So tonight, I was going about 50mph on the left lane when a big fat deer decides to try and cross the road from the other side (there's a median of grass that seperates two 2 lane roads). Now I've been driving down this road for about 3 years now and have not seen a deer. It doesn't even have a deer crossing sign. I didn't see the deer until it was right infront of me.

The funny thing is, after I hit the deer, I pulled off to the right shoulder because my engine just shut down. About 20 cars ran over the deer and only one car came around to see what it was that they ran over. By the time the cops came, the deer was about 20 feet from where I pulled over (remember that the deer was behind me after I hit it). The guts were everywhere and the hind legs of the dear was about 10 feet away from it's head and body. It was very disgusting and the cop had to drag the pieces to the side of the road and there was blood covering the streets.

Now my question is, what should I do? Should I call my insurance company or should I try and fix it myself? Will my insurance go up or not? I know that I'd have to pay at least a $500 deductible but I dunno how much it would be to fix it at some shop out of my pocket. The damage is pretty bad.

Any comments/advice would be appreciated


Updated with pics:





Modified by fili_pinoy at 3:42 PM 11/17/2006


Modified by fili_pinoy at 3:51 PM 11/17/2006

 

I would always have stuff fixed professionally/through insurance, personally...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by L-Dawg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I would always have stuff fixed professionally/through insurance, personally...</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah but, would my insurance go up? i have been driving down this road for the past 2 years and have not seen a deer. the area doesn't have a deer crossing sign either.

 

I would probably call and ask, but again, that's just me. Glad you're ok, btw.

 

Go through insurance man, that's why we have it... sorry to hear about your Si though.

 

Thats a comprehensive claim, and your rates will NOT go up. Call that **** in, and don't wash the car. They will want to see the blood and hair to verify you didn't hit a pole or something else.

Edit: a police report might work too, but I would hold off on washing it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by blacks2000 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Thats a comprehensive claim, and your rates will NOT go up. Call that **** in, and don't wash the car. They will want to see the blood and hair to verify you didn't hit a pole or something else.

Edit: a police report might work too, but I would hold off on washing it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

the cop was nice and gave me his card, if the insurance company needs proof.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by L-Dawg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I would always have stuff fixed professionally/through insurance, personally...</TD></TR></TABLE>

on a brand new car
it shouldnt even be a question.

 

Definitely go through insurance, they'll take care of you. Your rates will only go up if you get into these incidents on a regular basis, like hitting 4 deers in one year.

 

sry to hear man, hopefully everything runs smooth...that sucks...I know how you must feel

 

yeah insurance is a good thing with that much damage.

 

updated with pics!

 

wow

sucks about the body damage but its the INTERNAL damage that will be the ringer!

take it to the Ins.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Type X &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">wow

sucks about the body damage but its the INTERNAL damage that will be the ringer!

take it to the Ins. </TD></TR></TABLE>

i hope there's no internal damage. also, would there be damage to my engine or tranny? my **** just shut off as soon as i hit it.. maybe because i slowed down too slow for the gear i was in?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fili_pinoy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

i hope there's no internal damage. also, would there be damage to my engine or tranny? my **** just shut off as soon as i hit it.. maybe because i slowed down too slow for the gear i was in?</TD></TR></TABLE>

engine could have shut down for numerous reasons but again things like that are why youi have insurance and if something is messed up they will replace it.

 

Did the airbags deploy? If so, you'll most assuredly want to do an insurance claim... airbags aren't cheap.

Glad to hear you are alright man. Out of the 2 deer hit pics I've seen on the +06 civics so far, neither deer carcass went over the hood and into the windshield. That always scares me about low cars...

 

luckily, the airbags didn't deploy. i woulda been knocked the fugg out!@

 

Did you lose your si emblem?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by L-Dawg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Did you lose your si emblem?</TD></TR></TABLE>

i didn't. it's tucked undernear the grill so you can't really see it.

 

Accidents happen. That's too bad and you should expect to shoulder some of the expense but not all of it. That looks like a $3000 repair bill to me. Get it fixed by insurance.

Your insurance will go probably up. That's life. But it won't go up $3000 so you will be way ahead of the game. Now is the time to see how good a deal you got on insurance. If they pay easily and quickly you did good. If they dick you around you did bad. If you were with a company like Gieco or Progressive then you will see your rates go up significantly. Now is a good time to switch companies. Go with a real insurer like State Farm or Nationwide. Go to a real insurance agent and tell them you are switching because of the way the other company treated you after your accident. Don't try to hide it.

After its fixed and you get your insurance settlement all taken care of - sell the car. It will never be worth more than it will be then. There is still a big big market for the Si. There won't be in another year or two. It will never be the same as it was before the accident. It will always bug you that its not perfect. Sell it!!! Buy another Si or something a little less expensive and go with a new insurance company.

Regards,
Alan

 

did your windshield crack at all? try to find a shop thats willing to do an aftermarket hood, then proceed to tell them that you want a seibon hood, it might be cheaper and you would both win we do it all the time at my b-shop.

 

that sucks well report it to the insurance and just pay your end , tell 'em truth and once your in the shop or shop of your choice try to talk to the manager and tell him about aftermarket parts like the other poster just mentioned but defo go thro insurance

 

Where's the blood???
glad your okay though

 

I have hit 4 or 5 deer in my life. 2 were actually on highways. With Liberty Mutual (and probably alot of other companies) hitting a deer is considered "an act of God"--when I hit my last one there was no deductable. Hitting them is a fact of life if you live in an area where there are alot of deer.