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I don't know why she is thinking she will only get $1,500 from it, unless it is all beat to heck and needs major repairs. The insurance has to pay you a reasonable RETAIL price for it so you can buy a replacement. This is the key. They should not pay you only trade in or auction value since you can't buy another car for that price, unless you just let them lowball you. With the additional information and based on what I see online, she should get somewhere between $3,500 and $4,500 for it. She does not have to take their first offer if you can show it should be worth more. Of course they want to settle ASAP and for the lowest possible price, but she needs what is fair to her.
I want to be sure I understand this. I thought insurance only paid what the car is worth. Where can I read up on what you're saying?
If insurance lowballs her, how does she go back and negotiate? I've never dealt with this before so I really have no idea. Her insurance company just told her they closed her claim and it's now going through the other insurance, as that driver accepted full liability.
They will pay the TTL on her old car. The insurer will calculate what they believe is the market value of her car based primarily on make, model, mileage, and condition. Typically, they just give you a number but if you ask they will provide a detailed analysis including the comparables they used to calculate that number.
Typically, their comparables will be dealership listings in her area that are for sale or recently sold. There may be mileage and condition adjustments for the comp and her car. Ask them to provide their mileage adjustment tables which are specific to each make/model vehicle. There may be a market adjustment on listed comps to account for the typical difference between listed price and actual sold price.
If she disagrees with their valuation she needs to show why their comparables or inaccurate and/or find her own comparables and calculate her own valuation. They aren't going to accept her valuation unless she can support it with evidence. She should check out their comparables by calling the dealerships to see if the car can actually be purchased for the valuation they assigned. She might want to go look at them to evaluate their actual condition (cosmetically and mechanically). Remember, the insurer is just doing this on paper and going by the listing description.
Whether all this is worth it or not depends on how far apart you are in valuations. It takes a lot more work than what some make it sound. I've been through this a few times. You are playing against a stacked deck. The insurer plays this game every day and has ample resources and well supported methodologies to support their valuations. If they say $2000, don't counter with $3000 just because you don't like $2000 and expect them to say "well ok".
I want to be sure I understand this. I thought insurance only paid what the car is worth. Where can I read up on what you're saying?
oceangaia kind of summed it up. You are correct that insurance should pay what the car is worth, but it is the calculation of the car's value that is in question. They should pay her what it would cost to go out and buy another 2001 Echo with about 125,000 miles on it, and based on what I've seen on the value websites and in a quick cars.com search for asking prices, I found the retail value to be around $3,500 - $4,500. Then they will pay you the sales tax on the retail value of the totaled car, plus some for getting the license and title assigned over to you, basically your TT&L expenses. That would essentially make you "whole" from a financial standpoint.
As an example, my car was totaled last year and they offered $12,870 as the value. I came up with an average value from KBB, NADA, Edmunds, etc. of $12,912, and comparable cars were selling in the $12-13K range so their price was right on the money. I got a check for about $13,775 to cover the value and TT&L. Not a bad deal considering I only paid $12,400 for the car 2-1/2 years prior!
Now since she already went and bought a new car, let's hope they actually do total it!
trbstang - yep, all three cars are total losses. It was one heck of an accident. *I* was told she was going to "look around this weekend" and buy something used....But she apparently found some great financing that she couldn't pass up and bought herself that shiny new car last night (for more than "the budget", gah!). So I really hope she gets a good payout on her Echo to make up for that.
Sounds like she got a good settlement. Hopefully neither of you will have to deal with it again, but now you know what to do in this situation. Best of luck to her and on her new car!
What is a 2002 mustange worth if I a buy it back from insurance salvage
With absolutely no other details about the car? Assuming it's a base model, no frills Mustang with 120,000 miles in fair condition, I'd say no more than $2000. But it isn't in fair condition since it's been wrecked, so keep going lower.
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what should I do got in a accendent my felt hav full coverge insurance wants to salvage my car I owe 1000 to dealer engi
