Insurance valuation way too low. Help!
Discussion
Hello all,
First post after a while browsing the forums - Might be a fair read but any help is very much appreciated.
So last weekend someone crashed into my E36 whilst i was asleep and it was parked outside my girlfriends house. My car was hit from behind and pushed up the curb and into another car in front, which in turn hit another car. The driver then proceeded to run away. I thought this meant it was going to be stolen, but it was a hire car so there is a third party to hold responsible. My car is an uneconomical write off.
Now my car is not overly special but it was an 1997 E36 328i Sport on 90k miles. It had Individual velvet blue paint and also an individual interior. The car also had AC Schnitzer type 3 wheels and mirros - unfortunately this isn't documented (ACS parts) anywhere as they were added by the dealer - but nonetheless they are there and genuine. These cars are getting harder and harder to come by in an original unmolested condition/spec like mine was as most get turned into track cars/drifters.
Now my insurer have offered me £1300 which i am not accepting. Under the ABI guidelines I need to be paid an amount that will enable me to repair or replace my vehicle with a like for like. £1300 isn't going to get me that. I would need around £4000 and even then, there isn't an abundance on the market. Plus its not my fault, and why should i be penalised.
So i rejected the offer, and they tried feeding me some bull about how that is their final offer and they cannot go any higher as that is based on the guidelines. I know how it all works and that's not the case. They have now said they will pay for an independent assessor to look over the vehicle - Now I've read that if this happens, and the assessor finds the value to be less than the offer of the insurers, then i cannot take my dispute to the FOS? (financial ombudsman) Is that true?
I'm confident in the market value of my car being around £4000 but i am not confident that the assessor will take the rarity and spec of the car into account and me end up getting shafted.
Any advice is much appreciated. Anyone on here had a similar claim with an older rarer car that has been written off?
Apologies for the long post
First post after a while browsing the forums - Might be a fair read but any help is very much appreciated.
So last weekend someone crashed into my E36 whilst i was asleep and it was parked outside my girlfriends house. My car was hit from behind and pushed up the curb and into another car in front, which in turn hit another car. The driver then proceeded to run away. I thought this meant it was going to be stolen, but it was a hire car so there is a third party to hold responsible. My car is an uneconomical write off.
Now my car is not overly special but it was an 1997 E36 328i Sport on 90k miles. It had Individual velvet blue paint and also an individual interior. The car also had AC Schnitzer type 3 wheels and mirros - unfortunately this isn't documented (ACS parts) anywhere as they were added by the dealer - but nonetheless they are there and genuine. These cars are getting harder and harder to come by in an original unmolested condition/spec like mine was as most get turned into track cars/drifters.
Now my insurer have offered me £1300 which i am not accepting. Under the ABI guidelines I need to be paid an amount that will enable me to repair or replace my vehicle with a like for like. £1300 isn't going to get me that. I would need around £4000 and even then, there isn't an abundance on the market. Plus its not my fault, and why should i be penalised.
So i rejected the offer, and they tried feeding me some bull about how that is their final offer and they cannot go any higher as that is based on the guidelines. I know how it all works and that's not the case. They have now said they will pay for an independent assessor to look over the vehicle - Now I've read that if this happens, and the assessor finds the value to be less than the offer of the insurers, then i cannot take my dispute to the FOS? (financial ombudsman) Is that true?
I'm confident in the market value of my car being around £4000 but i am not confident that the assessor will take the rarity and spec of the car into account and me end up getting shafted.
Any advice is much appreciated. Anyone on here had a similar claim with an older rarer car that has been written off?
Apologies for the long post
Looking on ebay, theres a few for 3500-6000. But the majority are way below that, think 4k is a little ambitious to be honest with you. Just because a car is for sale for that amount doesn't mean it'll sell, you can dispute the insurance settlement if you provide proof that others have sold for that amount i think
https://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/263247327920
https://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/263247327920
Edited by HedgeyGedgey on Tuesday 10th October 15:15
But the ABI guidelines say like for like. I've done plenty of browsing on eBay too and all the other sites. You can't find one for less than 4k in the same spec.
I'm also fully aware that an advertised price isn't a selling price. But if I can't replace like for like for under £4k... Then it's not a fair payout
I'm also fully aware that an advertised price isn't a selling price. But if I can't replace like for like for under £4k... Then it's not a fair payout
A nice tidy low-miler 328i Sport coupe is worth £4K all day long these days. Their obligation is to put you in an equivalent position to where you were before the loss, net of any excess.
Write to them, showing them some adverts for equivalent cars currently being offered. Tell them why your car is equivalent to these and not equivalent to any for sale for £1500. If they still say no tell them you now need to open the formal complaints process with them, with a view to referring it here if their process does not result in a satisfactory outcome.
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumer/com...
Ensure you keep hard copies of all correspondence, emails, and contemporaneous notes of any phone conversations. Record conversations if necessary and tell them you are doing so.
Of course it's easy to be wise after the event but it's vastly preferable to have anything like this on an agreed value policy nowadays.
Write to them, showing them some adverts for equivalent cars currently being offered. Tell them why your car is equivalent to these and not equivalent to any for sale for £1500. If they still say no tell them you now need to open the formal complaints process with them, with a view to referring it here if their process does not result in a satisfactory outcome.
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumer/com...
Ensure you keep hard copies of all correspondence, emails, and contemporaneous notes of any phone conversations. Record conversations if necessary and tell them you are doing so.
Of course it's easy to be wise after the event but it's vastly preferable to have anything like this on an agreed value policy nowadays.
Been through this before...
It will cost the insurance company £5k to dispute the matter with ombudsman involved they know this thus drag it out and provide info to back up your valuation.
