Anyone here ever claim depreciated value due to an accident? We had a family car that was rear ended and I'd like to know if anyone has gotten the other insurance company to compensate them for depreciated value. Knowing the car was new prior to this accident, I have a feeling if we ever did sell it, we'd get short changed so I wanted to see if anyone has been successful in getting anything. Advice/opinions?

 

I'd like to know too. Thx.

 

I do this for my clients all the time. You just need evidence from an expert (car dealer) that the car is not worth as much after it has been repaired as it would be had it not been wrecked.

 

What happens after that. Does the insurance company actually give you cash?

 

Yes, but each state will have different laws on damage to personal property. Here, the measure of damages is the difference in the value before the damage and the value after. Cost of repair can be used as evidence of the damage but if even after repair there is still uncompensated damage, you should get it in cash.
BUT... don't expect the insurance company to just roll over on this. They hate it, but it is the correct compensation computation. If they balk, you might mention an unfair claims practice act violation. That generally carries a penalty of attorney fees, interest and court costs. Each state will have its own statute on this.
Seek local legal advice.

 

In our case, the bumper was repaired and the muffler replaced. The total repairs was probably $2K but the main point is the rear bumper was repaired/repainted. Although it looks like new now, it's still had a record of being involved in an accident with bodywork. I've seek compensation through the other party's insurance but got a letter saying it was minimal damage therefore no compensation. Should I now seek a quote from a dealership or shop on the depreciated value and send it to the insurance company again for dispute?

On another note, any person here been short changed on repairs due to an accident caused by someone else? The other person's insurance claimed that a muffler is a wear-and-tear part therefore discounted the repairs. Unfortunately this lead to a $175 out of pocket expense for us. Any good advice on an approach to recoup this as well?

 

It's called diminished value. After they fix your car they come out and look at it then they will make you an offer for the diminished value of the car. I got my wrecked infiniti fixed on the other guys insurance then I recieved $4,500 for diminished value and then bought new car. I think i could have got more for the diminished value but I had already sold wrecked silver 05 and I picked out a new black one and now i want my old silver one back. Both cars were 05 and the silver one was noticably faster than the blk one i have now. Why?

 

the above are correct; claim for diminished loss of value. My 05 G35x (#1) was rear-ended, frame damage, spent 4 months in the shop and basically everything from the rear window back (trunk, quarter panels, bumper, subframe) was replaced. The other girl's insurance (AIG) paid for the repairs, did not pay full on wear/tear items (muffler and tire; so I paid a few hundred there).

At the end, the AIG people ran some formula based on my car value and repair costs, and paid for diminished loss of value (about $2500). I thought that was low, but traded her in a few months later, and wouldn't you know it, the trade-in amount was $2500 less than what it would have been without accident damage! So in the end, the only hit I took was 1 year normal depreciation.

my understanding is that diminished loss of value is just that; there is significant damage making the car actually worth less. after the accident, both local Infiniti dealerships said sorry, they wouldn't take it as trade in because of the frame damage. I don't think they would pay loss of value if' it's just bumper damage that has been repaired. If any doubt, get local legal advice.

and I don't know why silver is faster than black. I ended up getting another G35X (#2); both were black, first was tan interior, then black interior. def like the black/black. Kash