[TRU-BOOST]

You tell them it is a limited production, in demand car. The value is going to be hurt badly from a repair. No enthusiast will want to touch this car in the future. It will be better off getting auctioned off to a junk yard that can profit from the sales of parts. Dont let them short change you on the settlement money either. They have to pay you actual cash value "ACV" which takes rarity and market conditions into consideration. Most of these cars are selling for over new car value even after 10k miles. You shouldnt even have to touch that GAP insurance.

 

[Singleminded]

Thanks for this. How exactly would I go about pushing them to total out the car? And would aftermarket parts count towards an itemized list of things I spent for the car like wheel and tires? The price of cars comparable to mine, how exactly does that work out I’m not understanding that part too well.

See what they say. Totaled or not is really up to them, but you can tell them you’d prefer it totaled and they may accommodate you.

They’ll look at the pics and prob send an adjuster to look in person. They can refuse to total it now but change their mind once it’s in the shop and more damage is uncovered.

Regarding the proper value if they do total it: I would look at ads for comparable cars. Trim, mileage, year etc. Pick a few of the highest and show that to the insurer. I would also run your car through all of the online buyers like Carmax, specifying of course that it has no damage. They will email you quotes. All those data points will help you identify a fair value.

Also gather your receipts for mods that make your car more valuable than the ones in the ads and factor that in.

Really sucks this happened. That other driver really blew it. Buying a Ford Explorer prob a sign of poor judgment to begin with. Of course he’s also from Texas. If he’s not seeing monster truck tires and an exhaust stack “rolling coal” in his rear view mirror, he prob thinks there’s nothing behind him SMH.

 

[TRU-BOOST]

DO NOT ADVERTISE MODS. They will actually reduce value in most cases. I worked in the insurance salvage industry many years back and can tell you that modification hurts cash value, does not help it.

 

[Singleminded]

DO NOT ADVERTISE MODS. They will actually reduce value in most cases. I worked in the insurance salvage industry many years back and can tell you that modification hurts cash value, does not help it.

Yeah, good point, this is the safer path in general. If the crash destroyed something like a $1k carbon rim I would personally argue for compensation for that. But yes, if we’re talking about stuff like cold air intakes and cat back exhausts etc, it’s probably a net negative to bring it up.

 

[Ritter]

I would also claim parts unavailability such that a repair is not feasible in any reasonable time frame.

 

[Xer0]

Thanks for this. How exactly would I go about pushing them to total out the car? And would aftermarket parts count towards an itemized list of things I spent for the car like wheel and tires? The price of cars comparable to mine, how exactly does that work out I’m not understanding that part too well.

If for some reason they come back and say they want to pay to have the car repaired, tell me that you believe repairing the car will result in something unsafe and the extent of the repairs would diminish the value of the car to the point that you are not made whole. Again, I doubt they will decide to repair the car as I'm pretty sure it will cost more then getting a whole new car and since this car is brand new, there will be no way to source OEM like or refurbished parts making any repair that much more expensive, not to mention the fact that a repair of this caliber will need the car in the shop for god knows how long just waiting for parts all the parts.

As for the price of cars comparable to yours, take your exact car configuration and try and find as close to it as possible on the open market near you. That means that if you have a 22 bRed premium with 4K miles, you look on every website for cars as close to that and what they sell for. Then you email the dealers and ask for a price if you can get it. This way, when the insurance offers to pay you out 30K for your vehicle, you tell them that actually the two nearest bRed premiums to me are selling for 34K and show them proof. They might have come to that 30K number because there is a random premium Raven in Florida with 5K miles on it and decided it was close enough. Its here where you explain that red is a premium color that costs more and is more in demand and its important to you and yada yada. Its not enough to just want more money, you have to be able to justify it and have the data handy - thats why you look up comparable cars so you know exactly how much you need to get a replacement.

