Totaled cars - Dealing with unfair adjusters

by lakemen » Fri Sep 28, 2012 10:25 am

If you are not satisfied with how the insurance company is determining your car to be totaled, you need not panic. There is definitely a recourse from this.

When is a car considered totaled?

When your car gets involved in an accident that may or may not be your fault, it can be termed totaled if:

The cost of repairing the damage is more than the value of the car
The car cannot be repaired after the damage incurred from an accident

In such a case insurance companies usually offer to pay you the actual cash value (ACV) after subtracting any deductibles that you have.

Some companies total cars at 51% of its actual worth while there are others who total a car at 80%.

Can you have your totaled car back and get it repaired?

The answer to this could be both 'yes' and 'no'. While buying insurance you sign a contract with your insurer that you cannot compel them to pay you more than what your car is worth. However, you can request your insurance company to give you back your car. They will still pay you for the car and in this case you will get the ACV of the car minus the deductibles and salvage value they would have got at the yard. What you can do on your part is that check out with different repair shops about the actual cash value of your car. This way you can make a comparison and see if the car insurance company is being fair in determining the ACV of your car.

If you want to buy back a totaled car, it is your responsibility to get it repaired. This may not always be a wise decision to make because the cost of repairing a car can be huge and the money you receive from the insurance company for your damaged car may not be sufficient. Some states may require you to buy a special salvage title or may simply want you to have an inspection done on your totaled car after repairs. Some companies may even refuse to let you have the car because it will fetch them handsomely at the yard.

So, if you want to have your car back you must take a quick decision and ask the company to return the car to you. Once the car goes off to them you may have a hard time recovering it.

Can you insure your totaled car after repairs?

Mostly insurance companies do not seem eager to insure a totaled car that has been fixed. But some insurers do agree to have your car insured for a high price only after the repair has been done and the car is back on the road and has passed the DMV inspection.

What if the insurance adjuster wrongly values your car?

In many cases you may feel that the adjuster has put the wrong totaled car value on your vehicle. In this case you may hire an independent appraiser and get him/her to do an inspection of your car. The costs of hiring must be borne by you. Ask the appraiser to get you everything in writing and you can place that in front of your insurance company.

If you disagree with what the insurance company determines as the value of your car, you may seek from amongst the 2 options:

Arbitration
Litigation

In arbitration you and your insurance company can place the facts in front of a third-party arbiter. If it is a binding arbiter then the decision of the arbiter will be final. If not then you can still take your insurance company to court.

Total Comments: 55

Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 10:28 am Post Subject:

The key point is that I do not want a salvage title.

Everyone understands that....but ''if'' it's totaled there is no choice on this...talk to CA about it...this isn't an 'insurance' thing....what you have to do is try to work it out so that it is NOT declared a total loss....

But not this amount. Declare total loss would be unjust and very difficult for me to swallow.

We understand this too....

They said they will only pay for the storage fee only today. However, I felt this is just a push over tactic on their part

Where is the car? Tell them they can tow it to your house then! They just need to get it moved to a storage free facility....Since you are absolutely certain you are keeping it no matter what...then tell them they can tow it home...

They suppose to send in another appraiser to see the car. I felt at every least they should pay for the storage fee up until that point. I will not go way simply because of this tactic.

It's not a tactic, you and they must mitigate the damages...the storage fees are just raising the repair cost..which is something you do not want to do if you don't want the thing totaled...

I am a human with emotions just as any insurance adjusters. As for at all cost, I am willing to have the car repaired out of my own pocket. Insurance pay nothing. This is only if my title is still clear.

Then withdraw the Claim!

You still didn't say what this car is! If it is a first or third party claim..how long ago did this happen? did you tell the adjuster about the ''1/2'' off estimate?

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 12:38 am Post Subject:

Do not take advice from people that owe you money!

As far as I know I don't work for the OPs carrier... so I don't owe him/her money. i guess you won't be offering any DV advise as you collect for this. Good to know.

You never commented on the fact that the OP wants the insurance company to use AM parts but they only allow for OEM. Wonder why this was.

You are doing your usual fine job of apologizing for overworked adjusters and bad claims handling practices.

I don't remember apologizing. But the OP's problem is that the insurance company wants to use only OEM parts and the OP wants then to consider AM so his/her vehicle is not a total loss. The insurance company won't do this. Now who do we know who supports and promotes this type of claim handling? Hmmm, let me think about this one. So am I out of bounds in saying that actually YOU are part of the OP's problem! :) Irony... it can be funny at times.

Hey did you see the class acction suit against Hartford insurance ...

Not related to this thread, no supporting information, etc... just changing the subject with unrelated information as usual.

