Do I write off the Cerbie or repair it?
Discussion
As you might know, a few weeks ago someone decided to crash into my Cerbera (A 1999 Speed Six). The car has finally been inspected up at the factory but I've got a bit of a dilema. What would you guys do.....?
The car has been valued at £25,000 but the repairs have come to £18,500. The maximum the insurance company will pay out is £17,500 or they'll write it off. Soooooooo, do I take the money or pay the extra grand out of my own pocket.
Take the money I hear you all say
There are however some benefits if I get it repaired.
The lovely people at TVR have offered the following:
New 2002 uprated chassis
Upgraded brakes & disks
Upgraded 2002 supspension & springs.
All 2002 model enhancements
New 2002 integrated headlight frontend.
Oh... and they're rebuilding the engine.
Basically I'll get a completely new and uprated car which they say will handle and ride a lot better than it ever used to.
..And all for a grand ! (Theres about £5k worth of extras!!)
what shall I do ???
I'm not thinking about selling the car but if you'd known that the car had been in a major prang, but had been repaired by the professionals at the factory (which will give a full report on the work done) would you consider buying it, or would you not touch it with a bargepoll??
Thanks for any thoughts.......
The car has been valued at £25,000 but the repairs have come to £18,500. The maximum the insurance company will pay out is £17,500 or they'll write it off. Soooooooo, do I take the money or pay the extra grand out of my own pocket.
Take the money I hear you all say
There are however some benefits if I get it repaired.
The lovely people at TVR have offered the following:
New 2002 uprated chassis
Upgraded brakes & disks
Upgraded 2002 supspension & springs.
All 2002 model enhancements
New 2002 integrated headlight frontend.
Oh... and they're rebuilding the engine.
Basically I'll get a completely new and uprated car which they say will handle and ride a lot better than it ever used to.
..And all for a grand ! (Theres about £5k worth of extras!!)
what shall I do ??? I'm not thinking about selling the car but if you'd known that the car had been in a major prang, but had been repaired by the professionals at the factory (which will give a full report on the work done) would you consider buying it, or would you not touch it with a bargepoll??
Thanks for any thoughts.......
goodlife said: If you ever come to sell it, it will require some delicate spin-doctoring.
Write-off's. No No, never visit one.
Factory rebuild... Hmmmm, that's sounds quite good.
Will it appear on HPI? - that might be a killer for you, as the soon-to-be owner will be concerned about having even more trouble selling it on.
The car wouldn't be listed as a write off, but legally you would have to tell the new potential owner that it has been crash damaged. This is what I'm worried about.
Although the car would have been greatly improved, I'm worried that I'd never be able to sell it on if I needed/wanted to.
So upside: I get a hugely improved car
Downside: A potential buyer might not see it that way !
Just as I thought, about a 50-50 split of opinions - DOH ! 
Oh I dunno, on one hand I know that my cars fairly sorted now (after 2 years ownership I've got the bills to prove it !!) and on the other hand I would be able to get another nice Cerbera for 25K which wouldn't have the resale worry.....
hmmmmmm
Oh I dunno, on one hand I know that my cars fairly sorted now (after 2 years ownership I've got the bills to prove it !!) and on the other hand I would be able to get another nice Cerbera for 25K which wouldn't have the resale worry.....
hmmmmmm
ultimapaul said: If you take the repair route and spend the grand yourself, would the car be recorded as being written off? The insurance co. have not written the car off, just put a limit on the repair spend.
Paul
I don't think it will be recorded as a write off. I'm going to check tomorrow and also make sure that if I didn't get the car repaired I'd get the £25k.
Man, this is a toughy...
Thanks again for everyones opinions, they are much appreciated !
RCA,
I think they factor in what they can get for it as parts plus the £17.5k = £25k.
I have already tried to bargin with the insurance company but to no avail. offered to meet them half way (at 18k) but they turned this down as well.
