Someone filed a claim saying I dented their bumper in a parking lot — my dashcam says otherwise

This happened to me almost exactly. Someone claimed I sideswiped them in a parking garage and I had dashcam footage showing I never even got close to their car. My insurer initially acted like the footage was just one piece of a puzzle, which drove me insane. I ended up being really persistent — emailed the footage link repeatedly and CC'd a supervisor. Eventually they denied the other person's claim. Don't let them brush you off. The footage is gold, you just have to make them actually watch it.

"We'll take it into consideration" is adjuster-speak for "we might just pay this to close the file faster than dealing with it." Insurers sometimes find it cheaper to pay a small claim than to investigate thoroughly — and that calculation has nothing to do with whether you actually did anything wrong. Don't assume they're working in your corner here. They're working in their corner.

Former adjuster here. A few things: first, get your dashcam footage preserved somewhere permanent — cloud backup, email it to yourself, all of it. Second, submit it in writing, not just a verbal mention on a call. Send an email to your adjuster with the footage attached or linked and say explicitly: I am submitting this as evidence that no contact occurred. That creates a paper trail. Third, if the damage in the claim photos shows scatter-pattern chips rather than a single impact, any experienced adjuster should recognize that as inconsistent with a parking lot collision. Push them to document why they're accepting or rejecting that evidence.

Make sure you formally dispute the claim in writing with your own insurer — don't just talk about it over the phone. Ask them specifically what their process is for handling disputed liability claims and what documentation they need from you. Also ask directly: if this claim is paid, will it be recorded as an at-fault incident on my policy? Get the answer in writing. Some insurers code these differently and it matters a lot for your rates.

Submit the footage, dispute it in writing, and if your adjuster keeps being wishy-washy, ask to escalate to a supervisor or file a complaint with your state's department of insurance. That last part sounds dramatic but it's totally normal and it tends to make insurance companies suddenly take things more seriously.

Quick question — does your dashcam footage actually capture the rear clearly enough to show the surrounding vehicles and the space between your car and theirs? Some rear cams have narrow fields of view and an adjuster could argue it doesn't definitively prove no contact. I'm not saying you did anything wrong, just want to make sure the footage is actually airtight before you lean on it hard.

This would stress me out so much. The idea that someone can just say you hit them and suddenly you're on the hook for damage you didn't cause feels completely unfair. Really hope the dashcam footage gets this thrown out. Hang in there.