Help - Looking at taking a loss
Discussion
Hi,
Not specifically business in the trading sense but it concerns money which to me equals business. A lot of good advice provided on this forum so I'd ask the mods to leave where it is if you could.
Own a vehicle which a third party hit at 45-50 while I was stationary last week. Being very busy I agreed to a friend of a friend who is in accident management to handle it all. Car was collected, courtesy car dropped off and third party insurer admitted liability. Pretty obvious really as I was rear ended.
Damage was bad, I thought a write off. Rear 1/4s, rear bumper, external boot, panels inside boot space , alloy, tyre, possibly bent suspension on one side, both exhausts, god knows what else that I couldn't see. Car took a hell of a smack.
'Independent valuation expert' viewed car and stated circa 10k damage to the car. He also stated the vehicle to be valued at £14k! Looking at AutoTrader, eBay Motors and Franchise Approved Cars I searched using the exact same criteria as my car and I produced cars for sale from 16k to 19k. I matched, mileage, age, spec etc. Surely this should be negotiated in a write off scenario, you simply cannot replace that vehicle like for like for 14k, I'm losing 3k at least.
I'm also being told that the car should be repaired as it still has equity in it but I don't want it repaired. Also if it does get repaired do I get compensation for the drop in value as a result of a massive repair job?
I've not been in this situation before, where do I stand, what should I do.
Currently contacted Trading Standards, FCA, F-Ombudsman, ABI and I'm speaking to Citizens Advice tomorrow - all of them useless tbh
Not specifically business in the trading sense but it concerns money which to me equals business. A lot of good advice provided on this forum so I'd ask the mods to leave where it is if you could.
Own a vehicle which a third party hit at 45-50 while I was stationary last week. Being very busy I agreed to a friend of a friend who is in accident management to handle it all. Car was collected, courtesy car dropped off and third party insurer admitted liability. Pretty obvious really as I was rear ended.
Damage was bad, I thought a write off. Rear 1/4s, rear bumper, external boot, panels inside boot space , alloy, tyre, possibly bent suspension on one side, both exhausts, god knows what else that I couldn't see. Car took a hell of a smack.
'Independent valuation expert' viewed car and stated circa 10k damage to the car. He also stated the vehicle to be valued at £14k! Looking at AutoTrader, eBay Motors and Franchise Approved Cars I searched using the exact same criteria as my car and I produced cars for sale from 16k to 19k. I matched, mileage, age, spec etc. Surely this should be negotiated in a write off scenario, you simply cannot replace that vehicle like for like for 14k, I'm losing 3k at least.
I'm also being told that the car should be repaired as it still has equity in it but I don't want it repaired. Also if it does get repaired do I get compensation for the drop in value as a result of a massive repair job?
I've not been in this situation before, where do I stand, what should I do.
Currently contacted Trading Standards, FCA, F-Ombudsman, ABI and I'm speaking to Citizens Advice tomorrow - all of them useless tbh
jonnydm said:
I would guess that an Accident Management co is using discretion in order to make their business work. If your car is given a lower value, you receive less and if it's getting repaired, they can cream off hire car costs etc.
When my car was stolen last year, I gave them every scrap of info including service history in order to determine the value, which we negotiated in the end. The final settlement took into account of the fact that a comparable car had to have full history and similar mileage.
I'm starting to agree with those sentiments. Company wants to repair it and make £££ from repair while also making £££ from the hire car during the no doubt prolonged repair process.When my car was stolen last year, I gave them every scrap of info including service history in order to determine the value, which we negotiated in the end. The final settlement took into account of the fact that a comparable car had to have full history and similar mileage.
In relation to value no one seems to be acknowledging the evidence that I have provided of circa 20 similar vehicles all valued at higher that the £14k
Frimley111R said:
Is it your choice to have it written off though? (Just asking, don't know). I can see an insurance company looking at it as 'We give you £16k for a new car or pay £10k for it to be repaired.
No I don't think it is but I am conscious that given the level of damage and how close it probably is to being written off I should be given the option of a second opinion. Also am I right to state that I want it repaired by an approved/franchise main dealer rather than the accident management companies body shop of choice?
Simpo Two said:
It may be the trade value.
I had a policy which stated that if my car was wrecked I'd get 'market value' for it. When I pushed them to explain what market value meant, they admitted it was actually the trade price. No-one outside the trade can reasonably expect to buy at such low prices so it's silly.
