How to Deal with Car Insurance for Diminished Value
How to Deal with Car Insurance for Diminished Value,Here we go on this topic give by Michael
Diminished Value – Dealing with Car Insurance?—By Michael
I was in an accident where someone side swiped me ($5.5k worth of damage). Their insurance company paid and I just got my car back (2007 Lexus IS 250 – 29k miles). I had just purchased the car 4 weeks prior to the accident from CarMax for $27k. Out of curiosity I went back to see what CarMax would give me and they offered $18k. The car is now only 7 weeks old in my name and 3 weeks of it was in the repair shop!
Does anyone have experience with dealing with car insurance companies and diminished value? I live in NC and know that it is one of the states that has diminished value. I want to recoup as much of the difference as possible and since the car is so new (to me), I am willing to get rid of it to show the loss so I don’t deal with this years from now.
Any advice is appreciated.
Best Answer —By entidtil
.Although there may be some diminished value. The difference between what you paid and what one place said it is worth now probably has less to do with the accident and diminished value and more with just normal depreciation. However it will do no harm to speak with the insurance company and ask that you be given diminished value and see what they have to say. There are also firms that you can hire to help you receive “diminished value”. Consumers seldom win much if anything when seeking diminished value though.
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Comment by
PamelaS on 7 October 2009:
Carmax makes money by charging more than a car is worth and paying less than it is worth. When I am doing market surveys to establish a vehicle’s value, I try to avoid using them as a reference because their numbers are so badly skewed.
You cannot file a DOV (diminution of value) claim on Carmax’s say-so alone.
I tell people, go to the car dealership and ask them to take you to the section where they keep the cars that have been in accidents, and been repaired but are cheaper now because of the accident. Do you know why no car dealership has such a section? Because once the repairs are completed, the value of the vehicle has been restored.
In some states there is an addendum that attaches to the title if the damage is over a certain percentage of the vehicle’s value (50%, for example), but unless the vehicle has been outright totaled, or the vehicle has a title addendum as described above on the title, there is no diminishment of value.
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Comment by
M M T on 7 October 2009:
What you paid was retail value; what the car could be sold for. What the dealer is now offering you is wholesale or trade in value and that is always a lot less. Mainly because they would have to resell the car again to get their money back and have to charge more than they paid you to get a profit. It’s the same thing a retail store mark up; what they actually paid for the item vs what they will be selling it for. A TV might be selling for $1,000 but the store only paid $500 for it, the rest is gross profit.
Regardless of what you do now, you will always have these two different numbers. No one is going to sell you a car for one price and pay you the same price for it in a few weeks or months. The accident and subsequent repairs if done properly should not reduce the value of the car.
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Comment by
Fred C on 7 October 2009:
That is not the way to determine value! You bought it retail. Now you have checked the wholesale price. Dealers do not pay retail, if they were to buy it from you for retail how could they sell it and make a profit?
If there is a diminished value, it actually diminishes with time, this is why in most cases it is impossible to determine a true diminished value on a properly restored vehicle.
You will not get $9,000, you have to determine the RETAIL value of the vehicle before you can even consider asking for settlement.
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Comment by
just_me on 7 October 2009:
If the value of your vehicle has diminished due to the accident, you need to get an independent appraiser (at your own expense) to ‘value’ your vehicle post-repair, and present it to the insurance company. Most insurance companies will not consider an estimate from a dealer for diminished value. There may be a time limit to do this, so as soon as possible, call the adjuster who handled your case and ask him/her what the procedure is.
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Comment by
Rick on 15 October 2009:
I would suggest you to check out the prices offered by online car sellers and buyers. There is one online store, Buy a Car Review (http://www.buy-a-car-review.com/) that gives the best prices for used cars. The store also sells new cars at a competitive price and provides car loans to buyers.
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