I suppose I could threaten to not get the car repaired and see what they say. (i.e. they give me the £25k)
The funny thing is that the car really didn't look like it had taken that much damage... 18.5k !! I can't beleive it so much.
NB - Note to people who crash their TVR's. Always get the factory to fix it!.
The local garage that were going to repair the car estimated £5-6k of damage and specifically said that there was no chassis damage.
Not happy with this I sent it to Blackpool where the real cost of the damage is (as you know now - £18.5k) and the chassis was apparently dangerously bent (hence they're replacing it).
If I'd have gone with the local repairer then I would have been driving around in a 200mph car with a bent chassis... which probably could have resulted in my death !!
I think they factor in what they can get for it as parts plus the £17.5k = £25k.
I have already tried to bargin with the insurance company but to no avail. offered to meet them half way (at 18k) but they turned this down as well.
I suppose I could threaten to not get the car repaired and see what they say. (i.e. they give me the £25k)
The funny thing is that the car really didn't look like it had taken that much damage... 18.5k !! I can't beleive it so much.
NB - Note to people who crash their TVR's. Always get the factory to fix it!.
The local garage that were going to repair the car estimated £5-6k of damage and specifically said that there was no chassis damage.
Not happy with this I sent it to Blackpool where the real cost of the damage is (as you know now - £18.5k) and the chassis was apparently dangerously bent (hence they're replacing it).
If I'd have gone with the local repairer then I would have been driving around in a 200mph car with a bent chassis... which probably could have resulted in my death !!
I'd get it repaired and NEVER sell it. If you hit hard times, you could put your wife on the street or something. There are always alternatives in life...
She already is on the street, how do you think I afforded it in the first place !
I've put in a call today to find out if
A) The car gets put on any crash damage register
B) If I don't get it repaired I can take all the money (25k)
I'm also going to try and haggle the price again. I looked at all the TVR dealer websites and found 8 T reg Cerbera Speeed Six's. Average price was £26.4k.
I've already owned the car for 2 years and was planning on another year. I was then looking at changing to a new Cerbera or try the T350. However, the decsion I make now may affect this plan and I might keep my Cerbera going for another year if it comes back better than ever.
Just spoke to insurance bods.
As the car is being repaired (and is not a write off) it will not appear on any crash damaged register This should mean that getting the car fixed shouldn't affect its re-sale value (in fact it may even go up with all the mods being done).
Insurance people also said "We'll see what we can do" about the valuation of the car after my little arguement. Hopefully they'll cover that extra grand as well now.
Spoke to factory, they reckon 4-6 weeks for repairs.
Some good guys up there being very helpful ! (most unlike my first experience, last year, with the customer service people!)
Looks like the decision is to get the car repaired..... I hope its a good one.
As the car is being repaired (and is not a write off) it will not appear on any crash damaged register
This should mean that getting the car fixed shouldn't affect its re-sale value (in fact it may even go up with all the mods being done). Insurance people also said "We'll see what we can do" about the valuation of the car after my little arguement. Hopefully they'll cover that extra grand as well now.
Spoke to factory, they reckon 4-6 weeks for repairs.
Some good guys up there being very helpful ! (most unlike my first experience, last year, with the customer service people!)
Looks like the decision is to get the car repaired..... I hope its a good one.
phib said: ""As the car is being repaired (and is not a write off) it will not appear on any crash damaged register""
Not wishing to be a misery or doubt you but are you sure thiss is correct ? Isnt this what the different classifications are for i.e. cat d (which I think is stolen and recovered but I am probably wrong)
The other thing is that as this must be such a borderline case between write off and rebuild surely as the car has had so many upgrades iss the new prespective owner not going to call the factory to check out what has been done I know I would and did !!!
Only to be told about one of the cars that I was looking to buy from a specialist factory quote " Oh yeah I remember that one, it was the one that only ever stood on 3 wheels !!!!!!"
Sorry for sounding so negative its just such an emotive subject money and cars !!!!
