G

So, I am washing my car on Sunday in my condo complex, preparing to enjoy the B-E-A-UTIFULL weather, when all of a sudden, a neighbor comes screaming around the corner and hits the Viper head on. :silvermad :angryfire

The damage:
Bumper is scratched and has a few good gouges.
On impact, the bumper pushed up against the hood and scratched the hood, on the seem side, and headlight assembly.

She gave me her insurance and we immediatley called it in. About an hour later, I get a call from her insurance adjuster who wants to see the car. He is about 5 mins away and requests that I bring the car over for him to look at it. On the way over, the car got hot a LOT faster than usual (keep in mind that no fluid was lost in the accidnet). Anyways, the adjuster looks at it, and tells me that he will get a check in the mail by Monday and will call me later with the total.

On the drive back home, the car goes from normal operating temp to overheating. I shut it off, wait for it to cool and limp the 2 minutes home.

I immediatley call the adjuster and let him know that he has to have a flat bed come pick it up and bring it to the body shop that I want. As soon as I am done talking, he starts pushing his network shop. I told him, very politley, that I would never go to his shop and that he has to send the car where I want it. He then tells me what he is going to do to fix the car:

-Repair and repaint the front bumper (but, he says that he will splurge for a new badge)
-Touch up and blend the hood from the scratches.

To me, this doesn't even begin to fix everything properly. I think that he should repaint the entire hood and replace the bumper. Not to mention, fix whatever is causing the car to read overheating.

Plus, I haven't even begun to talk to him about diminished value.

Anyways, what do y'all think? Have any of y'all ever gone after diminished value? Am I asking too much to have them repaint the entire hood?

Sarlacc

I think you are going to have to put this guy in his...and you might have to contact your insurance company to get them sue hers in order to get shit properly.

You also need to report her and this incident to your HoA. Driving like that in a private community is unacceptable.

G

I have already talked with my insurance company and they are standing by. But, if I go through them, then I will have to pay my deductible and wait for her insurance to send me a check to cover it. My insurance said that they might wave it, but it is not a gauranteed.

She admits that she can't drive worth sh!t. Hell, she was driving a damn rental car cause her car is still being fixed from her last accident!!

virtualbong

Was the girl Lindsey Lohan?

Sarlacc

I wouldn't use your insurance, no. But if they refuse to do etc etc. I believe your insurance can sue them to get it settled.

When you do get the car fixed do NOT accept it until it absolutely the way you want it. paint, body, mechanical, et all.

I would still report her to the HoA...she was speeding, a violation, she was in a closed community...and how the does she suck so bad that she hit your car, which was parked getting a bath??? Fuck her, report.

Slimey

What Sarlacc said. You'll have to front your deductible to get the claim subrogated...so what...they'll refund you when the whole thing is settled.

I wouldn't even talk with the other agent, given what you've posted. Just take to your shop and get things settled right, then your company will settle and/or sue the other if they don't pay up. You're only responsible for the deductible.

G

Trust me, I will not accept it until it is PERFECT.

I will report the incident to our HOA and see what happens. She sucks at driving period. She just doesn't pay attention. I cannot wait to move out to my house and not have to deal with her anymore.

Have any of y'all had to deal with diminished value before?

Thanks for the advice Sarlacc.

G

My deductible is a grand and I would much rather not have to pony that up. But, if that is what it takes, then by all means, I will pay it.

Just trying to see if there is another way.

SSMTL01

That sucks so bad man.. I don't have any additional advice but good luck..
Did you take any pics?

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Ouch! I think this bitch should have her license revoked. That's just ridiculous that she was driving like that in a rental while her own car is still in the shop.

Slimey

Just a IMHO sort of thing -- but one should be able to afford their deductible at the drop of a hat --- isn't that the idea? -- and I would think that someone that drives a Viper (or an Acura for that matter) should be able to afford $1000 without blinking -- IMHO, YMMV...

G

I agree with you. However, why should I pay out for something that's not my fault. I can easily afford to pay it-but that doesn't mean that I am going to go throwing around money. Even if I were gauranteed to get refunded, why take out the money and give it away interest free?

Poeple who set there deductibles as high as they can just to save a few bucks, and are not able to afford them, are just asking for trouble.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

Wow, that is some crazy shit. What a dumb girl.

Screw touching up and blending the hood. That is totally not acceptable. You should be able to take it to a shop of your choice, get an unbiased estimate to fully restore the car to its pre-accident condition and the insurance company should pay every penny.

Good luck, man. Don't let them jerk you around, especially on a Viper that you just got. This isn't exactly a Cavalier we're talking about (no offense to Cavy owners ).

m&b6speed

sorry to hear that man, but luckilly you weren't at the front of the car when it happened, and got hit.

i had a similar run in with the insurance co. my car got caught in a bad hail storm when i was driving. long story short, the insurance co. wanted to pop all the dents out and fill the otherones they couldn't pop. I told them that it was a new car, 8 months old, and there was no way that was happening. they tried to hold their ground and tell me they had to pick the shop that did te work too. so i asked to see the companys policy on what they use to replace parts and choose the shop, and they said there was no policy like that and that the customer had a right to pick genuine parts and the shop to do the repairs. so in the end they paid something like $6K to the shop i wanted to do the work, and it came out perfect. almost every panel and the sunroof were replaced. took about 2 months of standing my ground but it got done, but in the end they dropped me months later, oh well.

guess i really didn't make that short, but point is you are a paying customer, you should get what you want, just keep at them.

chewi

ouch..sorry to hear about the accident that sounds so ridiculous.
most importantly i hope your car will be repaired to the best it can be.

srika

sorry to hear about that, that really sucks.

