Not a good day to say the least.

I was hit quite hard from behind today and a friend who owns a body shop already told me that there is over $5,000 of damage. Very unfortunate because the car has 104,000 miles and just in the last month, I had the motor mounts replaced.

I really do not know how to proceed with the insurance company and am looking for suggestions. Clearly the accident was not my fault. Do I put the claim through my insurance or the person that hit me? Does it make any difference that I recently put money into the car? Can someone help me determine the retail value, so the insurance company does not take advantage of me, albeit I know that I will get relatively little because of the age.

Any suggestions in this difficult time would greatly be appreciated.

Anovice

 

Contact your insurance with the info from the othere driver. A police report will help.

You can check kbb and nada to get an idea on value. They determine the value by looking at your car, taking note the condition of key areas. They don't care about fancy extras or any recent repairs.

 

Thank you for your post. Unfortunately I was too rattled and did not get the information on from the other driver. However, there is a police report and we called the police department and they said that I can get a copy of the police report in 5 business days. I gave my insurance company the police report number.

Regarding the value, I did not realize that it is as straight forward and checking Kelley Blue Book and NADA. Should I be looking for the retail value?

Thanks much!

Anovice

 

Earlier this year someone ran a stop sign and totalled my Altima. Their insurance offered more than NADA clean retail. My car was clean inside and out and well cared for so it had little deductions.

Ultimately it's up to them and their methods to determine a value.

You shouldn't worry too much about the car. Make sure you don't have any bodily injuries. Get checked out, you may not know if something is wrong.

 

Repairs that can add to the value of the car are things like new tires and battery. But they have to be less than a month before the accident. I don't know about the motor mounts.

At $5K damage, the car will probably be declared a total loss. Insurance companies will only give you 75% of the car's value. If repairs are above that 75%, the insurance company considers the car a total loss.

Let's say the car's value is $4K. The insurance company will only give you $3K and tow the car away. If you decide you want to pay the difference and get the car fixed anyway, the insurance company will not give you $3K. They will subtract the scrap value of the car from the payment. Scrap value varies, but it would probably be between $1K and $1.5K

 

Don't be surprised when they say your car is worth between 1,500 and 2,000 dollars. Location and condition matter more than low mileage.