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Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
This last sat my girlfriend got hit on her way home from work. She was at a dead stop in traffic. The guy that hit her was going 40+ in a 45 and never touched the brakes. She was driving our 98 Volvo and he was in a Neon. It pushed the rear bumper way down, bent the exhaust and buckled the quarter pannel. The LH rear door wont open right so I know the entire rear of the car has been moved forward. There is even a dip in the RH side behind the door. The adjuster for his insurance came out and said they wont total the car and estimates the damage at around $2700. I have been around cars long enough to know that its quite a bit more than that to fix this and even then it will have a ding on Carfax about frame damage.... that will KILL the resale value of the car. Does anyone know what I can do to fight these assholes? They are required to put the car back to its condition before the wreck but even body and frame repair isnt going to keep the value from going down after the fact. I do have it at a body shop being checked out right now and he says its unsafe to put back on the road. I'm not russian and refuse to drive a half assed, bent frame chunk of shit!
 
Posted by 64valves*pbr* (Member # 7295) on :
 
get a second opinion
 
Posted by BlueBeast88.306 (Member # 6360) on :
 
Insurance companies do not want to pay, but have no problem taking money. I would go to the most expensive body shop you know of and have them do an estimate, they can't argue with professionals,
but i'm sure they'll try. That sucks Bro, good luck!
 
Posted by bottled95GT?? (Member # 1772) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by BlueBeast88.306:
Insurance companies do not want to pay, but have no problem taking money. I would go to the most expensive body shop you know of and have them do an estimate, they can't argue with professionals,
but i'm sure they'll try. That sucks Bro, good luck!

+1... the adjusters for the guilty party wanna get away with paying as little as possible and do in the half assed way.... they have no problem taking money, but when its time to pay out they get all up tight...
Have YOUR insurance company have an adjuster look at it, THEN take it to a PRIVATE 3rd party adjuster,Not affiliated (sp?) with either of the parties because theyre prices are gonna be Non-biased.... as far as resale, volvo gets good resale... if u intend to sell in future and youre worried, total it out, get FULL $$$ possible.
BUT if u intend to keep it, do as i said above, get the best look over possible and take it to the best shops possible. MAKE them MAKE it better than it was b4 you got hit. -Joe
 
Posted by J24I (Member # 2598) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by BlueBeast88.306:
Insurance companies do not want to pay, but have no problem taking money. I would go to the most expensive body shop you know of and have them do an estimate, they can't argue with professionals,
but i'm sure they'll try. That sucks Bro, good luck!

Ditto..take it too a more expensive shop. A buddy of mine got $2918 for 3 dents in his roof and 2 dents on his front fender, because some literally insane 16yr old tweeker kid hit his roof and fender with a broom stick..
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
My friend owns a body shop and he has it right now. He says its totalled and I hope it goes that way. I like the car, its quick and fun to drive but I dont want it back after the wreck. I have a few high price body shops in my area to back up my friends shop so hopefully they will bid it really high. The guy from the insurance estimated 2 hours to measure and pull the frame back into place, then said 1 hour to repair the inner floor pannel. My frind says it will take longer to just pill interior pannels out to make the repairs than what they give for the whole job. I'm hoping that someone on here has experiance either working with insurance or has battled to have something done the right way. There is also a loud rattle in the dash now too that will take quite a bit of time to investigate that they didnt even include. Its still early in the game but I just want to be ready when they find out what my friend says.
 
Posted by BlueBeast88.306 (Member # 6360) on :
 
No matter what kind of wreck your in the car is never the same even with the best repair work.
I hope they total it out for you, it sucks to lose the car but you are not going to want back it if it was that badly damaged.
 
Posted by svt306snake (Member # 1967) on :
 
your estimate will out weigh his so you will not need to worry [Big Grin]
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by svt306snake:
your estimate will out weigh his so you will not need to worry [Big Grin]

I was told that they dont go by bluebook value. They take what 10 people are trying to sell the same type of car for and run an average of those. Thats BS because they arent going by what the car sells for, just what someone wants for the vehicle. I was thinking about going on Ebay and printing out ended auctions to show what they actually sell for, not what some jackass is trying to get. I just want the car gone. The dipshit says that once they pull the rear frame back into place that the quarter pannel will just pop back out and be fine.... yeah, right. [Roll Eyes]
 
Posted by 1968_Fastback (Member # 1482) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
My friend owns a body shop and he has it right now. He says its totalled and I hope it goes that way. I like the car, its quick and fun to drive but I dont want it back after the wreck. I have a few high price body shops in my area to back up my friends shop so hopefully they will bid it really high. The guy from the insurance estimated 2 hours to measure and pull the frame back into place, then said 1 hour to repair the inner floor pannel. My frind says it will take longer to just pill interior pannels out to make the repairs than what they give for the whole job. I'm hoping that someone on here has experiance either working with insurance or has battled to have something done the right way. There is also a loud rattle in the dash now too that will take quite a bit of time to investigate that they didnt even include. Its still early in the game but I just want to be ready when they find out what my friend says.

never listen to an insurance guy about fixing a car all they know about is insurance they don't know anything about body work, etc.
 