As for mods, I wouldn't mention them. People don't want someone else's mods, it almost always devalues a car, and unless you have insurance that specifically also insures your mods just accept that as a loss and move on. The only exception is some dealer installed items, like lets say your car had the auto dimming mirror, all weather floor mats, and like a short throw shifter, I would bring those up and try and get them paid out too if you can.

 

[InitialGR86]

Damn that sucks.

I always wonder, do Americans all get their license with a pack of cereal?

 

[Charlied]

In the event of a total loss- Your insurance Company pays out first, then the gap pays the remaining balance minus your deductible. I had gap insurance pay out 9700 on a car that got totalled I was upside down in.

 

[BlitzPig]

Damn that sucks.

I always wonder, do Americans all get their license with a pack of cereal?

Pretty much. Even though operating a motor vehicle is a privilege granted by the individual states in the form of a license, in effect here in the US it is treated as a right.
That said, because of the size of the US, and our almost total lack of organized mass transit, it is an absolute necessity for most people to be able to get around.

 

[kpcnj]

What a fucking idiot. How/why in the hell do we allow these people to continue driving and sharing our roads?

 

[Duchess]

We really needed graduated licensing beyond commercial vehicles. Some countries do it based on engine size, but technology makes that an outdated metric now, so it should go by footprint and height. OK, it's necessary for people to drive in this huge country, but what isn't necessary is a 5k lbs vehicle that needs cameras to spot anything behind that's shorter than 4' tall that can be driven by any friggin' moron from around 16 years old with very minimal qualifications—and more often than not it's morons that specifically buy the bigger vehicles. Put all learners and the needle dicks who can't or DGAF to drive properly in a new class vehicle based on the Japanese Kei class regulations. Earn a larger vehicle license and crash it due to negligence, you're back down to covered go-cart size. Yes, this will also serve to make larger vehicles a status statement, but they already are.

 

[BlitzPig]

I like the graduated license idea, and it's even more necessary for motorcyclists. Currently the only qualification for purchasing/riding a motorcycle that can exceed 180mph and out accelerate just about any wheeled vehicle on the planet is the ability to sign your name. Madness.

 

[jsmongeon24]

Just make people take the driving test every 5 years. Get like the strictest teacher you can find and have them be the proctor(?). Go under the speed limit to much, fail. Go too fast on the test, fail. No blinker, fail. I kinda wanna make it so hard, that the Gov has no option but to create an organized mass transit system.

If we do go the Kei class, sign me up for the Autozam AZ-1!!

 

[Ritter]

In Germany they have to attend a driving school that's an actual school where you learn about vehicle mechanics and so on. It costs a few thousand and takes weeks or months. Passing is far from easy.

 

[InitialGR86]

That's the norm in most countries. In my home country and here in Japan you need to take around 30~40 hours of driving lessons with an instructor. After that you need to pass at least one practical and one theoretical exam. It's not super hard (if, you know, you actually know how to drive and know the rules...) but you will fail if you just try to wing it.

Of course that's not to say that prevents plenty of piss poor drivers to still get a license (using your phone/watching tv is a favorite among most Japanese drivers) but at least stuff like ramming into a stationary car seems to be a rarity.

 

[jadenboo97]

That’s too bad. Are you parting out the car any chance cause I could use some interior stuff

 

[Sloth86]

Update. Just got the news she’s totaled today boys. Estimate says payout is 38k. I think that’s a fair amount for an auto base model. Should I push for 40 to even it out? Leave it as it? Or try and get however much more I can?

 

[Buitom]

If you had factory add ons I would itemized and show receipts to get more.

 

[jsmongeon24]

Update. Just got the news she’s totaled today boys. Estimate says payout is 38k. I think that’s a fair amount for an auto base model. Should I push for 40 to even it out? Leave it as it? Or try and get however much more I can?

Damn sorry for the loss! Hella payout though

 

[Ritter]

Best possible outcome! 🙌 Take the money & run.