Thats alright phib, I was thinking along the same lines as you.
I spoke to the insurance company and asked them specifically, "Will my car appear on any crash register, you know cat C, cat D etc" . They said "no, so long as it is repaired and the work inspected then it will not have any record of damage recorded against it"
My main concern was that someone would do a search on the car and find a CAT D repair recorded against it....and I wouldn't have bought it either if I'd found this.
So long as I'm upfront about it having been in an accident but being repaired and produce the factory report they promised me, then I hope it won't put people of even a fraction as much as if a CAT D was recorded against it. I'm sure the crash won't do me any favours, but its not as bad as I thought it would be.
In reality the car will probably be better than ever, but I understand that people will be concerned about it being in an accident.
As to the work that gets done, the factory will give a 1 year warranty on the work they've done. If my car so much as squeeks, then as it has been rebuilt from scratch, I guess the factory will take repsonsibility to correct the issue.
I'm not 100% I've made the right decision, but I had to make my mind up one way or the other.
Thanks again everyone for your input !
Lets hope they get me back on the road again soon. I think I'm going to blow the Vauxhall Corsa up if I drive it any longer, I keep thinking its not in gear.....but its just cr*p ! >> Edited by bandit on Monday 27th January 16:05
I think I've made the right decision.
The car is getting repaired and there will be no HPI record / category of crash recorded against the car (no more so than if I'd dented a door panel).
The car I'm getting back SHOULD be a lot better than how it went. So, other than the inconvenience of losing my car for 10 weeks I'm certainly no worse off than I was before the accident.
If I do come to sell the car I will be honest about the accident, hopefully the new potential owner will take heart from the fact that there is no damage record on the car.
As for taking the money.... thats been the biggest choice. I'd never get 25k for the car in a private sale (maybe 22.5k if I was lucky). If I did take the money then I would be able to buy maybe a 2000 Cerbera model, a year younger than mine.... but the chances are that my car will come back in better shape than a 2000 model anyway.
And as someone said on this thread, I know its kinda sad, but I think you do get attached to your TVR.... I can't see her torn up for parts can I !
The car is getting repaired and there will be no HPI record / category of crash recorded against the car (no more so than if I'd dented a door panel).
The car I'm getting back SHOULD be a lot better than how it went. So, other than the inconvenience of losing my car for 10 weeks I'm certainly no worse off than I was before the accident.
If I do come to sell the car I will be honest about the accident, hopefully the new potential owner will take heart from the fact that there is no damage record on the car.
As for taking the money.... thats been the biggest choice. I'd never get 25k for the car in a private sale (maybe 22.5k if I was lucky). If I did take the money then I would be able to buy maybe a 2000 Cerbera model, a year younger than mine.... but the chances are that my car will come back in better shape than a 2000 model anyway.
And as someone said on this thread, I know its kinda sad, but I think you do get attached to your TVR.... I can't see her torn up for parts can I !
NICE EH said:
In terms of not telling a potential buyer, whilst you do not have to offer the information, if you are asked the question whether the car has been in an accident and you say no, then that is a fraudulent misrepresentation and could invalidate any subsequent sale. You could also arguably be guilty of a criminal offence of obtaining monies and/or a pecuniary advantage by deception.
Take the money, and buy a Griff!!!
NICE_EH - Did you read the thread? Look at my statement above "I will tell any potential buyer about the accident !" I don't intend to lie about the car thankyou !
And I don't want a Griff, I want my Cerbera back !
NB - Why am I so moody this morning??
Just a quickie update...
After insurance company cockup after insurance company cockup, the car is finally being mended
The rubbish insurance company I was with dithered so long with the claim that they only actually gave permission to fix the car last week.... 6 weeks after the accident
After a sh*tty letter to MD of said insurance company telling him what I think of his w*anky company I get the following consessions...
1) Insurance company agree to pay for ALL costs. You may remember they were asking me to contibute an extra grand to get the thing fixed.... they are covering this now.
