You guys are a wealth of knowledge so I told my friend I would ask. He has a 2001 Accord that was rear-ended. Came to about 6 grand in damage which is all fixed up very nicely. He wants to sell the car now. Does he have to disclose it was in an accident? The repair looks flawless. I think his goal is to sell it before it hits carfax. Im trying to push him to get a G now

 

wrong place to post a question like this, youre askin people if he should not disclose that they are buying a banged up car

 

its not the right thing to do.. but i cant stop you from doing it

 

Oh I totally agree it isn't the 'right thing to do'. From what he told me, it was just cosmetic damage and I saw the car. It really looks like nothing ever happened to it. Does carfax even report minor damage?

 

Depends on how much the damage costed? Since you said 6k, it'll be in the carfax report. I believe if it's more than $500 in property damage, it gets reported to DMV. BUTTTTT....if the two parties never reported it to their insurance and everything was paid in cash, it won't be reported in the carfax report.

If it costed 6k for a rear end accident, I'm sure there's frame damage. It doesn't cost 6k to replace the bumper, replace the side panels and whatso.

 

Yea, 6k is a SH*T load of damage dude, thats not a fender bender or minor rear ending

 

can he claim diminished value from the insurance company?

 

If you sell a car that has frame damage and don't say anything about it, your in line for a lot of bad karma for a real long time. Frame damage is a big deal.

 

There was no frame damage. The costs came from bumper, new muffler, new floor pan, paint and labor. The shop he took it to cost a fortune but it was paid for by the other parties insurance.

 

does it have an "R" Title?

 

since an insurance co paid for it, and it was 6k, it was definitely reported to the dmv....so eventually, it will show up on carfax...and I'm sure there are other sources to find a record of an accident....also, any dealership should be able to find out about it pretty easily by vin....

 

It's OK not to tell a buyer if they don't ask, but don't lie if they do ask about it. If he goes to trade it in, a good inspector should be able to tell if it has been repaired or painted, but a lot depends on the detail level of the shop.

 

Is he better off selling it or trading in? How much less will get for market value based upon a 6K repair? Like I said, the car looks immaculate.

 

Would you want to the same to happen to you? It's wrong, simple as that.

 

Selling it