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i need help! i need answers! i just bought a 2002 caravan from a dealership 1 month ago. i have only paid 1 payment so far!! i have full coverage insurance. one week ago someone side swipped my van at 4 in the morning while i was asleep! the sound of the crash woke me up. it was a hit and run....luckily i have great neighbors ! one of my neighbors went to look for the culprit and ....found the car that did it. anyways he has insurance but not full coverage!..............so it's been 10 days and things are finally getting sorted out............here's my problem...........his insurance is deeming my car a total loss(car is totaled)meanwhile my insurance company is also saying it is a total loss.........they gave me a value of the car at 9,200.00
the repair shop is saying it will cost 7,500.00 to fix!!
insurance is saying they will only pay to repair if the cost does not exceed 75% of the total value!! why would insurance pay more to total the car when it cost less to fix it??? IM PISSED! do insurance companies have unethical practices?? furthermore i have found a different repair shop willing to fix my car for 6,500.00. how do i know this...well i took the written estamite that the original shop gave me(7,500.00) took it to this other repair shop .....he looked at it and told me he can do all the same work for 6,500.00
i did some calculating ...seems 6,500.00 is less then 75% of the total value(9,200.00). so i called my insurance company ...my rep told me she now has to talk to her boss(load of crap)! so do i have any rights...or can an insuranse company play god!
please i need some answers! is there anyone out there who knows insurance or the law pertaining???? all i want is to get my van back even if i have to have a different color door!
I'm not an expert from the insurance side of the business, but I've been on the automotive repair side for over 40 years ....
If his insurance company is willing to pay a claim to settle this deal, be very thankful. Take their money for the value of your van (if it's an appropriate value per the "bluebook") and give them the van and title. You get $9,200.00 cash. Don't forget that if they value the van at that price point to ask for the sales tax you'd pay to buy another $9,200.00 vehicle to replace yours ... if you've got a 6,7,8% sales tax in your area, then that could be as much as another $736.00. That's not "found" money, it's money you'd have to pay to buy another $9,200.00 vehicle. In the same path, if there's property taxes, ownership taxes, registration/license fees that you're out on this deal, ask for the insurance company to "make you whole" on these items, too. These are all part of the costs of replacing that $9,200.00 van which you've got to replace now due to someone else's fault.
If your insurance company has to pay to settle this claim because his insurance company can't/won't pay up, then realize that you'll be getting the settlement cash amount LESS your DEDUCTIBLE. How much is that deductible? And you now will have a paid claim against your insurance company, which may affect the rates you pay in the future with them, even though this accident was not your fault.
I have another concern regarding this vehicle. Doors are cheap at the boneyard ... and represent but a small portion of this repair estimate. To have sustained $7,000+ worth of damage when the van was only "sideswiped" tells me that there's some structural and a lot more damage to this van.
IMO, it's highly unlikey that it can be safely and properly returned to it's pre-accident structural condition ... a good body shop can make it LOOK GOOD, but there's so many other structural and integrity issues that will remain that it likely wouldn't be a good choice to keep this vehicle on the road. Most importantly, it probably won't have the structural integrity to safely protect you in another crash.
Do yourself a favor and let this fellow's insurance company cash your totalled van out.
If there's a shortfall in the total amount of money that you receive from the insurance company ... you need more money to pay off the balance due on the note, even with the insurance company check ... then you have two chances to get that money: negotiate with the insurance company for the difference, or sue the driver for your loss. Some ways you might be able to negotiate with his insurance company might be to offer to turn in the rental car they're providing you, thus ending that expense for them while you're without your van.
Be careful about how aggressive you get with his insurance company at this point. If there isn't a police report on his hit and run driving, you've got a weak case to prove that he did it ... even with witnesses and damaged vehicles that match up. I can't stress how important it is in every accident to get a police report that documents the situation ... even with that, an insurance company may decide to not pay a claim and force it to court. Sometimes, even a driving conviction against the other driver isn't enough to get his insurance company to pay your claim .... But it beats getting into a situation where the other driver decides to create new "facts" about the accident that cloud all the issues.
