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Old     (wakesk8er2)      Join Date: Mar 2002       12-17-2015, 8:17 PM Reply   
Earlier this week my wife and I were sitting at a stop light and a girl rear ended us at speed. Likely taking that perfect selfie. She never even hit the brakes going probably 45-50mph. We have a 2013 4Runner and she was in a little Kia. Needless to say, her car is trashed and she will get to go car shopping. Along with the trashing the bumper and liftgate, the impact twisted the rear section of the frame down (from impact with towing hitch) and then pushed it into the spare tire. I can also see a few different places where the coating on the frame has separated from either flexing or being bent. The impact also caused the factory touch screen to start flopping around somehow.

With all that said, I'm going to take it in for an estimate from the insurance company and I have no doubt that they are going to want to repair it. I assume when I go to trade it in, they will see they frame repair and take me to the cleaners because of it. I have read a little about making a claim for the loss of value on the car, but wanted to see if anyone here has done something similar.

Thoughts? Am I being too paranoid? Should I just let them fix it and move on?
Old     (grant_west)      Join Date: Jun 2005       12-18-2015, 6:07 AM Reply   
When someone damages your car it's the insurance companies job to pay for the repair to your satisfaction. So if after the repair your not satisfied you can always request they re-do the repair.
Example im not sure if you can demand a (new frame) and at that point they may just realize it's cheaper to pay you the low blue book on your car and be done with you.

Had a friend who's car was stolen and striped. They found it and wanted to replace the missing pieces and give it back. (Major wires were Cut and electronics missing) When they told insurance that they were going to hold them accountable for every thing that would or could possibly go wrong with the electronics in the future ect insurance realize it could be a repair they might never get away from they just cut them a check.
Old    r33pwrd            12-18-2015, 6:23 AM Reply   
I would not worry about the dealership seeing damage after the repair as they don't look that close usually. I would be more worried about carfax and things like that. If your frame is bent it should be totalled I would think?
Old     (iShredSAN)      Join Date: Apr 2012       12-18-2015, 6:26 AM Reply   
Hey man sorry to hear what happened. The wife and I had literally the exact same thing (down to a girl in a kia most likely texting and not even braking before smashing into us)happen to us in July. The worst part of ours was we bought the car 5 days before we were hit and it only had 450 miles on it! Needless to say I was pi**ed... Since our car had a receiver hitch on it, it took most of the force from the hit but she still messed up our bumper, lift gate, exhaust, etc. The insurance company decided to fix it so I filed a diminished value claim once I got the vehicle back. They low balled me at first and I told them I was going to speak with a diminished value expert in my area and get back to them. I talked with the expert and asked for an estimate of what they could get me if I let them handle the case. He told me about $5k and his fee was $500. I called the insurance adjuster and told him the expert told me he could get me $5500 but I would take $4500 and we could call it a day. He wrote me a check and life went on. Her insurance was allstate by the way. I wasn't happy about the situation but it is what it is at that point and you might as well get what you can.

It sounds like they may total it out if the frame is bent that bad which would solve some of your problems but if they do decide to fix it make sure you have it fixed at the shop of your choice and make sure to file a diminished value claim and get what you can out of them. There are experts in your area who will do it all for you for a fixed fee. Also, not sure how your neck,, beck etc feels but I would go see a doctor to be safe and possibly some chiropractor visits. All of these bills will be handled with the adjuster as a personal injury claim and likely they will pay you double what all of your doctor bills cost. I am not usually an advocate for suing, etc but when you get hit by some idiot who was texting, it makes you really want to take action (or it at least it did to me). Good luck man and let me know if you have any other random questions.
Old     (wakesk8er2)      Join Date: Mar 2002       12-18-2015, 7:43 PM Reply   
Thanks for the replies. Our insurance agent is going get me the information of an appraiser that she uses, so we will see what he says. My ideal situation would be to get a cash settlement for the repair, a cash settlement for diminished value, and take it all to the dealership and leave with a new 4Runner. I'm not sure if they can determine the diminished value if the vehicle is not repaired, though.

I have read cases where the insurance company is willing to approve frame repair rather than total the vehicle and I have a feeling that will be the case here. I don't know what frame repair rates are, but I don't think it will come close to the value of the car.

The scariest and worst part of the whole ordeal is that our 6 month old daughter was in the car with us. I had to hold myself back completely from talking to the girl. I would have lost it on her.
Old     (denystaucd)      Join Date: Feb 2003       12-18-2015, 8:19 PM Reply   
Just in case, but I'm sure you know, toss that baby car seat and make their insurance get you another. Limit your future liability even if the seat looks fine.
Cheers,
Dennis
Old     (jclimie)      Join Date: Aug 2015       12-18-2015, 8:49 PM Reply   
I am in the car business and if your carfax says frame damage most franchise dealers cannot sell your car so the trade in value will be very low based on having to take it to the auction. Trade in value would be around 30-40%less with frame damage than without having frame damage.
Old     (Cabledog)      Join Date: Dec 2013       12-18-2015, 9:43 PM Reply   
Ask for everything and negotiate. Include depreciation. New is new. Wrecked even a little on car fax is wrecked and takes value. Stand your ground.
Old     (mendo247)      Join Date: Mar 2005       12-19-2015, 9:00 AM Reply   
It really depends on the state you live in. Some states require you show that you have taken a loss. I've known people who have filed claims because the dealership only gave them so much for a trade in and they were claiming it was due to the accident. Once in court the insurance company shows that the dealership has the car listed for more than blue book so there is no diminished value.
Old     (Laker1234)      Join Date: Mar 2010       12-19-2015, 10:06 AM Reply   
Take your time and let the other driver's insurance pick up the tab. If your insurance pays for the repair, you're likely to be out a deductible.
.
Old     (magic)      Join Date: Mar 2002       12-19-2015, 10:53 AM Reply   
Had a similar experience 18 months ago.
At a complete stop on I5, traffic was stop n go
Dude slammed in to us at Highway speed
Wife was 36 weeks pregnant
7 year old in the back seat

Insurance company sent an adjuster out. He did his deal and the assessment was silly low. I took the car to a shop that did a much more detailed inspection and found the entire frame was messed up including panels misaligned up front. Car was totalled and we got a check pretty quick. The offer was higher than I expected too.

They will replace the car seat too.

What's your injuries like? That part was a nightmare for us. Other driver was driving a car titled to his ex wife and produced his sons insurance. We exhausted his PIP day one with 2 ambulance rides and complications due to my wife being near term with the baby. I ended up going with a lawyer to sort out the medical part. The property damage stuff was very easy in comparison.
Old    BamaMojo            01-07-2016, 6:00 PM Reply   
Depreciation claim

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