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Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / October 2006Request a few automotive purrs
Hi folks, A couple of days ago, I was sitting at a red light, when the guy in front of me suddenly started backing up. I leaned on the horn, but he kept coming. I watched in horror as the hood of my car buckled up right in front of me. I am fine. The impact wasn't strong enough to cause any injury. He was probably going about 5 miles an hour. My air bags didn't even open up. However, because he was in a large truck, and I drive a small economy car, the collision was able to do quite a bit of damage to my car. Today the tow truck came and hauled my car off to the body shop. The insurance adjuster is going to go over there to appraise the damage. I am worried they're going to "total" the car. (In case this isn't an expression used outside the US, "totalling" a car means that the cost of repairing the damage is greater than the total value of the car itself, so the insurance company does not pay to repair the car. Instead, they buy the damaged car from you for the current value.) If they do this, I will be in deep doo-doo. I can't afford to buy a new car. I don't know how much they would give me for the car, but whatever it is, it's probably less than what I would have to pay for anything decent. So I guess I'd have to get a car that's less than decent... which would be difficult because I commute 70 miles a day, so I need a reliable car! I have no money saved - all of my earnings, beyond what I spend for the basics, go toward paying back debts I built up while I was out of work. I've been working for 4 months, but haven't managed to set aside anything. This is one of my economic nightmares - losing my car and not being able to afford another one. Yet I can't get to work without one. Please purr that the insurance company sees fit to have my car repaired!! Joyce > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > Please purr that the insurance company sees fit to have my car > repaired!! I'm confused - do you have "no fault" insurance where you live? (I thought you were in California.) If the other driver backed into YOU, it is HE who is liable for the damage to your car (or his insurance company is). Can't you insist that it be repaired, in that case? On Mon 11 Sep 2006 08:03:07p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.anecdotes (news:4505f93b$0$34486$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net): > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce Sorry bout your car, Joyce. Try kellybluebook.com and see what the value is? I can't say that I know insurance companies pay you the book value for a total loss, but it'd help to know what it's worth. Heck, no one can prove what kind of condition it was in at this point. If it makes you feel any better, I know someone who bought a porche, used, and a few months after he bought it, he had an accident. The total loss was way less than what he owned on it, so in addition to having to get another car, he still owed the bank a lot of money for the totalled car. That story was what made me decide to get gap insurance when I bought my new truck last year. Damn, I keep meaning to find out if my insurance company can offer less on the premiums than I got from the dealer in the financing .......... Sorry; strayed away. Good luck, and hopefully they just fix it for you.  SignatureCheryl > That story was what made me > decide to get gap insurance when I bought my new truck last year. What's that? Never heard of it before. Joyce > What's that? Never heard of it before. Gap insurance is typically an add-on to your current policy (some have it by default) that pays the difference between the actual cost of the car and the outstanding balance on your loan, if any. So, in case you total the car, you don't owe a penny. :) SignatureVictor M. Martinez Owned and operated by the Fantastic Seven (TM) Send your spam here: uce@ftc.gov Email me here: pistorLITTER@BOXaustin.rr.com >> What's that? Never heard of it before. > > Gap insurance is typically an add-on to your current policy > (some have it by default) that pays the difference between the > actual cost of the car and the outstanding balance on your loan, > if any. So, in case you total the car, you don't owe a penny. :) Yep. One of those things I thought was unnecessary insurance until what happened to the guy at work with the Porche. Of course it's one of those things I'll probably never need (fingers crossed) but it was something like $5 a month added to my monthly payment, so seems worth it. SignatureCheryl > Gap insurance is typically an add-on to your current policy (some have > it by default) that pays the difference between the actual cost of the > car and the outstanding balance on your loan, if any. So, in case you > total the car, you don't owe a penny. :) Ahh, thanks. I don't have that problem since I have generally bought used cars and paid for them outright, so no balance due. But it's good to know about if I ever buy a more expensive car that I need to borrow money for! Thanks, Joyce > Please purr that the insurance company sees fit to have my car > repaired!! Lots and lots of purrs for the insurance company to deliver! SignatureVictor M. Martinez Owned and operated by the Fantastic Seven (TM) Send your spam here: uce@ftc.gov Email me here: pistorLITTER@BOXaustin.rr.com >Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > >Joyce What a dilemna! I sure pray and my cats are purring for a good and fast repair. -- CATherine > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce Joyce, which insurance company will cover the claim, yours or the truck driver's? If they want to