bkundla Posted January 1, 2016 Share Posted January 1, 2016 Hi, I had posted a month or so ago about problems with my wrecked car, which had been in the body shop for almost two months, and had been returned to me, then sent back to them, four times. Eventually the problems were resolved (at least I THINK they've all been resolved!). I live in PA, a state that has no laws on diminished value claims. Because the car was hit just 24 hours after I purchased it, I'm pretty upset at the loss in value. Even though I know it may be quite a battle, I've decided to file a diminished value claim. I've talked to the people at the company where I purchased the car. Although they say if they were to sell the car now, they would reduce the price by at least $2000, they don't want to provide me with any written proof that my car is no longer worth what I paid for it. To try to determine the value of the car now, I've tried all the usual online sites that give car value, but none of them give me the option of saying the car has been wrecked. (Damage was extensive, over $9000 in repairs.) The only option I know I have is to hire an appraisal company to determine the value of the car, after the wreck. However, this is rather expensive. Could anyone tell me if they know of any site, where I can find the value of a wrecked car? My insurance company has said I'm on my own in this and has been no help at all. Thank you, in advance, for any answers provided. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted January 1, 2016 Share Posted January 1, 2016 What year make model, how many miles? What area of the car was wrecked? Did your insurance declare it a total loss? Was it repaired and now has a salvage/rebuilt title? Was there damage to the unibody frame structure of the car? Most accidents that so not cause damage to the frame of the car do not greatly affect the value of the car as long as it's repaired by a certified collision repair/body shop. If there was damage to the frame, the extent of the damage can determine the depreciation in value. The condition grading systems used places like KBB and NADA (excellent, good, fair, poor) do take into account repaired accident damage. You just need to read the descriptions of each to determine which grade would be given to your vehicle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quidam Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 That much damage would deserve a salvage title, I'd think. Diminished value right there alone. In Ohio at least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster2 Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 I guess I am confused..........since you live in PA, a state you say has no laws on diminished value claims, what legal ground can you stand on to file a claim?? I am not giving you a hard time on this, but I don't see where you can go anywhere with a claim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkundla Posted January 2, 2016 Author Share Posted January 2, 2016 Thank you for the replies. Fairtax4me.. The car is a Forester 2.5X, Premium, automatic, with all weather package and back up sensors. It has about 98,000 miles on it. The impact was on the passenger side, just about where the front door connects to the body of the car. Pretty much the whole passenger side of the car was replaced. I don't understand much about the structure of cars, but the when I asked about frame damage, the insurance adjuster from my company said the car doesn't have a frame; he said it has posts on each side. He said the passenger side one was damaged and they'd pull the car apart, put a new one in, and push the car back together. The front bumper cover and fog light were replaced. The hood was repaired. The right front fender, liner, and splash guard were replaced. Resistor was replaced. Right front wheel was replaced. Right control arm, strut, stabilizer link, knuckle, mount plate, and hub assembly were replaced. Outer and inner tie rods replaced. the roof was repaired; electrical damage to the sun roof was repaired. Right rocker panel repaired. Right hinge pillar and rocker molding replaced. Both passenger doors replaced. Rear tail light and bumper repaired, rear splash guard replaced, cracked exhaust was replaced. The car doesn't have a rebuilt/salvage title. With the amount of damage, I expected the car to be considered totaled. KBB value was 13,500 and the damage was 9000. One rep from my insurance company said they would total a car at 65%. These damages were at 67%. But then the case manager told me sometimes they go up to 75%. The problem with using the online grading sites is that the repaired car falls under the excellent category; to move into any of the lesser categories they all list some type of visible, structural, or mechanical damage. My car has none of those now, it's just the car's history that will affect the value. Quidam: I thought the car would be totaled. Both my insurance company and that of the woman who hit me said not. Rooster2: Although there are no laws requiring her company to pay diminished value, there have been cases where it was awarded in Pennsylvania. I think I should have a good chance of succeeding, considering I had just bought the car the day before the accident. The value didn't diminish from the usual wear from driving; it was diminished purely by the history of the accident. Plus, her company rep outright lied to me. He told me that he talked to his manager and the manager said that, unfortunately, in Pennsylvania the law states that you can't collect diminished value until you sell or trade the car. I had a feeling he was just trying to shut me