Car Totaled offer not good.

Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 05:42 am Post Subject:

Oh boy....that kinda stinks. Well the tires are usually not covered by insurance. The other thing you should do is go to KBB.com Kelly Blue Book and see what your car is really worth. This can happen. Was the car totalled?

See there is a book that states the values of cars and with the miles that it has on it. The only thing you can do is try and negotiate and state why you think your car is worth more by showing figures to them, also ask them how they are comming up with the number that they got.

Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 06:46 am Post Subject: Good ploy!

Hi...I'm sure you must have taken down photographs of your car before & after the accident. This would certainly hold good towards pursuing your case with the insurer. Apart from that you can always ask for an explanation of the amount that they have arrived at, post totaling. Regards.

Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 07:07 am Post Subject: Particulars!

Hi, I believe you should also stay in touch with the lady if you meant she was driving another car and broke through your yard and crashed upon your's. Have you taken down her address, telephone no. ?? and yes photos do come to good use post accidents. Did you take photos of her car as well ??
Wish you all the best at this juncture! Ralphie_holmes

Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 02:41 pm Post Subject:

This situation happens a lot when a vehicle has just been purchased, esp. at a dealership. You probably paid dealer retail for the vehicle and the market value is being considered by the insurance company. They are usually two different amounts.

My recommendation is to obtain the information they used to determine the value of your vehicle and review it _closely_. Apprasiers love to total out vehicles as it makes their job much easier. However, they then also like to just give the vehicle a quick once over when recording options, condition, etc. Make sure the carrier has considered the correct mileage on the vehicle and _all_ it's options. Many times I've seen apprasiers missed quite a few options the vehicle comes with (power seats, power windows, heck.. even moon roofs and $1000 navagation systems). Again, obtain the paperwork from the carrier showing what they considered and review it for errors.

If you just bought the vehicle for $4000 you may have your own collision coverage on the vehicle. If so, start a claim with your carrier to see what they would pay. If it's more then $4000, you may want to file the claim under your policy and have them recover from the other carrier.

If the tires are only a month or two old, I'd say they should add a _little_ value to the vehicle. Anything older then a few months and they are not "new". But this added value might only be a small amount and the carrier might not want to consider adding value at all. Still, you can press the issue.

If your vehicle was not driveable after the accident you can also ask for a Loss of Use payment, even if you did not obtain a rental vehicle. You are entitled to this compensation as you... loss the use of the vehicle. Expect a payment around $15/day from time of the accident until the settlement offer was made.

Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 06:19 pm Post Subject:

Thanks for all the tips. Would I be able to get anything for my yard? All the cars that the insurance sent me for the market value review was at least 2 hours away and were almost all over $6500. They said I would of received 6000 but 2000 was removed because of the high mileage. Also they are sending 500 for my truck because the car bumped it as well and caused a dent. Know I noticed my signal light stays on. But I don't know if I should even mention it. They are pretty hate full.

Posted: Fri Jan 26, 2007 06:46 am Post Subject: Hi!

hi...theres nothing you should hold back...don't get emotional about it!
Opening up might let you show your reason to your adjuster...n find out a better way. Thanks for sharing.

Posted: Fri Jan 26, 2007 08:51 am Post Subject:

Yeah....I'll tell you what you need to do at this juncture. You need to get the real worth of both of your car and truck and then document them to see 2-3 comparison shop figures for repairing them. It is quite common of insurance adjusters to offer low and see if you'd remain contented with that. In case you can show the proper documentation proving that you're not fully reimbursed, then you can as well tell them that you'd not accept their check. This is a time they will ask you for your estimation of the loss and the amount you're looking forward to settle with. Thats all you can do to attract their attention towards what you want.
BTW, I still dont see you as a member of the community. Please join.:)
Regards,
Evan

Posted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 01:30 am Post Subject:

Also as for your yard...you should mention it as I believe that would be considered under the property coverage on the other persons policy. If not you can always seek to recover the money on your auto policy. Definately get estimates of your own so you have something to go from for both the auto and your yard. It is good to get an itemized quote and you can also ask this from the insurance company to see how they came up with the number that they got.

Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 02:54 pm Post Subject:

If I understand corectly, the other person damaged your yard with their vehicle when they caused this accident. If so, yes... your yard repairs should be considered by the other carrier.

Your own auto insurance won't pay for damage to your yard. You'd have to have some type of property policy such as homeowners or a dwelling policy to address this issue. Your carrier would then still attempt recovery from the other parties carrier for what they paid.

If you don't feel the other carrier is handling this correctly, file a complaint with your states Dept. of Insurance. They should make sure everything is being handled and in a timely fashion.

Posted: Fri Feb 09, 2007 07:45 pm Post Subject:

I think your only option is take what the insurance is giving you because thats what they valued for the car just incase of damage.Its better than nothing.