total your car, please don't accept their settlement offer until you're sure you can replace your car with one of equal (or better) value. Insurance companies are notorious for "low-balling" claims. What they say it's worth is *usually* well below the replacement cost (don't forget to include taxes and license fees in the replacement cost). If the truck driver was at-fault (cited for his misdeed - you DID call the cops, right?) then his insurance company is liable for replacing your car with one of equal or better value. If it's covered under your insurance (you were cited), the same rule applies, but it's much harder to get any leverage for true replacement value from your insurance company (IME). Purrs that all goes well with your claim. PS, I am neither an insurance adjuster nor a lawyer, so you may feel free to take my advice with a dash/shaker/pound box of salt. SignatureSam, closely supervised by Mistletoe > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce Joyce, you might check on this with someone more knowledgeable, but IME you do not have to take the first amount they offer for settlement. Kind of the same thing happened to my father years ago...my mother's car was older, but a cream puff..& someone ran into him enough to total it. The first offer was ridiculously low, and he just refused to take it. They came along later with a better one. Sherry > Joyce, you might check on this with someone more knowledgeable, but IME > you do not have to take the first amount they offer for settlement. > Kind of the same thing happened to my father years ago...my mother's > car was older, but a cream puff..& someone ran into him enough to total > it. The first offer was ridiculously low, and he just refused to take > it. They came along later with a better one. I didn't know you could do that. But I don't understand why they would bother to do this - what's in it for them to offer more money if I said no to their first offer? Joyce > > Joyce, you might check on this with someone more knowledgeable, but IME > > you do not have to take the first amount they offer for settlement. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Joyce Maybe not go to court? I dunno, Joyce. My mom had died and her car was one of those that sat in the garage for many, many years. Although it was old in years, it hardly had any miles on it. I think my father was just so infuriated at getting offered such a paltry sum, he literally threw the check back at them. And the accident was really stupid. He had taken the car out to an automated car wash, was sitting in the wash, and some moron hit him from the rear so hard it crushed the car between it and the car in front of him. Maybe that story would have helped the case in court. Maybe they were happy he wasn't hollering "whiplash". Sherry > > Joyce, you might check on this with someone more knowledgeable, but IME > > you do not have to take the first amount they offer for settlement. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Joyce Well if you can prove you lost more than they are offering and their driver is a fault, you can sue them for your actual loss. And it can be easier to argue for fix it, don't total it if is their insurance. You don't have a contract with their insurance so you have more leeway in demanding what you should be entitled to. Jo Purrs to you joyce: I've been in this situation before and hope that it goes well for you. > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce [car being crashed by back-up'er] > I have no money saved - all of my earnings, beyond what I spend for > the basics, go toward paying back debts I built up while I was out > of work. I've been working for 4 months, but haven't managed to set > aside anything. This is one of my economic nightmares - losing my > car and not being able to afford another one. Yet I can't get to work > without one. Since you can't get to work without a car, having one is more or less "basic" too. I hope there will be no need to, but do you think you might be able to reduce your paying-back for about the amount you will need to finance another car? > Please purr that the insurance company sees fit to have my car > repaired!! Sending many purrs that your car can be repaired. Squarely Yours Michael SignatureSquare Dance is friendship put to music Andrea and Michael with tomcat-cats Blacky and Merlin More detailed info: http://www.curschmann-sachsen.de > Since you can't get to work without a car, having one is more or less > "basic" too. I hope there will be no need to, but do you think you > might be able to reduce your paying-back for about the amount you will > need to finance another car? I will most likely have to postpone some of the paying back so I'll have the cash to buy a car, yes. It's a bummer, but I guess folks will understand. But *financing* a car (if by "financing" you meant borrowing from a bank rather than simply "allocating money for") is out of the question. No sane bank would lend me a penny. I probably won't be able to get even a gas credit card for the next 7 years! Thanks for the purrs, Joyce > But *financing* a car (if by "financing" you meant borrowing from a > bank rather than simply "allocating money for") is out of the question. > No sane bank would lend me a penny. I probably won't be able to get > even a gas credit card for the next 7 years! Well, maybe no bank, but what's with a car dealer, especially one which is producer-related? They often are so desperate to sell a car - and this should apply for used ones too (another as a used car will not be in the question, I assume) - that they offer credit terms to consider. Squarely Yours Michael SignatureSquare Dance is friendship put to music Andrea and Michael with furballs Blacky and Merlin More detailed info: http://www.curschmann-sachsen.de <snip> > Please purr that the insurance company sees fit to have my car > repaired!! > > Joyce Purrs on the way. A similar thing happened to my brother about ten years ago, he was able to claim for emotional trauma from the truck driver's insurance. SignatureAdrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart. http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk > Please purr that the insurance company sees fit to have my car > repaired!! > > Joyce Lots of purrs and luck for you! On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 00:03:07 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce Just a few thoughts: Have you asked your own insurance company for advice? Does the other person's insurance provide a "loaner" car while yours is disabled? Does your own insurance policy cover "insufficient" coverage if the other insurance doesn't cover everything? As I recall, the other person's insurance is supposed to get you a car equal to or better than your own, if they decide to "total" yours. Best wishes. MLB > On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 00:03:07 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 46 lines] > get you a car equal to or better than your own, if they decide to > "total" yours. Best wishes. MLB Something similar happened to me (actually, they failed to yield the right of way, and I couldn't stop & T-boned them - thankfully there were no injuries), and their insurance said that my car was officially "totaled", that it was worth about $1,800 dollars before the wreck, the wreck caused $2,100 worth of damage. *However*, at that time was GEICO (the car was still in my parent's name, as I was buying it from them and had only a few payments left - I couldn't afford new and I figured that I had been driving that car for years & knew it, so why settle for a used car I *didn't* know?), and I had called them for advice. They had said that if I had any problem with the other people's insurance (a much smaller company), I only had to pay $50 deductible and they would take them to court. I mentioned this to the other insurance company when they called to inform me that my car was "totaled". I heard the rustling of some paper (which was probably that guy looking up the accident report and seeing who my insurance company way :D), and he said that he would have to get back with me. Two days later I had the check for the *full* *amount* of the repairs in my hand - and it was up to *me* whether to fix my car or invest in another. > > On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 00:03:07 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: > > [quoted text clipped - 67 lines] > Two days later I had the check for the *full* *amount* of the repairs in my > hand - and it was up to *me* whether to fix my car or invest in another. If I am not mistaken, I believe you also have the right to have your car assessed by an independent estimator of your choice, regardless of which insurance company is paying. They are more likely to give you a more honest evaluation of both the damage and the likely value of the car prior to accident. And if you do that, the insurance company is more likely to play fair when they know that they are not dealing with a gulla-bull. 8^P. ---tension > If I am not mistaken, I believe you also have the right to have your > car assessed by an independent estimator of your choice, regardless of [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > more likely to play fair when they know that they are not dealing with > a gulla-bull. 8^P. I'm a serious gulla-bull, but only because I have terrible mental blocks about any money-oriented issue. Case in point: I got straight A's in upper level math courses in college, and really loved learning about some pretty difficult abstract concepts. I was great at that. Yet, I can barely balance my checkbook! Even in calculus class, when we were studying abstract numerical theories, I was fine. But at one point, we were discussing how compounding interest works, which apparently uses calculus to compute them, and I simply could not get it, even though I was otherwise an A student. Weird, eh? My mind turns to jelly as soon as a decimal point is introduced. :) Anyway, I have a question about your comments. It sounds like the implication is that the insurance company would prefer to total the car because that is better for them than paying for the damages. But why, unless the cost of the damages is really a lot higher than the car's value. If it's about equal, or even if the car is actually worth more than the cost of the damage, would the insurance company still try to declare a total loss? That's what it sounds like you're saying. And I don't understand why they'd do that. Thanks, Joyce On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 21:14:36 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: > > If I am not mistaken, I believe you also have the right to have your > > car assessed by an independent estimator of your choice, regardless of [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > Thanks, > Joyce Here is an example: I bought a lovely Buick from a neighbor who was terrified of driving. It had only 11,000 miles on it. One week later, I was in the parking lot of a prominent furniture store -- the only car in the parking lot. I came out just in time to see that one of their moving trucks had backed into it and ruined the trunk lid. They, of course, contacted their insurance company and a young lady from there called me and told me they "would have to call it "totaled". I was so surprised that I screamed at her "the He-- you will! The car is brand new". I