My girlfriends car got written off today [pic]
 

Doesn't look like too much damage does it ?? Not enough to write it off anyway, but she got the word back today:

http://i443.photobucket.com/albums/q...-29_091255.jpg


Some stupid bitch drove into the back of her a week or so ago. I could go into another rant about women drivers, but i've done enough of that the past few days so i'll leave it at that.

Now we have to go buy a new one this weekend. Gonna be a pain in the ass though i think getting some things sorted out.


Anyone on here ever had a car wrote off before ??

They cut you a check, they take the car. Don't know if it's different outside the states but I'd assume it's all the same.

You might have to negotiate a bit on the value of the car, but if you feel you're getting a fair price that's that. You get a check to pay off what's owed (if any) and the left-over you use to buy a new one. If it's paid off, you're good to go.

They "total" a car based on the value of the car pre-accident, and the amount of money it would take to fix. If the damage is more than a certain % of the value of the car (I think it's somewhere between 70-85%) they'll cut their losses and just consider it a total loss.

Yeah they did offer an amount, but we felt it was too low, so they are getting back to us in a couple of days or so.

She was still paying the car, and it was enough to cover it, but we still felt it was worth more than the offer. We'll see what they come up with next time...

Doesn't look like a ton of damage from the pic, I guess they really don't make them like they used to.

Doesn't look like a lot of damage, but depends on the damage to the frame I guess. I was rear ended a few years back and it was $3k US in damages.

My car was rear-ended, looked similar in damage to your lady's car. I drove it home the night it was hit and it wasn't until the next morning I realized there was some pretty good damage underneath. I took that in (it's a VW Jetta Diesel btw) and they fixed it, about $6k worth. When I picked it up I put it in reverse and I knew right then it wasn't right. I still drove it home thinking I just had to get use to it again or whatever. They had it a good six weeks.

So I'm driving and it's just not right, I take it back after the weekend on a Monday. Come to find out that the engine brackets broke and I'd need a new engine. Impact must have made them break? It wasn't looking like insurance was gonna be able to do much on it with getting another $8k put into it and I would have ended up with a lemon. It was suggested by the insurance company to resell the vehicle back to VW without the engine, take that credit and buy a new car. Oye.

I get a call about a week later from the insurance adjustor and he tells me he was able to move mountains for me and then tells me he got it so that they were just gonna total the car and I would end up getting $6k back. I said sure, took the money, paid off my Murano and never bought another car. We were trying to sell it and had listed it about a month prior to the accident with no bites.

Oh I should mention the whole time this was happening, the son of the lady that hit me was never giving his mom the messages so she never knew the insurance people were on her to get the deductible money at least. Once I texted her son one last time with "you have until 4p today to make things right or I will be filing civil suits against you and your mom for $10k each" I got a call immediately from the mother wanting to work things out. And I was serious, the complaints were all done up and ready to be filed. They would have had seven days to respond to each complaint or I'm automatically awarded the money ... all for a simple $35 filing fee. I learned that taking someone to civil court is quite easy. Getting the settlement I know would be another story.

While a pain in the ass while I was going through it, it actually all worked out for me better. Odd, that is the third car accident that has not been my fault that has helped me more in the end.

Yes. Twice. Getting what you are owed can be hard work :(

Whatever they offer at first tell them to fuck off. It's up to them to put her back in the position she was in before the accident - but the staff they have making offers to people are on bonus to give out as little as they can get away with.

Find adverts for the same car with same miles and any extras that were on it - print them out and provide them as proof of market value replacement cost.

What you could do is ask for the car back plus some cash, and just get it fixed on the cheap.

I have done this before.

HOpe she is ok!

Yeah that's what we're worried about. It's the last thing we needed right now to be honest.


About the ads. We actually found a car on Auto-Trader will close to the same mileage etc, so we are sending them that for proof that our car should be valued close to that. But like you say, they'll dig their heels in to give as little as possible...

And don't fall for their other trick of them sending a cheque for a value that you haven't agreed that you pay into the bank. You will end up with them saying that it was for full and final settlement and then you're fucked.

Look for ads on Autotrader and Pistonheads and Vauxhalls own NetworkQ site. You will need several to back up your valuation -- the insurance company will try and come up with a lower valuation out of glasses guide or somewhere similar but as long as you let them know you aren't going to starve for not having a fast payout and you are willing to fight for what is owed they will end up paying it.

"written/wrote off?" what exactly does that mean?

Im guessing by the context, its what we refer to as "totaled." Im always interested in learning how other parts of the world refer to things from a USA perspective :winkwink:

If it is "totaled" or damage > value of car, then I would try to find a insurance adjuster (depending on your type of insurance, you can have one) to value the car versus current market value.

For instance, in 2002 some dick wasnt paying attention and pulled out into an intersection right in front of me and stalled... i hit his back right side. He admitted fault and went through the insurance company. My car was valued at (kbb.com) $7,200 but I just had purchased it used for $9k less than a year before. Looking online, a simlar model with options was around $8,500 PLUS taxes, fees, etc. So I threatened to hire an insurance adjuster and two days later got a check for almost $8,800 :thumbsup

if the main damage is just the bumper, the boot lid should streaten out (could probably do that your self).

i would just patch the pumper up with gaffer tape. it will not look good, but lets face it, chanses are it will get damaged again.

and just say can you have the car back with some cash.

and bank the cash.

or you could ask a local garage to patch the bumper up for a few pounds.

personaly i would not touch a vachall as they break so easily and are most common to steal.

ps

you get £k or more for saying she got whip lash.

it's a Tigra, it's the best that could happen to you. now you can buy a real car ;))

God damn. I got rear ended in my wrangler and all it did was bend the bumper. :1ogrlaugh

Body-on-frame FTW!

if the car costs more to repair than to replace, then the car is written off.

the insurance firm will then sell it on. it may be sold to a breakers firm or sold second hand with damage.

often they write off older cars as it could mean re-spraying most of the car, plus parts.

i had an old nissan micra, someone drove into my side and caved it in.

it was written off.

now as it was old they offered me next to nothing, so i asked for the car back plus cash.

local garage pulled it out, for a few pounds. it was not perfect, but it was ok.

had the car for 4 years after that. drove it till it fell aport.

to be honest i only drive old cars. people mock me, but if you have a nice car, chances are somone will key it.

