Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Virginia

How binding is an oral/verbal agreement made at an accident scene?

My husband had a fender bender (his fault) and told the other party he'd pay out of pocket to get her car fixed. She agreed, and they swapped phone numbers and addresses at the scene. The lady got a quote of $1500 to fix her car, but wanted him to pay her directly, not the repair shop. He declined and told her he'd go directly to the repair shop and pay the invoice. Now she tells us she's traded the vehicle in for $800 and wants the $1500 herself. He offered $500 to compensate fairly (in his eyes) for money lost on the trade-in condition, but she refused. There are no witnesses to either the accident or any conversation, so what is our legal obligation? Does she have a legal leg to stand on if she doesn't own the car anymore?


Asked on 3/24/08, 4:50 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

Re: How binding is an oral/verbal agreement made at an accident scene?

Surely, your husband didn't rely on this person's verbal claim as to what the repair shop estimate was(assuming he wasn't presented with a written estimate that wasn't merely concocted), and surely, therefore, he must have called the repair shop to verify it; correct?

Assuming each answer to the foregoing queries(reluctantly) is yes and no, your husband's better course of action would therefore likely be to tell this would be auto accident scam artist to take the $500 or take a hike.

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Answered on 3/24/08, 8:59 pm


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