[Geektechlive]

so I parked in a lot where I always park.. waaaay in the back.

I get in to work and about 2 hours later a co worker walks up to my office door and tells me she may have "scratched" my car.

I go down the the lot and look at my back drivers side fender. didnt look too bad. I work for a small company so I know her pretty well and I tell her I will get the car washed when i leave and see if there is any damage hiding under the salt spray. she insists she will pay for anything damaged etc..

I get the car washed and park outside the car wash lot.... big gouge an paint stripped away from the lower bumper.

so here is my question.... when we go the whole insurance thingy should I take the car to my dealer for the estimate or to an independant fix it shop for bmw's? this is my first BMW and its a lease so will the dealer hold the fix against me when I trade the car in at the end of the lease if I take it to them?

[nmulax]

Typical rule of thumb for damage to lease cars is you're ok if it's under the length of a business card. A gouge in the panel could be different since it involves a bit more then a respray.

Talk with your SA and see what shops they recommend and are BMW certified repair facilities.

[Geektechlive]

thanks! I wasnt sure what I shoudl do and a friend didnt help when he told me not to trust the Dealer.

I will contact them tomorrow.

[sinnet112]

I had a deep gash on my front fender for my 530i a few years ago, and instead of opting to repaint it at an independent dealer, I just took the $500 they charged me because it was cheaper anyway. That may be an option for you as well, as long as you can live with the looks.

[Paddy]

Originally Posted by xanaduguy

so I parked in a lot where I always park.. waaaay in the back.

I get in to work and about 2 hours later a co worker walks up to my office door and tells me she may have "scratched" my car.

I go down the the lot and look at my back drivers side fender. didnt look too bad. I work for a small company so I know her pretty well and I tell her I will get the car washed when i leave and see if there is any damage hiding under the salt spray. she insists she will pay for anything damaged etc..

I get the car washed and park outside the car wash lot.... big gouge an paint stripped away from the lower bumper.

so here is my question.... when we go the whole insurance thingy should I take the car to my dealer for the estimate or to an independant fix it shop for bmw's? this is my first BMW and its a lease so will the dealer hold the fix against me when I trade the car in at the end of the lease if I take it to them?

Dealer quoted me $325 to repaint bumper that had several "down to the plastic" scratches. You will also be able to get cheaper deals from independent shops. Most likely the dealer will require it to be fixed before lease return, or you can negotiate the cost of repair on return.

[Tommy420]

How bad is the scratch? I suggest getting touch up paint from the dealer and doing it yourself. Just give them your vin number and they'll give you touch-up paint stick with exact paint color match.

[montreal red]

Originally Posted by Paddy

Dealer quoted me $325 to repaint bumper that had several "down to the plastic" scratches. You will also be able to get cheaper deals from independent shops. Most likely the dealer will require it to be fixed before lease return, or you can negotiate the cost of repair on return.

+1
if the scratch is very obvious, the dealer would make you pay for it when you return the car... i suggest you look for an independent shop to do the repair since they will charge less than bmw.