If you _REALLY_ want to help the OP, address his/her problem with getting the insurance company to use AM parts rather then OEM so they won't need to consider (by law0 his/her vehicle to be a total loss. Any suggestions?

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 02:42 am Post Subject:

i guess you won't be offering any DV advise as you collect for this. Good to know.

I don't owe dv losses, your employers do or their negligent insureds according to the courts in all states according to tort law. I feel competent in consulting people who desire to inquire the amount of these losses as the courts have deemed that I qualify as an expert.

If you _REALLY_ want to help the OP, address his/her problem with getting the insurance company to use AM parts rather then OEM so they won't need to consider (by law0 his/her vehicle to be a total loss. Any suggestions?

I have been, he has solicited my advice by private message. Actually we have agreed on many issues on this post. Ultimately it will come down to him retaining his property by right, repairing the damage at his own expense and proving the amount of loss was less than the insurer guestimate. Until there is a final invoice of repairs proving the loss is more than the threshold, it is just a guess on both the repairer and insurer's paperwork whether it meets the state of california's definition of a total loss. That is unless, the state gives insurers the authority to do so by contract of insurance against the wishes of the policyholders. Now that is where I would say you should have more knowledge than I, since I only repair cars and not insure losses.

[quote:bd78235961]You never commented on the fact that the OP wants the insurance company to use AM parts but they only allow for OEM. Wonder why this was.

[/quote:bd78235961]

I believe the insurer owes the amount of the loss based on the lesser amount the insured is claiming rather than the higher amount of the loss as calculated by the insurer. I have no problem with anyone asking for aftermarket parts, I have problems when vehicle owners are forced to use a/m parts against the wishes of a policyholder or consumer who has the contract with the insurer. I always reserve the right to kick to the curb any job I feel compromises the safety of a repair. Why should I as a repairer be negotiating the loss of behalf of a vehicle owner and with a party that I am not a contract to.

I have never seen a policy holder invoke their appraisal clause because the insurer is paying too much; usually it is the opposite. However, many policies agree to use this remedy to resolve a dispute over the amount of loss. If a policy holder wanted to hire an appraiser to represent them as to the amount they feel is a lesser cost of repair, I believe they would have that right.

In the bigger picture, I believe there are constructive total losses and economic total losses. I believe the contstructive total losses are vehicles that should not be retained nor repaired because an expert has deemed the vehicle to be a detriment to others if it is repaired. A repair expert, in their professional opinion, should carry weight in deciding if a vehicle can be repaired in a manner that would not be potentially harmful to other motorists and the driver and their occupants. An economic total loss would be one that has simply reached a market threshold that states that the cost of repairs would exceed the value but should not be branded salvage because of the minor severity of damage. But then this is my opinion and I can see where it would lead to the necessity of deciding who is competent to make those decisions and who wants the liability for making such a decision.

I chose orginally to not contribute to this post because I realized it was a policy dispute. I simply repair cars and I assist conumers in calculating their loss of value due to the negligence of others. Thanks for the DV reference, that gives me an opportunity to share another way to ease the pain with some tax savings.

Consider the tax issues with regard to vehicle losses of value. The federal government states that any non recoverable loss can be claimed on federal tax long forms for itemized deductions. One can also claim the cost of obtaining that information as another deductible expense. So if you had a 10,000 dollar diminished value claim that you did not recover from the negligent party and you can document the loss, you can claim it. That would result in a tax savings of 3300.00 if you are taxed in the 30 percentile bracket. Would you say that the vehicle owner is entitled to this loss or are they screwing the government with my help?

Of course, I am neither an attorney or a tax consultant, one should speak to an expert in the field to verify the information I just shared to either confirm or deny the above statement.

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 07:11 am Post Subject:

i dont thimk its a joke. this is a serious thing which we all need to think of it.

jack041251

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 10:20 am Post Subject:

So if you had a 10,000 dollar diminished value claim that you did not recover from the negligent party and you can document the loss, you can claim it.

Good luck in your tax audit with this one! :shock: Not saying it may not be legal, and an owner ''legally'' entitled...personally though would scare the crap out of me! Mike you going to the audit (free or for a fee?) with the tax payer if they are audited?

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 01:38 pm Post Subject:

Good luck in your tax audit with this one! Not saying it may not be legal, and an owner ''legally'' entitled...personally though would scare the crap out of me! Mike you going to the audit (free or for a fee?) with the tax payer if they are audited?

