insurance "totaled" advice sought

hey all,

i need some advice, but don't worry I didn't smash a P-car. A friend of mine just learne that State Farm is going to total her 96 Trans Am. (Please, no opinions on Trans Ams! But you gotta love the courage it takes for a young woman to drive such a car all year in Pittsburgh, PA).

Anyway, what's the best strategy to get a respectable settlement when a car is totaled? I've got no experience here.

Thanks in advance!

Dave

Look for adds in your community publications that offer this vehicle for sale to establish the current selling price of this vehicle. Cut the adds and make a folder. Collect all the receipts for anything that was added xtra, leather seats, killer stereo etc. Use these as a bargaining tool when then adjuster offers low blue. Take your time ,the pressure is on the adjuster to settle quickly,not you.
Pull out your policy and read it.
Think about the new wonderful opportunity you have to choose a new vehicle, thank God you have the opportunity to choose after totaling a vehicle.

I agree 100%, this is great advice. The insurance company may try to lowball you. In my experience the more you fight for a fair value the better the payout will be. It seems some insurance companies rely on people just accepting the first offer without a fight. Everyone I know who has fought got more, by as much as 50% but this may be a rare case. Simply tell them "I am not happy with the settlement amount" and fight for a fair value. The more evidence you have the better your case will be.

Go to www.kbb.com (Kelly Blue Book online)and run the numbers on the car. Do not be afraid to turn down the first offer. The adjuster does not work for the insured. He gets paid to screw the insured.

If there is a wide range between the offer and a reasonable pay out, contact the State Insurance Commissioner. There is a good reason why insurance companies are rich.

WAIT!!!!!

DO NOT, i repeat... NO NOT DRIVE YOUR CAR TO A SHOP!!! my Nissan was totalled three times (none were my fault) and i got OVER the blue book value each time.

why...

if you drive it to a shop, then you are at the mercy of their adjuster and whatever they think is fair. it eliminates second guesses, and other opinions. if you make the insurance company come TO YOU... then it tells them that the damage is so extensive that the car is unsafe to drive on a road, and it is a total and complete mechanical loss.

here's an example, and i have ALL the papers to back this up:

my Nissan if it was brought to a shop: $800
my Nissan as appraised when the guy drove an hour and a half to see it: $1300

what i got for it when he saw two Porsches and a Mercedes in the driveway:

$1430

don't go to them.. make them come to you!!!

obin

I had a smiliar experience in college with an '84 Chevette (no comments please :-). The agent came at me with a $950 check which was the blue book value. I agreed to sign off on any future liablity (some told me that was a mistake) but I walked away with a $2400 check. That was after doing the research to find a suitable replacement. And, since this wasn't my fault, the insurance company also payed for a rental car that I had for almost a month.

Good luck!
1980 911SC
1986 911 Carrera
1972 Chevy C10

Last year I went through this very same problem. A friend of mine works as an adjuster for progressive and told me the three magic words here in Colorado-"loss of use". This is where if your car is totalled, you can charge the equivalent of a rental car would cost, whether you get one or not.
Do not even think about blue-book value. Insurance companies will not use it very often. They use it only when it is to their benefit. But the best thing to do is start in the local adds and compare what they are asking.
I had a '86 trooper that was totalled. Luckily for me someone was advertising theirs for $4500, an outrageous amount(I only paid $1000). When we averaged all of them out (about 5) that were comparable, I ended up with $2300. Then I brought up loss of use.
Because I didn't bring this up before, they were taking their time, and rarely returning my calls. This made me another $700.
Ed
'70 911T with 930/10