Posted by 69grandecj (Member # 5794) on :
 
Has she filed an injury claim against them? If she hasn't she should to get some extra money for this aggravation.

What insurance company are you dealing with? Sounds like Progressive, Allstate or AAA.
 
Posted by Jdub07 (Member # 2728) on :
 
The labor alone will cost more than the estimate given to you. DO NOT TAKE A CHECK FROM THAT FUCKER until its the amount you want.

Bottom line is the car is toast. Good for parts now. Also if there was anything wrong with the car 'before' the wreck I'd say that it was caused 'by' the wreck.
 
Posted by Tha91SiCkNeSs (Member # 5790) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
This last sat my girlfriend got hit on her way home from work. She was at a dead stop in traffic. The guy that hit her was going 40+ in a 45 and never touched the brakes. She was driving our 98 Volvo and he was in a Neon. It pushed the rear bumper way down, bent the exhaust and buckled the quarter pannel. The LH rear door wont open right so I know the entire rear of the car has been moved forward. There is even a dip in the RH side behind the door. The adjuster for his insurance came out and said they wont total the car and estimates the damage at around $2700. I have been around cars long enough to know that its quite a bit more than that to fix this and even then it will have a ding on Carfax about frame damage.... that will KILL the resale value of the car. Does anyone know what I can do to fight these assholes? They are required to put the car back to its condition before the wreck but even body and frame repair isnt going to keep the value from going down after the fact. I do have it at a body shop being checked out right now and he says its unsafe to put back on the road. I'm not russian and refuse to drive a half assed, bent frame chunk of shit!

I work in the insurance business..and its not all what most people make it to be. We have no problem paying claims. We are infact regulated by each state's Department of Insurance regarding how we handle claims, including things like Bad Faith, etc.

Insurance companines do not want to generally pay more than they NEED to. In this case, that looks like what they want to do.

You have 2 options. You can hire an independent appraiser IF your contract stipulates for one. That independent appraiser will make an estimate and submit it. The guy's insurance company is ALSO going to hire an independent appraiser and he/she will make an estimate. If they don't match, the negotiated estimate between the two is what goes.

The second option is to claim it through your own insurance company. If you are happy with your insurance company's estimate, then you pay your deductible, and your insurance company will subrogate and get your money back. Subrogation is where your insurance company will gather all of the money it paid on your claim from the guy or the guy's insurance company who is at fault.

The only downside about subrogation is that you just have to pay your deductible up front instead of not paying if the at fault party pays.

Good Luck!
 
Posted by Tha91SiCkNeSs (Member # 5790) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
quote:
Originally posted by svt306snake:
your estimate will out weigh his so you will not need to worry [Big Grin]

I was told that they dont go by bluebook value. They take what 10 people are trying to sell the same type of car for and run an average of those. Thats BS because they arent going by what the car sells for, just what someone wants for the vehicle. I was thinking about going on Ebay and printing out ended auctions to show what they actually sell for, not what some jackass is trying to get. I just want the car gone. The dipshit says that once they pull the rear frame back into place that the quarter pannel will just pop back out and be fine.... yeah, right. [Roll Eyes]
Thats actually incorrect. We go by whats called the "Market Value" of the vehicle. In most cases, its BETTER than BB. Its impossible to take averages of prices of 10 independent sellers. All of those figures would be wrong. Independent sellers don't sell their vehicles based on market. They set their price based on their opinion of the market.
 
