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Smart Shopper Replacement Cost by Insurance Company for Totaled Vehicle
196 messages, Last post on Nov 17, 2009 at 7:17 PM
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Mar 08, 2005 5:34 pm) My questions is, IF my truck is totalled, how much can I expect to get for it--is it used retail, private party or trade-in? The truck was brand new!! Also, is there any way I can get the kid to pay my deductibles and the difference that GAP would have paid? The police told me that even if I hired a lawyer, there was no way to "squeeze blood out of a turnip"! What if he has no money or assets? Am I just out of luck--as if he'd taken a few thousand dollars out of my pocket, set it on fire, and walked away?!? IF they do repair it, but it's just not the same and has repeated problems, is there anything I can do about it? Thanks! |
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Replying to: eviljoe (Apr 08, 2007 11:39 am) People who have assets or money don't drive on a suspended license without insurance so, yes, you're SOL. Sorry, life isn't fair. As for your last question, push hard to get the thing declared a total loss so as to avoid a variety of potential future issues.
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Replying to: cccompson (Apr 08, 2007 2:52 pm) -mike
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Replying to: paisan (Apr 08, 2007 4:37 pm) |
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Replying to: eviljoe (Apr 08, 2007 11:39 am) States where auto insurance policies can exclude diminished car-value payments Alaska Alabama Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kentucky Michigan Minnesota Missouri Mississippi Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina Tennessee Utah Vermont Wisconsin Wyoming Also Massachusetts |
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Replying to: toyoman1 (Mar 19, 2007 6:16 am) Now for you damages, you did not mention any body damage so you must have really gotten lucky and did not hit anything on the curbs. My stab in the dark would be new or like new rims, possibly tires will have to be replaced, suspension parts more than likely suffered some damages and don't forget about Wheel bearings. Just be thankful you are alive to actually write about it. Good luck with the repairs.
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Replying to: mcgrawp1173 (Apr 04, 2007 8:06 am) |
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Replying to: eviljoe (Apr 08, 2007 11:39 am) You can sue him in small claims court. It costs about $15 to file, and you don't need a stinking lawyer. You should be able to get his address and maybe SS number from the police report. You can search local records as to what he has to his name. Or just spy on him, see if he has another car, house, trailer, motorcycle, ATV, boat. Once the judgement is entered in your favor, send him an official request to pay. He has 30 days to do so. If he fails, turn over all the information you gathered on him to the Sheriff. They will seize his assests, take their cut, and give you the rest. They can garnish his wages... I have done it a few times in NY. If he has 2 more outstanding judgements against him, you get to collect triple damages. Check with FL small claims laws before proceeding. |
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Hi! I've been pouring through these forums looking for an answer to my question, but can only come close so far. I purchased a 1995 Maxima GLE not quite a year ago. It had all the perks, was flawless in and out and had 56k on it! Carfax check revealed a little old lady owned this car and had it serviced like clockwork. Unfortunately, the front end was injured in an accident and the car was totalled. A body repair guy bought it, made it good as new and sold it to us. The mechanic we took it to said we got a great bargain and felt the car was worth at least $6k, even with salvage title. The car was mostly garaged while I owned it, although I did put a small bump in it backing into hubby's van - a 'pop-out' type of injury, no scratches to paint. It had 64k on it by now as I owned it for 10 months. Then some idiot on a cellphone rear-ends my baby on the freeway and causes $6000 damage, so her insurance decides to total my car. After dragging their feet for 11 days, they finally offer me $4000, which I refused. KBB on that car with (unheard of) low mileage and my options comes to around $8200, assuming clean title, which of course it isn't. I can understand that there must be some adjustment for the salvage title, but just how do you FAIRLY determine the value of a car like this? To get that kind of mileage, I'd need to move up to a 2002 or better. The leather interior was like new - no stains or rips anywhere. The chances of finding a 95 Max GLE (or Toy/Lex/Inf/Honda equal)with 64K on it, much less a salvage title to boot, are NIL. Finding one of these in my neighborhood, with 2 or 3 times the mileage, will run $5500 and up. I sent several emails to the adjuster showing salvaged vehicles - most lesser versions of my car, all with much higher miles - that were selling for $5-6000. I also included an invoice for the fancy tires we had bought just a few months before ($500 if you DON'T have a nephew who manages a tire store). I felt that my car and the related expenses of replacing it was worth at least $6000, and made it clear that I thought their "53% subtracted for the salvage title" was arbitrary and ridiculous. So, my question is: how do you determine the value of a car with a prior salvage title? Obviously, the condition of the car should have some merit. If all repairs are done and the car is made 'whole' again, why should a person have to suffer such a big loss over what amounts to nothing more than a word on the title? (When I was sick for a month last year, they sure didn't cut my pay when I returned, fully recovered, citing that I was now 'damaged goods')! So how can this designation be arbitrarily applied to an otherwise perfect car that has fully recovered from it's injury? I just wonder who gets to make these decisions anyway. For my part, I held out through the feet dragging, got my own insurance company involved (I love you Liberty Mutual!) and agreed to accept $5860 total. I think I did alright, but I'm wondering what your opinion is on this whole arbitrary salvage title deduction. I will never again buy a car without a clean title because of this, no matter how wonderful the car is. ps - I've learned an awful lot reading through this forum - thank you all for the education!
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Replying to: ledheadmelli (Jul 11, 2007 9:26 pm) I don't know about others but figure a salvage title always knocks at least one-third off a car's value. While a precise calculation may be a bit arbitrary, the fact will always remain that any given vehicle is only worth what someone will pay for it. Salvage title equals big hit on price. |
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