OY: rear ended the other day, pick-em-up trucks are the greatest! Options

[Sammy]

I got tagged in the rear a couple days ago on the 5 fwy (as if I didn't have enough things to worry about).
Traffic was very heavy, I was going around 10 mph when WAM!
We pulled over to the side and I first say the toyota small car that hit me, darn near totalled. Big hole in the bumper where my hitch went through, bumper smashed in, hood and fenders buckled, windshield cracked etc.

I took a long look at the back of my Toyota tundra pick-em-up, nope, nothing. Not a scratch, dent, ding anywhere. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)
Evidently the trailer hitch and reciever took the whole hit and transfered all the energy to my frame.
I'm gonna get it on a rack to check for frame straightness and alignment, but that's it. I doubt they'll find anything wrong.

Iffn I was in a modern small car It'd be smashed.
Crumple zones my butt, give me a daily driver with a big strong frame behind me (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

[SLITS]

Did you report this to A-a-ron and the CGBC? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)


Sorry Sammy, couldn't resist (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif) Glad to know you're ok and still making targa seals.

Now 'bout the hawaiian shirt....................,

[nebreitling]

lol, i got rear-ended once in an old truck with my hitch on.


the MERCEDCES totally ate the hitch, coolant everywhere. minor scratch on my bumper, no big deal. i told the guy, "good luck" and went on my merry way (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

here's to hitches (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beer.gif)

[Pnambic]

I'm not saying that it's OK that the person rear ended you. It was obviously their fault, but if you're not towing something, why do you need the trailer hitch and everything on your truck? What's it take, like 30 seconds to yank the pin and put the hitch in the trunk or behind the seat? Yeah, it caused less damage to your truck and that's cool for you, but it caused 3+ times as much damage to the car that hit you. Sure, you're first thought is, "Screw that guy, he shouldn't have hit me." But since insurance is going to pay for it, they spread the cost around and everyone's rates take the hit.

Its just a pet peeve of mine. I'm a cheap sunovabich and don't like having to pay more of my hard earned money for the costly, inconsiderate habits of others. Not saying you're doing it on purpose to get me, I know you're not.....are you?

Bumpers are designed to hit bumpers so that the impact can be distributed more evenly, minimizing the total damage. But when you hit a vehicle with for all intents and purposes a steel spike on the back, the bumper is useless.

[JB 914]

why do you need the trailer hitch and everything on your truck?

In Kalefornia it's called defensive driving.

BTW, when does pistol season open? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ar15.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ar15.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ar15.gif)

[GaroldShaffer]

Dan,

Back in 96 I bought a new F150 and two weeks later was rearend at a toll plaza on 294 in Illinois. I didn't have the hitch itself in place but the car that hit me didn't even come close to my bumper, he hit the receiver under my bumper. Didn't do anything to my truck, it did a lot of damage to his Honda. Hitch or not, having the receiver under or behind the bumper is going to mess up anyone's car.

[Sammy]

If I had removed my hitch from the reciever, my bumper would have been damaged, possibly damaging my tailgate and or fenders. I don't want that to happen.
As it was, my truck was not damaged severely. That is good. I didn't do anything wrong and I should have to get my property damaged.

If an old lady hits my truck when i am doing nothing except obeying the law and driving along trying to get home, should I really care about the condition of her car? I think not.
I could not care less if her car is completely smashed, as long as no one is hurt.
This particular person seemed to hit the gas instead of the brake. Even after the impact I felt my truck lurch a couple of times as she kept pushing on the gas. After the accident she asked, "what happen?" I think that's what she said, her accent was very strong and I don't speak Korean.
As I informed her that she ran into my truck I was thinking to myself, she should not be operating a motor vehicle.
This time it was my truck, next time it may be a bunch of kids at a school crossing. If someone gets confused between the gas and brake, I get nervous.

No, I leave my hitch in my receiver on purpose for two reasons:
One, to protect my vehicle and it's occupants from people who are not capable of operating a car without playing bumper pool,

and two because I never know when i might have to tow something at work and I don't want the reciever inside my truck rolling around and if I put it in the back it might get stolen.
I have an extrended cab and there is no "behind the seat", it's all passenger area.

Be warned world, if you rear end my truck you will get the hitch, ball and all.
I would mount large metal spikes around my truck if I could be sure they wouldn't hurt someone.
Yes, I am doing it on purpose to protect me, my family, and my property.
Who is really inconciderate here, me by leaving my hitch in the reciever, or the idiots who can't keep from running into other cars?
They are the inconciderate ones, not me.
I am conciderate in that I stop when someone is in my path. I do not run red lights. I avoid collisions. That is my idea of being conciderate. Strange concept, maybe it'll catch on.