2) Refunded my £450 car shipping charge and offered to pay for the return fare.
3) Upgraded my hire car to a BMW 530
4) Sent me a case of wine to aplogise
5) Got written statement saying my car would not appear on any type of "crashed" list.
Factory said they had the new chassis built and expected to be finished in 4 weeks so should get her back in mid March.
I really am missing the TVR...I can't get her back soon enough.....
Moral of story.... you can't moan enough when you get bad service. Write those letters !!
Just on a side note I was chatting to one of the guys at the factory about the Speed Six engines again. What he had to say was very similar to what we've heard before but all the same quite comforting. Got the story about the parts being made by a new company and them having problems with the build quality. They identified the problem parts and either re-spec'd them or got them made somewhere else. He assured me that these problems were fixed now and they have very few engines coming back.
Fingers crossed hey !
>> Edited by bandit on Friday 21st February 16:11
After insurance company cockup after insurance company cockup, the car is finally being mended
The rubbish insurance company I was with dithered so long with the claim that they only actually gave permission to fix the car last week.... 6 weeks after the accident
After a sh*tty letter to MD of said insurance company telling him what I think of his w*anky company I get the following consessions...
1) Insurance company agree to pay for ALL costs. You may remember they were asking me to contibute an extra grand to get the thing fixed.... they are covering this now.
2) Refunded my £450 car shipping charge and offered to pay for the return fare.
3) Upgraded my hire car to a BMW 530
4) Sent me a case of wine to aplogise
5) Got written statement saying my car would not appear on any type of "crashed" list.
Factory said they had the new chassis built and expected to be finished in 4 weeks
so should get her back in mid March. I really am missing the TVR...I can't get her back soon enough.....
Moral of story.... you can't moan enough when you get bad service. Write those letters !!
Just on a side note I was chatting to one of the guys at the factory about the Speed Six engines again. What he had to say was very similar to what we've heard before but all the same quite comforting. Got the story about the parts being made by a new company and them having problems with the build quality. They identified the problem parts and either re-spec'd them or got them made somewhere else. He assured me that these problems were fixed now and they have very few engines coming back.
Fingers crossed hey !
>> Edited by bandit on Friday 21st February 16:11
Ballistic Banana said: Oh wow mate that is really top news mate, and i tought 4 wks for the Ins to pull there finger out was bad enough.
I know its a hard one to answer as i am unsure how lomg till the banana is fixed but any clue on how long before u are back on the road.( prehaps an rebuilt getogether in order).
Wheres it at??
All the best and keep us posted
Sounds good mate ! Cars still in Blackpool but I'm hoping for a mid March return (Berkshire way). Hows the Grif getting on ?
Its hard work being without a Tiv isn't it !
Well after 6 months 
at TVR Engineering the Cerbera is finally ready for me to pick up from Blackpool tomorrow.
The car will be good as new after having new suspension, new chassis, new front end and full respray.
On top of this TVR kindly fixed the engine (which needed a full rebuild in the end) and they even sorted the gearbox out for me for free once they found a fault after they'd put it all back together again
Many thanks to the guys at the garage, especially Ray. They've all been very helpful, even if it did take half a year !
I've had a *'kin nightmare with insurance companies and their workers who should all be shot and burned to death in my opinion ( bit harsh maybe but thats how I feel at this time!) At the moment they are refusing to pay the car rental bill as they can't beleive the length of time thats gone by. To cut a long story short, they hired me a car and told the hire car company to send the bill to them. Now they've changed their minds and told them to send the bill to me !! you can work it out, £89 per day for 6 months 
Obviously legal proceedings are going on !
Anyways, I don't care anymore, I get my car back tomorrow followed by a 300 mile drive home. Can't wait for that "will she or won't she make it" feeling again.
I've hated my BMW 5 series rental car. Everyday you get in it you know it will always start, you don't even have to remember to turn the lights or wipers on... now where's the fun in that??
