Rear-Ended

I would demand a new hitch! It is possible there is hidden damage that will be revealed when towing. If the ins co won't/ body shop won't replace it, tell them you want it in writing the hitch is structurally safe for heavier towing!!!

Glad no one was seriously hurt!!!

Do you have a one of those bigger carpenter squares ? If not borrow one. Take it with you. Have them show you it AND the bolts that hold it on, were not damaged.

Remind the insurance company about their potential liability and if that if the hitch is still square and undamaged, that you would like the bolts to be replaced.

Even though it sounds like the hitch didn't suffer any impact damage, the bolts themselves could have suffered inertia damage and could have been stretched.

Just my opinion.

I agree with both positions stated. I bought a new '05 F150 for towing in '05. Was rear-ended, bumper folded under. They did not replace hitch, said it was fine. Two local camping trips later, found stress cracks and bolt stretch....my stomach sank. And, the TT was only 4500 lbs. (small) vs larger TT we have today (different truck now).

Did the hitch even get touched? If the body shop looked at it and said it doesn't need one, then it must not have gotten touched. I wouldn't worry about it. Especially considering it was an offset hit.

dodge guy wrote:
Did the hitch even get touched? If the body shop looked at it and said it doesn't need one, then it must not have gotten touched. I wouldn't worry about it. Especially considering it was an offset hit.

This is my thought also. Do you have pictures of the damage? it doesn't take much to get to $3,000 in repair work anymore. Was the hitch even hit, was there frame damage (not likely at only $3,000 in repair cost). Without pictures it is hard to determine if the impact would damage the hitch.

For starters, there would have to be some indication that the hitch was "hit" before the insurance company is going to even consider replacing it. Then they would consider things like
a) how fast where they going when they hit you (5 mph vs. 45 mph big difference)
b) what part of the vehicle hit yours
c) is there any indications of damage to the hitch
d) Can the damage be mitigated short of a full replacement

Basically the only thing you can do is inspect it closely for damage, if you see anything point it out to the adjuster and go from there. If you don't see any damage, it's unlikely your going to get a new hitch unless you can point to something concrete and say you suspect hidden damage. After that all you can do is watch it for signs of something awry.

You'd be farther ahead to attempt to get the claim left open for a period of time to ensure there is no hidden damage. Demanding a replacement is not probably going to get you much further then a polite "sorry - we can't do that" (It's not the insurances companies first rodeo).

I will send pictures tonight.
Thanks for all the replies!

Deano

Thanks again for the responses.

That person that hit me was probably going 35MPH. I was stopped. As you can see, there doesn't appear to be any damage to the hitch and the assured me they would sign-off on it saying it was safe to tow a #6000 camper.

Next Photo




Sorry for the multiple posts

Deano_1 wrote:
the assured me they would sign-off on it saying it was safe to tow a #6000 camper.

Well, if they sign off on it then I would figure that is ok. They don't want any liability!