Posted by morespeed (Member # 6717) on :
 
its a game... if you take it to a reputable body shop. they know the game. make sure the shop is an I CAR gold shop. insurance co. like to see that.
the adjuster low balls as much as possible from the begin...
then you have the initial tear down. then starts the supplements... then the waiting game... because the insurance company wont pick up the phone or return calls. take many digital images send directly to the adjusters email or whomever..write many,many supplements. then they will send an adjuster to do a re-inspect. the body shop will charge for tear down.and what not. plus storage $50 per day.

the trick is... the repair has to exceed 90% of what it costs to replace the car.

after you figure all the frame and metal replacement... then comes paint..on volvos there is alot of moldings, rubber, glass and handles to remove. then there is blend panels. by the book it is 18 inches in every direction to blend the color. (sounds like too much but...if you are changing a 1/4 panel. tell them you have to paint the entire roof and dwn the other 1/4)it will turn out to be almost a complete paint job!
ask for only oem parts. A reputable body shop will know all of this...

late

[ January 10, 2007, 04:22 PM: Message edited by: morespeed ]
 
Posted by MICKEY79 (Member # 7124) on :
 
Get three quotes quick and make sure they are all in the range that will put the cars worth less than the fix. Take it to the insurance company and make your case. Be a man and get pist.
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
Thanks for all the advise everyone. I am pissed but its not my car so they wont directly deal with me. The car is being pulled down tomorrow morning and checked. He is carging for storage and we have a rental car. The insurance company is Allstate. A big part of it is we are being told that the car wont be as safe as it was. I know they are requred to return the vehicle to the condition before the accident but no matter what they do to fix it the resale goes down big time with a ding on carfax for frame damage. It might as well be salvaged at that point and up untill now it was never hit so no matter what the car looses a ton of its value. It wasnt even 1% her fault but they want us to take the huge loss in value because it looks fine..... bullshit. [Mad]

**And.. as for the injury claim, I filed that instantly as I went to the ER immediately... and have been off work this whole week! [Frown] Not only that... but the BIG TIME medical treatments have already started (trigger point injections) and when I told the adjuster that.. she huffed & puffed about it saying that's not usually done until later on in the treatment... So at that point.. I advised her SHE WASN'T THE PHYSICIAN... therefor it's not her area to judge!!! Let's just say she didn't like that too much... And, along with the injections , I am going to the chiropractors & massage therapy...all 3x's per week! As Jeff said... thanks to everyone for your input!! I really do appreciate it!!!!!!!!** ~Asskickn's fiance' [Smile]

[ January 10, 2007, 10:45 PM: Message edited by: asskickn88 ]
 
Posted by FoRdGiRl (Member # 6279) on :
 
[Frown] glad shes okay good luck w everything [Frown] [patriot]
 
Posted by BlueBeast88.306 (Member # 6360) on :
 
Good luck with everything, I hope you are okay.
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by FoRdGiRl:
[Frown] glad shes okay good luck w everything [Frown] [patriot]

I'm glad she was in the Volvo and not the Mustang that day. I decided to get some work done on it so had her swap cars for a couple days.
 
Posted by Dag302 (Member # 4682) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
Thanks for all the advise everyone. I am pissed but its not my car so they wont directly deal with me. The car is being pulled down tomorrow morning and checked. He is carging for storage and we have a rental car. The insurance company is Allstate. A big part of it is we are being told that the car wont be as safe as it was. I know they are requred to return the vehicle to the condition before the accident but no matter what they do to fix it the resale goes down big time with a ding on carfax for frame damage. It might as well be salvaged at that point and up untill now it was never hit so no matter what the car looses a ton of its value. It wasnt even 1% her fault but they want us to take the huge loss in value because it looks fine..... bullshit. [Mad]

**And.. as for the injury claim, I filed that instantly as I went to the ER immediately... and have been off work this whole week! [Frown] Not only that... but the BIG TIME medical treatments have already started (trigger point injections) and when I told the adjuster that.. she huffed & puffed about it saying that's not usually done until later on in the treatment... So at that point.. I advised her SHE WASN'T THE PHYSICIAN... therefor it's not her area to judge!!! Let's just say she didn't like that too much... And, along with the injections , I am going to the chiropractors & massage therapy...all 3x's per week! As Jeff said... thanks to everyone for your input!! I really do appreciate it!!!!!!!!** ~Asskickn's fiance' [Smile]

Is this Asskickn's girlfriend or fiance??? I always get you 2 messed up.
 
Posted by FoRdGiRl (Member # 6279) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
quote:
Originally posted by FoRdGiRl:
[Frown] glad shes okay good luck w everything [Frown] [patriot]

I'm glad she was in the Volvo and not the Mustang that day. I decided to get some work done on it so had her swap cars for a couple days.
Oh okay good [worship] I was almost in tears over here Im glad shes okay either way and glad the stang is too [patriot]

[ January 11, 2007, 12:53 AM: Message edited by: FoRdGiRl ]
 
Posted by Blind (Member # 3052) on :
 
good luck with dealing with them, I had a similar thing happen, the other dudes insurance was farmers and I kept taking the truck to different body shops to get estimates, but in the end they refused to pay any more than what their adjuster felt the car would need to be repaired - with the replaced parts all being 'made in china' reproductions (not OE).

