Have the car assessed at Carmax after the repair they'll tell you how it's affected. Also check the estimate from the shop for frame damage. Work with your insurance company and get a rental etc. and let them subrogate for your losses including diminished value.

Good luck! A car can be fixed or replaced, at least you're ok and your child wasn't a passenger.

 

No CarMax here in Hawaii...

Finally got the guy to call in, and USAA has finally claimed liability... Yay?!?

My insurance is useless now that USAA claimed liability, they said they will just let USAA handle the repairs, and payment to Autobody, and I will need to deal with USAA on the diminished value... from what I read online, USAA pays maybe $0.30 to the $1 for lost value, so if I lose ~$3000k, I'd be lucky to get $1000...

This whole experiences makes me hate insurance companies...

 

I've been looking into a diminished value claim in VA since my accident and odds are low. Most insurance companies do not cover them in their policies, so it doesn't matter if they have claimed 100% liability. Hope you'll be able to find a workable solution.

 

I'd get an appointment with a chiropractor and start talking about how much your back and neck are bothering you. Let USAA know you are seeking medical attention. That should wake them up.

 

Geez... it's now November, and my car is still being repaired... I just got an update from the repair shop... They estimate another week!

30 days in a crappy Chevy Malibu is killing me... This thing has crappy gas mileage ~19mpg, it has a stupid feature that resets the AC to fresh air intake when the car starts... would be great if i didn't have to sit in traffic for 45 minutes every morning and evening...

 

Still stuck in the rental and any word on the diminished value payment?

 

Yup, still stuck... I have the form for the diminished value claim, but i need the current mileage on my car before I can send it in... I just got a call from the repair shop, they just got my car back from painting, and are reassembling, and should hopefully have it ready by wednesday...

 

I finally got my car back this past Saturday... man I can't believe its been so long. I sent in the diminative value form from USAA. Hopefully I can recover some of the lost value in my car... will update when I hear back from them...

Driving that crappy rental car really makes me appreciate my TSX.... The Malibu's auto transmission sucked, even in manual mode, it didn't seem like it would hold the lower gear I selected... the sound system sucked, it got crappy gas mileage, the stupid AC would keep resetting itself, and the damn rear passenger tire had a slow leak....

The only good thing about it was the rear seat was pretty level and not contoured so it was easy to put my son's rear facing convertible car seat in...

 

congrats on getting your car back! did you examine every inch of it to see how the quality is? everything feels good on it?

 

I looked it over and only found a small spot they didn't buff out... took it in this morning before work and they fixed it... overall good job with the paint matching... they replaced my right rear mud guard that got scratched when I had to turn out of a driveway onto a tight street and hopped the curb a bit... so happy about that...

it looks like they did a decent job... they just took a long time.... total repair bill, ~$6,000.... Total car rental bill.... ~$1,300...

The car feels good (great compared to the rental). I didn't hear and squeaks or rattles yet, so so far so good...

They "detailed" my car before they returned it to me... they put some greasy leather cleaner/conditioner on my seats... not digging it... they also didn't do that good of a job cleaning up the polish/wax near the Acura, TSX and Acura symbol on the back lift gate... its a pet peeve of mine...

 

USAA finally got back to me on my diminished value claim... its more than I thought it would be but still less than my kbb valuation estimate... they're giving me $1,460.

A lot more than nothing, so I guess I can't complain...

 

Just keep the car until it (or you) dies. Then you won't have to worry about how much its worth.

I am such a problem solver.

 

Lol, I keep my cars for at least 8 years, so its mostly bonus money I wouldn't have gotten unless I did a little pushing...

I'm not too worried about the diminished value of my car... I just ran across it in my research and figured what the heck, might as well ask for it and see what I get...