Poor Grandad - bad luck with his car.
Discussion
Hi, I am looking for some advice about a written off car. Never had to deal with anything like this before.
My wife’s Grandad, a lovely kind old man has fallen victim to the recent floods. His cherished 06 plate Picasso diesel drank some water and stopped, water also got in to carpet level inside.
I guessed the car would be a write-off from the details he gave us on the phone when he wanted help after it happened. He was out shopping when flash floods hit the North East. He has asked my wife and myself to deal with it for him.
To say he is gutted is an understatement. It may be a crappy Citroen people carrier to most people, but he loved it. He is one of those work hard, pay your way types, who won’t ask for a penny. I guess he could have a motability car because of his wife’s disability, but he sees that sort of thing as charity.
Anyway, I digress. We have been told the car is uneconomical to repair. Guess therefore the insurance will make him some sort of cash offer.
The car is a 60K Picasso Desire 1.9 diesel, and from what I can see on Autotrader, they don’t go for much. My wife is having to gently explain to him that even though he paid quite a lot for it, it isn’t worth much and the fact it has park sensors and auto wipers doesn’t make it something really special. The poor old bugger has just spent loads on servicing it and getting premium tyres on it, and can’t understand why these can not be seen as things that increase its value.
So I guess the insurance will make a low offer – perhaps in the hundreds for the car. What is the procedure from there? We reject the offer, they come back etc. Roughly what can we reasonably expect the offer to be upped by. I reckon the car would have sold retail for 2-3K, perhaps less on a bad day. Do we use Autotrader ads as a guide when arguing, or does insurance only offer trade price for the car? Before the flood, the car was immaculate – does that make any difference?
The sad thing is that had he been driving a motability car, I guess apart from the insurance excess there would have been no more hassle than picking up a courtessy car and waiting for a new one to be ordered. His insurance does not include a courtessy car, so I am faced with the prospect of lending him the MX5 for a bit (Comp insurance permitting.) He thinks this is a great idea, I am not so sure! Despite being an old fella, he’s a decent driver having done it as his job for years and years. If anything, he’s a bit fast and drives stuff like he stole it. I fear a new set of Bridgestone Potenzas will be needed after a fortnight with him!
Also, and I know this is a long post so thanks for getting this far, what is the deal with Motability? There is little doubt he would be able to get a car on this scheme. What is it going to cost to put him into something along the lines of his Picasso? He’s not rich, but not short of a few grand to put into any deal.
Thanks in advance.
Dan.
My wife’s Grandad, a lovely kind old man has fallen victim to the recent floods. His cherished 06 plate Picasso diesel drank some water and stopped, water also got in to carpet level inside.
I guessed the car would be a write-off from the details he gave us on the phone when he wanted help after it happened. He was out shopping when flash floods hit the North East. He has asked my wife and myself to deal with it for him.
To say he is gutted is an understatement. It may be a crappy Citroen people carrier to most people, but he loved it. He is one of those work hard, pay your way types, who won’t ask for a penny. I guess he could have a motability car because of his wife’s disability, but he sees that sort of thing as charity.
Anyway, I digress. We have been told the car is uneconomical to repair. Guess therefore the insurance will make him some sort of cash offer.
The car is a 60K Picasso Desire 1.9 diesel, and from what I can see on Autotrader, they don’t go for much. My wife is having to gently explain to him that even though he paid quite a lot for it, it isn’t worth much and the fact it has park sensors and auto wipers doesn’t make it something really special. The poor old bugger has just spent loads on servicing it and getting premium tyres on it, and can’t understand why these can not be seen as things that increase its value.
So I guess the insurance will make a low offer – perhaps in the hundreds for the car. What is the procedure from there? We reject the offer, they come back etc. Roughly what can we reasonably expect the offer to be upped by. I reckon the car would have sold retail for 2-3K, perhaps less on a bad day. Do we use Autotrader ads as a guide when arguing, or does insurance only offer trade price for the car? Before the flood, the car was immaculate – does that make any difference?
The sad thing is that had he been driving a motability car, I guess apart from the insurance excess there would have been no more hassle than picking up a courtessy car and waiting for a new one to be ordered. His insurance does not include a courtessy car, so I am faced with the prospect of lending him the MX5 for a bit (Comp insurance permitting.) He thinks this is a great idea, I am not so sure! Despite being an old fella, he’s a decent driver having done it as his job for years and years. If anything, he’s a bit fast and drives stuff like he stole it. I fear a new set of Bridgestone Potenzas will be needed after a fortnight with him!