Can you tell I don't like getting hit?
In the past 28 years i have been involved in one accident that was my fault (my first 914, I was 20 years old) and 7 that were not my fault. I do not loose any sleep over those 7, except for the one in 1980 that lied and said it wasn't his fault when he ran a stop sign and hit me, I think about him a lot.
Christian Grant of Anaheim, if you're out there, your day is coming (IMG:style_emoticons/default/spank.gif)
But I'm not bitter (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Root_Werks]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) There is nothing wrong with leaving a hitch on a truck. it is part of the vehicle. Sounds like this lady did get confused and that is scary. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) Glad to here you both are okay. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Malmz]

Lurking is fun... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ph34r.gif) Haven't checked in for a while.

Sammy is one of the most fun guys in the world to sit down with, have a beer (or so...), and talk about how things are in the real world. he he he.

Let's rock!

[airsix]

The problem with not having crumple zones is you can come out of an accident with a pristine vehicle and dead occupants (occupants absorbed the energy).

-Ben M.

[Jeff Bonanno]

I wholly agree with Sammy on this one. Sorry Pnambic but that logic don't add up.

If in an accident which is my fault, I accept the blame (and never forget what i did wrong). Place the responsibility where it belongs.

jbb

[Mueller]

I'm not saying that it's OK that the person rear ended you. It was obviously their fault, but if you're not towing something, why do you need the trailer hitch and everything on your truck? What's it take, like 30 seconds to yank the pin and put the hitch in the trunk or behind the seat? Yeah, it caused less damage to your truck and that's cool for you, but it caused 3+ times as much damage to the car that hit you. Sure, you're first thought is, "Screw that guy, he shouldn't have hit me." But since insurance is going to pay for it, they spread the cost around and everyone's rates take the hit.

Its just a pet peeve of mine. I'm a cheap sunovabich and don't like having to pay more of my hard earned money for the costly, inconsiderate habits of others. Not saying you're doing it on purpose to get me, I know you're not.....are you?  

Bumpers are designed to hit bumpers so that the impact can be distributed more evenly, minimizing the total damage. But when you hit a vehicle with for all intents and purposes a steel spike on the back, the bumper is useless.

are you living in the real world??? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

you must not own a pickup truck, the bumper is attached directly to the frame, damage will occur to both vehicles, in fact the truck has more of a chance to have more expensive repairs if the frame gets tweaked which is highly likely

last year I was rear ended in my truck, we had removed the trailer hitch and installed a cover...some dumb broad hit us, and then backed up and drove away......
hit and run...now had my trailer hitch been on, we might have had a chance to catch her and lower my insurance rate....why did our insurance go up??? We were in Texas, we live in California, even with her plate ID, all the police did was send them a letter "asking" for them to turn themselves in....we get charged by the insurance company 'cause basicly we have no proof that we got rear ended.....no witness and the police report does not count due to no witness...like the rear end of my truck just got dented for no reason....

[Pnambic]

Mueller, no doubt you got screwed. Sorry dude. Do I live in the real world? Last I checked it was. In fact I work for an insurance company....hmmm... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif) Now, technically, everything is attached to the frame in some fashion. Yes bumpers are connected to the frame, but the hitch is even more directly connected and to a very confined spot. The hitch is a lot less able to absorb an impact than a bumper. And the hitch will transfer the energy directly to one point of the frame without distributing it across the rear like a bumper would. You said, "...in fact the truck has more of a chance to have more expensive repairs if the frame gets tweaked which is highly likely" and I agree, but I think the frame is more likely to get tweaked from a hit directly on the hitch than from the bumper. If trailer hitches were such a great alternative, they'd be standard on all vehicles and we wouldn't bother with bumpers. And like Ben said, frames don't generally absorb impacts very well. They tend to pass it on to the occupants.

Bonanno, I'm not arguing responsibility. Do you think the lady that hit Sammy will pay the whole bill of repair for damages to Sammy's truck? NOPE. Should she, yes. But that's not how insurance works.

Insurance works on the big numbers, not the small ones of each person. The insurance companies are getting better at focussing on the individual since better records are kept nowadays, but its all still just a guess at how likely they are going to be in an accident in the future. And each and every state controls what information the insurance companies are allowed to use. It's like pulling teeth to get them to allow you to use new information as they have to worry about discrimination lawsuits and such. My point is, Sammy's insurance rate is going to be affected by the damage done to the lady's car that hit him. So is mine and everyone else's. Not tomorrow, but at renewal time it will. Not by much, as they'll spread it around to everyone else too. But as Sammy isnt the only person to leave the trailer hitch on, there are a lot of instances like this that add up.