Wouldn't that be nice, more substantiation of the loss as approved by the IRS. Would be pretty difficult to disprove I would think since there is no government agency that has an opinion one way or the other, but there are substantial court cases and documented payments by insurers to those who have been paid for the losses to support the deduction.

http://www.ican2000.com/dvfaqs.html

Income Tax Deduction ? ? ?
Yes - IF you itemize your deductions, use Line # 19 of Form 1040 - Schedule “A” to Deduct your unrecovered Diminished Value. Assuming you have an unrecovered Diminished Value of $ 2,000 and a tax rate of 20%, you can Reduce Your Tax Obligation by almost $ 400.00 - well more than the cost of the Diminished Value report itself - You can even Deduct the Cost of the Diminished Value Report on Line # 22 of Schedule “A”.

Review IRS Form 1040 - Schedule “A” and Form # 4684 with your tax advisor.

You and T should check out Mr Howards Resume and cv. I would venture to say that his experience in both the insurance industry and collision industry gives him unparalleled expertise in both fields to offer commentary on owed losses.

Insurance Consumer Advocate Network, LLC
J. D. Howard • Executive Director
BIO • CV

Training ...
J.D.Howard began his insurance career with Allstate Insurance Company in 1965. He completed Allstate Claims Training Programs in 1968. He completed his paralegal training in 1976.

Career Experience ...
J.D.Howard's career experience includes Claims Adjuster, Defense Litigation Supervisor, Author, Trainer, Lecturer (including CLE) , Expert Witness, Plaintiff Litigation Consultant, Talk Show Host, Executive Director of a National Collision Repair Association, and ... Executive Director of “iCan”.

Former Clients ...
As a licensed independent claims adjuster (AZ # 0055079 • 1974 to 2002) J.D.Howard provided ongoing claim resolution/consultation services, on a fee-per-file basis, for such entities as ... Adriatic • American Family • American States • AMICA • Ansvar • City of Phoenix • Canadian Indemnity • Colonial Penn • Employers Mutual [EMG] • Federated American • Fireman's Fund • Hartford • Kemper • Liberty Mutual • Metropolitan • St Paul • State of Arizona • State Farm • TransAmerica [TIG] • Travelers • USF & G • Western Casualty • Western States ... as well as numerous Plaintiff and/or Defense Attorneys.

1987 ...
After campaigning against an insurance backed ballot proposition the previous year (defeated) , J.D.Howard expanded his professional practice to embrace Insurance Consumer Advocacy issues ... including (but not limited to) Auto Post-Repair Inherent Diminished Value claims.

NOTE: In July 1968, as a staff Claims Adjuster for Allstate Insurance, J.D.Howard negotiated and settled his first Auto Post-Repair Inherent Diminished Value claim with an Allstate Policyholder.

1994 ...
After being confined to a wheel chair due to post-polio syndrome, J.D.Howard founded the Insurance Consumer Advocate Network as an effort to empower insurance consumers in Arizona. That effort included a weekly one hour call-in talk show on radio station KUKQ.

In 1997, that effort was taken onLine and expanded to ... “Empowering Consumer Nationwide”.

1999 - 2000 ...
J.D.Howard served concurrently as Executive Director of the Coalition for Collision Repair Excellence as well as Executive Director of “iCan”. The CCRE was committed to challenging auto insurance industry efforts that encouraged/suborned inferior (and all to often dangerous) collision repairs.

Once the CCRE was stable and viable (still active today), J.D.Howard left the CCRE to devote full time to the Insurance Consumer Advocate Network … ( “iCan” ).

Expert Witness ...
From 1974 to 2001, J.D.Howard was repeatedly accepted, by Superior Courts of various counties within Arizona, as an Expert Witness on insurance and/or claim settlement value issues.

2002 - Present ...
The Howard Family moved from Tempe, AZ. to Branson West, MO. where “iCan” continues to promote Insurance Consumer Advocacy issues ... including the Policyholders' Bill of Rights.

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 01:38 pm Post Subject:

Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2008 10:11 am Post Subject:

Yep, you work for him don't you Mike?

Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2008 01:31 pm Post Subject:

No, mike advertises on the Insurance Consumers Advocate Network a consumer website. Mike is a sole proprietor that works for his consumers and Mike. I would be honored, however, to be in business or a partnership with Mr. Howard.

I am going to make your life a little easier. A little bird suggested I was wasting my time in here and there are other boards where consumers appreciate consumer help that isn't monitored by obsessed obstinate controlling people. I bid you adieu. Too much work, too little time, more fun things to do. Going to concentrate on some of that DV work as well, you lit a fire under me, thanks its time to ramp that up because insurers are holding back payments for these losses every day. It's going to be stressful enough for you in the coming year with some of your personal shops beginning to face the struggles all bodyshops in the country are facing and they'll be wanting to blame their insurance partners.

Like I said before, its been real and its been fun, but I can't say its been real fun.

Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 10:55 am Post Subject:

I bid you adieu.

I can't say its been real fun.

gee I'm crushed. :roll: