Is this a write off in your view

[Specmaster]

Today, the repairing garage phoned me to ask me to go over and empty out the car of any belongings as the insurance company deemed it a total loss last Thursday, apparently. This is news to me as I have not had any contact from them whatsoever.

It seems to be a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to write the car off for a few body panels and a headlight.

I now don't know what to do, never had this situation before, do I contact the insurers or wait for them to contact me, I know I'll never be able to replace the car with another in similar condition for their valuation

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[tggzzz]

I now don't know what to do, never had this situation before, do I contact the insurers or wait for them to contact me, I know I'll never be able to replace the car with another in similar condition for their valuation

My only experience: I had a 2005 car written off 9 months ago when legally parked. A car drove into the centre side, buckling the central bodywork. Seemed pretty definitive to me

NFU Mutual was a pleasure to deal with; other agents may be less so.

I would want a formal written/emailed statement from your insurer stating that they regard it as written off.

A few blindingly obvious points... Do your homework to find out similar car's selling price. Haggle with any valuation; I increased the initial valuation from (IIRC) £1500 to £1900 or so. I still lost out, of course, not least in terms of not being mobile.

Find out what it would cost to repair it, which should be more than the valuation. You can then, I believe, get the valuation money, keep the car and repair it at your expense. You may find your paying the difference is worth your while.

If you belong to a professional body, e.g. IET, they may offer free legal advice.

I have no idea whether it is possible to sue a third party for increased future insurance premiums (I didn't lose my NCD).

[mnementh]

Even over here it is possible to sue, I had to threaten with legal action when they tried to rape me on my Saturn by using bogus CL listings for the valuation. I told them "Fine. You buy that car, if you can get hold of the seller. Any of the sellers of cars you've used as examples. I spent better part of a week trying to and I have my phone logs to prove it; they're all phony listings. You can't use both the CL valuation and the adjustment devaluation for mileage on a car you cannot actually go and inspect; that's outright fraud."

I still did not get near enough to replace the car; it blue-booked for twice what I was able to squeeze out of the bastards, and I had been paying for "replacement cost" coverage since I put the car on the road, as it was my "company vehicle". That is how I wound up with Franken-Cruiser. In retrospect, I'd have been time, money and misery ahead to get a boneyard fender, hood and headlight, and iron out the the inner fenderwell enough to bolt the fender on.

In your case, I'd probably say do your research on the valuation of the car, challenge that if it's ridiculously below actual market value, then take the payout less what they tell you the buyback $$$ is. Then take the money and iron out the metal enuf to be able to replace the headlight, and put the difference in your savings account towards your next vehicle. Let the vehicle suffer some minor battle scars as long as it's still driveable and passes safety inspection; the purely cosmetic work will cost you a small fortune.

Good luck, my friend.

mnem

L300 SMOOSHED.jpg

[Zenith]

The only thing like this which happened to me, was when someone ran into the back of my old Cavalier at a roundabout. It was a shunt rather than a crash. It was clearly his fault. The rear door had a wider gap between it and the body than before, but you'd have to look to notice it. I spoke to the other driver's insurers and said I was happy to let it slide. The woman asked me if I didn't even want any money. That was different. So a bloke from the insurance company turned up and estimated the damage as £500 and a cheque came in the post - very welcome.

I suggest you try to get a realistic estimate of what the car is worth, that is what you could realistically buy one for, and try to get an estimate of what it would cost to repair. In my experience quotes for body work are very variable for the same job. Then attempt to negotiate the best deal from the insurance company, which could be their estimate of what it is worth minus the scrap value, or maybe even their estimate of the value and they forget the written off car.

It could be that there's something about the damage and this model of car that makes it not worth repairing. I recall that some cars, such as Ford Sierras could be written off by a hit at low speed in the wrong place; it crumpled the floor pan.

[bd139]

The body is part of the structure / crumple zones so anything non trivial or that won't refit properly will result in a write off.

Insurance or not, if you can't afford to replace it, you can't afford to own it.

[Specmaster]

I can afford to replace it, that's not the problem, the problem is that it would eat into my savings which are already faster than I'd like with the daily cost of living.

[Zenith]

I suggest you phone the insurance company and find out what their thinking is on this, and also get a few estimates for repairing it, if you can. I assume it isn't driveable, so they may be willing to give a guess by looking at the pictures.

It just might be that it isn't repairable, for any amount you'd be happy paying.

[Specmaster]

Right, time for a quick update, it has been written off as a category N, which is a non-structural write off and can be put back on the road once the damage has been repaired. I did a quick valuation on Auto-Trader website and the valuation of the insurance company combined with the salvage value is certainly better than the Auto-Trader value so I think they have been fairly reasonable, no doubt aided by the cars general condition pre accident and the fact that it's top of the range model.

What is currently really pissing me off is that through no fault of mine, I have to end up with a car older, in worse condition and with far less creature comforts than I had and with a lot more mileage on it unless I'm willing to chip in a lot more cash

My local dealer has given me some idea of the costs of the parts, Headlight £1182, Bumper £600, 2 front wings (fenders for you Americans) £540, bonnet (hood) £765, parking sensors £125 each and there are 4 that might need replacing, plus paint and hidden brackets etc behind the bumper that need replacing and then labour. So that's already £3,587 for parts only without all the other bits that might be needed which are hidden.

I have been able to locate another car that might be suitable, but far worse spec, but good condition and a year newer and in the same colour, manual box (stick shift) which I might go and see tomorrow.

[Specmaster]

Holy smokes, I've just found another with almost identical specs to my current car, in black instead of blue, with black ebony trim instead of walnut inside and a standard sunroof instead of a defunct solar sunroof. Car appears to be practically mint condition and is the same age but 6k more miles on the clock. I feel a phone call coming on first thing in the morning and possibly a long drive to Nottingham to see it, the good news is also that it is also within the settlement figure . It could all work out yet.

[Cubdriver]

Holy smokes, I've just found another with almost identical specs to my current car, in black instead of blue, with black ebony trim instead of walnut inside and a standard sunroof instead of a defunct solar sunroof. Car appears to be practically mint condition and is the same age but 6k more miles on the clock. I feel a phone call coming on first thing in the morning and possibly a long drive to Nottingham to see it, the good news is also that it is also within the settlement figure . It could all work out yet.

Fingers crossed for you! Sucks when you lose something good through no fault of your own.

-Pat

[Specmaster]

Holy smokes, I've just found another with almost identical specs to my current car, in black instead of blue, with black ebony trim instead of walnut inside and a standard sunroof instead of a defunct solar sunroof. Car appears to be practically mint condition and is the same age but 6k more miles on the clock. I feel a phone call coming on first thing in the morning and possibly a long drive to Nottingham to see it, the good news is also that it is also within the settlement figure . It could all work out yet.

Fingers crossed for you! Sucks when you lose something good through no fault of your own.

-Pat

Thanks, just made that call, someone else is thinking about the car and may be back today, just arranged with the garage to hold till I drive the 140 miles to view it, said if I liked it I'd pay £1,000 deposit today, they agreed to service it and do a cambelt change and years MOT and then arrange transport for it to me for around £230. Fingers crossed it as good as it looks.

[Zenith]

My local dealer has given me some idea of the costs of the parts, Headlight £1182, Bumper £600, 2 front wings (fenders for you Americans) £540, bonnet (hood) £765, parking sensors £125 each and there are 4 that might need replacing, plus paint and hidden brackets etc behind the bumper that need replacing and then labour. So that's already £3,587 for parts only without all the other bits that might be needed which are hidden.

£1182 seems more than a bit steep for a headlamp for a mass produced car. The other parts also seem excessive.

This other one you are thinking of buying - have a good look at the headlamps before parting with the loot. Take a jeweller's loupe to be sure there's no blemish.

[Specmaster]

My local dealer has given me some idea of the costs of the parts, Headlight £1182, Bumper £600, 2 front wings (fenders for you Americans) £540, bonnet (hood) £765, parking sensors £125 each and there are 4 that might need replacing, plus paint and hidden brackets etc behind the bumper that need replacing and then labour. So that's already £3,587 for parts only without all the other bits that might be needed which are hidden.

£1182 seems more than a bit steep for a headlamp for a mass produced car. The other parts also seem excessive.

This other one you are thinking of buying - have a good look at the headlamps before parting with the loot. Take a jeweller's loupe to be sure there's no blemish.

No need, dealer sold it before we got 1/4 of the way to it, even though he said he would hold it till we had seen because of the distance we were travelling, came home disappointed.

[Zenith]

It's infuriating to be messed about, and it's a PITA not to have a car, if you need one, but there'll be others.

[mnementh]

My local dealer has given me some idea of the costs of the parts, Headlight £1182, Bumper £600, 2 front wings (fenders for you Americans) £540, bonnet (hood) £765, parking sensors £125 each and there are 4 that might need replacing, plus paint and hidden brackets etc behind the bumper that need replacing and then labour. So that's already £3,587 for parts only without all the other bits that might be needed which are hidden.

£1182 seems more than a bit steep for a headlamp for a mass produced car. The other parts also seem excessive.

This other one you are thinking of buying - have a good look at the headlamps before parting with the loot. Take a jeweller's loupe to be sure there's no blemish.

These are not unusual consumer prices for parts from the dealership; most bodyshops will have a commercial account and get "jobber" pricing. Look out for shops that try to get you to agree to "aftermarket" or "LKQ" parts... there is nothing like, kind or quality about them. They are almost universally shite compared to the real thing. The only benefit is more profit for them; they bill the insurance (or you) within a few dollars of the same amount they'd bill for NEW OEM.

Bodyshop work, at least over here, is one of the great everyday scams... literally organized crime... that is ongoing in our society. They make those mechanics from The Mask look like sensible, straightforward businessmen.

mnem

[mnementh]

It's infuriating to be messed about, and it's a PITA not to have a car, if you need one, but there'll be others.

Yeah, well, technically Spec was the one asking the dealer to "mess around" on a customer who'd already made an appointment to see the car. The best he legitimately could hope for was "sloppy seconds".

mnem
*toddles off to do B-day stuff with SWMBO*

[Specmaster]

Agreed, but it still infuriates me that a such rare car in the UK is being confined to harming the environment more than it would to repair it, it is not structural damage and it all, as far as I can see, basically bolts onto a frame and while the actual car is rare, the parts are the same as those used on thousands in the UK, the special bits are on the inside and not damaged, there was only ever 16 of these types sold in the UK. A few judging by the following graph have over the years been in accidents, taken off the road, repaired and put back on the road again. It makes zero sense, you buy a car because of certain features, comforts etc, and then someone else can force you to accept lower specs when none of the blame for the accident is yours.

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[MED6753]

Spec, I found the perfect car for you.

J/K, had to add some humor here. Sorry for the horseshit you're putting up with. Accidents suck especially when not your fault.

Had to come up for air with all the moving. Still more to do but getting there.

[Specmaster]

Spec, I found the perfect car for you.

J/K, had to add some humor here. Sorry for the horseshit you're putting up with. Accidents suck especially when not your fault.

Had to come up for air with all the moving. Still more to do but getting there.

Nice to hear from you in-between box humping sessions, moving is a soul-destroying job, I hate it. That car would be just big enough for me and a couple of HP calculators

My son found this company who might just be able to save my car from being written, I'll need to speak to them tomorrow urgently, fingers crossed.

https://www.carmagic.co.uk/non-fault-accidents/

[mnementh]

Spec, I found the perfect car for you.

J/K, had to add some humor here. Sorry for the horseshit you're putting up with. Accidents suck especially when not your fault.

Had to come up for air with all the moving. Still more to do but getting there.

Good to see you alive... I hope you make it back to your usual insanity soon.

mnem
*currently home with the kids for spring break*

[Specmaster]

Update time, it transpired that the claim was originally being handled by a crash management company who appointed a firm of assessors who valued the car at just £8,500 . Anyone know where you could buy a L&K Superb (63 plate) fully loaded with just 79,000 miles and FSH, in good condition for the same kind of money? I couldn't get anything less than £10,500 for the same year, and almost double the miles, and no history, so I rejected the valuation.

The management company passed it back to my insurance company to handle, who got their assessors to look at the claim, and they came back with an identical offer, which I again rejected. After a long chat with the assessor on the phone, and providing him with 3 example listings from Autotrader (dealers only) for estate cars, in Elegance trim for around the £10,000 mark, with no history, no cam belt or water pump being done, and the dealers would not even throw that into the deal, and Mk3 L&K, 3 years younger but 137,000 miles, with service history and cam belt, water pump along with DSG service already done by the dealer for £10,500. The assessor kept going away and calling me back asking more questions, it transpired that they were under the impression that my L&K was an entry level model and not a L&K and then claimed that I was looking at models with a higher spec level. Once we got that sorted out, he went away again and done some research and then called me back and admitted that it has been an eye-opener just how good the L&K car was and how they are fairly rare on the used market they are and that are dearer, so after a bit of haggling he offered a better deal of £10,000, which I accepted. All I have to do now is wait for the email and the money to come through.

I had already put a deposit on the Mk3, which although was more, my own car was due to have its 2nd cam belt and water pump change in 3 months costing around £600+ for that. So I have a 3 year newer, MK3, 150HP,FSH car, less the TV tuner, but plus the tri zone A/C, adaptive cruise control and lane assist with blind spot detection and what I always wanted, dynamic chassis control, which because of its registration date only cost £35 in road tax, saving £145 a year. Now all I have to do is wait for a replacement headlamp to arrive from Škoda and be fitted before I can go and collect the car.

So beware you other L&K owners, if you are unfortunate enough to be in an accident, especially if it was not your fault, make it absolutely clear to everyone that your car is a L&K version, top of the range and not a basic model otherwise you stand zero chance of getting another without putting your hand in your pocket to add to the pathetic settlement they offer.

It still smarts when I see my old car outside the house, I've had it from new, and I know its complete history, but hey ho, that's life.

[mnementh]

Was the buyback such that you can't afford to keep it as a winter rat?

I don't regret buying back my L300... I parted it out for far more than I paid them. What I do regret is not patching it up and driving the wheels off it.

mnem
moo. or don't.

[Specmaster]

Was the buyback such that you can't afford to keep it as a winter rat?

I don't regret buying back my L300... I parted it out for far more than I paid them. What I do regret is not patching it up and driving the wheels off it.

mnem
moo. or don't.

Well, TBH I don't really know for certain until I get the final email detailing the precise figures. The value I was given was for the combined figure, and when I asked about the buyback value, I was told that is looked like it was about £3,440. I had a buyer lined up for it from the Skoda forum when the previous assessors gave it a value of £1,330, but at £3,440 he is not interested in it.

I don't have the space to store it while working on it, nor all the equipment needed to repair it now and as to having a winter rat, nah, never needed one before, and certainly don't have the cash to finance one either as it would need to both taxed and insured all the time as it would have to be stored on the road, maybe if was still in employment it would be possible.

[mnementh]

Oh, the buyback was much less on mine; it was a lot uglier post-it incident. That's a big bite to take.

mnem
*hopeless tinkerer*