Diminished Value After Accident?
07-09-16, 05:42 PM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
Diminished Value After Accident?
Today I was rear ended in my 4 month old GX460 (only 2600 miles). Thankfully all 3 of my children and my wife are okay but the rear end of my car is not in great shape. The rear bumper is pushed in so far it is only about 1/4 to 1/8 inch from hitting the back tires and the tailgate is dented in pretty good.
Does anybody have an idea of what type of diminished value I should expect from the wreck? And has anybody been successful in claiming diminished value?
Any advice on dealing with insurance would be appreciated. About 8 years ago, my wife was hit head on by a car (their fault) which totaled my GS4. I tried for about a month to deal with the other person's insurance but they were so pushy and difficult that I finally ended up hiring a lawyer to deal with everything. In that case, my wife had a broken arm and burns across her chest and face from the seatbelt and airbag. That hole situation gave me a very poor impression of insurance companies. All I want is to be made whole.
Does anybody have an idea of what type of diminished value I should expect from the wreck? And has anybody been successful in claiming diminished value?
Any advice on dealing with insurance would be appreciated. About 8 years ago, my wife was hit head on by a car (their fault) which totaled my GS4. I tried for about a month to deal with the other person's insurance but they were so pushy and difficult that I finally ended up hiring a lawyer to deal with everything. In that case, my wife had a broken arm and burns across her chest and face from the seatbelt and airbag. That hole situation gave me a very poor impression of insurance companies. All I want is to be made whole.
07-09-16, 06:54 PM
#2
Pole Position
As far as I know, you'll essentially have to argue diminished value as part of your claim with the other driver's insurance company (or your own if it's a subrogation situation). It probably won't be easy so don't expect to ask and for them to simply say yes. You'll need some sort of resource, such as an appraisal, that compares the repaired value of your vehicle against an identical one that was never in an accident.
You'll also want to make sure you don't mistakenly waive your rights to further claims. You don't want to accept/sign for the payment for the repair if it accompanies a waiver for other damages.
In the end, however, if they refuse you'll have to take the other driver to court for damages. If the amount is small enough you can take them to small claims court and save on fees. I've never gone through this process myself however so just keep in mind that this is not from experience, just general knowledge/expectations.
You'll also want to make sure you don't mistakenly waive your rights to further claims. You don't want to accept/sign for the payment for the repair if it accompanies a waiver for other damages.
In the end, however, if they refuse you'll have to take the other driver to court for damages. If the amount is small enough you can take them to small claims court and save on fees. I've never gone through this process myself however so just keep in mind that this is not from experience, just general knowledge/expectations.
07-10-16, 09:21 AM
#3
Wow, I am sorry to hear and only 2600 miles. The only way to find out the diminished value is to take the SUV back to the dealer and trade it it for the new one ( of course after fixing it). From there, you will find out how you would have lost. You also would want to know how much you would have lost after drive it off the lot (assuming you don't like it and returning the SUV to the dealer in a good condition).
Or Call the insurance for trade in value.
I never have done before, but it is just thought. Please let us know what is the final result.
Or Call the insurance for trade in value.
I never have done before, but it is just thought. Please let us know what is the final result.
Last edited by DocT; 07-10-16 at 12:55 PM.
07-10-16, 02:16 PM
#4
Each state is different on how diminished value works. I did a quick google search on 'diminished value texas' and found some decent links - one from a law firm blog. I would recommend starting there.
07-11-16, 03:41 AM
#5
Driver School Candidate
DocT, trading the vehicle in doesn't establish the diminished value to the satisfaction of the insurance companies and here's why.
Sell your $20,000 car to a friend for $10K in cash and $10K in a check that you report to the insurance company as a $10,000 loss. They are smarter than that.
Sell your $20,000 car to a friend for $10K in cash and $10K in a check that you report to the insurance company as a $10,000 loss. They are smarter than that.
