Does accident Victim have to bear the cost of vehicle depreciation? Rare car.

[EarlyPorsche]

A family member had a vehicular incident where it was not his fault. The vehicle is rather rare. He assumes the negative mark on his carfax will be his to suffer upon resale. Is this correct? I am forwarding this page to him. Thanks for your assistance.

[Rot 911]

Not always. You can negotiate the depreciation hit with the insurance company. Just have some stats to back it up.

[McLovin]

google "diminished value"

[McLovin]

Also, I know the standard response here for any situation is "hire a lawyer" (I don't agree with that canned response for most situations), but if the car has significant value, you probably will need to get a lawyer involved here to get any decent resolution.

Insurance companies like to pay the minimum amt possible on claims. If you call them directly, you have one department handling it. If a lawyer contacts them and/or a lawsuit is filed, it gets kicked to a different, more serious department.

If a lot of money is involved, I wouldn't hesitate to hire a lawyer to make the demand (maybe after they give you the runaround a little bit) and even file a suit. That gets their attention.

[cairns]

I went through this without a lawyer. A dumptruck ran my wife and a cherry 1973 450SL into a jersey wall. I fought for years to have them pay the diminished value claim and repair the car, got a local TV reporter involved and was featured in Changing Times magazine.

State Farm did, grudgingly and eventually, pay the amount in full. They also had to buy new MB parts- not reman and not used (as the latter aren't very available). But it took two years.

Get a neutral, well respected, assessor. Find ads for your car that show the price (or higher) to justify your request. Be reasonable, polite and professional when dealing with the company. Take your car to a shop that understands it and insurance companies and has the patience to let it sit there until all is worked out. Be prepared to fight for what you think is right and expect to hear twenty five "no's" before you hear even a peep of yes.

If you don't have the time or the skills- and you have a very good case- get the lawyer. But make sure he or she works on a contingent basis or you'll lose more than you make in aggravation and money. If they won't take the case on that basis I would do it myself or pass. The insurance company lawyers have to go to work every day and make a salary no matter whose case they're working on. They've got all the time in the world.

[peppy]

I just went through this with my wife's truck. I got an appraisal and the insurance had an appraisal, then we hashed it out for a week. I didn't get the full amount of my appraisal, but we got close and if we itemize this year we can take the rest as a deduction.

Diminished value laws vary from state to state so find out what the procedure is and know your rights.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

They will technically allow you to claim it so as to not violate the law and then bury you in paperwork and required documentation as a tactic to avoid paying. Ask me how I know.

[Zeke]

As I've stated before, ins cos are the worst thing we have as a society. You live at risk, risk of health issues, risk of psychological issues (including divorce), risk of financial issues (including divorce) and, finally (I'm sure my list is incomplete), loss of material possessions.

Buy a nice car and you enter another realm. I think all those folks driving beaters know something we don't.

Oh, BTW, I've turned the tide and have let my 20 YO truck become a beater. I bought a cheap, high mileage 911. Good thing as some air head girl smacked it in the back.

We used to have a '90 Cadillac that was a throw away. Good thing, as it died one day in the middle of an intersection and I walked away letting the tow guy take the pink slip. (It wasn't the first time it died, just the last time. )

This is how to own cars in this day and age.

[EarlyPorsche]

Originally Posted by milt

As I've stated before, ins cos are the worst thing we have as a society. You live at risk, risk of health issues, risk of psychological issues (including divorce), risk of financial issues (including divorce) and, finally (I'm sure my list is incomplete), loss of material possessions.

Buy a nice car and you enter another realm. I think all those folks driving beaters know something we don't.

Oh, BTW, I've turned the tide and have let my 20 YO truck become a beater. I bought a cheap, high mileage 911. Good thing as some air head girl smacked it in the back.

We used to have a '90 Cadillac that was a throw away. Good thing, as it died one day in the middle of an intersection and I walked away letting the tow guy take the pink slip. (It wasn't the first time it died, just the last time. )

This is how to own cars in this day and age.

Milt,

Appreciate it but I don't think financial advice will help him out.

Others,

Thanks for chiming in. Anything else just let us know.

[attamz]

There is a company that specializes in this type of stuff called "wreck check"

[LWJ]

Funny,
I just had this conversation with a co-worker. Mind you that we both work in insurance and he was a claims adjuster in a past life. He made it clear that he was not sending BS claims their way and that he was all business. He had the same argument about a mark on the car fax. It is legit in Oregon. Not sure about other places. He also has not filed a bodily injury claim. Not even been to the doctor. His plan is to be crystal clear with the claims person that he is not out to screw the insurance company, just get his due value.

The fact that he understands the system and still could go get "treatments" is sort of the thing that he won't be mentioning. Sort of the nuclear option. He will make it clear that he is reasonable and persistent in this. The claims person will hopefully read between the lines and see that a couple thousand bucks is a very cheap settlement.

Good luck.
Larry