It just means that it is unecconomical to repair the car.

I almost had my car smashed today, some Asian twat turned in front of me causing me to have to slam on the anchors hard (what made it worse was there was no-one behind me so if he had waited two seconds it would have been a clear road!) - I saw red and chased him into a school car park .....

You got it !!


Edit: Fuck you got 3 answers all at once.

if you pull the bumper out, patch it up with gaffer tape, then get a big sticker from a car shop, it will cover it up and i bet no one would notice. or get some black rubber and cut it to shape. it will cover that with ease and protect the bumper a bit.

And then fail it's MOT miserably...

why?

if its just the body it will be fine.

are did she damage the car frame?

It would be $1000 to fix and spray the bumper if that's all it was that needed done. Given that it is a five figure car, then safe to say the Chassis must be fucked along with a couple of other things.

I used to work for a company that put values on cars that were total losses like this one. Here are a few pointers I can give you to help from getting screwed.

1. Chances are your insurance company used a 3rd party company to come up with the value they offered you. This company likely got the job because they consistently value cars on the low end.

2. Here is what you do. First, write down all the info on your car (year, make, model, mileage, condition, features like A/C, power windows etc). Add in any recent stuff you may have had done like new tires or brakes etc. Then go online and look in the papers for cars that are the same year, make, model that are for sale in your area. Call and get info on those cars. If they are offered at a dealer and not a private party still call. What you are looking for are comparable cars. With any luck you will find a few cars that were in similar condition as yours. If the car is sold, see if you can find out about it anyway. Sold cars are actually the best to use because it represents the actual value of the car, not just an asking price. Gather all this information and use it to show what cars similar to yours are selling for on the market.

3. If the country you live in uses the Blue Book or NADA book, use it to determine what the "book value" of the car was before the accident. Once you have that value call 2-3 dealers in your area. Ask to speak to the used car manager. Explain to them what you car is, give them the book value and ask them what they feel a car like that could bring on their lot. This is called a dealer quote. Hopefully you can get a couple of these.

4. Once you have a book value, a few dealer quotes and some comparable cars that are for sale/sold on the market you can take that information and determine if the price they are offering is fair. If they are low (and they likely will be) show them all of this information and tell them what you feel the real value of the car is. When you present this info to them they will realize that you know what you are talking about. Hopefully they will then just give you the better price without further fighting.

As for still making payments. If you owe more than it is worth, you will likely have to go after the other drivers insurance for that directly. You will need to make a case that you planned on owning the car for years and paying it off. You didn't ask for this accident and their client was at fault. Explain how much you are getting for the car and the difference you need to make up what you still owe and tell them you want enough extra to make a down payment on a like car. So long as your demands are not crazy, they will likely work with you.

Hope that helps some.

Good luck.

Cheers for that! :thumbsup


We owe half of what it's worth, so we'll see how it works out. Should have more info by tomorrow...

"Totaled" :thumbsup :1orglaugh

You could always have the insurance claim it as totaled or "written off" then buy it back from a salvage yard for cheap and make the repairs yourself. However, the car would always carry a "salvage" tag which doesnt matter if you dont plan on selling it. I know a few people who have done this before

No, never :pimp

I have had 2 totaled out.

i do not think in the uk you get a salage tag.

at most you need to inform the dvla that your driving it.

my car i drive now, they sent the last owner the road fund licence thingy, and lazy sod ticked the box that he had scraped it. so i had to prove i was driving it.

if you want more, here, you'd have to prove cars of similar mileage, condition and such sold for more, not just were offered for more. Just cause you want more, doesn't mean you'll get it. insurance is all about documented proof.

some companies have an option to allow you to buy the new current model of your car if it's under 2 or 3 years old, but you would have had to purchase that option first.

The Tigra would get a Category C marker put on it for being damaged beyond economical repair. Would need an engineers report doing after repairing before it's allowed back on the road, and a lot of insurance companies won't insure a repaired Cat C car as it is more likely to fold up next time it's in a crash.

Just checked it out with NetworkQ, which says Glass's on it, and the valuation was over £1k lower than what they did actually offer us. Hmmm...

cars are not worth much to be honest after a few years.

and i suspect vackhals drop quicker than most, due to them damaging so easily (as you have found out).

Ugh dealing with insurance companies are the worst.....right up there with banks. Good luck and I hope your gf is ok in all this.

They are trade-in prices - what the garage will offer you for it when you buy another car from them. I meant look and see if they have any for sale. The glass's prices will probably be £1500+ lower than what they would try to sell it at.

http://used.cars.networkq.co.uk/richexperience#

tick other, need to put a postcode in which is off the screen to the right if your screen isn't wide enough for their layout.

i think the aa do a price service.

Spinner type chicks thing, I couldn't even fit my cock into that car!

Just remember - Change is good

shitty. Good luck man. Mine was almost a write off last year, the auto shop talked them out of it. Insurance was about to give me the equivalent of about 1/2 of what I paid for it just 29 days earlier. No chance I would have gotten the same car back....fucking writes offs are a pain some times.