I had a rental car the entire time, and finally after a month (and $1700 in rental car fees + my chiro visits) they agreed to total the truck and cut me a check.
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by FoRdGiRl:
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
quote:
Originally posted by FoRdGiRl:
[Frown] glad shes okay good luck w everything [Frown] [patriot]

I'm glad she was in the Volvo and not the Mustang that day. I decided to get some work done on it so had her swap cars for a couple days.
Oh okay good [worship] I was almost in tears over here Im glad shes okay either way and glad the stang is too [patriot]
Oh yeah, its fine. Just trying to get some odds and ends done.
 
Posted by HaulinAss Motorsports (Member # 541) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
quote:
Originally posted by svt306snake:
your estimate will out weigh his so you will not need to worry [Big Grin]

I was told that they dont go by bluebook value. They take what 10 people are trying to sell the same type of car for and run an average of those. Thats BS because they arent going by what the car sells for, just what someone wants for the vehicle. I was thinking about going on Ebay and printing out ended auctions to show what they actually sell for, not what some jackass is trying to get. I just want the car gone. The dipshit says that once they pull the rear frame back into place that the quarter pannel will just pop back out and be fine.... yeah, right. [Roll Eyes]
Dude you dont have to do ANYTHING.That is what your insurance company gets paid to do,LET THEM DO THE WORK.You DO NOT have to go anywhere and get estimates.Call your insurance they will go after the other insured's company.You should be able to drop it off at one of your insurance companies preferred shop.It will then get estimated,MANY digital photos taken and the process begins.Its usually a pretty short process.A lot less headache

It sounds to me like the car is a total loss therefore they WILL have to pay you off.I was an estimator for various body shops and ill tell you what there is at least 2-3 hours in setup alone and and another 3-4 hours in pull time from what I get from your decription,and that doesnt count all the r/r of all the trim,interior,etc...

When the estimate starts there is a estimated value of your car with mileage,condition year etc...As the estimate is written there is a percentage ratio of cost to fix/actual value.Once a certain percentage is met the estimate is stopped,printed and foldered,and in your case it isnt gonna take much to obtain that percentage with the repairs thats are needed.

Anyhow I hope this helps.AGAIN,let your company take car of this!

[ January 11, 2007, 04:30 AM: Message edited by: HaulinAss Motorsports ]
 
Posted by HaulinAss Motorsports (Member # 541) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by morespeed:

the trick is... the repair has to exceed 90% of what it costs to replace the car.

it was 74-78% when I was an estimator.that must have changed in the past few years.
 
Posted by 69grandecj (Member # 5794) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by HaulinAss Motorsports:
quote:
Originally posted by morespeed:

the trick is... the repair has to exceed 90% of what it costs to replace the car.

it was 74-78% when I was an estimator.that must have changed in the past few years.
It still is generally 75% - 80% of the vehicle's value, depending on the popularity of the model. Some insurance companies vary on this.
 
Posted by Dag302 (Member # 4682) on :
 
I spoke to the adjusters while they looked over the car. They said they have a company that researches the vehicle and finds 10 like cars for sale. Prefer private party but can be dealership. Subtract and minus for features and shape. Then add sales tax to the average of the 10. He said this is usually higher than blue book. Then they minus out the salvage price they can get for the vehicle. Thats how they come up with the amount its needs to hit to be totalled. That was directly from the allstate adjusters on this car.
 
Posted by slidewayz94 (Member # 3101) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
chiropractors & massage therapy...all 3x's per week!

I've been in enough accidents I will need adjustments and massage therapy throught my life. Make sure you settle on a good amount if you have serious damage for future treatments.

And beyond your damage now, I hope you have good insurance. My health insurance is great I have a $5 co-pay for adjustments and massages [Big Grin]
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by HaulinAss Motorsports:
Dude you dont have to do ANYTHING.That is what your insurance company gets paid to do,LET THEM DO THE WORK.You DO NOT have to go anywhere and get estimates.Call your insurance they will go after the other insured's company.You should be able to drop it off at one of your insurance companies preferred shop.It will then get estimated,MANY digital photos taken and the process begins.Its usually a pretty short process.A lot less headache

It sounds to me like the car is a total loss therefore they WILL have to pay you off.I was an estimator for various body shops and ill tell you what there is at least 2-3 hours in setup alone and and another 3-4 hours in pull time from what I get from your decription,and that doesnt count all the r/r of all the trim,interior,etc...

