by shibugeorge2000 » Wed Feb 17, 2010 06:58 pm
My 2001 year old car's door was damaged while backing out of the garage and had to be replaced, the mechanic and the insurance company wrote off on a same year old salvaged car door for the repairs, this lessens my car value, is this legal? can we fight this?
Posted: Wed Feb 17, 2010 08:02 pm Post Subject: Use of salvaged parts
Most personal auto insurance policies pay for damage to vehicles on the basis of actual cash value. In the case of your son's 2001 insured vehicle, his insurer is obligated to provide him with a 2001 door. Providing your son with a brand-new replacement door would be considered "betterment" (a check of his policy will likely address the issue of betterment) and he would be responsible for the difference (betterment) between the cost of the new door and the cost of the 2001 door.
Posted: Wed Feb 17, 2010 09:28 pm Post Subject:
mechanic and the insurance company wrote off on a same year old salvaged car door for the repairs
The insurance company, not the mechanic. You authorize the mechanic to perform the repairs.
this lessens my car value
It could, yes. If this insurance company is not your carrier, you can file a diminished value claim.
is this legal?
Yep
can we fight this?
Sure.
Posted: Wed Feb 17, 2010 09:31 pm Post Subject:
As a bodyshop owner, I am as picky as they come to wanting new original equipment parts or at least the very best used parts available for a repair.
Most state statutes require an insurer to replace with like, kind, and quality. It has to meet all three criteria not just be kinda like. What ever labor or procedures that are required to make a used part equal to the part that is replaced must be considered.
Now, a used door with rust on the inner flanges, and a thousand parking lot dings or one with prior repaired damage, or even one with 4 paint jobs on it, is not a Like, Kind, and quality door. Some insurers do not consider that a door must be completely disassembled to a bare shell to properly jamb paint and install your hardware if yours was in better conditon. By the time one considers all the operations to bring some used parts up to the condition of the part that is being replace, new could have been less expensive and should be considered.
Many used doors come from vehicles that were damaged on the opposite side and may appear to be in good quality condition equal to the original, but when installed do not fit properly and do not seal against wind. This is because the unibody twists or shifts on a severe impact and can make a good door on the opposite side damaged. There is nothing worse than having a previously red door on a blue car and everytime is gets nicked, dinged or scratched having red showing through. I always look for used doors that are light pewter, silver, brown or black which make a good base for any outer color.
When all is said and done, if like, kind and quality can not be found, new must be considered and betterment should not be taken on a door unless it can be proven the new door increased the overall value of the vehicle which is highly unlikely. Betterment should not be applied to items that do not depreciate as a result of normal wear and tear such as tires or batteries.
And if this is the drivers door, the insurer should also have to pay for a replacement vin decal. If they are no longer available from the manufacturer, they can be duplicated as long as it's a picture of the original sticker on the vehicle and states that it is not produced by the original manufacturer.
Posted: Wed Feb 17, 2010 11:21 pm Post Subject:
Why do you think this lessens the value of the vehicle? It's already 9 years old and has suffered almost all of it's depreciation already.
Your policy probably states, in some wording, that the insurance company will repair the vehicle. As Mike mentioned, this will require the use of Like, Kind, and Quality parts. Your vehicle had a 9 year old factory door on it. What does it have now? I 9 year old factory door. So basically, LKQ. Again, why should this lower the value. if anything it now has some brand new paint on it!
I could show you 100 vehicles with used parts and 100 with new OEM. I'm willing to bet that you cannot tell the difference. I'd bank money on it.
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2010 12:11 am Post Subject:
It's already 9 years old and has suffered almost all of it's depreciation already.
Depreciation and resale value are always indifferent of each other, you know that. Mileage, options, condition are always going to be a factor. 9 years old in todays market is nothing from that stand point.
I could show you 100 vehicles with used parts and 100 with new OEM. I'm willing to bet that you cannot tell the difference. I'd bank money on it.
You and I could, but to the average person probably not. Thats were the whole DV situation comes in, not saying there would be much at all on a 9 year old vehicle.
Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2010 01:02 pm Post Subject:
this lessens my car value,
I seriously doubt this...you had a nine yr old door on the car when you wrecked it...and you have (presumeably) a nine year old put back on it..might've been newer than nine years..most likely had less miles...so how on earth did your car depreciate? Also this was your 'mechanic' (by the way, it was most likely not a mechanic)...that you trust right? Would he/she have put a crap door on your car? Most carriers require that any used parts be same yr/mileage or newer and of 'insurance quality'..if a shop gets a used door in that's junk, (and it does happen)...then they are NOT a quality shop if they use it...is this legal?
certainly it is..can we fight this?
You can try but personally I doubt any success...Assuming the vehicle has not yet been repaired, you could always pay the difference...You could further tell the shop that you want to see the door as well prior to it going on your vehicle...I'm sorry but I fail to see ANY depreciation on your vehicle, if you've chosen a quality shop...Also never, in my life have I seen betterment taken on a door..it's not considered a 'wearable' part like tires, batterys etc.
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