The email from BK (Smack, the knife, 21 February 2009) prompted me to relate my experience of the all-too-common supermarket carpark shunt. When another party backed into my car, they freely admitted liability, and they agreed to pay for repairs without involving insurance. This all changed once I forwarded the estimate to them, and their insurance company contacted me to dispute liability. Several letters later, I was advised by my insurance that the best outcome was 50:50 liability, which I accepted. Because I had trusted the goodwill of the other party, I neglected to assemble adequate supporting evidence against them. This would have included photographs, independent witness statements, and carpark CCTV coverage. I have learned the lesson and, I’m sorry to say, I will not trust in human nature again, because it is too easily swayed by the insurance companies.