Insurance Write-Off Question.

[Celica TVS3]

Facts:
Somebody who works in my office's daughter crashed the family mini-van.
The vas an early 90s with low km.
The damage to it was minor (only front fender damage).
There was also damage to another vehile. Because of this the insurance company has been involved.

The insrance company said the van was a write-off and would only give her $1500. They would then take the van (which would probably end up in a used car lot for a 5 grand in a few weeks)

My question is. Is there anyway that she can file a claim to get the damages for the van + keep the van and make the repairs herself?

Thanks

[grocko]

I suppose what the big question is is how much the van is actually worth in GOOD condition...if the damage is hovering close to 50% of the vehicles value (especially for an older car), it'll most likely be written off. However, I have heard of people getting their vehicles back but it involved alot of chasing around the insurance adjuster and what-not.

Did she get it checked out at a shop to see how much it would cost to get it repaired??

[Celica TVS3]

No not yet. But the damage to her van is pretty minor fender/body damage to only one panel. So i would imagine to get it done at a shop would be upwards of $1200. However its such a common van that it would be easy to find a matching colour at an autowrecker.

The problem is that the insurance company wants to give her a comperable van (with way more km + unknown history) or a cash payout of $1500 in exchange for her van 150km and driven by an old lady.

There must be some way that she could keep her van plus get a cash payout to cover a portion of the damages. I remember hearing a story a while back that was dealing with this same issue: i belive it hinged on the fact the owner pays a deductable for the claim therefore has a right to retain ownership of the vehile.

Anymore information would be great - Thanks.

[Zero102]

Usually, if they write off your vehicle, you can buy it back from the insurance company for next to nothing. If this is the case, the title will be branded salvage, but you can have a write-off inspection performed, and have the vehicle re-certified, so you can drive it again. That said, they will usually write off a vehicle when the damage exceeds 75% of the value of the vehicle. So, the first thing you want to do, is argue about the real value of the van, try to get it as high as you can. If you disagree with their initial assessment, they are obligated to get an independant appraisal of your vehicle, for valuation purposes. If this brings the price up enough, great, you're done. Otherwise, you can usually negotiate with the insurance company to take a smaller payout, in exchange for not writing the vehicle off. Sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn't. If all else fails, let them write it off, take the payout, and buy it back. Most-all insurance companies will give you this option. Use whatever excuse you would like here, it has sentimental value, whatever. The buyback is usually 10% or so of the vehicle value, a.k.a. next-to-nothing. A write-off inspection is about $150-$200, so buy it back, fix it, and have it recertified.

I may have just gone in a circle there, but it's late :)

[Zero102]

For what it's worth, when my 86 porsche 944 burned, my insurance company initially valued it LOW, so I asked for an independant appraisal, which brought it up to about 75% of what I felt it was worth. So, I bit the bullet, took the payout, then bought it back. Without quoting hard numbers, I bought it back for 8% of what they felt the value of the car was.

[TrevorK]

http://www.trans.gov.ab.ca/Content/doctype41/production/ReSalvage.htm

That is what you need to go through when recertifying a vehicle. As you can see, it's not an easy process and you will need to involve a shop licensed to do the inspections (Not every one can) from the get go. It's not nearly as easy as everyone says to get a car to pass - it HAS to be in good shape.
<Note - these rule came into effect within the last 2 years. Previously it was very, very easy to get a vehicle back onto the road>

It is usually not worth it in the case of an older vehicle to go through all of this, which is partly why the laws were changed.

As for negotiating the value of your vehicle - the appraiser can provide a list of comparable vehicles, and uses that list to provide you with market value. If you disagree, the easiest solution is to find comparable vehicles yourself (Bargainfinder, newspaper, autotrader, etc...) and present them to the adjustor.

With a vehicle like yours it's hard to determine what sort of "premium" it may carry - because it's still a 15 year old vehicle......

[Zero102]

I wonder what it takes to be branded non-repairable....
My 86 944 was branded non-repairable, although it only suffered an engine fire. The frame was undamaged, and it needs a new engine, and new front sheet metal to look right again. I wonder why it is not just a salvage title?

[3G]

Originally posted by Zero102
I wonder what it takes to be branded non-repairable....
My 86 944 was branded non-repairable, although it only suffered an engine fire. The frame was undamaged, and it needs a new engine, and new front sheet metal to look right again. I wonder why it is not just a salvage title?

I had an 89 Accord, like REAL minor hit in the back, the car was like in mint condition though, non-repairable they branded it

[TrevorK]

Originally posted by Zero102
I wonder what it takes to be branded non-repairable....
My 86 944 was branded non-repairable, although it only suffered an engine fire. The frame was undamaged, and it needs a new engine, and new front sheet metal to look right again. I wonder why it is not just a salvage title?

The adjustor determines what to brand it as.

Generally if a vehicle is deemed unsafe, or if there is the possibility of hidden damage (Like cars that get flooded) it is branded as non-repairable.

Further, if the car itself is in poor shape (Rusty frame, etc...) and is written off the adjustor can go the extra mile and brand it as non-repairable because the car shouldn't be on the road.

[Zero102]

There is no way the adjuster could have known about all the hidden damage, lol. The fire damage on it's own shouldn't have been enough. It wasn't hot enough to heat-temper the frame or something like that. Just peeled all the paint, and melted all the plastic on the front...
Oh well, it's not worth repairing anyways, just confused me.

[TrevorK]

Originally posted by Zero102
There is no way the adjuster could have known about all the hidden damage, lol. The fire damage on it's own shouldn't have been enough. It wasn't hot enough to heat-temper the frame or something like that. Just peeled all the paint, and melted all the plastic on the front...
Oh well, it's not worth repairing anyways, just confused me.

Vehicles in fires and floods are much more likely to have hidden damage. Which is why they are quite often flagged as non-repairable.

I've seen a brand new Vibe GT which had "flood damage" written off and flagged as "non-repairable". It was immediately sent to auction, guy paid $6000 for it.

He let it dry out, cleaning out all the electrical connectors and sensors and turned the key. Started run up and runs perfect - but can never be legally registered.

[3G]

Originally posted by TrevorK


Vehicles in fires and floods are much more likely to have hidden damage. Which is why they are quite often flagged as non-repairable.

I've seen a brand new Vibe GT which had &quot;flood damage&quot; written off and flagged as &quot;non-repairable&quot;. It was immediately sent to auction, guy paid $6000 for it.

He let it dry out, cleaning out all the electrical connectors and sensors and turned the key. Started run up and runs perfect - but can never be legally registered.

Export it to another country and sell it for a premium ;)