Got into a car crash today :( (share stories plz)

[Psoz]

I'm a new driver, and I was in a car crash today (nothing terribly damaging, but enough to send the van to the auto body shop). I was wondering whether you guys had any relevant stories to share.

[marurun]

Sorry to hear you had a bang-up. How are you feeling about the incident?

My car was declared totaled this summer. It was the first car I owned. Bought it new, a 2000 Mazda Protege ES, within a year out of college. Paid it off and drove it for almost 12 years. Only had 96000 miles on it. Sucked in the snow but was a blast in the summer. Too bad I live in Cleveland.

I was on a local highway and traffic was bunching up and stretching out, and several of us were apparently not keeping adequate distance. Nobody was injured, but boy did it shake my confidence for a while. I'd driven the car for 12 years without major incident, but even so, getting into an accident really takes the wind out of your sails.

Now I drive a 2008 Suzuki SX4 Crossover. AWD for this stupid snowy weather. This winter was the first test, and damn it's awesome to have AWD in the snow.

[Psoz]

I feel a bit shaken, a little bit irritated (just filled out the police report). Mostly I'm getting that "get back on the horse" mentality.
I'm glad to hear that you've gotten a new car and it's more suited to your locale. Speaking of which, how much snowfall do you guys get in cleveland?

[Hobie-wan]

That sucks you had an accident. It's pretty much a given that you'll have a few until you get some more driving under your belt. At least you're ok, cars can be mended or replaced easier. The worst accident I've been in totaled the car, but I just had bruises and scrapes from the seat belt and my hands smacking into the dash. I'll never forget the stench of popped airbag either. I was definitely apprehensive for a while driving after that, especially since it happened on the way to work so I drove by that spot every day for a while until I moved.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

I sent my dad's 300zx to the body shop last June. First and hopefully last accident (I'm 19).

It happens. Glad you're okay. Best to just move on and forget about it. Learn from it too though.

[LBJeff]

Auto claims adjuster here. Not the most glamorous or rewarding job but it does pay the bills.

If you need any information or advice let me know.

[BoringSupreez]

So far I've been blessed with only two accidents, both of which were completely my fault but caused no damage to either car. Slow-speed rear-endings, both of them. The feeling right after it happens is downright horrible, worse than the actual accident. You never know how people are going to react to being rear-ended.

[winds]

About a year ago I had a major accident with my work vehicle. I had previously been driving for close to 10 years without incident, so I assumed I was invincible, haha.
Anyways, I was driving home from work on the highway, when suddenly I approached a traffic jam. I slowed down to a stop just behind the car infront of me. When I came to a full stop I heard a car screeching from behind. I looked in my review mirror to see a car barrelling towards me at a speed I absolutely knew was way too fast to stop in time. I knew I was about to be in an accident so I put my arms in an X shape across my chest as an instinct and had just enough time to utter the words "shit" before the loudest bang i'd ever heard. The car absolutely smashed behind me. The sheer force of the impact caused my van to go flying into the car ahead of me and hit them as well.
Luckily no one was hurt but it caused 3 cars to be pretty heavily damaged. The people that hit me were 80+ years old. I felt bad for them, especially knowing their insurance went through the roof after that.

The scariest part in hindsight was they had a canoe mounted ontop of their car that came dislodged from the rope holding it in place during the impact. It smashed through my rear window and would have hit me in the head (and possibly beheaded me?) but luckily it was wider than my rear window and couldn't fit all the way through.

It shook me pretty well for a while to the point where I was constantly looking in my review mirror anytime I was at a stop, making sure no cars were barrelling towards me.

[BoneSnapDeez]

When I was 15 I had a driver's permit and a car with iffy breaks. Ended up crashing into a convenience store as I pulled into a parking space. What's funny is that I ended working at said store five years after the accident.

I also once clipped a washing machine (seriously) while driving about 70 on the highway. Must have fallen off a flatbed truck. Dented the front of the car and lost a headlight.

[hashiriya1]

I've had quite a few paint-trading incidents on the track, and once on a public road. Just dust yourself off and hop back into the driver's seat. You'll be OK!