Also, and I know this is a long post so thanks for getting this far, what is the deal with Motability? There is little doubt he would be able to get a car on this scheme. What is it going to cost to put him into something along the lines of his Picasso? He’s not rich, but not short of a few grand to put into any deal.
Thanks in advance.
Dan.
I had a low ball (£175 after £250 excess taken off) offer from admiral on my 99 plate sharan last year, I rejected the offer and supplied screen shots of links showing similar cars on eBay/autotrader (it was immaculate) for around the £2300 area. The next offer was £1600 after the excess was taken off...
They will low ball It at trade in value, but you should push for mid point between private and retail.
They will low ball It at trade in value, but you should push for mid point between private and retail.
Sorry to hear about his bad luck, sounds like an unlucky chap! Looking at Parkers.co.uk (and with no age to work on) about £2000 will be the ceiling offered by the insurance company.
Having a flick through the motability website there's a slew of cars available for <£500 initial payment, the choice is actually rather bewildering! If he (or presumably his Mrs) is eligible for the scheme, and are now somewhat in need, I see no reason not to go with that.
Having a flick through the motability website there's a slew of cars available for <£500 initial payment, the choice is actually rather bewildering! If he (or presumably his Mrs) is eligible for the scheme, and are now somewhat in need, I see no reason not to go with that.
Krikkit said:
Sorry to hear about his bad luck, sounds like an unlucky chap! Looking at Parkers.co.uk (and with no age to work on) about £2000 will be the ceiling offered by the insurance company.
Having a flick through the motability website there's a slew of cars available for <£500 initial payment, the choice is actually rather bewildering! If he (or presumably his Mrs) is eligible for the scheme, and are now somewhat in need, I see no reason not to go with that.
06 Plate Having a flick through the motability website there's a slew of cars available for <£500 initial payment, the choice is actually rather bewildering! If he (or presumably his Mrs) is eligible for the scheme, and are now somewhat in need, I see no reason not to go with that.
As others have said, you/he will need to find examples of retail value cars to target the best price. Also have a list of any differentiators - spec, recent work, service history etc etc as these can all be factored into the consideration of what it would take to get a comparable replacement. We did this recently on my dad's written off Alfa and we got top retail in the end.
The next thing to consider is if he really likes the car and it's not easily replaced (in his eyes anyway), is it something that could be repaired by a local garage? After agreeing a valuation you could then see what they would want to buy back the car - given it's a cheap car and it wont be of value to a breaker, it's unlikely to be more than a few hundred quid. If the grandad really likes that specific car and the water hasnt trashed the interior, then see if you can source a good engine and speak to a local garage to see if they'll fit it. An engine is probably only £150 and perhaps £300 for fitting. You could probably buy back and repair for under £1000, ending up about £1000 better off overall. All a bit of messing around though and it'd be a used engine of probably unknown provenance, so maybe just focus on insurance valuation and then look around for something else.
Let us know how you get on!
The next thing to consider is if he really likes the car and it's not easily replaced (in his eyes anyway), is it something that could be repaired by a local garage? After agreeing a valuation you could then see what they would want to buy back the car - given it's a cheap car and it wont be of value to a breaker, it's unlikely to be more than a few hundred quid. If the grandad really likes that specific car and the water hasnt trashed the interior, then see if you can source a good engine and speak to a local garage to see if they'll fit it. An engine is probably only £150 and perhaps £300 for fitting. You could probably buy back and repair for under £1000, ending up about £1000 better off overall. All a bit of messing around though and it'd be a used engine of probably unknown provenance, so maybe just focus on insurance valuation and then look around for something else.
Let us know how you get on!
Thanks for the replies.
I had considered the buy back idea but an old French car which has had a dunking with a second hand engiine soudns like a bit of hassle.
I will get hunting on autotrader and find out what tyres and work he has had done.
I am going to try and persuade him down the motability route. Hopefully get his somethng that suits. He has a friend with a diability who seems to get a new Focus every few years. Something like that would do him.