I agree with Sunsprit. Something similar happened to me once. I was stopped on the freeway in traffic and I was rear ended by someone who claimed their brakes went out. The damage was extensive but not quite enough to total the car. Over the next few years, I had a lot of trouble with the vehicle. Things like axles, suspension, sway bars. Stuff I had never seen before. I believe I would have been better off if the car had been totalled!
i failed to mention that there were 3 cars invoved ....4 including the culprit.
he sideswipped 3 cars all at once! yes ,there was a police report done! so his insurance is saying they dont have enough to cover with all three cars involved! am i making sense?? so if i choose to have his insurance pay me out....wont they send the check to the finance whom i got my loan from?? if my insurance pays me out....they WILL send the check to finance whom i got my loan from. let me explain! http://www.city-data.com/forum/1755276-post1.html
so i really need my van back!! i am willing to take a risk on the quality upon return!
i want to get to idaho and start my new life! i do have another car! but i also have a wife and 3 kids! money is very limited. CAN I DEMAND INSURANCE TO WRITE ME A CHECK FOR 75% OF THE TOTAL VALUE......THEN TAKE THAT CHECK TO THE 6,500.00 REPAIR SHOP TO FIX IT . AVOIDING A TOTAL LOSS????
thanks for your opinon it means alot!! let's say it all works out, and after i get my van back ,it just isnt the same as before(like you warned)... my plan is to get to idaho get settled for about a month... then dump that van and get a new car! does that sound possible ?? letting the faulty van get me thru just a couple of months??.......oh yea my deductable is 500.00.. and thanks again!!
Last edited by Dennis Romero; 10-19-2007 at 09:25 AM..
IF your insurance company totals the van out, they will write a joint check to you and the lienholder less your deductible You get to endorse it and hand it over to the lender so they can release the title to the insurance company ... if there's enough money to pay off the loan. Any extra will be rebated to you, any shortage you'll have to pay off.
If his insurance company totals the van out, they will write you a check and you owe them the van and the title. So you get to run around and take care of settling all the loan and title issues.
Here's the reason I think you should press for a quick settlement from his insurance company .... they're already telling you that the guy doesn't have enough coverage for all the claims. So get in there and get paid off ahead of the rest; it's not like the insurance company is going to pay each of you a partial settlement. They'll pay out until the money is gone, and the last person who isn't paid off will be forced to use his insurance coverage or to sue that other driver (good luck getting a judgement and the collecting on it ....).
Remember that the $6,500 figure from one shop is only an estimate. Unless you're an automotive expert, you have little knowledge to evaluate what the one shop was going to fix compared to the other shop. The low bid number may be adequate to get your van on the road, it may be that once the van is in the shop that they "discover" more hidden damage to your van that will require additional work. It could wind up being as good (or bad) of a job as the other shop, could be more money when all is done ... and you still have no guarantees that the van will be safe, driveable, or reliable when they're all done.
Yes, you could demand that the insurance companies involved pay you the top dollar that they'd pay out for you to repair (per estimate) your van ... and then not fix it except to get down the road a little bit. But the insurance companies are sharp when it comes to this situation, and will generally pay out as little as possble ... maybe even offer you much less for your loss than it's worth. They know that people make this type of decision all the time, especially for cosmetic damage (like hail damage, for example).
Let's look at the possible scenario you're talking about down the road. You get insurance money, and the van gets "fixed" for $6,500.00. You drive to Idaho and discover .... after several breakdowns or other problems "discovered" by you on the road ... that the van just isn't what it used to be. You're no longer close to the body shop where the work was not done or overlooked, so you can't go back to them to straigthen out their work. You're now on the hook to fix your own van when before you had an insurance company and the body shop to look to for satisfaction.
The van could then be worth a heck of a lot less in Idaho than it is now to you ... and, if money is tight like you say it is .... where are you going to get the money to make up the shortfall in value to buy another vehicle? Your best bet is to get as much money as you can now from the insurance company and find another vehicle without all the problems and lost time this van is going to be for you.
