What are my rights as the owner of a parked hit and run vehicle?
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What are my rights as the owner of a parked hit and run vehicle?
My vehicle was struck and has significant damage. It was parked in the street outside my home and the driver did not stop. A police report was made and vehicle who struck mine was recovered and towed away by police. I only have no fault coverage. What are my rights? Am I able to sue for damages? Do I need to have a repair estimate first? I honestly don’t think it’s worth fixing the damage and could use any reward money to invest in another used vehicle.
Asked on July 7, 2016 under Accident Law, Michigan
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
1) You can sue the at-fault driver, since almost by definition, it is negligent, or unreasonably careless, to hit a parked car. You can also sue the owner of the car which hit you, if he or she is not the same person as the at-fault driver, so long as the at-fault driver had permission to drive (i.e. the car was not stolen). When possible, sue more than one person to maximize your chance of collecting money.
2) You can recover in a lawsuit the lesser of the cost to repair or the then-current fair market or blue book value of your car. You will need evidence of both, and so will need a repair estimate and also some way of showing the blue book value.
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