I think he will love the MX5 because it is too low for Grandma to use - cue him spending lots of days out on his own "shopping." in it. he'd better not rack up to many miles as I want to chop it in for an Aberth 500 sometime this summer.
thanks agian for your replies.
Dan
I had considered the buy back idea but an old French car which has had a dunking with a second hand engiine soudns like a bit of hassle.
I will get hunting on autotrader and find out what tyres and work he has had done.
I am going to try and persuade him down the motability route. Hopefully get his somethng that suits. He has a friend with a diability who seems to get a new Focus every few years. Something like that would do him.
I think he will love the MX5 because it is too low for Grandma to use - cue him spending lots of days out on his own "shopping." in it. he'd better not rack up to many miles as I want to chop it in for an Aberth 500 sometime this summer.
thanks agian for your replies.
Dan
wildcat45 said:
I am going to try and persuade him down the motability route. Hopefully get his somethng that suits. He has a friend with a diability who seems to get a new Focus every few years. Something like that would do him.
Do be a little careful about building expectations though unless you are certain his wife qualifies. It isn't something that everyone with a disability can get.If he or his wife are currently getting the Higher Rate Mobility element of Disability Living Allowance then they can apply to the scheme, the 4 weekly sum goes to the lease company (Motability) and they just need to stick fuel in the car.
There are lots of cars with NIL to £500 down payment and for many it's a great scheme with peace of mind.
Following Looney Tunes comment, if they are not receiving any benefits but perhaps should then it's time to start form filling and getting assessed. But keep the hopes in check as it can take a while!
There are lots of cars with NIL to £500 down payment and for many it's a great scheme with peace of mind.
Following Looney Tunes comment, if they are not receiving any benefits but perhaps should then it's time to start form filling and getting assessed. But keep the hopes in check as it can take a while!
Edited by Six Fiend on Saturday 30th June 16:52
The other reason is that , depending on where the flood water came from , the car can end up as a biohazard on wheels .
The engine is not such a worry , if it sucked in some water and stopped due to hydraulic lock , it may well be OK once stripped , drained and fluids replenished , as long as it wasn't left too long . Damage can occur but sometimes you get away with it .
Electrics in newer cars don't like getting wet .
The engine is not such a worry , if it sucked in some water and stopped due to hydraulic lock , it may well be OK once stripped , drained and fluids replenished , as long as it wasn't left too long . Damage can occur but sometimes you get away with it .
Electrics in newer cars don't like getting wet .
They won't adjust anything for recent additions that they can't sell. When I crashed my octavia, I'd had 2 New tyres the day before, loss adjuster said it didn't matter.
They started about 50% of its rough private value and I talked them up to 79% IIRC, this was on a car worth about 1800 quid....
They started about 50% of its rough private value and I talked them up to 79% IIRC, this was on a car worth about 1800 quid....
eltax91 said:
They won't adjust anything for recent additions that they can't sell. When I crashed my octavia, I'd had 2 New tyres the day before, loss adjuster said it didn't matter.
They started about 50% of its rough private value and I talked them up to 79% IIRC, this was on a car worth about 1800 quid....
Not necessarily - in theory they're meant to be giving you sufficient to be able to buy a comparable car. Tyres on their own might not make a difference, but the overall condition/history etc can do. Had a 2004 Alfa 147 written off - they offered £1600 (what it had cost actually!) but evenetually settled on £2700 which is up at good retail price. Things like FSH, recent service, tyres, suspension etc were all used to talk up the price, but none of them would've made much difference to the scrap value of a cat-c car with a twisted chassis....even the parts arent worth a lot.They started about 50% of its rough private value and I talked them up to 79% IIRC, this was on a car worth about 1800 quid....
Just an update. The insurance made a really good offer for the car. Basically it means Grandad's lost about 1k depreciation in tye 3 years he had the car.
Repairs were estimated at 8k
He is adamant he doesn't want a Motability car, as it is charity for scroungers people who are in wheelchairs people with sick kids, who deserve it etc. He is very old school and he'd probably approve of the Motability rants on here if he had the internet.
So, he doesn't want to spend more than 7k. Because of his wife's disability, he needs a tall car....like the Picasso he had.
He's not scared by size or power and is eyeing up my Mazda CX7.
So any suggestions. I have found a bewildering choice of tall cars at 7k and under 5 years old.