No, you cannot demand 75% of the value of the van from insurance and keep it. That's the guideline figure the insurance company has for totaling out a vehicle.
i need help! i need answers! i just bought a 2002 caravan from a dealership 1 month ago. i have only paid 1 payment so far!! i have full coverage insurance. one week ago someone side swipped my van at 4 in the morning while i was asleep! the sound of the crash woke me up. it was a hit and run....luckily i have great neighbors ! one of my neighbors went to look for the culprit and ....found the car that did it. anyways he has insurance but not full coverage!..............so it's been 10 days and things are finally getting sorted out............here's my problem...........his insurance is deeming my car a total loss(car is totaled)meanwhile my insurance company is also saying it is a total loss.........they gave me a value of the car at 9,200.00
the repair shop is saying it will cost 7,500.00 to fix!!
insurance is saying they will only pay to repair if the cost does not exceed 75% of the total value!! why would insurance pay more to total the car when it cost less to fix it??? IM PISSED! do insurance companies have unethical practices?? furthermore i have found a different repair shop willing to fix my car for 6,500.00. how do i know this...well i took the written estamite that the original shop gave me(7,500.00) took it to this other repair shop .....he looked at it and told me he can do all the same work for 6,500.00
i did some calculating ...seems 6,500.00 is less then 75% of the total value(9,200.00). so i called my insurance company ...my rep told me she now has to talk to her boss(load of crap)! so do i have any rights...or can an insuranse company play god!
please i need some answers! is there anyone out there who knows insurance or the law pertaining???? all i want is to get my van back even if i have to have a different color door!
I'm not sure I understand this post, but I think you should take the money and get a new van, if that's possible. Salvage vehicles have horrible resale value. And anyone who runs a check on the VIN number will know..
i wanted to take the 75% payout and apply that twords the job of repairs!! the body shop that estimated 6,500.00 so i would get no money just a repaired van!
i do see your point! i have to make a smart desision
Dennis
If you have only made 1 payment the odds are pretty good that the value of the van they are quoting you will be quite a bit lower than what you owe.
1 payment unless you put a chunk of money down will not have you in a equity situation
which maybe why you want them to cut a check for repairs. I would do the same thing.
I had a friend who was in a similar situation his car was totaled and the ins company only wanted to give him blue book
He told them if you feel that is what I can replace the car for then go out and find me a car for that price. It took some "discussing" but they raised the amount.
I would find out if they cut the check for $7500 and you can get it repaired for less will you get the difference? This amount may provide a cushion should you need additional repairs on your moving trip
Dennis
If you have only made 1 payment the odds are pretty good that the value of the van they are quoting you will be quite a bit lower than what you owe.
1 payment unless you put a chunk of money down will not have you in a equity situation
which maybe why you want them to cut a check for repairs. I would do the same thing.
I had a friend who was in a similar situation his car was totaled and the ins company only wanted to give him blue book
He told them if you feel that is what I can replace the car for then go out and find me a car for that price. It took some "discussing" but they raised the amount.
I would find out if they cut the check for $7500 and you can get it repaired for less will you get the difference? This amount may provide a cushion should you need additional repairs on your moving trip
thanks karla with a k , i needed to hear exactly what you had to say!! i need to fix my van and get out of dodge!! i have already had my van towed to the other shop!! although i should take the advise from sunspirit,....i just have to take a risk considering my position!! so thanks again!
Hold on here, first off do not sign anything, your car was hit by someone else so their insurance should be paying not yours and you don't have to take what the insurance offers, hold out and threaten law suit, be sure you get everything you have invested in the car. Their insurance could have limits to what they will pay and in that case your insurance should pick up the differance. Insurance adjusters are there to save money for the insurance company, they are not there to help you, do not trust them.
Make sure you know your pay off amount and that the check is at least that amount, if not start screeming you want your vehicle repaired or replaced.
I've been there a few times.
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