total loss and car dealer

by Guest » Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:13 pm
Guest

can the insurance settlement agent negotiate with car dealers in order to pay out a lower settlement legally?

Total Comments: 5

Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:12 pm Post Subject:

can the insurance settlement agent negotiate with car dealers in order to pay out a lower settlement legally?

Yes, and no...not to pay a lower settlement but to determine a true ACV (actual cash value) of your vehicle yes..would be an adjuster not an agent...not sure what you mean by negotiate with the dealers...it's called a market survey i just did one yesterday..you call a few local dealers and ask if they had this (your) vehicle on their lot what would they ask and what would they take for the vehicle....why does that bother you? isn't that the fairest way to determine the local value?

Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2008 05:51 pm Post Subject:

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Lori,

I'm not trying to be a Wise Bottom here, But,

How could someone know the car on a dealers lot was of equal value to the one that had just been Totaled without seeing it before it was totaled.

Or at least seeing it after it was totaled.

How could one judge the degree of a scratch, paint chip, dent, etc. without actually seeing it?

I sometimes have consumers call on the phone, telling me there is a "small" dent on their car and would like an rough estimate of how much it would cost to fix it.

And to be honest I have to say somewhere between $10.oo and $2000.oo or more. Everyone's perception of general terms like "small, large, good, bad, etc. are different. I actually had a consumer ask about a small dent and when they arrived with the car, the whole dang side was nearly ripped off the car..!

I've also had a consumer or two that were in a big panic about this horrible dent in there hood. When they got to the shop they searched and searched and couldn't find it again. But I was nice.. after a short while I pointed to where it was.

So really, how can one determine the ACV of one car by looking at different car??

FK,

Posted: Fri Nov 28, 2008 05:27 am Post Subject:

not sure what you mean by negotiate with the dealers...it's called a market survey



I guess so Lori, he is probably fearing that the insurance company will be able to convince the dealers for a lower amount of the vehicle and thus will write him a claim check bearing lower amount. IMO he isn't quite trusting the way the insure is determining the value of the vehicle.

However, OP, its quite a standard form of determining the worth of a totaled car. And I'm sure that you'll not accept any amount less than the value you deserve.

Posted: Fri Nov 28, 2008 12:06 pm Post Subject:

Good morning fred...i didn't take it as a 'wise bottom' (how cute! :wink: )

first...i've had the same customers...my reply always was, 'anywhere from 100-10k'...people are so funny in their discriptions..

So really, how can one determine the ACV of one car by looking at different car??

Course you understand it's the same, yr/make/model etc...well wouldn't you say that (as an example) all 2001 cavaliers with same options and mileage would be pretty close (within a 100 or so dollars) of being the same price? I would...and of course the condition comes into play..and that is told when asking for an amount.


Let me say first that I only do a market survey with an odd ball car, or if there is a dispute...and I never bring up any unrelated prior damage when asking because that would come after anyway...what you are trying to determine from the market survey is a local ACV...

As an example I had a 2000 dodge conversion van last week that totaled...as you know there is no NADA for these vehicle, they are sold to the conversion company as an 'incomplete van' and there is no amount for that either which really wouldn't help anyway...so first i called the local chrysler dealer, and what I say is, 'if you had a 2000 dodge conversion van on your lot, (then i explain the type of conversion/or car options etc) this one i would call not excellent but above average what would you want for it...course I tell them mileage etc. and that this particular one was very nice.' in this case the guy had seen a 1999 sell at auction for 1500 to a dealer who was going to put it on a lot for 3k, we discussed the fall of the conversion market about early 90's etc...he felt he would feel very lucky to get 4k for this vehicle...i then searched local adds, and the net...anyway eventually I found about 8 vehicles (i'm only required to name three) added them together and divided by 8, and i came up with a value of 4800 to be honest this was probably about 500 high...

I don't see any 'fairer' way to do this if there is a NADA or (however the value was determined), value dispute or it's an odd ball car...when you call the dealers you should be telling them the overall condition of the vehicle and the mileage...again going back to the van i just did it had low miles. (77k i think)...so i did not source any that had over 80k (several had way less)...same should be the case in any vehicle...or if none can be found then a mileage adjustment should be made.

How could someone know the car on a dealers lot was of equal value to the one that had just been Totaled without seeing it before it was totaled

first of all in many cases there aren't necessarily an 'actual' vehicle..sometimes when there are i, or the owner have went and looked at the vehicle that is for sale.....the question is how much would you be selling THIS vehicle for if you had it...don't you think Fred if I called you and said, ''Fred, I got a 69 baracuda convertible, in near perfect shape all original except rag top has been replaced" then went on to discuss condition etc..you wouldn't be able to give me a pretty close value? I think you would...(or whatever old muscle cars are your passion and expertise I couldn't remember what you said you had, and I did have a cuda :wink: )...point being in most cases people that sell or deal in cars come closer than anyone about a vehicles sale price, and in most cases they have sold them....another point, I only contact good reputable dealers, none of these 'we tote the note' places etc..

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