I think it is. I also have a sneaky suspicion that the AMC are actively valuing the vehicle at less so that I don't want it written off enabling them to cream off the repairs and also the prolonged hire car.I had a policy which stated that if my car was wrecked I'd get 'market value' for it. When I pushed them to explain what market value meant, they admitted it was actually the trade price. No-one outside the trade can reasonably expect to buy at such low prices so it's silly.
Blue Oval84 said:
Check what you've signed but you can normally take your car to any repairer you like (within reason) when you're claiming off a third party. It may be that you're already in some sort of agreement with the AMC though?
Either way, if the repairs are valued at £10K and you're saying the car is worth more like £17K I doubt they'll write it off.
Need to check the t&cs, possibly some sort of cooling off period. As I see it, if it needs to be repaired then the AMC are already profiting on a daily basis from the hire car costs so it should be my preference as to where my 16k asset is repairedEither way, if the repairs are valued at £10K and you're saying the car is worth more like £17K I doubt they'll write it off.
Hi all, thanks for comments, experiences and advice.
By way of update, the damage is not reaching the threshold for write off so the value has become irrelevant at this stage. It is going to be repaired and we have proposed that a manufacturer approved/franchise body shop completes the work on my behalf to ensure the repair is completed to the highest standards.
By way of update, the damage is not reaching the threshold for write off so the value has become irrelevant at this stage. It is going to be repaired and we have proposed that a manufacturer approved/franchise body shop completes the work on my behalf to ensure the repair is completed to the highest standards.
UPDATE:
So the third party insurers have sent out their own engineer to look at the damage to the car and have now written it off. This is good and bad. Good in that I didn't want the car back with that damage, bad as they have given me two scenarios:
1. £14k for the car
2. £10k Cash and the car back
Neither one is acceptable to me. Certainly not option 2!
So I am back where we started at the beginning of this thread. I've had another look today at replacing the vehicle and it will cost me 16k-17k to get a replacement like for like car matching age, spec, condition & mileage. This is what I feel I am due.
£14k gets me a car that is generally older, more miles and less spec. This is not like for like.
I've spoken to my accident management company and have put together an email showing examples currently for sale and asking them to source me a like for like replacement or increase their offer. Is there anything else I should be doing?
Any help duly appreciated.
So the third party insurers have sent out their own engineer to look at the damage to the car and have now written it off. This is good and bad. Good in that I didn't want the car back with that damage, bad as they have given me two scenarios:
1. £14k for the car
2. £10k Cash and the car back
Neither one is acceptable to me. Certainly not option 2!
So I am back where we started at the beginning of this thread. I've had another look today at replacing the vehicle and it will cost me 16k-17k to get a replacement like for like car matching age, spec, condition & mileage. This is what I feel I am due.
£14k gets me a car that is generally older, more miles and less spec. This is not like for like.
I've spoken to my accident management company and have put together an email showing examples currently for sale and asking them to source me a like for like replacement or increase their offer. Is there anything else I should be doing?
Any help duly appreciated.
So I have heard back and now they are claiming that my car had previous accident damage! This car was immaculate apart from some wheel scuffing and certainly wasn't CAT C CAT D etc so how would any damage that was unnoticeable affect value??
See their response:
"Please refer back to engineers report. They inspected the vehicle and noticed that vehicle has signs of repair following a previous accident.
The independent motor engineer placed a value of £14,400 which we initially felt was high given the example I sent yesterday showing a less value.
Your client has then sent an advert from a main dealer website showing a slightly better spec vehicle. Whilst we felt this did not justify an increase on its own, we decided to raise the PAV anyway to match your independent engineers report. We did this without deducting any further salvage amount.
We will have no further offers to make in relation to increasing the PAV. "
I have not seen the example they claim to have sent.
Also I sent them examples of about 10 vehicles, not just a main dealer advert.
They are also threatening to remove me from hire, ie placing further pressure on me to just accept their offer which leaves me out of pocket, or having to get an inferior replacement vehicle.
See their response:
"Please refer back to engineers report. They inspected the vehicle and noticed that vehicle has signs of repair following a previous accident.
The independent motor engineer placed a value of £14,400 which we initially felt was high given the example I sent yesterday showing a less value.
Your client has then sent an advert from a main dealer website showing a slightly better spec vehicle. Whilst we felt this did not justify an increase on its own, we decided to raise the PAV anyway to match your independent engineers report. We did this without deducting any further salvage amount.
We will have no further offers to make in relation to increasing the PAV. "
I have not seen the example they claim to have sent.
Also I sent them examples of about 10 vehicles, not just a main dealer advert.
They are also threatening to remove me from hire, ie placing further pressure on me to just accept their offer which leaves me out of pocket, or having to get an inferior replacement vehicle.
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