was so angry and I let them know it. I had the car fixed by the Buick dealer and their insurance company paid the bill. Insurance companies try to make money any way they can. So don't be gullible -- just stick up for yourself and get yourself some friend to help if you can. Get yourself at least two estimates from body shops of your choice and keep the paperwork. Good luck. MLB > > If I am not mistaken, I believe you also have the right to have your > > car assessed by an independent estimator of your choice, regardless of [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] > Thanks, > Joyce For one thing, they get the car cheap by "totaling" it and can then fix it on the cheap and resell it. If they fix it for you they have to provide better repairs. Jo > For one thing, they get the car cheap by "totaling" it and can then fix it > on the cheap and resell it. If they fix it for you they have to provide > better repairs. It doesn't seem like they get the car cheap - they have to pay you a settlement for the car, which is usually close to the retail value of the car. So they pay a decent price for the car, and then they're the proud owners of a wreck. I don't see how that benefits them, except that I guess that's better than paying for repairs when the damage is very extensive. I get the feeling that most of you who are responding are used to owning much more expensive cars than I have. So if such a car is "totalled", that implies some pretty major damage. I mean, say your car is worth $14K. It would take a *lot* of damage to reach that figure! In which case, I would certainly expect the car to be beyond repair. My car is a 1997 low-end Toyota with 114K miles on it. It's not worth a lot, and body work is expensive, so it doesn't take much damage for the cost of repairs to equal or exceed the car's value. This has happened to me before - I had some cosmetic damage to the body on a car I owned years ago, and it was declared a total loss simply because it would have cost them more to repair it. It was a 4-year old Tercel. But the car was completely drivable, so I bought it back and kept driving it for many more years. Since it was considered "salvage" I couldn't get collision coverage, but I didn't care. I had liability, which is all that was legally required. Joyce > > For one thing, they get the car cheap by "totaling" it and can then fix it > > on the cheap and resell it. If they fix it for you they have to provide [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > > Joyce It is most likely true that they will pay you the lower of either the estimate for repairs, or the replacement value of the vehicle and if it was in decent shape, that should be equivalent to the Kelley Blue Book value. Since it is a Toyota, the blue book will give a fairly reasonable value on account of the resale value of Toyotas. With that, if your car is not reparable, then you should be able to pick up an older similar car for the bluebook value of an old Toyota. Fortunately those Japanese cars have a lifespan as old as Methuselah if you look after the engine. Is it possible that you can take the settlement for the value of the car, and only spend what you need to on the engine, and forget the body work? I know it doesn't look pretty, but if your job depends on transport, then how important is it how the transport looks, as long as it gets you from point A to point B? Good luck --tension > Is it possible that you can take the settlement for the value of the > car, and only spend what you need to on the engine, and forget the body > work? I know it doesn't look pretty, but if your job depends on > transport, then how important is it how the transport looks, as long as > it gets you from point A to point B? Minor point. When they pay you the value of the car, they take the car. > > Is it possible that you can take the settlement for the value of the > > car, and only spend what you need to on the engine, and forget the body [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Minor point. When they pay you the value of the car, they take the car. Only if the value of the car is *more* than the repair cost. You can opt to accept up to the value of the car and use it for repairs and take on the additional expenses yourself. Then they will not take the car. In that case, though, generally, you have to commit to the repair and they will pay the mechanic directly, in order to ensure that you don't pocket the money. Though in my opinion you should be allowed to do what you want with it since you paid enough premiums for it. ---tension > Minor point. When they pay you the value of the car, they take the car. But you can "buy it back" for an extremely cheap price. Joyce > Is it possible that you can take the settlement for the value of the > car, and only spend what you need to on the engine, and forget the body > work? I know it doesn't look pretty, but if your job depends on > transport, then how important is it how the transport looks, as long as > it gets you from point A to point B? Happily, I don't have to worry about that now, thanks to the power of international RPCA cat purring! :) But if I did, I would not have had that option, as the body damage was on the hood. The hood was quite bent. And that can't go unrepaired. But yeah, ordinarily, I would consider just getting the necessary work done and leaving the cosmetic problems alone. I've certainly done that before. Joyce On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 16:14:34 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: > > Is it possible that you can take the settlement for the value of the > > car, and only spend what you need to on the engine, and forget the body [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > Joyce Perhaps a new hood could be found at a salvage shop. When I tried to exit a narrow driveway and hit a post, my door was badly crumpled. The body shop found a door at a salvage yard (same model car) then painted it to match. Just a thought. MLB > On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 16:14:34 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: <snip> >> The hood was quite bent. >> And that can't go unrepaired. [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > shop found a door at a salvage yard (same model car) then painted it to > match. Just a thought. MLB Thats different. Since ONLY your door was affected, it could be replaced that way. But if someone backs up and hit you so badly that your hood is bend - as it happend here -, most likely important structural parts of your car are damaged, too. Those parts MUST be replaced due to safety reasons. And if the car was contorted due to the crash there MUST be done truing, otherwise the car is no longer driveable. That is, because all dimensions on an undamaged car are very delicately balanced to achieve the desired "drive feeling". Squarely Yours Michael SignatureSquare Dance is friendship put to music Andrea and Michael with furballs Blacky and Merlin More detailed info: http://www.curschmann-sachsen.de >Happily, I don't have to worry about that now, thanks to the power of >international RPCA cat purring! :) But if I did, I would not have had [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >done and leaving the cosmetic problems alone. I've certainly done that >before. The insurance company decided to repair it? That's good! I'm personally so cheap that I would probably have just had a friend hammer the hood straight, put on some primer, and called it good. :) > > If I am not mistaken, I believe you also have the right to have your > > car assessed by an independent estimator of your choice, regardless of [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > Thanks, > Joyce On the whole, in most cases you are right. But it depends on the company, not all policies are identical, so check yours by calling the general info and ask, without mentioning that you currently have a claim, see if you can get a general idea of the policy, then see how it applies to your situation. I bought a brand new car in which, 18 mths later, I survived a high-speed head-on collision (they were going high-speed, not me). They were prepared to write the car off, as it was a new car with good resale value, and the damage was close to $10,000 CDN, which was only a couple of thou less than the total value of the car, and even though, because the car was new, my policy provided for a replacement car if totalled which would have cost a bit more than that...which they would have had to pay. While I was processing this information, they called me back within a few days and said they changed their mind, they would prefer to repair. Took two months, they had to rebuild the engine almost from scratch, but they did it, and despite what usually happens to a car after an accident of that nature, I drove it for a total of 13 years with impeccable performance. Except the antennae and window would get stuck periodically as their tracks were never totally straightened out properly. ---tension "Magic Mood Jeep?" <nobody@nowhere.net> wrote: > I heard the rustling of some paper (which was probably that guy looking up > the accident report and seeing who my insurance company way :D), and he said > that he would have to get back with me. > Two days later I had the check for the *full* *amount* of the repairs in my > hand - and it was up to *me* whether to fix my car or invest in another. Did you choose to have the car fixed? And if you did, were you able to get collision insurance for the car, or was that the end of being able to insure for collision? Joyce > "Magic Mood Jeep?" <nobody@nowhere.net> wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Joyce Yes, I got the car fixed. Since the wreck was not my fault (while I have gotten a speeding ticket, and a ticket for running a light (oopsie :D), I have never been in a wreck that was *my* fault!!! Knock wood!), insurance carried on until I paid off the car and it was put in my name - then GEICO said nope, not gonna happen (that was back in the mid-eighties, when GEICO was still for Government Employees (civilian employees and military, active & retired) *only*, and not a public insurance company hawked by a lizard), and then I went with American Family, and got a discount as I also had my renter's insurance with them. Have been with them ever since, insuring both vehicles & home. On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 00:03:07 +0000, jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt wrote: > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce Suggestion: Remember that THEY are responsible for the accident. Don't let some smart guy intimidate you -- fight back. I discovered that insurance companies do repair a lot of those "totaled" cars and sell them. So when you get another car be sure to get it's complete history of the car. Do you have a relative or friend who can also lend support to you in handling this matter? As suggested before, ask advice and counsel from your own insurance company and don't just settle for the person who answers the phone if you are not satisfied. God luck. MLB > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Joyce Lots and lots of purrs and best wishes for you to get the car back repaired, Polonca and Soncek Belated purrs being sent by the pack > Hi folks, > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Joyce |
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