I was pulling slowly into a gas station near my neighborhood in West LA/Culver City area when I heard a loud bang on the back of my car. I stopped immediately and ran out of the car. A man was on the ground clutching his knee and yelling “You hit me! You hit me!” I was terrified and full of adrenaline. I offered him cash and my insurance info and phone number. He took the cash and not the info. It was only after I calmed down and drove away that I realized there’s no possible way I could have hit him—I was moving forward at maybe 10 mph and he claimed the back of my car hit him. I realized he must have hit my car with his fist to scare me and get me to stop. In the mix of fear I fell for it! I’m always reading about credit card scams and online scams, so I genuinely wasn’t prepared for this in-person pedestrian scam. Has this happened to anyone else?
FYI, I was driving a 2025 Toyota RAV4.
Edit: I’m well aware that I handled this situation completely wrong. Just posting so others can be aware that this can happen, and because I was totally caught off guard.