07-11-16, 07:57 AM
#6
DocT, trading the vehicle in doesn't establish the diminished value to the satisfaction of the insurance companies and here's why.
Sell your $20,000 car to a friend for $10K in cash and $10K in a check that you report to the insurance company as a $10,000 loss. They are smarter than that.
Sell your $20,000 car to a friend for $10K in cash and $10K in a check that you report to the insurance company as a $10,000 loss. They are smarter than that.
If the OP can negotiate with the insurance to buy it back from him, it would be better. He would lose maybe 3%.
Last edited by DocT; 07-11-16 at 11:05 AM.
07-11-16, 04:58 PM
#7
It depends.
A bad Carfax right off the bat is usually a 10% hit. If there's structural damage 20-25% value hit and if it shows airbag deployment or structural damage on the Carfax you're looking at 30-40% off the car's value.
Post some pics of the damage, if the rear body panel or quarter panels are dented you have structural damage and the car's value will take a substantial hit.
I would ask your dealer's Pre Owned manager if they will write a letter for you. I have done this for our customers but only on cars I see in person. Usually something like "Dear Mr Smith because your car got smacked up etc etc it's trade in value has been reduced from $25,000 to $21,500". on our letterhead helps.
Bill
A bad Carfax right off the bat is usually a 10% hit. If there's structural damage 20-25% value hit and if it shows airbag deployment or structural damage on the Carfax you're looking at 30-40% off the car's value.
Post some pics of the damage, if the rear body panel or quarter panels are dented you have structural damage and the car's value will take a substantial hit.
I would ask your dealer's Pre Owned manager if they will write a letter for you. I have done this for our customers but only on cars I see in person. Usually something like "Dear Mr Smith because your car got smacked up etc etc it's trade in value has been reduced from $25,000 to $21,500". on our letterhead helps.
Bill
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07-12-16, 09:17 AM
#8
Driver School Candidate
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It depends.
A bad Carfax right off the bat is usually a 10% hit. If there's structural damage 20-25% value hit and if it shows airbag deployment or structural damage on the Carfax you're looking at 30-40% off the car's value.
Post some pics of the damage, if the rear body panel or quarter panels are dented you have structural damage and the car's value will take a substantial hit.
I would ask your dealer's Pre Owned manager if they will write a letter for you. I have done this for our customers but only on cars I see in person. Usually something like "Dear Mr Smith because your car got smacked up etc etc it's trade in value has been reduced from $25,000 to $21,500". on our letterhead helps.
Bill
A bad Carfax right off the bat is usually a 10% hit. If there's structural damage 20-25% value hit and if it shows airbag deployment or structural damage on the Carfax you're looking at 30-40% off the car's value.
Post some pics of the damage, if the rear body panel or quarter panels are dented you have structural damage and the car's value will take a substantial hit.
I would ask your dealer's Pre Owned manager if they will write a letter for you. I have done this for our customers but only on cars I see in person. Usually something like "Dear Mr Smith because your car got smacked up etc etc it's trade in value has been reduced from $25,000 to $21,500". on our letterhead helps.
Bill
This doesn't apply directly to your issue since your GX is so new but I am shopping pre-owned GX460's in the $35,000-$40,000 range and I've noticed that if there is an accident the value will drop about 6-7K or about 20%
07-12-16, 11:48 AM
#9
This is an interesting read:
Keep in mind that DV claims are completely speculative. Perhaps, instead of trading your car in three years from now, you'll keep it for ten years and selling privately. The longer you keep the vehicle, the less significant the impact of these repairs will be and the more you would have to reduce them to present value. Or maybe your car will be completely destroyed in a tornado in August 2015. If that were to happen, would you be willing to return any money you receive on a DV claim since you will not actually have suffered any damages. All that's not to say that arguments in favor of DV claims don't exist, but you need to understand that the argument against them is fairly strong.
