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Hi,
My car is been declared as total loss after accident which was not at my fault. (California). Insurance company is playing low ball and i wan to close this negotiation by saying - Fix my car as i insured for it and give me market value loss which is AVC - Salvage value as i lost this value because of other party fault.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,576 posts, read 81,167,557 times
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Read your policy, you agreed to it, and it will give the details of what they will do. That will be what costs them the least. The bluebook value is often less than repairs with the high cost of replacement parts and labor.
Rarely will anyone get back enough to replace their vehicle with the exact same or better value from insurance unless they total it a day or two after buying new and even then they will be out the deductible.
Replacement cost = acv(actual cash value) minus depreciation. It has nothing to do with salvage value. If the accident was not your fault, and your a filing through their insurance, call your ins company and let them know whats going on. See what they can do for you
I am dealing with my insurance who is declared it as total loss and playing low ball. My car is 2007 Honda civic hybrid w/Navi with 35000 miles on it. I don;t see any vehicle in market with this model and low mileage. CCR report considered only 2007 Honda civic hybrid and too high mileage and adjusted the mileage value. I am not agreeing on what my insurance is offering by which I can't similar or better car from current market, that too when gas price is too high (California).
I want my car to be fixed and pay the the market value loss (diminishing value) as it is not my fault and I will be under total loss if I agree to what my insurance is offering.
Can I challenge my insurance that my car is not “At total loss” or tell them that they are not paying enough to replace my car from current market value.
I am dealing with my insurance who is declared it as total loss and playing low ball. My car is 2007 Honda civic hybrid w/Navi with 35000 miles on it. I don;t see any vehicle in market with this model and low mileage. CCR report considered only 2007 Honda civic hybrid and too high mileage and adjusted the mileage value. I am not agreeing on what my insurance is offering by which I can't similar or better car from current market, that too when gas price is too high (California).
I want my car to be fixed and pay the the market value loss (diminishing value) as it is not my fault and I will be under total loss if I agree to what my insurance is offering.
Can I challenge my insurance that my car is not “At total loss†or tell them that they are not paying enough to replace my car from current market value.
Your policy most likely leaves the determination of a "total loss" to the sole discretion of the insurance company. The estimates they get for the repairs are rarely excessive, so if the cost they're seeing is exceeding the threshold for a total loss, then you'd be best off to respect that assessment.
OTOH, you don't have to take their "lowball" offer on your car. Be prepared to show the adjuster that the comparables they are using for valuation aren't comparable to restore you to your pre-accident condition.
If you can do that, then you have a chance to get a better settlement. Many adjusters aren't going to put forth the effort to thoroughly research the marketplace, so you need to be aggressive about doing so on your behalf.
My challenge to adjusters has always been predicated on the basis of if you can find a comparable vehicle to mine pre-accident, I'll forgo a settlement and you just deliver the vehicle ... sales and license/ownership fees paid ... to my driveway and we'll call it even. I don't care what you have to pay for it; if you can get it for less than I can or what you'd pay me, that's fine. I'm seeking to be made whole, not a betterment.
If need be, ask to speak with a higher up in their organization.
BTW, if you have injuries from this accident, do not be in a hurry to accept a settlement. Lots of times, accident injuries do not present until quite some time after an accident. Insurance companies know this and will pressure you to accept a "full and final" settlement which may leave you without appropriate paid care in the future when you discover a problem ... because you've already accepted a final settlement which required you to waive any further claims. That leaves you with the option of suing the other driver, which may be a losing proposition after attorney and court costs, if you can even collect on a judgement. Your attorney will get paid.
There are two 2007 civic hybrids with under 40K miles here in Texas for $14K. Are they offering a lot less than that? Heck, here is a certified one with NAV for under $13K in FL. Have them ship that one to you.
If any of my cars ever gets totaled, especially by someone else, I will insist they buy me an exact replacement with the same or fewer miles on it because that is what you have insurance for, to put you back in the exact position you were before the accident. I would not settle for less than the same car plus transportation charges if coming from out of the area (over ~250 miles) and I would also ask for sales tax since it is not my fault. Why should I be paying for that too? I already paid tax once. It's not like you would be suing for thousands of dollars of medical bills and injury claims also, I hope, as they could be paying that too. If they are playing hardball, you can always talk to the state department of insurance about it. Sometimes all it takes is to mention opening a complaint to get the ball rolling.
Good luck on the settlement.
edit: Looks like sunsprit and I were thinking the same thing at the same time!
Hi,
My car is been declared as total loss after accident which was not at my fault. (California). Insurance company is playing low ball and i wan to close this negotiation by saying - Fix my car as i insured for it and give me market value loss which is AVC - Salvage value as i lost this value because of other party fault.
Your policy will determine what, and how much they have to offer. If your car was in good shape, then, Trade in would be @@$12500 up to Dealer Retail of said car: $15700
If you are being offered anything in between, then you are ok. If you want to fight it, then you have to look for other cars in your area, for sale and show those prices as REPLACEMENT value. The values I chose are from Edmunds.com, which is what most insurance companies use as it is most conservative. Main thing to dispute is, REPLACE my car, don't give me $10k and tell me to sign a release. Advise insurance company that if you dont get a replacement vehicle, (if your ins states you are to) then you will pursue this request in a more legal venue.
Other thing is, the other party was at fault, you shouldn't be dealing with your insurance company. If he was insured, you should let them know you will pursue to replace your vehicle with same kind, mileage and such.
my car was 4 days old with 20 miles, yes 20 miles when i drove it off the lot, got rear ended at 45 mph by some kid not paying attention. The trunk was pushed in causing the front right side of my car to pop out to, my car is uneven, it drives uneven. We were at a complete stop when he rear ended us. i got an estimate before the adjuster went to the house, they gave me an estimate of 12k to fix. my car has lost its value, it is not worth 30k any more, it will now have a wreck on carfax. i will not be able to trade off i will be way upside down. The insurance is low balling me telling me the repair are 5k. This is a new 2013 car. The impact of the accident was very bad, so bad it injured my 6 month old who was in her car seat. The straps of the her safety belts bruised her. Im scared to drive this car. I dont trust that this car will be safe like it was before. Please tell me what i can do.
my car was 4 days old with 20 miles, yes 20 miles when i drove it off the lot, got rear ended at 45 mph by some kid not paying attention. The trunk was pushed in causing the front right side of my car to pop out to, my car is uneven, it drives uneven. We were at a complete stop when he rear ended us. i got an estimate before the adjuster went to the house, they gave me an estimate of 12k to fix. my car has lost its value, it is not worth 30k any more, it will now have a wreck on carfax. i will not be able to trade off i will be way upside down. The insurance is low balling me telling me the repair are 5k. This is a new 2013 car. The impact of the accident was very bad, so bad it injured my 6 month old who was in her car seat. The straps of the her safety belts bruised her. Im scared to drive this car. I dont trust that this car will be safe like it was before. Please tell me what i can do.
You should start your own post but you may want to look into collecting diminished value
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