I'll post tomorow PM and tell you if the car made I back again in one piece !!
>> Edited by bandit on Thursday 29th May 09:26
at TVR Engineering the Cerbera is finally ready for me to pick up from Blackpool tomorrow. The car will be good as new after having new suspension, new chassis, new front end and full respray.
On top of this TVR kindly fixed the engine (which needed a full rebuild in the end)
and they even sorted the gearbox out for me for free once they found a fault after they'd put it all back together again Many thanks to the guys at the garage, especially Ray. They've all been very helpful, even if it did take half a year !
I've had a *'kin nightmare with insurance companies and their workers who should all be shot and burned to death in my opinion ( bit harsh maybe but thats how I feel at this time!)
At the moment they are refusing to pay the car rental bill as they can't beleive the length of time thats gone by. To cut a long story short, they hired me a car and told the hire car company to send the bill to them. Now they've changed their minds and told them to send the bill to me !! you can work it out, £89 per day for 6 months Obviously legal proceedings are going on !
Anyways, I don't care anymore, I get my car back tomorrow followed by a 300 mile drive home. Can't wait for that "will she or won't she make it" feeling again.
I've hated my BMW 5 series rental car. Everyday you get in it you know it will always start, you don't even have to remember to turn the lights or wipers on... now where's the fun in that??
I'll post tomorow PM and tell you if the car made I back again in one piece !!
>> Edited by bandit on Thursday 29th May 09:26
Gutted,
Got up at 5.45AM and got a taxi up to the M40 where a work college drove me up to Blackpool (he had a meeting up there). Got dropped off at TVR factory at 10AM.
Get told the cars still got problems and won't be ready till Monday
TVR did warn me this may happen but I had to try and get my car back. I'm working abroad again from next week so won't see her for a while
Basically the new 2003 chassis they built did not agree with the old style exhaust system. They are having to weld me some bespoke pipes to fit to the car
One of the TVR guys drove me to a pub
near the M55 where I could wait for my work friend to finish and grab a lift home. Got stuck in traffic on the way back and didn't get home till 8PM.
Bad day all in all.
On the plus side they did show me what they'd done and the car looked great (minus the exhaust system). They've done a lot of freebies for me so the car would be as good as new when it comes back and I've got to say they really have gone the "extra mile" for me.
TVR also backed up my claim about the rental car and spoke to the insurance people and they swung it so I'm not going to get the huge bill I was expecting... so fair play TVR.. good work fellas
Car should be shipped back to a local dealer for when I get back from Amsterdam..... can't wait !!
Will post some piccies of the new front end and the brand new (slightly altered) lights which were only released last week.
Only 8 days to go now...
Got up at 5.45AM and got a taxi up to the M40 where a work college drove me up to Blackpool (he had a meeting up there). Got dropped off at TVR factory at 10AM.
Get told the cars still got problems and won't be ready till Monday
TVR did warn me this may happen but I had to try and get my car back. I'm working abroad again from next week so won't see her for a while
Basically the new 2003 chassis they built did not agree with the old style exhaust system. They are having to weld me some bespoke pipes to fit to the car
One of the TVR guys drove me to a pub
near the M55 where I could wait for my work friend to finish and grab a lift home. Got stuck in traffic on the way back and didn't get home till 8PM. Bad day all in all.
On the plus side they did show me what they'd done and the car looked great (minus the exhaust system). They've done a lot of freebies for me so the car would be as good as new when it comes back and I've got to say they really have gone the "extra mile" for me.
TVR also backed up my claim about the rental car and spoke to the insurance people and they swung it so I'm not going to get the huge bill I was expecting... so fair play TVR.. good work fellas
Car should be shipped back to a local dealer for when I get back from Amsterdam..... can't wait !!
Will post some piccies of the new front end and the brand new (slightly altered) lights which were only released last week.
Only 8 days to go now...
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