Keep in mind that DV claims are completely speculative. Perhaps, instead of trading your car in three years from now, you'll keep it for ten years and selling privately. The longer you keep the vehicle, the less significant the impact of these repairs will be and the more you would have to reduce them to present value. Or maybe your car will be completely destroyed in a tornado in August 2015. If that were to happen, would you be willing to return any money you receive on a DV claim since you will not actually have suffered any damages. All that's not to say that arguments in favor of DV claims don't exist, but you need to understand that the argument against them is fairly strong.
07-13-16, 09:28 PM
#10
Advanced
This is an interesting read:
Keep in mind that DV claims are completely speculative. Perhaps, instead of trading your car in three years from now, you'll keep it for ten years and selling privately. The longer you keep the vehicle, the less significant the impact of these repairs will be and the more you would have to reduce them to present value. Or maybe your car will be completely destroyed in a tornado in August 2015. If that were to happen, would you be willing to return any money you receive on a DV claim since you will not actually have suffered any damages. All that's not to say that arguments in favor of DV claims don't exist, but you need to understand that the argument against them is fairly strong.
Keep in mind that DV claims are completely speculative. Perhaps, instead of trading your car in three years from now, you'll keep it for ten years and selling privately. The longer you keep the vehicle, the less significant the impact of these repairs will be and the more you would have to reduce them to present value. Or maybe your car will be completely destroyed in a tornado in August 2015. If that were to happen, would you be willing to return any money you receive on a DV claim since you will not actually have suffered any damages. All that's not to say that arguments in favor of DV claims don't exist, but you need to understand that the argument against them is fairly strong.
Whether he sells his truck or not, it now has an accident on its record, and is necessarily worth less than it was before. If he goes to trade or sell it, he's going to have to sell for less money than a truck that hasn't been in an accident.
It's like saying you bought some stock, and the price went down, but you didn't actually lose anything because you didn't sell the stock yet.
Reality and speculation are two different things.
07-14-16, 11:36 AM
#11
I agree. Current value is all that matters. It's real and it can be done. A friend was involved in an accident in a Jaguar XKR. They did their home work and asked for DV. They got a settlement for it with virtually no hassle. What they found is that there is a "normal" % of the amount of the repair cost that was typical. I realize it will vary case by case and depending upon the carrier, but hope that helps. BTW, I don't recall the %. I would think a good body shop might be able to offer some insight, as well as a used car department of maybe Carmax or another big used car dealer.
Last edited by jjscsix; 07-14-16 at 11:50 AM.
07-17-16, 11:15 AM
#13
Hire a lawyer immediately in order to get "made whole". The insurance adjuster that you will be working with has only one goal: Give you the least amount of money, period.
I used to think people that hired a lawyer were trying to be greedy and raised the insurance rate for the rest of us.
I was wrong and found out a few years ago when I made a huge mistake. Got rear ended, I tried to be reasonable and got ripped off and stonewalled by the other guys insurance company although he was 100% at fault. Hard lesson learned.
I used to think people that hired a lawyer were trying to be greedy and raised the insurance rate for the rest of us.
I was wrong and found out a few years ago when I made a huge mistake. Got rear ended, I tried to be reasonable and got ripped off and stonewalled by the other guys insurance company although he was 100% at fault. Hard lesson learned.
07-17-16, 12:25 PM
#14
I'm not following that "States have funds". States are not in the insurance business. It's the insurance companies. And the reason they pay diminished value is the same reason they pay any other claim...to avoid being sued when a claim is legitimate.
07-17-16, 01:18 PM
#15
I do not see DV as a real claim. The GX is not an expensive vehicle. If you own a vehicle with a value of $200 to $500 thousand then there is a case to pursue. The GX price as listed by fair market value (which is wholesale) drops dramatically as soon as you buy it. The difference between what the insurance will pay for your damage and the fair market value of your vehicle is rather small and not worth pursuing, especially if you get a lawyer involved. The only one who makes any money on the deal is the lawyer.