Stick to this, tell you... don't even communicate with me unless it's £4K.... poker face
Speak to a claims management company the sum involved is most likely too low for them but if it isn't nail the insurance company.
After say six weeks they will roll over pay out.
It will cost the insurance company £5k to dispute the matter with ombudsman involved they know this thus drag it out and provide info to back up your valuation.
Stick to this, tell you... don't even communicate with me unless it's £4K.... poker face
Speak to a claims management company the sum involved is most likely too low for them but if it isn't nail the insurance company.
After say six weeks they will roll over pay out.
I agree with your points on the agreed valuation but I wasn't aware this was a thing when I took out the policy. I think I've had the policy for 7 years just changing cars and it's not something I ever thought about.
I also (naively) expected my insurance to pay me a fair amount.
Going forward, depending what I get next I will deffo look into this
I also (naively) expected my insurance to pay me a fair amount.
Going forward, depending what I get next I will deffo look into this
No it doesn't.
Take into account mileage, also that it's manual. I know there is examples around £2k but they are autos, and convertibles. I need to be able to replace with a manual (genuine sport - updated suspension amongst other things - not just a body kit) coupe.
Im willing to negotiate on the 4k to say 3.5k but it's worth that all day long
Take into account mileage, also that it's manual. I know there is examples around £2k but they are autos, and convertibles. I need to be able to replace with a manual (genuine sport - updated suspension amongst other things - not just a body kit) coupe.
Im willing to negotiate on the 4k to say 3.5k but it's worth that all day long
Simon328 said:
The car also had AC Schnitzer type 3 wheels and mirros - unfortunately this isn't documented (ACS parts) anywhere as they were added by the dealer - but nonetheless they are there and genuine.
So an undeclared modification...?Simon328 said:
Under the ABI guidelines I need to be paid an amount that will enable me to repair or replace my vehicle with a like for like.
Not quite...They pay you the fair market value of the car immediately prior to the collision. There may not be another on the market, "like for like". It may simply not exist. That doesn't mean they have to repair it...
That fair market value is also limited by the value you declared on the proposal - how much was that?
Simon328 said:
I'm confident in the market value of my car being around £4000 but i am not confident that the assessor will take the rarity and spec of the car into account and me end up getting shafted.
Spec, as far as insurer is concerned, is what you told them it was. Standard, right...? The Individual stuff's all very lovely, but did you tell them it wasn't a standard colour and interior? Does it actually affect the value? If there were two identical condition cars for sale, one in a bog-standard paint/trim, and one with the Individual paint/trim, how far apart would they be priced?Edited by TooMany2cvs on Tuesday 10th October 15:43
TooMany2cvs said:
Simon328 said:
The car also had AC Schnitzer type 3 wheels and mirros - unfortunately this isn't documented (ACS parts) anywhere as they were added by the dealer - but nonetheless they are there and genuine.
So an undeclared modification...?Simon328 said:
Under the ABI guidelines I need to be paid an amount that will enable me to repair or replace my vehicle with a like for like.
Not quite...They pay you the fair market value of the car immediately prior to the collision. There may not be another on the market, "like for like". It may simply not exist. That fair market value is also limited by the value you declared on the proposal - how much was that?
Simon328 said:
I'm confident in the market value of my car being around £4000 but i am not confident that the assessor will take the rarity and spec of the car into account and me end up getting shafted.
Spec, as far as insurer is concerned, is what you told them it was. Standard, right...? The Individual stuff's all very lovely, but did you tell them it wasn't a standard colour and interior? Does it actually affect the value? If there were two identical condition cars for sale, one in a bog-standard paint/trim, and one with the Individual paint/trim, how far apart would they be priced?I said £4.5k when I took out the policy.
The individual spec part maybe not but the Sport definitely does. And it's on the V5 as a sport and yes they're aware. Ask anyone that knows about the cars how much more desirable and hard to come by a genuine sport model is
Simon328 said:
Not an undisclosed modification as that is how it was sold at the dealer. Anyway I haven't mentioned this part yet. And even with standard parts the value would be the same.
I said £4.5k when I took out the policy.
The individual spec part maybe not but the Sport definitely does. And it's on the V5 as a sport and yes they're aware. Ask anyone that knows about the cars how much more desirable and hard to come by a genuine sport model is
What's the dealer got to do with your car insurance ?I said £4.5k when I took out the policy.
The individual spec part maybe not but the Sport definitely does. And it's on the V5 as a sport and yes they're aware. Ask anyone that knows about the cars how much more desirable and hard to come by a genuine sport model is
If you bought what you thought was a standard car then it turns out that say it has some expensive coilovers then it's up to you to inform your insurer that the car is in fact modified.
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications...
''need to know
Most of the complaints we see involve disagreements about the "market" value of the vehicle. This generally means the price it would have sold for at a reputable dealership just before it was damaged or stolen. To reach a fair price, it's important to check that the vehicle's details have been recorded correctly.
To decide whether an insurer's valuation is reasonable, we compare it with prices in specialist motor trade guides - called Parkers', Glass's and CAP. We’ll generally look to see if the insurer’s valuation is in line with what the guides say.
We might also use engineers' reports to help us decide whether the insurer's valuation is reasonable. These can give useful information about the condition of the vehicle. We don't usually find adverts helpful to judge a vehicle's value, because the selling price usually turns out to be lower. But they may be if the car’s a classic or rare model.
People often have to give (or estimate) their vehicle's value when they're filling out their motor insurance application form. This isn't actually the amount the insurer has to pay out - and we often have to clear up confusion about this.
If someone's unhappy with how the insurer has written off the vehicle - for example, if it's been scrapped without warning - we'll look into the insurer's reasons. If we decide someone's unfairly lost out, we'll tell the insurer to pay compensation.''
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