kontakterr61

okay, so my mom drove my car and someone rear ended her, and it was the other guys fault. the accident was not bad at all. the bumper part right below the trunk was damaged.

anyways, so afterwards, they exchanged information, but the guy said he would pay instead of letting the insurance company handle everything b/c he said he already has too much on his record. so they did. my mom took my car to the audi repair shop, and got a statement for $1500. when we told the guy, he also talked to the body shop guy and asked how much it was too. we asked him for a check signed to my mom's bank account. he gave us a check, signed to my mom's name, so basically it was OUR money now.

but before we got the money, he made us sign a contract that said the following:

"Pacific Repair shop Western is selected by Ms.X to do the repairs. The Total repair costs shall not exceed $1568. if the costs are less thatn this number, th elsser number will apply and any overpayment will be refunded to Mr.X. The accident has not been and will not be reported by anyeon to insuance companies, the DMV, police or any other organizations private or public. The parties are realeasing each other of any and all past, present, and future claims, damages consequences, etc."

now what i want to know is, do i HAVE to get it repaired at that specific body shop bc it says so in the contract? or can i do it somewhere else that is cheaper? basically, what i am trying to do is, im trying to actually buy a whole body kit with the money and then get the top trunk bumper fixed later in the future...but im worried that if i dont get it fixed at that body shop right now(and the guy can find out bc he has talked to the repair guy and knows his contact) they can sue or something like that...
it never said a specific date by which i had to get the repair by, so what i was thinking was that i can say that im going to get the repair "WAY later." and it never said on the contract that i cant get it later right?

please, can someone help me out? i have no knowledge in legal stuff and i would really appreciate it if someone could help out.

lawong

1) You've already signed the contract, so you are legally bound to fulfill that. You're hands are somewhat tied.

2) You can try to renegotiate the contract with the guy, and make slight ammendments. You should've done this before you signed any paperwork (you have more leverage this way), but since you've already signed the first contract you are obligated to at least that.

kontakterr61

but i mean techinically, it never says when i have to do it by right? no date
so cant i buy the stuff i want, and then fix the bumper later, just like the contract says??

lawong

you should be free to do whatever you want. However, since the particular body shop is specified, you are contractually obligated to use that shop.

Boston1.8T

and then fix it at other shop. He won't know that u fix it at other shop.

Avantadrive

you got in an accident here, and settled it out of court. this guy clearly is willing to pay for the damage, but no more... get the bumper fixed, and pay for the kit with your own money.

fidtune

When he approached you with a signature you could have argued that the settlement was for "damages to personal property" and consequently "lower value". To have it repaired or not was your choice and that it was a inconvenience which wasn't figured into the compensation. You also had the insurance route in your pocket as well. By signing a contract to his terms weakens your options.
Worse that can happen is that you have your car repaired and end up as if it never took place.

Tsle

Your contract may be illegal; All accidents are supposed to be reported to the Police.

kontakterr61

wait, so what i did was illegal? or was it the creator of the contract that did something illegal?

HiTEC

I agree. Just get the car fixed pay for the body kit with your own money.