# Someone wrote my car off,replacement price



## Soapybubbles

My car was written off whilst parked outside my house

The other driver has admitted liability etc

The insurance assessor from my insurance company who are dealing with my claim against them called me earlier to confirm it's a write off and offer me a figure for it which I am (as expected) not happy with.

I have a few questions

1) Why is my insurance company offering me money for it? Shouldn't it be independently done or the other parties insurance?

2) I have asked for a copy of the damage report but was told this is not something that is given out to owners?

3) I have emailed them with examples of vehicles similar to mine to justify the asking price for my car, they offered me £4K I told them I want £6k.

Where do I stand here?

The car is currently lying at my local copart yard.


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## Kerr

We went through this a couple of years ago when she wrote her Mini Clubman S off. 

There was nothing available on the market for the money we were offered. We took the case to the financial ombudsman and still lost. 

They explained the insurance company has offered market value for the car and that was fair. They used Parkers, CAP and Glass's guide to find the worth of the car. The advertised prices were irrelevant. There was zero chance of getting the same car for the money. 

Using the HPI/Cap valuation sites on the internet as a private sale your car is valued at £3700-4000.


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## Alan W

Sorry to hear this. 

I would suggest you put your registration number on retention as soon as possible otherwise it may become the property of the insurance company once a settlement is agreed.

Alan W


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## Soapybubbles

Alan W said:


> Sorry to hear this.
> 
> I would suggest you put your registration number on retention as soon as possible otherwise it may become the property of the insurance company once a settlement is agreed.
> 
> Alan W


Did it earlier once they confirmed it's a total loss


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## Soul boy 68

Gutted for you soapy, can't believe they wrote it off, hope you get another car worthy of the Megane. On a side note, I've not seen you on here for a long time.


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## ianrobbo1

It seems like not that bad damage, have you asked how much the parts are and if possible buy it back and rebuild?? yes, I am aware many wouldn't want to do this but you could end up with a car you know and is fixed properly!! just a question!!


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## slim_boy_fat

ianrobbo1 said:


> It seems like not that bad damage, have you asked how much the parts are and if possible buy it back and rebuild?? yes, I am aware many wouldn't want to do this but you could end up with a car you know and is fixed properly!! just a question!!


Wouldn't that depend on which Category they placed it in? There could be much more damage to the shell [requiring jigging etc] than is apparent.

Unless the OP intends to keep it until it dies a natural death, it could be difficult to sell on.

Good idea to ask for the damage report, but I doubt he'll be given access to it as the Assessor is acting on behalf of the Insce Co and it will remain their property.


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## Christian6984

I was lucky to be offered more than i could have sold the car for at the time it was crashed, it also went to copart but i had agreed there value of £1150 first, they also hadn't physically inspected the car and only seen it from photos. The car was old and high mileage but declared CAT B so i couldn't have bought it from them, it made £160 which would be fine for a breaker because all but one side was fine. If it is CAT S/N then depending on what it makes it could be a potential, you'd need to carefully work out the cost to put it right and then any fees on top of the sale price and transport costs. Also need to bare in mind that as a CAT S/N it will never be worth market value should you sell it, so would work out the value of a previously damaged one and work backwards the costs and to make sure you only pay what it would be worth. If it ends up to high it would be better to walk away and find a replacement.

Just had a quick check and cant see it on the copart site yet


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## bluechimp

This is awful news mate, not a nice situation to be in.

The insurance companies have you by the dangly’s and it is so frustrating. I would definitely look at buy back and repair, that might be more difficult without the damage report, but maybe put a freedom of information request in on it?


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## MagpieRH

Proper bummer.

Agree it's strange your insurance making you the offer and not showing interest in you not being happy with it. Surely they should be fighting your corner with the other party's insurance who will be the ones forking out? 

Good luck with it, let us know how you get on, but from the above it looks like that might be what you get sadly.


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## AndyQash

When an elderly gentleman smashed into my X-Trail, his insurance company decided they were going to write it off and offered me £2500, but like you I thought it wasn't enough considering how much I had spent on the car, so I refused the payoff and insisted that they fixed the car, so after much arguing and threats of legal action against them through the ombudsman, because they weren't putting me in the same position as before their client had run into me, they finally backed down and fixed the car.

I suppose it comes down to whether or not you want the car fixing or you want a sensible payout.

Either way, don't let them dictate what happens and good luck.

Sent from my moto g(6) play using Tapatalk


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## AndyN01

It sounds as if you have made a claim against your insurance policy.

As far as I know (and very happy to be corrected by those with more knowledge/experience) that means that YOUR insurance are calling the shots.

They can (have) written your car off for "market value" and will simply seek to recover that from the third party. You can, I believe, take them to court to show that the amount they have offered is not the "market value" but the chances of success are in the lap of the Gods.

