Do you think this could be a write-off?

[Sarraqin]

Hey folks, newbie on this forum, happy to join you all.

I had an incident whereby a lorry driver reversed and deeply scraped the rear panel of my '11 Corsa. Also broke off the fuel filler flap and damaged my bumper. I'm still waiting to hear from their insurer but it just dawned on me that, because of the age of the car, it is a possibility that this damage could cause it to be written off? What do you think?

[Swampy1982]

Sorry to say, but almost certainly....

[waynecyclist]

That is a write off 100%

[pidsy]

As above.

Not an economical repair.

[Sarraqin]

Three people being so sure already is really gutting.

Just out of curiosity, what's your take on the repair cost that makes you say write-off?

[BckFlash]

I'd say write off as well sadly...

Realistically, to do a proper repair on that, it would cost a heck of a lot more to fix than the actual price of the car. It'll likely be worth a heck of a lot to you but in the insurers eyes, it'll not be worth much at all.

[Matoakwell]

Autotrader prices for 2011 corsas vary from around £2k to 6k depending on spec and mileage. If yours is a low spec, higher mileage car, you'll be in the lower end of the bracket and that damage looks like it will be a high percentage of that value to fix properly.

[geeks]

Definitely a write off, needs at least a new rear quarter panel + paint and bits and bobs.

[Sarraqin]

Matoakwell said:

Autotrader prices for 2011 corsas vary from around £2k to 6k depending on spec and mileage. If yours is a low spec, higher mileage car, you'll be in the lower end of the bracket and that damage looks like it will be a high percentage of that value to fix properly.

£3.5k if AutoTrader valuation is to be trusted.

[Spare tyre]

Buy it back if price is good, bit of filler

[Vasco]

I would guess that the majority of cars over 10 years old will get written off for anything that's even marginally expensive to repair.

[Swampy1982]

Sarraqin said:

£3.5k if AutoTrader valuation is to be trusted.

You'll do that in paint for the repair!

Time to start car shopping ..

[Sarraqin]

Great. Just at the right time that the used car market is going crazy.

I'm seeing red right now.

Any good ideas on where I should look apart from Auto Trader and Gumtree? I'd prefer to buy private I think, at least based on previous experience where traders would ridiculously bump up selling prices on right pieces of junk.

Edit: sorry, one more question as I'm not too familiar with how the whole thing works in the UK - I'm atm insured for Third Party Fire & Theft, therefore I'm claiming from the other driver's insurer. In case of a write-off, which insurer gets the car and compensates me? Mine or theirs?

Edited by Sarraqin on Wednesday 16th February 19:51

Edited by Sarraqin on Wednesday 16th February 19:52

[Jack2199]

Defo write off. Its not only about the cost of the repair, its the hassel that they usually avoid. E.g. courtesy car etc.
As someone said, if the price is low to buy back. U could do with some filler.

[Jack2199]

In the case of my friends car and he did not contact his insurance at all. He only contacted the other parties insurance and they paid him. He even still hd the car. So I don't think you'll insurance will be involved its probbly only the other party.

[dhutch]

Presumably 'market value' should represent the current prices. So shouldn't be out of pocket overall, assuming not cherished details to this particular car.

[HustleRussell]

Negotiate up the payout, buy back the salvage, find a small body shop and have them make good with a bit of welding and a bit of filler.

Edited by HustleRussell on Thursday 17th February 22:51

[Sarraqin]

HustleRussell said:

Negotiate up the payout, buy back the salvage, find a small body shop and have them make good with a bit of welding and a bit of filler.

Edited by HustleRussell on Thursday 17th February 22:51

Potentially silly question - in that case, doesn't the car remain designated as Cat N written-off? That pretty much wipes out any possibility of reselling it, doesn't it?

What I mean to say is, if the buy-back price + filler repair cost is low enough, why would the insurance company prefer to write it off and pay out a larger amount, rather than compensate for the repair?

Edited by Sarraqin on Friday 18th February 09:23

[geeks]

HustleRussell said:

Negotiate up the payout, buy back the salvage, find a small body shop and have them make good with a bit of welding and a bit of filler.

Edited by HustleRussell on Thursday 17th February 22:51

It's a Vauxhall Corsa, I'd take the payout and use it as a chance to buy something interesting, or another one, it's hardly worth repairing really.

[HustleRussell]

Sarraqin said:

HustleRussell said:

Negotiate up the payout, buy back the salvage, find a small body shop and have them make good with a bit of welding and a bit of filler.

Potentially silly question - in that case, doesn't the car remain designated as Cat N written-off? That pretty much wipes out any possibility of reselling it, doesn't it?

What I mean to say is, if the buy-back price + filler repair cost is low enough, why would the insurance company prefer to write it off and pay out a larger amount, rather than compensate for the repair?

You are right about the category, the resale value will be lower than a non-category car but I’m generally surprised how much money people are willing to pay for category cars.

Buying it back is not the obvious route 1 option, but if you otherwise like the car, it’s in good mechanical condition, and your not in a financial position to upgrade it, it’s a potential option to be aware of.

It’s getting written off anyway so the payout is the same either way, if you choose to have it back, the salvage value will be deducted from your payout.