by Guest » Fri Nov 21, 2008 05:49 pm
on saturday november 8th my car was hit in a hit and run. the person has not been found. my insurance company (shelter), had me take it to the local chevrolet dealer for repairs.
the car
2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS supercharged, fully loaded, every option, onstar, xm, etc... it has almost 25k miles on it.
the body shop has the estimate up to 5600 as of now. my question is how much dose the insurance company say its worth? i owe 22k on the vehicle and my sister works for a gmc dealer. they said that when my car is done and the carfax is out it will only be worth 5k because of its damage history. the body shop says i am around 1500 from it being considered a total loss.
is there any way to convince my insurance to total the car? please help soon. i would really appriciate it. thank you all :)
the car
2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS supercharged, fully loaded, every option, onstar, xm, etc... it has almost 25k miles on it.
the body shop has the estimate up to 5600 as of now. my question is how much dose the insurance company say its worth? i owe 22k on the vehicle and my sister works for a gmc dealer. they said that when my car is done and the carfax is out it will only be worth 5k because of its damage history. the body shop says i am around 1500 from it being considered a total loss.
is there any way to convince my insurance to total the car? please help soon. i would really appriciate it. thank you all :)
Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 09:09 pm Post Subject:
What a second.... insurance companies usually total out a vehicle when the value is 80% of it's value. The repair shop says that $7000 will total out the car? So it's only worth $12,600? if you owe $22k, I'm willing to bet it's worth a little more then $12,600. So I'd say it's not even close to a total loss. Then, your sister thinks a full repaired vehicle will drop from $12,600 value to $5,000?
I just checked and I think the value of the vehicle is close to $15,000. You owe $22,000 on a $15,000 vehicle? Do you realize if the insurance company totals it out that they are only going to pay about $15,000? If you don't have GAP insurance, you will be about $7,000 in the hole.
The only way the carrier is going to consider it a total loss is if the cost to repair is about 80% of it's value. I think this is close to $12,000. Your not even close to that.
Okay... someone needs a taste of reality. I'm going to guess that your vehicle is not even close to being a total loss. Also, I don't see it's droping in value over $5000 in damages as brand new parts are going to be put on the vehicle. Someone may _try_ to get you to lower the price because it was in an accident but this is just a negotiating tactic. Ask the body shop how good their work is. Ask if the they are able to put the vehicle back in the same condition it was prior to the accident.
Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 09:31 pm Post Subject:
these cars can be picked up for 10k around here with those miles, it is worth 12k before the accident. and yes the gmc dealer said with the carfax report showing what damage has been done to the vehicle they will only offer 5k, even with the repairs done. i do have gap, i have on all of my vehicles. it is a must! but the body shop says that thier not done with the estimate. and already at 5600. i actually think they are working on it and plan on adding a supplemental. the thing that bothers me is that the car was my show car, and i owe a bunch on it, and now it will be worth 5k. so i would really like for them to total it out. i was a victim here and it seems like i am just going to keep paying for it by having the value decrease.
Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 10:12 pm Post Subject:
I usually don't go out on a limb but I'll call total BS on the shop! They are going to sell a full repaired vehicle for 50% less then it's worth? Some how I doubt that. Tell you what... ask them to show you a used vehicle on their lot that has been fully repaired. Look up the NADA value and offer them 50%. See what they say.
Your insurance company is only going to total out the vehicle if the repair cost is around $9000 based on your figures.
Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 02:03 am Post Subject:
Sorry Sonia but your sister and the body shop are both full of , well something besides claims handling knowledge...
2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS supercharged, fully loaded, every option, onstar, xm, etc... it has almost 25k miles on it.
I don't know what ''xm'' means but putting every option on the vehicle I get a value of $17, 725.00 how you owe 22k on this vehicle is the real question..shows me an MSRP of $21, 400.00 so how is it possible that you owe more that it could've been bought for brand new in 06? The vehicle is now 3 years old! If you do not have GAP insurance on this car, get it on this car PDQ...it won't total this time, but if you have another accident and it does, you could end up owing a lot of money without having a car!the body shop has the estimate up to 5600 as of now
That's not much of an estimate, really I know it's your car, but that's not even a third of the value...my question is how much dose the insurance company say its worth?
I'd say about 17-18k, now if you have any prior unrepaired damage that will lower the valuei owe 22k on the vehicle
Honey, how did that happen? Did you roll an unpaid car loan into this? Are you paying crazy high interest rates?and my sister works for a gmc dealer. they said that when my car is done and the carfax is out it will only be worth 5k because of its damage history.
Your sister is sooooooooooo wrong, or you misunderstood, she probably said, or meant, that the value would be reduces by 5k, which would bring it to about 12k, but she's wrong about that as well...the body shop says i am around 1500 from it being considered a total loss.
The body shop is nuts...you're about 7500 or more from a total loss !is there any way to convince my insurance to total the car?
