fender bender

or fender-bender

noun

, Informal.

1. a collision between motor vehicles in which there is only minor damage.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fender bender¹

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

What may have once been a simple fender bender has “turned into a major claim,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times

On one particular trip late last month he drove through a red light into a fender bender.

From Salon

Then, when I departed said strip mall and made a left-hand turn across four lanes of traffic, I hit another car—it was worse than a fender bender, but no one was hurt.

From Slate

“A fender bender in the past didn’t have all the sensors and cameras.”

From Seattle Times

Waymo provides customers with a list of frequently asked questions after they enroll with the service that provides basic information about their ride, but the company declined to answer specifics about what a passenger should do if they’re involved in a fender bender while riding in one of Waymo’s autonomous vehicles.

From Los Angeles Times