I was in a minor car accident the other day. No one got hurt, thankfully it was at low speed so the damage isn't great. My car isn't so nice looking now though... both side doors are damaged. The person who hit me was not watching where they were going, pulled out into the main thoroughfare where I was and t-boned my car. When I realized she wasn't going to stop I blared my horn but it was too late. I saw her look at me in horror but she didn't stop in time. I think she either thought it was a one way street or was texting, I can't say for sure though because I was watching the road and her car, not her face. It was clear in any case that she did not look before pulling into the thoroughfare.

Having social anxiety and other problems, this was an absolute nightmare scenario for me. However I didn't freak out, I stayed calm, and dealt with the person politely, even though I had no idea what to do, and she was 100% at fault and I was super mad at her. She didn't speak good English so it was also hard that way. I even had to deal with police, but I was able to get through it.

Insurance is going to phone me (nightmare#2) to ask what happened in the next day or so. I'm the kind of person who likes to follow the rules to a T, tell the truth, and do everything legally.

I also think people need concequence for actions that might endanger others. If she had hit a pedestrian instead, they would have been in the hospital. If either of us had been going faster... who knows what would have happened. I'm just glad no one was hurt.

So now I have this weird ethical problem... I'm covered under my SO's insurance, and today the person who hit me called him at work pleading with him not to get insurance involved. I saw her driver's license the day of the accident, and she only has her student license. I imagine that means she would get a huge hike in her insurance fees and maybe other repercussions if she has hit anyone else (her car had some other paint/scratches on it).

People are telling me I should just make her pay for the damage and not get insurance involved. I'm not sure if that's the right thing to do. It scares me that people like this are on the road... has anyone else had to deal with this kind of stuff?