e-mail the report to you. If they don't take the e-mail info you can call the PD's non-emergency number and request the report, which they'll provide to you.

You call THE CLEANING LADY'S insurance company - not yours. To tell them that the cleaning lady drove into your car, and you will have a police report made available to them as soon as you receive it. You do this within 48 hours of the accident so it's on file.

When you send them the report copy (a file, by e-mail or fax), do /not/ let them convince you to do your own appraisal of the damages with your cell phone camera. Tell them you want someone to come out. Insist on it. If you do it yourself they will devalue and offer you a low-ball cash settlement that will NOT cover the cost of repairs. If they tell you to go ahead and just bring it to a repair shop, make sure the repair shop is in touch with the cleaning lady's insurance to get the damage repair cost approved before he starts the work.

If you try to go through your insurance to get this done, YOUR premiums will go up.

If the other river is clearly at fault why would your insurance go up if you let your insurance company handle the claim?

[Drrichross]

[QUOTE=OrangeBlossomBaby;2414362]This is like - basic stuff that anyone who has a car should do.
You call 911. You do NOT talk to the driver of the other vehicle other than to tell them to wait for the police.
The police don't answer 911, the emergency services dispatcher does. You tell them there was a car accident at [insert address], with damage to at least one vehicle, and no one appears to be injured. You let them ask questions, answer them simply and truthfully, without adding in information that has nothing to do with the need for police or the situation.
The police will come, because it was sent by 911 services. They might be there within a half hour since there are no known injuries.


This all falls down when the police refuse to come because they said it was a gated community. Despite being given the address and both 911 and the officer (who called on his cell) being told it was The Villages. I guess part of my post was to see if anyone else had similar experience in a non injury, non violent interaction with police for accident in the bubble. Also to see if anyone knew of the florida process.

[Topspinmo]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

I would be interested in seeing how this self reporting works?

I sure after rate going up? That door could be 2 plus grand to fix. Or 400 from junk yard if find color match.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

whip out the phone and start taking pictures

[asianthree]

Here’s how your auto insurance from MI works. Michigan is a no fault state. Your insurance will pay to fix your car with no deductibles.

Your insurance will then contact the insurance company from the person who caused the accident. Not all insurance companies ask for a police report, so your agent will have the adjuster notify as to if they want a police report. If so you can just go to their office and file the report.

[Gn'Me]

I avoid parking directly across from my neighbors driveway for this very reason.

[jimmy o]

Originally Posted by Drrichross

We are villages part timers. We live in Michigan but come down ever couple months for a week or 2. We drove a car down in January to have so we can do some florida exploring this year with plans to drive back in May. Yesterday my wife had parked on the street because she was cleaning out the garage. The cleaning lady from across the street decided to not pay attention and backed right into the drivers door. We are in a no fault state where you usually just exchange insurance info in cases of minor accidents, but from a previous experience of having a rental hit by a work truck we learned that in Florida you need to get a police report. So my wife called 911 to get an officer for report while exchange of information, only to be called back an hour later by the officer who told her they don't respond to "gated communities". He wouldn't tell her what to do. Is this true? It was after 6pm so our insurance agent in Michigan said he'd look things up and get back to us. She did get a letter signed by other driver admitting fault. But who do we call for a report to submit?

Yes Florida is a No Fault state. No, you do not need a police report for minor no injury accidents. It was because the accident you referred to involved a rental that the report was needed. The rental company required it.

[dewilson58]

Accidents within the Bubble..............it Depends.

[Cooperthecat]

I tell people to always start a video and take a lot of pictures at an accident scene. Stories change when the at fault driver talks to someone later. The video confession, witness statements and the accident scene are indisputable evidence when captured on video. I was hit twice and lost insurance coverage for 3 years. The 1st accident I was a passenger and the 2nd I was stopped at a red light. I had to buy a motorcycle to get around. I couldn't get insurance from over 30 insurance companies until the 1st accident was 3 years old.

[coleprice]

Your insurance is irrelevant . . . You should have obtained the insurance information from the person that hit your car because they are responsible for paying for the damage. You needed to obtain her auto insurance and employer information. Since she was at fault her insurance, or her employer's insurance would have paid for damages.

[La lamy]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

This is like - basic stuff that anyone who has a car should do.
You call 911. You do NOT talk to the driver of the other vehicle other than to tell them to wait for the police.
The police don't answer 911, the emergency services dispatcher does. You tell them there was a car accident at [insert address], with damage to at least one vehicle, and no one appears to be injured. You let them ask questions, answer them simply and truthfully, without adding in information that has nothing to do with the need for police or the situation.
The police will come, because it was sent by 911 services. They might be there within a half hour since there are no known injuries.

They'll take your statement, they'll take the cleaning lady's statement. They'll check insurance cards and ensure that the insurance information has been exchanged. You'll give them your e-mail address. They'll submit the report when they get back to the station and e-mail the report to you. If they don't take the e-mail info you can call the PD's non-emergency number and request the report, which they'll provide to you.

You call THE CLEANING LADY'S insurance company - not yours. To tell them that the cleaning lady drove into your car, and you will have a police report made available to them as soon as you receive it. You do this within 48 hours of the accident so it's on file.

When you send them the report copy (a file, by e-mail or fax), do /not/ let them convince you to do your own appraisal of the damages with your cell phone camera. Tell them you want someone to come out. Insist on it. If you do it yourself they will devalue and offer you a low-ball cash settlement that will NOT cover the cost of repairs. If they tell you to go ahead and just bring it to a repair shop, make sure the repair shop is in touch with the cleaning lady's insurance to get the damage repair cost approved before he starts the work.

If you try to go through your insurance to get this done, YOUR premiums will go up.

Excellent info!