What is my responsibility for paying for minor traffic incident 1 year later?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What is my responsibility for paying for minor traffic incident 1 year later?
I was involved in a minor automobile accident. I tapped the bumper of an auto in a parking lot. At the time, I offered to pay for any damage. The other party said, “No problem. Forget it.” At that time, no accident report or insurance claim was filed. One year later, the other party wants me to pay for the damage.
Asked on October 31, 2010 under Accident Law, Massachusetts
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 14 years ago | Contributor
The other driver could still file a claim with your insurance company since the statute of limitations has not expired. Whether or not your insurance company will accept the claim is debatable since a year elapsed and there wasn't any police report.
If your insurance company denies the claim and the other driver files a lawsuit against you in Small Claims Court, you might be able to assert the defense of laches. Laches is an unreasonable delay on the part of the plaintiff which is prejudicial to the defendant. Your argument would be based on the other driver not pursuing the claim for a year. The other driver's statement, "No problem. Forget it." would be hearsay and inadmissible unless it falls within an exception to the Hearsay Rule. Aside from that issue, the other driver could deny making the statement.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.