Daily rear ended (totaled). How to get the most from insurance?

HillbillyHotRod

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Above all else do not sign anything right off even with a good offer on the car. No telling what medical problems will pop up. Rear enders are good for getting whiplash injures to the spine.
 

BrunotheBoxer

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I would do this for sure, but.....Bruno is spot on correct that the insurance company won't likely be looking to treat the OP fairly. They're goal is to accept their liability but protect their bottom line. They're in the business to make a profit and reduce a loss, not to give the OP the best payout or what he believes is a right payout.

I do hope the OP gets what he considers a fair deal in the end. I really do.

Wisdom right a here.
 

nxhappy

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pull the NADA guide, I guarantee you the price is more accurate/higher. You can also do your own research and pull "sold" listings from ebay and other sources. As always....NEVER accept the first offer on the table =)
 

03Sssnake

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I would do this for sure, but.....Bruno is spot on correct that the insurance company won't likely be looking to treat the OP fairly. They're goal is to accept their liability but protect their bottom line. They're in the business to make a profit and reduce a loss, not to give the OP the best payout or what he believes is a right payout.

I do hope the OP gets what he considers a fair deal in the end. I really do.

When they play **** **** games you need to start talking about your back pain and trips to an orthopedic surgeon. That is the last shit they wanna hear, let them know they will hear from your personal injury attorney.
 

BlckBox04

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If you get a cool adjuster you might be good. If you get someone who doesn't particularly know/care you're only going to get the estimated value of what the insurance company determines, doesn't matter how much research and documentation you provide.
 

Grabber

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Honestly, this all depends on her insurance company.

If they are reputable, you will have a greater chance of them working with you. If not, well, good luck and brace for negotations.

From what a few body shops and insurance companies we've had over the years, most of them use NADA to determine fair market value and usually take a median price of private-party sales and clean retail and average it out.
 

nxhappy

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Honestly, this all depends on her insurance company.

If they are reputable, you will have a greater chance of them working with you. If not, well, good luck and brace for negotations.

From what a few body shops and insurance companies we've had over the years, most of them use NADA to determine fair market value and usually take a median price of private-party sales and clean retail and average it out.
I like NADA...IMO kbb is WAY undercut. I ****ing hate kbb. It's like they make up whatever numbers they feel like.
 

DAVESVT2000

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Let your agent handle this directly, this is what you pay them for.

communicate only with your agent.

Do not sign anything from other party’s insurance.

If other party insurance calls you, refer them to your agent. Most of the time they are calling you on a recorded line.

You have every right to be made whole, including rental car, lost time from work, medical, etc.

Is there still a guide called cars of special interest ? I remember hearing about it years ago. Might be a better guide to actual cash value.
 

AustinSN

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When they play **** **** games you need to start talking about your back pain and trips to an orthopedic surgeon. That is the last shit they wanna hear, let them know they will hear from your personal injury attorney.
I would be extremely careful with this.

As soon as you say attorney they keep their mouths shut and it goes to legal. Everything changes at that point.
 

CV355

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I would be extremely careful with this.
As soon as you say attorney they keep their mouths shut and it goes to legal. Everything changes at that point.

Correct. I've gotten angry and used the "L" word prematurely before. Only time it's a good tactic is when you want to smokescreen the hell out of a situation as a bluff, otherwise it's best to avoid all together.

And as for injuries, most are dismissed or "confounded" if the injured party didn't at least go to the doctor or ER immediately after the crash. Very hard to prove the root cause otherwise. We actually had a worker's comp case closed on us before treatment was done because the insurance company caught wind that my wife was in a 2nd car accident (neither were her fault). The letter we received was basically "we're stopping payment because you can't prove the 2nd accident didn't cause the ailments."

Most of the time, I try to be a good person and do the honorable thing. Some days though, I fantasize about going Marvin Heemeyer on some of these local crook businesses.
 

shurur

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progressive is bad..they will use equivalent models instead of exact models when putting a value on your car.

like say a 325i instead of a 330xi.

you have a right to know what cars they used to calculate the claim.

they will try to wear you down and get you to settle or drag it out.

The 330xi comparison was what happened to us.
our settlement was still enough to fix the car, but they wanted to total it. Then later I caught the yard trying to sell her as a fixable car. I was watching the vin on google search. This is the shady shit that goes on.
 

MTBSully

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Also a bit of information I forgot, that is relevant. This car was my daily "beater". I have never had collision coverage on my beaters because I figured if I crash them i'll just throw them away and buy another. I have only carried liability. Well, I guess I forgot this car wasn't so much a "beater" and now I actually care about it. Lesson learned, if I get another nice car, it will have collision on it and Geico will be dealing with this instead of me.

So for now, I am working directly with her insurance company (state farm), which so far has accepted full liability and has offered a rental car, which I have denied for now since I have 3 other cars to drive. Will keep everyone posted on what happens.
 

Dr. Gonzo

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Since you declined a rental, be sure they give compensation for loss of vehicle use. You should be entitled to that, depending on how the law is written in NH.
 

Zemedici

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Also a bit of information I forgot, that is relevant. This car was my daily "beater". I have never had collision coverage on my beaters because I figured if I crash them i'll just throw them away and buy another. I have only carried liability. Well, I guess I forgot this car wasn't so much a "beater" and now I actually care about it. Lesson learned, if I get another nice car, it will have collision on it and Geico will be dealing with this instead of me.

So for now, I am working directly with her insurance company (state farm), which so far has accepted full liability and has offered a rental car, which I have denied for now since I have 3 other cars to drive. Will keep everyone posted on what happens.

when they lowball you, kindly remind them about how you're working with them (ie not getting a rental when you're entitled to one) etc etc
 

Mpoitrast87

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When my 97 cobra was totaled due to hydrolocking it, the insurance company based its value off of 10 other cars for sale on craigslist in similar condition.
 

TaraFirma

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I think if you can realistically show that the car really can’t “just be replaced “ you’ve got a good chance at getting a good replacement settlement. As far as getting the most out of a crooked industry.
Let me introduce you to; “My neck! My back! My neck and my back!”
 

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