by Bill24Bryant » Sun Jul 22, 2012 06:38 pm
My auto slipped out of gear and rolled down a slope into a tree. My driver door was open and this was hit by another tree that bent the door forward towards the front of the vehicle. The vehicle(2002 grand cherokee with 139000 miles) ran into a tree and damaged the bumper and messed up the back right side of vehicle. The back bumper will need to be replaced as well as the door and back right panel with window. The door that was bent is still ok in that it did not break any glass out but the front right panel is bent and will probably need to be replaced and some then there is labor and touch up painting. The Nada is $6450 or clean retail and $4125 for clean trade in. The deductibld is $1k. I am scared that geico will total the car out and I don't have the credit or money to buy another car. Is there any homework I need to be doing before agent comes and looks at my car. Suppose to come Monday or Tuesday..
Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 10:27 pm Post Subject:
Most likely the person looking at the vehicle won't be the person to adjust a total loss claim. I'm not sure what "homework" you could do.... there is very little that you can do to change the cost of repairs and the value.
Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 11:17 pm Post Subject:
The only "homework" that makes any sense would be to get a couple of repair estimates. If the total cost to repair is more than about $3000 (regardless of your deductible), your vehicle is most likely going to be totaled by the insurance company. You can negotiate a salvage price and obtain the difference between their claim value's upper limit. That, plus some bucks of your own would pay for the repairs.
If none of that is going to work for you, plan on taking the bus.
Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2012 04:14 pm Post Subject: this total is a scary thing
just the labor and paint touch up will hurt me on the value amount or total.. This vehicle is my lifeline between looking for employment , seeing my dauther, the little bit of social life I have... And the bad part of it is that the engine is not damaged al all. The things that have been wrong with the engine have all been fixed. Should I be getting copies of all the recent repairs I have done on the auto.. Should I also be getting the invoice on new tires I just put on auto.?? Desperate to get this car fixed and not totalled!!!!!!!!!!!!!! any suggestions from anybody please!!!!!!
Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2012 07:02 pm Post Subject:
Should I be getting copies of all the recent repairs I have done on the auto.. Should I also be getting the invoice on new tires I just put on auto.??
This means almost nothing. Keeping a vehicle in working order is a maintenance issue, and as part of the depreciation over time, those things wear out and need to be repaired or replaced. It's all part of the equation, but the fact that they are new or in "great" condition, is worth very little -- measured in the tens of dollars, not many multiple hundreds (even if you just put $750 worth of new tires on, you might get a bump of a couple of hundred).
You have no control over whether the vehicle is declared a total loss by your insurance company -- that is generally governed under state insurance law. You can agree to retain the vehicle for the difference between the settlement offer and the salvage price. It might give you most, but probably not all, of the money you will need to make the vehicle road-worthy and be given a "salvage" title.
Because this is a "first-party" loss -- one you are responsible for -- the insurance company will not normally reimburse your personal economic losses other than the vehicle damage.
Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2012 08:39 pm Post Subject: total?
I think if the body shop orders new parts plus top notch labor it will be over $3000. Is there a place approved by Geico that would get these parts from a salvage yard to fix the vehicle? I know it is going to need a back bumper,back door, the right part that hold the back window and the front part above the driver side wheel that got bent when the door bent forward. I don't care where the parts come from or how long, I just need to keep the price down so it is not a total. Should I get another appraiser to look at the vehicle if Geico totals it out. Taking the bus is not going to be a good option for me.
Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2012 12:48 pm Post Subject:
I just need to keep the price down so it is not a total.
Please try to understand this:
IT IS NOT YOUR GAME!
The insurance company will use its own lawful criteria to determine the value of your loss. If it exceeds about 75% of the Actual Cash Value (ACV=Replacement Cost minus Depreciation), your vehicle will be a total loss per state insurance law.
The only way to avoid that is to not file a claim and pay for the repairs 100% out of pocket. If you are going to do that, you can get your parts from any source you'd like, whether they are safe to use or not, and you can find someone who will provide you with less than top notch mechanical repairs and body work, and hope that your vehicle doesn't fall apart at highway speeds. It's your, and your family's life, and those who drive along side you, too.
But what's the point of paying for insurance if you're going to do that?
If the market value of your vehicle is as low as you have said, you probably passed the point at which it may no longer make sense to carry collision and comprehensive coverage on that vehicle at least 1-2 years ago.
Should I get another appraiser to look at the vehicle if Geico totals it out.
If it's going to cost you money out of pocket, no. You can always ask GEICO for a second opinion. But it's rare that any insurance company would come back with a lower figure than their first estimate. Most people complain that the first estimate was already too low.
Taking the bus is not going to be a good option for me.
There's a difference between "no option" and "not a good option". It may be inconvenient, might make getting to-from work an hour or two longer each day, but it could also allow you to save the money you need over time to purchase a replacement vehicle. Life is what it is.
Start shopping for new transportation if the "public transportation" resources are not going to work for you at all.
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