Over the years, I know I've paid significantly more in insurance than I've had to cash in on. That's because I have to cover the difference for the people that cost insurance companies far more than they pay in premium. That's the nature of the beast.

Malmz, that pic is SCARY! Does the owner use it to plow his fields? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) That would cut a car in half! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

Sammy, I hope that lady didn't hit you on purpose. Who knows, maybe she thought you were cute? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) I define considerate as taking into account the effect of your actions on another person. Acknowledging that your hitch will increase the total cost of an accident regardless of how much is done to your car and how much to the other person's car seems less than idealy considerate. True, you're just trying to protect your property and that comes naturally. I'm just trying to explain that while it seems in your best interest immediately, its more costly in the long run. No doubt that hitting you is certainly less than considerate as well.

[skline]

Well, just to throw my opinion in the fire, If I could have a hitch that would save the back of my truck and total the car that hits me. I would for sure. I am going through a big hassle right now with lawyers about June 03 when my wife was rear ended in the 540I. The impact was so hard it knocked the radiator off its mounts and broke them. The car went under and pushed the exhaust system forward which broke all the mounts off and it was about 3k worth of damage. On the outside, it really didnt look that bad. She drove it for another few months before we got it in to get it fixed. The insurance company totalled the other car (Honda) and then said that the damage on the 540 was pre-existing. I swear I almost hit the adjuster when he said that. I told him he was full of shit and that I would just go to a lawyer and let him deal with it. He was wasting my time. I took it to a body shop that my agent suggested and the car was fixed. Now they are giving her a hard time about paying for her medical bills she incurred because of the accident. They start asking her personal questions that are not related to the accident what so ever. Insurance is legalized extorsion, you have to have it or you cannot drive and if you pay late, they cancel you. Then you ae telling me that the rates go up when someone else has an accident. It just makes me think that insurance is more of a scam than I thought. It's called business, there are always risks in business. But to me, it doesnt sound like there are any risks in the insurance business. They make their money off everyone and if one collects, they just bill everyone else the difference. That just doesnt seem right. What is really pissing me off, is they want me to prove the damages and take time out of my day to do it. Like it was my fault and this is what I have to do. Well, I got news for them, the burden of proof is on them, not me, it was their insured that hit me, if he didnt, I wouldnt have to go through all this and take time to go to court and do the depositions and crap. If I have to go to court, I am going to make them pay for my time as well. See, you got me started and now I am all tense again. Time to go work on my car and relax.

F**k insurance companies.

[TC/914]

"Christian Grant of Anaheim, if you're out there, your day is coming . . . "

My first and worst accident was a T-bone in my 62 409 Chevy convertible, I was thrown across the shifter, over and out the passenger side door and onto the hood of the car that hit me.

Olaf J. Carlson, if you out there, you day is coming too!"

TC

[skline]

Wouldnt a seat belt keep that from happening?? Ouch, that was a tragic loss for you and the car. At least you are still alive. Cars can be replaced.

[Pnambic]

Scott, I feel your pain. Very similar thing happened to my wife 5 years ago. She was literally driven over (while in her car of course) by a 24' box truck. (But he said it was her fault cause he had his non-functioning blinker on.) In addition to all the cuts and bruises and emotional strain, she had a ruptured disk and several other vertebrae out of alignment and tried all kinds of therapy. As a last choice before surgery, she went to a chiropracter. We thought all chiropracters were quacks, but I'll be damned if he didn't make the difference. Today, she can go days without feeling the aftereffects, but she still freaks when she's next to a truck. The other guy's insurance screwed us royally. They "didn't recognize the costs of the chiropracter" as being legitimate. Had she had surgery which would have cost more, they would have paid. We tried to sue and got nowhere and then found out after the fact that the guy representing us was close personal friends with the lawyer representing the insurance company.

There are a lot of people in Florida right now who are thanking their lucky stars for their insurance company. But no company stays in business if it can't make money. There is risk in the insurance business. Try 4 HUGE hurricanes in 6 weeks. Have they even finished totaling the damage caused down there yet? Yikes.

Scott, definately document the time you're having to spend on this, both during normal work hours and after. Those are legitimate expenses that you should be able to recover. I'm glad your wife wasn't hurt.