Hi guys, I was wondering if anyone has had to deal with insurance after the truck was in an accident?
Last week a guy ran a red light and hit me. Before the insurance co. has even sent someone out, they said that it could very well be a total loss. On my way home I stopped off at a shop that I like, and told them the story, and they made me a minimum quote of $4K. I looked up the value on KBB which was about $7500. My issue is that after adding up everything I have into the truck now (in about 2.5 years,) I have $18k. I'd like to see them find one (2003) in the same condition with 85K miles for $7500. But that aside, the adjuster will be out tomorrow, does it help to say how much is invested, or does this hurt later on if they total it then offer to sell it back? If they total it, I think that I would almost have to buy it back and part it out.
I just hate the thought that I could lose thousands of dollars because of someone else's negligence.

 

How much is owed in the truck? Do you have receipts for everything you did to the truck? If so you could show them to the adjuster for more money. When they decide to total a vehicle, they will send you a comprehensive market analysis on what your vehicle is worth. They will go online and compare it to others being sold locally. With that said. Be sure to review it with a fine tooth comb because they miss several items. The difference between them saying you have tinted windows instead of privacy glass is quite different. When they totaled mine, they only offered 10k initially. I went over that report, found several inaccuracies and once corrected, value came back a lot higher than that. Over 16k less than 20k ( amount is supposed to be confidential) lol

 

Don't quote me on this but if it's not insured for the extra value (money) that you stuck into it, they likely aren't going to give you anything extra. But that might depend on what insurance company you have.

If the minimum quote was already $4,000 and value of the vehicle isn't much higher, it's likely a total loss.

 

Correct

 

Coming from someone who has been rear-ended 2x since January,

Insurance companies have their on valuation method/formula.

Mine with 179k + miles has been fixed without question.

Like you,I've got a ton of money in mine but I haven't been told no.

 

Good info, thanks I don't owe anything on it, and it shouldn't matter what it's insured for, because the other guys insurance will be paying for it. I'll start digging up receipts.

I was just concerned about telling the adjuster that I have $18k into it because then they might come back with a buy back value higher than if I don't say anything. Guess I"ll play it by ear.

 

It might matter though, they aren't going care that you have either modded it or installed aftermarket items to the truck. Technically they do not add any value to the vehicle. Kind of like how if someone spent 2-3k on rims/tires on a $5,000 truck, that truck now isn't worth $7-8k because of the wheels.

But like you said, talk with them and see what's up.

 

In the past, the buy back has been about $1500 on 2 of my dad's vehicles that were totaled.

The buy back is usually deducted from the agreed upon value of the pay out. You don't have to accept the payout that is first offered to you. You can fight them on it. Be prepared to show them that you can't replace the truck for what they are offering.

 

I think everything will be alright, the Insurance guy is saying the same as the shop guy, as in this isn't a regular ol 2003 truck. The two guys have worked together on other claims, and the shop guy feels like it will turn out fine, even though the estimates are off by $1500.