No, it's all economics, why would they pay 17k or more to total it when they can repair it for 5600? would you pay that? course not....Ok, time for more reality...
the thing that bothers me is that the car was my show car,
No, I don't think it probably was, a true 'show car' if it were would likely not even have that many miles, because show cars are trailered to shows, and I don't mean to sound rude, but really a cobalt show car? How so, and what kind of shows are you showing it in and how many have you won? [Believe me, I've seen so many show car insurance settlements in the past.]i owe a bunch on it
Sonia that was your doing...the insurance company owes (if a vehicle totals and this one won't unless they find ALOT more damage) the ACV (actual cash value) only not what you've indebited your self for..and now it will be worth 5k.
This is NOT true and how did they come up with this amount? Sounds to me like someone wants to sell another car......They may offer you 5k trade in value, if so they're rippin' you off, and they are also telling you they do crap work...take it somewhere else, and besides, if it were still worth 10k (what you say they sell for in your area)...you couldn't sell it for that anyway because you'd still owe 12k! I think what you want is to get yourself out of debt at the expense of your carrier and that's not the way auto policys work...so i would really like for them to total it out
Well I would really like for someone to just give me 22k too, but it ain't happenin'i was a victim here and it seems like i am just going to keep paying for it by having the value decrease.
You were a victim and your carrier is going to repair your vehicle...like they promised to do...they are not going to total a repairable vehicle...by the way before I forget...if you have added a bunch of aftermarket accessories to this vehicle....you need to doubt check your policy because unless you are paying for additional endorcement for those you have 1k coverage only for those yes, even if you have 3k stereo and 4k tires and wheels, still only 1k in coverage unless you are properly endorced...and just so you know, when determining a vehicles ACV these 'added items' add very little to the value....One more thing, if I'm getting 17k or so and you say this car sells for 10k in your area, somethings wrong, either it's not an SS supercharger with all the options and that mileage, or it's rougher than a cob, but I don't know how that's possible either with a 'show car'....
Still can't figure out how you owe more than it was sold brand new for... :?
One other thing you might check and see if your state allows first party diminished value claims...and something else, if this happend on the 8th, and it's 5600 worth of damage to a chevy cobalt, this car should've already been repaired and back in your drive way, what's up with that?
Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 04:54 am Post Subject:
i owe 22k on the vehicle
Honey, how did that happen? Did you roll an unpaid car loan into this? Are you paying crazy high interest rates?
I too have the same question, you owe on the vehicle more than what it's worth?
I'd agree with the seasoned adjusters here, that you can't coerce the insurance company to total the car when its still repairable. I'm not sure why the body shop has said that you're only $1,500 away from the totaled value. IMO you're required to wait for the adjuster to look and comment on it.
Posted: Thu Dec 04, 2008 08:38 pm Post Subject:
Okay, i can see how you owe so much on a car, because the same thing happened to me and my sister. She also bought a brand new cobalt a few years ago and because of the interest, she ended up owing close to 30k. Yeah, for a cobalt. Wow. And me? I bought a used 06 Chrysler Sebring Touring in January of 07 and once again, the interest is taking me into the 20k something range. Sigh. My car was broken into and banged up pretty bad one day when someone attempted to steal it. And the only thing flashy about it was some racing stripes, but they got me for 6k in damages. What did the insurance company do?
They paid to repair it. They could give a crap-less what you want done with your car, or what the value comes out to be afterwards. They are NEVER gonna pay a higher amount when they can slide out the cheap way.
If your car is truly a show car...what was it doing out on the road to get hit in the first place? And if it's a show car, why are you so worried about the value of it come later? Were you planning on selling it soon?
Posted: Fri Dec 05, 2008 01:15 am Post Subject:
Well Rae, bad credit really bites a person don't it? and it just keeps on biting, wish more young folks would realize that mistakes, unpaid bills, defaults, and the worst of all credit cards will haunt them the rest of their lives...impulsive spending, and not paying back or slow paying in their youth will cause terrible problems in adulthood.
They paid to repair it. They could give a crap-less what you want done with your car, .
Course they don't care what you want...that's not what your contract says, and of course they would take the cheaper of the two...if it were your money and you can fix something for 6k or total it for 12k which one are you gonna' do? I really don't understand the logic when right there in black and white the 'right' thing is being done...we get comments and questions like this all the time, and I'll never understand it. what people want is to have theirselves pulled out of debt by your insurance carrier, which isn't their job, they didn't get you into the mess, and not their job to get you out of it either...what is owed on a vehicle is of no consequence at all...they (via your contract) never agreed to be a rich mommy or daddy that would bail anyone out of bad financial decisions...they owe the lesser of the two...They are NEVER gonna pay a higher amount when they can slide out the cheap way.
it's not 'sliding out' the cheap way, it's paying what's fair, and what you were promised..period...or what the value comes out to be afterwards
what's that value? you mean that fixing your vehicle caused an already horribly upside down vehicle to be worth less? :? how so?
f your car is truly a show car...what was it doing out on the road to get hit in the first place? And if it's a show car, why are you so worried about the value of it come later? Were you planning on selling it soon?
I certainly agree with your opinion and questions on this part...Add your comment