by "Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
Published 11/03/2017 at 08:05
by "Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
Published 11/03/2017 at 08:05
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STARS: 1
Three weeks (!) ago, I posted asking you guys to educate me on the process of totaling out a car. Lots of great insight, so thank you all for that.
Well, the insurance company has reached a verdict and has decided to total my wife’s 2012 Nissan Rogue. Their initial offer isn’t too bad, but from what I’ve been told from many others is that it isn’t anything set in stone - meaning it’s negotiable, much like buying a car.
Can anyone give me any tips or tricks as to how to maximize the value of my wife’s car? Should I mention any recent work/maintenance we’ve done on it? It is a vehicle that we were planning on keeping until it died, so we had been doing a lot of preventative maintenance on it as well as anything else that needed doing. We were the only owner of it as well.
Quickly following will be the eventual “What the hell should we buy” discussion.
Thanks!
"CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever" (carsoffortlangley)
11/03/2017 at 08:16, STARS: 3
I’m an adjuster: I would mention any recent work, parts better than OEM, and try to get photos to prove that it was in better condition than others on the market.
Other than that, stick to what you feel is fair . Insurance is there to indemnify
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 08:45, STARS: 0
Thanks for the feedback - I polled AutoTrader and cars in the same trim with similar mileage have asking prices an average of $1100 higher than their offer. If I take the few examples that are pretty much the exact same miles as hers was, the average ask is only $200 higher.
That said, I totaled the recent maintenance/work in the car and that came out to a smidge over $1000.
You asked me what I think is fair - like I said, their initial offer isn’t bad, but is, of course, lower than I’d like :). To me, I think fair would be about $500 more than what they’ve offered. Do you think I can present my extrapolation from AutoTrader + the maintenance and get them to move up that much?
One last thing - it has taken them 20 days to arrive at a decision. The insurance provides a rental car for only 30 days. Since they spent 2/3 of that period making the decision, do you think they’ll give us an extension on the rental car to find something new? How should I go about asking that?
Thanks!!
"Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection" (itsalwayssteve)
11/03/2017 at 08:53, STARS: 1
Keep in mind they’re going for Actual cash value - that means private party sale value.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
11/03/2017 at 09:34, STARS: 2
I’m glad to hear it’s been totaled, as I personally wouldn’t want my wife driving around in a car that’s been in four accidents, even if all repairs were done properly. I’ll be watching this thread, because I’m curious on the topic myself. All I can say is good luck in the negotiations.
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 09:49, STARS: 0
Just called the guy - he was pretty firm, but did act like they want to get it resolved quickly. I’m going to ask for something that’s not the moon and see if he’ll be at least a little flexible.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
11/03/2017 at 10:04, STARS: 2
I think being reasonable is likely the key. Of course his stance is going to be firm, but I bet every day he here’s people demanding thousands extra, and that’s not what you’re going for.
"CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever" (carsoffortlangley)
11/03/2017 at 10:04, STARS: 1
I think that $500 is a pretty easy ask for the insurer. Maintenance like oil changes and brakes etc are usually not taken into account as they are just that, maintenance items. But it can’t hurt to ask. Autotrader is 100% useful to help prove your loss., just lay out your case and there shouldn’t be an issue.
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 10:24, STARS: 0
That’s exactly what I asked for and he said the same about maintenance as you :). I sent him my spreadsheet and provided reasoning why I think it should be a little bit higher. Hopefully he’ll come up.
My next worry is the rental car - he said they only provide five days past settlement. I just don’t see how we can find something in five calendar days from today (assuming we settle today). Is this something I can negotiate as well?
"ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com" (ita97)
11/03/2017 at 10:39, STARS: 1
Glad to hear the process is moving for you. Definitely get them records and receipts of the maintenance history as proof of why the car is worth more than their offer. I believe the industry term you’re looking for is a condition adjustment. You may also have to politely move a little higher up the food chain than the adjuster. I’ve found that if you have documentation of parts and work, folks further up the food chain have more authority to increase their settlement offer than the adjuster that was initially assigned.
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 11:40, STARS: 0
Thanks for the heads up - I’ll see if I can start getting that information together.
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 11:41, STARS: 0
I basically only asked for $400 more than their offer and an extension on the rental car for a bit over one more week than their policy.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
11/03/2017 at 11:46, STARS: 1
That’s totally reasonable.
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 11:51, STARS: 1
I think so - I just aggregated data from similar examples on AutoTrader, then added a little bit for the recent work on the car. Like I said, their initial offer wasn’t bad, but I think a hair higher is what’s fair for both of us.
Their policy is only five more days of rental car once a settlement is agreed - I told him that’s probably not going to be enough time and suggested we could find a car by Nov. 17, which is two weeks out from today.
"CaptDale - is secretly British" (captdale)
11/03/2017 at 11:53, STARS: 1
Glad to hear the process is going well. How about t his for a replacement?
"Arrivederci" (arrividerci)
11/03/2017 at 11:56, STARS: 0
I would looooooooove one, but don’t think my wife would, hah. We’re also looking at spending a lot less than those.
"CaptDale - is secretly British" (captdale)
11/03/2017 at 12:03, STARS: 0
Shhh shhh shhh. She gets your car, you get SS. Those are all new ones. There are used ones out there