When the estimate starts there is a estimated value of your car with mileage,condition year etc...As the estimate is written there is a percentage ratio of cost to fix/actual value.Once a certain percentage is met the estimate is stopped,printed and foldered,and in your case it isnt gonna take much to obtain that percentage with the repairs thats are needed.

Anyhow I hope this helps.AGAIN,let your company take car of this!

My insurance will only help if we file a claim through them. They want us to pay the $500 deductable then they will take care of it. All they are going to do is go back after Allstate for the money they spent to take care of us but then I'm sure our rates will go up after that.
 
Posted by Tha91SiCkNeSs (Member # 5790) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
quote:
Originally posted by HaulinAss Motorsports:
Dude you dont have to do ANYTHING.That is what your insurance company gets paid to do,LET THEM DO THE WORK.You DO NOT have to go anywhere and get estimates.Call your insurance they will go after the other insured's company.You should be able to drop it off at one of your insurance companies preferred shop.It will then get estimated,MANY digital photos taken and the process begins.Its usually a pretty short process.A lot less headache

It sounds to me like the car is a total loss therefore they WILL have to pay you off.I was an estimator for various body shops and ill tell you what there is at least 2-3 hours in setup alone and and another 3-4 hours in pull time from what I get from your decription,and that doesnt count all the r/r of all the trim,interior,etc...

When the estimate starts there is a estimated value of your car with mileage,condition year etc...As the estimate is written there is a percentage ratio of cost to fix/actual value.Once a certain percentage is met the estimate is stopped,printed and foldered,and in your case it isnt gonna take much to obtain that percentage with the repairs thats are needed.

Anyhow I hope this helps.AGAIN,let your company take car of this!

My insurance will only help if we file a claim through them. They want us to pay the $500 deductable then they will take care of it. All they are going to do is go back after Allstate for the money they spent to take care of us but then I'm sure our rates will go up after that.
Your rates won't go up after they subrogate. The accident is still their fault. An at-fault accident is what will raise your rate. Once you pay your deductible, you get that back once your company subrogates.

As far as the total loss, I've never heard the average of 10 cars thing. Usually the Actual Cash Value or Market Value is determined by CCC. I've never heard of the 10 car thing.
 
Posted by 69grandecj (Member # 5794) on :
 
The above post is correct. Your insurance company can not raise your rates for a non-fault accident.

Just giving you other options.
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
The adjuster came to the body shop and looked at the car with it on the rack to see all the damage. He raised the estimate from $2744 to just over $5500. They refuse to total the car. The finance co is willing to work with us on the payoff because we have already paid the interest for the loan and have 2 years left. I dont know if I should just take what they offer and pay the car off. At this point it still runs and drives. I could use my friends frame rack, pull the rear back out, put a bumper on it and keep it as a nice beater. I could also part it out because the only real damage to any removable body part is the bumper and a front clip is like gold on one of those. All I know is FUKK Allstate insurance.

[ January 16, 2007, 01:24 AM: Message edited by: asskickn88 ]
 
Posted by adower (Member # 5955) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by asskickn88:
The adjuster came to the body shop and looked at the car with it on the rack to see all the damage. He raised the estimate from $2744 to just over $5500. They refuse to total the car. The finance co is willing to work with us on the payoff because we have already paid the interest for the loan and have 2 years left. I dont know if I should just take what they offer and pay the car off. At this point it still runs and drives. I could use my friends frame rack, pull the rear back out, put a bumper on it and keep it as a nice beater. I could also part it out because the only real damage to any removable body part is the bumper and a front clip is like gold on one of those. All I know is FUKK Allstate insurance.

Is the remaining balance on the loan over $5500? Will GAP insurance cover the left over?
 
Posted by asskickn88 (Member # 4957) on :
 
We owe $7300 and we dont have gap. When we got the car 2 years ago the KBB value was $13K an we paid $9900. I guess on our loan we pay the interest first so the payoff is high. Because we are going to pay it off 2 years early it goes down so we might make it. I dont mind just pulling the frame myself and replacing the bumper just to have it to drive. Its a fun car that I'll have fun doing cheap mods to.... maybe I'll toss on a 100 shot. [Big Grin]
 




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