down. I got off the phone with him and immediately called the state insurance department, where I learned there are no laws governing this. If her company won't pay the diminished value, it will go to small claims court. I would hope they would settle with me, instead of having it brought to light in court that they lied to me. Again, thank you all for your replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 That counts as major structural damage. When a wrecked vehicle is being appraised (prior to any repairs), the value is decreased by the amount of damage done to the vehicle. So a vehicle worth 13,500 in good condition, subtract 9,000 for damage, leaves you an appraised value around $4,500. AFTER the repairs are made, the condition that says "major structural damage" is what applies to the vehicle. Usually this will be around $2,000-2,500 less than "good" condition, depending on the vehicle. There is another way you can determine the value of the car in its current state. Take it to Carmax and ask them to appraise it. Carmax is the second largest used car volume dealer in the country. Their appraisers are trained to assess value of any kind of vehicle, in any condition. Carmax buys and sells so many vehicles that their auction purchase and retail sales statistics are what KBB, and NADA (and most other vehicle appraisal services) use to partly determine the retail and trade-in values they put on their websites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DIMINISHED VALUE Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 Hi, I had posted a month or so ago about problems with my wrecked car, which had been in the body shop for almost two months, and had been returned to me, then sent back to them, four times. Eventually the problems were resolved (at least I THINK they've all been resolved!). I live in PA, a state that has no laws on diminished value claims. Because the car was hit just 24 hours after I purchased it, I'm pretty upset at the loss in value. Even though I know it may be quite a battle, I've decided to file a diminished value claim. I've talked to the people at the company where I purchased the car. Although they say if they were to sell the car now, they would reduce the price by at least $2000, they don't want to provide me with any written proof that my car is no longer worth what I paid for it. To try to determine the value of the car now, I've tried all the usual online sites that give car value, but none of them give me the option of saying the car has been wrecked. (Damage was extensive, over $9000 in repairs.) The only option I know I have is to hire an appraisal company to determine the value of the car, after the wreck. However, this is rather expensive. Could anyone tell me if they know of any site, where I can find the value of a wrecked car? My insurance company has said I'm on my own in this and has been no help at all. Thank you, in advance, for any answers provided. In Pennsylvania, you can only make a third-party claim against the insurer of the person responsible for causing the damage. You can not make a claim against your own company. Laws have nothing to do with it because you will be getting paid through the liability portion of the policy that guarantees to make you whole. That includes diminished value. If your car had structural damage or if the air bags deployed, your car has lost close to half of its value - even if repaired perfectly. The only recommendation I have for you is to hire an independent appraiser that actually calls local Subaru dealers and records the opinions of multiple sales managers as to how much value your car has lost. An appraiser that just dashes off an appraisal based on a formula or "algorithm" is basically giving you a worthless document. Which is why diminished value claims are getting the reputation of being denied or of low-ball offers being made.It sounds like you don't want to spend money on an appraiser. Just so you know, the cost of a diminished value appraisal is tax-deductible as professional services. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keith3267 Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Just because a state does not have any laws regarding diminished value, does not mean that you cannot seek compensation for diminished value. You can sue for whatever you want. Whether you win or even get enough compensation to be worth the trouble is another issue, but it does not stop you from trying. The diminished value won't be covered by your collision insurance and the other parties insurance may not cover them either, that means that you will be suing the other party and if you win, then you must figure out how to collect directly from them. This is where lawyers really make their money, often leaving you with nothing. Unfortunately with diminished value, you probably won't be able to pad the claim with punitive damages. Pain and suffering are totally out of the question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkundla Posted January 5, 2016 Author Share Posted January 5, 2016 Thank you, everyone, for giving me guidance in this matter. This morning I talked to a service manager at the Subaru dealership, whose body shop and service center did the repairs on the car. He's going to check the car out this weekend and give me a written report on the value now. I think between my original sales receipt, the Subaru's documentation, and the fact that the woman's insurance company outright lied to me about diminished value laws in PA, I think I may have a chance of winning this. I'll post when I get some results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now