by Guest » Wed Feb 13, 2008 11:30 pm
I was also in a car accident head on with a ups international truck. The vehicle had to be towed because it shut off no power what so ever. The insurance appraiser did an estimate on just the body damage stated the hood would not open on inspection and also he stated the vehicle was drivable which it was not. His estimate was for a used front clip and the rest was for paint and labor and the amount was for 8632.53 before my 500.00 ded. Now I drive a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica and i also have gap insurance and don't feel safe that they found everything wrong with it and I am really not sure what the ACV is for my vehicle. Is there anything I can do to get the insurance company to total it. Thanks...
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 12:59 am Post Subject:
Welcome to the forums, hang out some of the adjusters will be along soon to help you out. Sounds like a lot of damage for a 2004, seems like they would have totalled it out. You can go to edmunds and plug in your vehicle information and it should tell you what the car would have valued at. goodluck.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 05:28 am Post Subject:
I WAS ALSO IN A CAR ACCIDENT HEAD ON WITH A UPS INTERNATIONAL TRUCK.
Please clarify the word Also, were you into some other accident in the recent time? was it also a car accident? If so then you may like to know that the insurance company will only pay for the damages occurred in this accident, and not for any prior damages.
Honestly, you can't exert any pressure to the insurance company to total your car. The adjuster is a professional the company has hired to deal with the claim. If is case you wish to dispute with his decision you may summon an independent adjuster to do the evaluation, and present the estimate to your insurer. But, hiring an independent adjuster may cost you dearly at the same time. Hence, you should apply your best judgement before taking decision.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 05:41 am Post Subject:
Hey Brian, you can run your vehicle in the NADA site, you may get an idea about the ACV of the car from the site. Also may care to furnish some more detail about the damages, its millage etc. That may help the adjuster around the forums to offer you some help.
Thanks,
Linda Maxwell
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 05:53 am Post Subject:
First, where you hurt in the accident 'cause YOUR YELLING LIKE WE CAN'T HEAR YOU! All caps are rude.
What will happen is that the shop will open the hood to the vehicle and let the appraiser know it can be reinspected or just let the appraiser know what additional damages there are to the vehicle. So there _will_ be supplemental damages written up. Appraisers are very good at what they do (except for me). They will usually have a good idea if additional damages may total out a vehicle. If they think it will, they will reinspect the vehicle once it's at the shop and before they start work on it.
I'd recommend that you call your insurance adjuster and let them know you think the vehicle is a total loss and that you really don't want it repaired if it's close and if they can manage to consider it a total loss. Basically your asking them to review the repair cost before the repairs are started to see if it meets the threshold for a total loss. Most carriers will consider a vehicle a total loss when it's repair cost is 80% of its value. But if they overlook this and start work on the vehicle, they almost always continue with the repairs even if the cost does exceed 80% of it's value.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 11:51 am Post Subject:
Please clarify the word Also,
I split it from another thread...the OP had not created a new thread and just added it to an existing one...Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 04:35 pm Post Subject: Just say "NO" to clipping
If your insurer is actually suggesting that you have your vehicle turned to a chryslerstein, which is what a clip really is, (one car created from two different vehicles), you should consult collision repair shops in your area to find one who vehemently opposes this type of repair to assist you.
Today's unibody construction requires specific repair procedures recommended by your vehicle's manufacturer. Don't believe any person or insurer that states that this type of repair is industry acceptible or insurer approved.
I could post links of clipped cars that were subsequently wrecked, but the carnage would be too graphic for this web site.
No manufacturer recommends this procedure or will condone it. Most repair organizations and associations say always refer to the manufacturer specifications on repairs. Insurers do not repair cars, they pay for repairs, or indemnify you for your losses. Courts do not consider insurers experts at auto repairs.
If it were my vehicle I would channel one hundred percent of the liability back to the insurer and make them select a shop and authorize the repairs and then have a post repair inspector assess the repair. When it is proven that this repair was against manufacturer recommendations, I would then suggest you talk to an attorney to discuss bad faith if the insurer does not buy the vehicle back and total it.
You could also accept the undisputed portion of the cost of repairs and invoke your appraisal clause. You can easily find a repair expert that would serve as your appraiser to refute this type of repair. The only reason any insurer would clip a car, would be because they found it cost effective regardless of your future safety.
Some adjusters have been around since the pre-unibody days when a clip was used to describe the outer sheetmetal only. This is a different issue. Only original parts from your manufacturer should be used to make a structural repair to your vehicle according to their recommendations for installation.
Additional consumer help can be found at www.ican2000.com and www.collisionconsulting.com , or www.theccre.com. These web site are made up of consumer concious shop owners that won't steer you into a poor decision or repair if you need help in your area.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 05:56 pm Post Subject:
If your insurer is actually suggesting that you have your vehicle turned to a chryslerstein, which is what a clip really is, (one car created from two different vehicles), you should consult collision repair shops in your area to find one who vehemently opposes this type of repair to assist you.
Can you cite _any_ information that would support you claim, that bolting a front end would somehow be a "bad" thing? The sites you posted don't even address this information... 2 of them just dealt with Diminishment of Value and the other did not mention front clips.I've never heard of any repair shop not wanting to install and front clip on a vehicle.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 06:33 pm Post Subject: In response to clipping
The next to last paragraph in my post spoke of the difference between bolting a clip assembly front end as opposed to a welded clipped front end.
But if you need examples I will locate some references on why you should not clip a car as I go through my data.
For starters
https://www.vehicleinfo.com/articles.php?id=16
http://abrn.search-autoparts.com/abrn/Hands-On+Management/Is-sectioning-viable/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/489143
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 06:38 pm Post Subject:
Welcome to the forums Mike of the Ozarks, love that name, LOL. Hope you find you stay here a good one.
Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 07:00 pm Post Subject: Here is a sample of cars being clipped
If the link works, click on the page so you can scroll to the bottom to read all of the pro's and cons. Many states are recognizing car clipping as detrimental to consumer's safety and branding titles of any vehicle that has been clipped so the next purchaser can be sure to run from any Frankencar.
http://www.nwt.tec.ok.us/~jeffo/docs/textbooks/structural_parts_steel2/module7.pdf
The key word is liability. If an insurer is unwilling to accept the liability for clipping a car, why should any shop stick their neck out for a future potential liability that their own garagekeepers policy would not protect them from?
I have personally clipped 3 cars in the past 25 years, and even put my daughers in them, BUT knowing now what I didn't know and understand then and with liability and safety being an issue, I would not hesistate to kick any clipping job to the curb. When an insurer says I want to clip your car, they are really saying, I want to fix your car as cheap as possible and someone else to accept all the risks involved and any downstream liability for that repair.
Mabry vs statefarm court case will reveal why insurers are liable when they specify a repair. The key is to force your insurer to authorize this repair. They will more than likely not, because they do not want the associated liability.
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