He does low miles but likes to take friends out and lug stuff about, so 5 doors is a must.
I have found everything from Mazda CX7s and RAV 4s to Zafiras, and Nissan Notes.
All fit the bill in some way.
Any suggestions welcome before he gets my MX5 and takes it drifting round the Derby and Joan car park....My Bridgestones lives depend on it!
Repairs were estimated at 8k
He is adamant he doesn't want a Motability car, as it is charity for scroungers people who are in wheelchairs people with sick kids, who deserve it etc. He is very old school and he'd probably approve of the Motability rants on here if he had the internet.
So, he doesn't want to spend more than 7k. Because of his wife's disability, he needs a tall car....like the Picasso he had.
He's not scared by size or power and is eyeing up my Mazda CX7.
So any suggestions. I have found a bewildering choice of tall cars at 7k and under 5 years old.
He does low miles but likes to take friends out and lug stuff about, so 5 doors is a must.
I have found everything from Mazda CX7s and RAV 4s to Zafiras, and Nissan Notes.
All fit the bill in some way.
Any suggestions welcome before he gets my MX5 and takes it drifting round the Derby and Joan car park....My Bridgestones lives depend on it!
wildcat45 said:
Just an update. The insurance made a really good offer for the car. Basically it means Grandad's lost about 1k depreciation in tye 3 years he had the car.
Repairs were estimated at 8k
He is adamant he doesn't want a Motability car, as it is charity for scroungers people who are in wheelchairs people with sick kids, who deserve it etc. He is very old school and he'd probably approve of the Motability rants on here if he had the internet.
So, he doesn't want to spend more than 7k. Because of his wife's disability, he needs a tall car....like the Picasso he had.
He's not scared by size or power and is eyeing up my Mazda CX7.
So any suggestions. I have found a bewildering choice of tall cars at 7k and under 5 years old.
He does low miles but likes to take friends out and lug stuff about, so 5 doors is a must.
I have found everything from Mazda CX7s and RAV 4s to Zafiras, and Nissan Notes.
All fit the bill in some way.
Any suggestions welcome before he gets my MX5 and takes it drifting round the Derby and Joan car park....My Bridgestones lives depend on it!
A little bit more but how about the Dacia Duster? £9K new.Repairs were estimated at 8k
He is adamant he doesn't want a Motability car, as it is charity for scroungers people who are in wheelchairs people with sick kids, who deserve it etc. He is very old school and he'd probably approve of the Motability rants on here if he had the internet.
So, he doesn't want to spend more than 7k. Because of his wife's disability, he needs a tall car....like the Picasso he had.
He's not scared by size or power and is eyeing up my Mazda CX7.
So any suggestions. I have found a bewildering choice of tall cars at 7k and under 5 years old.
He does low miles but likes to take friends out and lug stuff about, so 5 doors is a must.
I have found everything from Mazda CX7s and RAV 4s to Zafiras, and Nissan Notes.
All fit the bill in some way.
Any suggestions welcome before he gets my MX5 and takes it drifting round the Derby and Joan car park....My Bridgestones lives depend on it!
Funnily enough I suggested that. It would suit him down to the ground, but he needs something now.
Also, I don't know much about buying old second hand cars. The only ones I have bought like that were MGF and TFs . Other than tat I have always bought new.
Looks like he wants me to do a deal for him. Is there much negotiation to be had on a 4 year old car from a nin-franchise outlet.
My fear is his mate will get involved. He has the nack of buying the dullest cars he can, usually made by Nissan, usually from the dealer at the bottom of the road.. If they don't have it, he doesn't buy it. He got gramps into a gold Almera a few years back...marginally worse than the blue one he had.
I really want the old fella to get something nice. 7k should sort him out with a car he will love.
Also, I don't know much about buying old second hand cars. The only ones I have bought like that were MGF and TFs . Other than tat I have always bought new.
Looks like he wants me to do a deal for him. Is there much negotiation to be had on a 4 year old car from a nin-franchise outlet.
My fear is his mate will get involved. He has the nack of buying the dullest cars he can, usually made by Nissan, usually from the dealer at the bottom of the road.. If they don't have it, he doesn't buy it. He got gramps into a gold Almera a few years back...marginally worse than the blue one he had.
I really want the old fella to get something nice. 7k should sort him out with a car he will love.
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