G

You know, I never understood why an insurance company would drop a paying customer right after a not at fault accident. I mean, it does not display any tendency to get in accidents, just shows some bad luck. So why then, after shelling out all that money, would you drop the customer and not keep them to recoup some of their losses??

Anyways, thanks for all of the kind words. The tow truck showed up yesterday and took the car to the body shop. Meet with my advisor and felt right at home. He was awesome and I feel a lot better knowing that it is at an excellent facility.

This repair is going to cost a bloddy fortune! Now, I have to start going after deminsihed value. This should be fun . . . . . . . .

Moodist

iTrader: (2)

I think you should get a lawyer's opinion, someone who specializes in this sort of thing. Just the diminished value alone should make it worth it.

Water-S

Yeah my Accord been hit a total of 4 times (all old-timers fault) the last time, I time I was at Rite Aid getting a precription taken care of. I was coming across the parking lot this lady was leaving the drive through lane AS SHE WAS PUTTING HER PRECRIPTIONS BEHIND THE SEAT SHE LETS OUT ON THE GAS DOESN'T EVEN LOOK AS SHE LEAVES THE DRIVE THROUGH. So i'm chewing her ass because I she was stupid. plus I hate insurance b.s. because it's a long drawn out process of bitching at each other. then because she's a "Prefered customer" of Rite Aid this dumbass girl (that i guess had nothing to do ) comes out and starts chewing my ass because i chewed the old lady's ass. so I told her manager and got her in trouble. they cited the old lady. it was like 3500 buck damage. my car drives fine now. it took them like 3 weeks to maybe a month to fix it. but they gave me the song and dance of oh you should take it to "our body shops" and "your body shops" are so much more. I said "look your policy holder hit me. now you gotta fix it where i want to. if you want to triple her rates thats fine. do it. but your gonna fix the car to my standards and at where i want to."
just be a hard ass and stand your ground.

LatinSmoke 01CL

Good ole Water-S!

fuckleberry

hows about a pic ?

SSMTL01

or an update?

kurt_bradley

That's what he and I talked about. The damage is one thing, but the diminished value is the big problem with a car like this.

dallison

engrish please

TLofNYC

That bitch can't drive for shit!!

G

It's a lost cause-I wouldn't even try.

Anyways, update:
The insurance wants to repair the bumper cover instead of replacing it. The hood, by some miracle, is ok. Both fog lamps are cracked.

So, I am currently arguing about the bumper cover-I am NOT going to allow them to repair it. Out of the question.

Slimey

Seems goofy to repair a piece of plastic that is about 15'-30' of shop time to replace. They'd have to remove it and paint it in both situations.

brianlin87

iTrader: (1)

no one understands you.

dallison

and prob about the same cost either way

G

Unfortunatley, it is not. The insurance company is claiming that it could be fixed in about 10 hours-so at the shop rate of $50, it is only $500.

A new cover costs just over $2k.

gdubb

Dude dont give up the fight and dont settle, its not your fault that the girl hit you.

fast-tl

As for diminished value (aren't you guys paying attention, he's asked about FIVE times) that will be an uphill, backpack full of rocks, journey. There's no insurance industry "standard" way to measure how much the value was diminished. In part that's because it's hard to prove. Is the value diminished to you if you never sell the car? What if the next buyer doesn't care? How woulde you know the disclosure of the accident diminished the value of the Viper? When is a diminished value claim payable; immediately?

It's a Pandora's box. We KNOW someone will likely pay less for a wrecked car, but if it's repaired properly, then is the diminished value all in your head? There; that should get the topic started.

fast-tl

Link 1

Link 2 (even better)

Link 3 Carmax Help?

Final Link

Good luck and happy reading!

G

Awesome info!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Although what I read doesn't go well for me in my state, I am still going to go after it.

demolition_x

sorry had to do it. sucks though. and dealing with insurance companies sucks.

fabrikated

Chief F1 Fan

You will get your damages paid for quicker if you run it through your own insurance. You will have to pay the deductible which you will receive back from the asshat's insurer. This behooves you since you are free to do as you wish to have it fixed; gets your car back quicker; gets you a rental car if you have that coverage; and, doesn't raise your rates.

Alin10123

I think if they were giving you trouble, go ahead and shell out the $1000 and then get your insurance company to go after them for the money. That way its out of your hair.

fuckleberry

what, stll no pics ? bah

NJTypeS

Very true. Diminished value is very tough to prove. You actually need to get proof your vehicle is worth less because of the accident. Some states don't even recognize dimished value claims. I personally experienced a dimished value for my car last year.
I wanted to trade my car in for a G35. 3 years ago I was rear ended. damage was over $7000. The car was completely repaired however when i went to the dealership to trade my car in, they told me they were going to have to take off $1500 from what they would have offered me because of the accident. Long story short, I never sold me car. If I did and I took the $1500 hit since my car was in an accident, I MIGHT have a case for dimished value. The burden would still be on me to prove my car is worth less. To prove this, I would have to get a statement written from the dealership I tried to trade my car into that they would have paid me $1500 more had my car not been in an accident. It really is an uphill battle. Even if I presented the insurance company of the car that rear ended me with this documentation, they could still deny the dimished value claim and state the $1500 deduction is from only 1 dealership. Good luck if you are going to pursue it, but it really is tough to prove since all of the burden is on you.