An alternative - now probably too late for you  - is to NOT claim from your insurance company but simply "inform" them (as we are required to do) - making it crystal clear that this is NOT a claim. Claim directly from the third party (insurance) and if at all possible keep physical possession of the car.

Do not let the car out of your sight! Any "assessment" must be done with you, ideally at wherever the car is now being kept. Try not to allow it to be "taken to a workshop" - there's many instances of it never being seen it again!

I think that the third party's insurance must return the car to to condition it was in prior to the collision - at whatever that costs. They cannot tell you that they are writing if off for market value.

Hope you can get it all sorted out.

Andy.


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## ollienoclue

I wouldn't want a car repaired and given back to me, too many people I know have had it done and were less than satisfied and it's a rigamarole to sort it afterward.


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## Shiny

Speak to your Broker (if you have one) about your options. Or possibly your Insurer, but they may not be so helpful.

Have the third party insurers been in contact offering to deal with the claim? Not all TP Insurers offer this service, some will just sit back and wait for the claim to come in against them.

Bear in mind you have already initiated a claim with your own insurers. They will have already encountered recovery costs, storage costs, assessors fees and so on. Just pulling the claim and dealing with the TP Insurers may complicate matters, especially if there are ongoing storage charges. This will effectively delay the progress of the claim which will mean additional storage charges.

There's lots to be considered here, so speak to your Insurers.

With regard to contesting the value, ask your local Renault dealer for a valuation, you may have to pay for this. Comparable for sale ads generally don’t have much impact, as they show an asking price, not necessarily the true sale price. No harm in using them as ammunition though. See if you can find any “sold” prices, Ebay “completed” listings may help with this. Draw on the fact of the condition of the vehicle, mileage and anything else that you feel will add value. Either way, be realistic in your expectations (£6k may well be realistic).


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## Soapybubbles

Shiny said:


> Speak to your Broker (if you have one) about your options. Or possibly your Insurer, but they may not be so helpful.
> 
> Have the third party insurers been in contact offering to deal with the claim? Not all TP Insurers offer this service, some will just sit back and wait for the claim to come in against them.
> 
> Bear in mind you have already initiated a claim with your own insurers. They will have already encountered recovery costs, storage costs, assessors fees and so on. Just pulling the claim and dealing with the TP Insurers may complicate matters, especially if there are ongoing storage charges. This will effectively delay the progress of the claim which will mean additional storage charges.
> 
> There's lots to be considered here, so speak to your Insurers.
> 
> With regard to contesting the value, ask your local Renault dealer for a valuation, you may have to pay for this. Comparable for sale ads generally don't have much impact, as they show an asking price, not necessarily the true sale price. No harm in using them as ammunition though. See if you can find any "sold" prices, Ebay "completed" listings may help with this. Draw on the fact of the condition of the vehicle, mileage and anything else that you feel will add value. Either way, be realistic in your expectations (£6k may well be realistic).


The 3rd party insurer did indeed contact me directly the day after the accident to say I could claim directly from them if I do wanted,but I had already initiated a claim through my insurer.

I was very surprised with my insurers attitude towards the accident,it was as if they were more than happy to take my explanation of the damage and declare it a write off over the phone to me.

I assume they want to give me as little as post for it so they can make more money claiming the loss back from the 3rd party?

Would putting pressure on my insurer by making them aware I am considering pulling my claim with them and claiming direct from 3rd party, unless I receive a better price for my car,be wise or not?


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## Shiny

Soapybubbles said:


> The 3rd party insurer did indeed contact me directly the day after the accident to say I could claim directly from them if I do wanted,but I had already initiated a claim through my insurer.
> 
> I was very surprised with my insurers attitude towards the accident,it was as if they were more than happy to take my explanation of the damage and declare it a write off over the phone to me.
> 
> I assume they want to give me as little as post for it so they can make more money claiming the loss back from the 3rd party?
> 
> Would putting pressure on my insurer by making them aware I am considering pulling my claim with them and claiming direct from 3rd party, unless I receive a better price for my car,be wise or not?


You Insurers have to be able to justify their claim costs to the TP insurers. They don't make money out of this, they just get their losses reimbursed. Lets say your Insurers just you give £10k for the car, the TP Insurers will respond with the market value being £5k and only pay them that, leaving your Insurers facing a loss. Your Insurers will need to make an offer in line with market values to try and avoid quantum being contested by the TP insurers. If you can prove your car's market value is £6k and your Insurers agree, they then have the ammunition to claim the £6k back from the TP if contested.

You could of course ask the TP Insurers to now deal with your claim, but they may well come back and offer you £4k. You'll probably have less chance negotiating with them too. Then again they may come back £6k, but they will be using similar pricing methods to your own insurers, so it is most likely to then come in at £5k. To be honest, I've dealt with far more total loss claims that have started with a TP Insurer and then gone back to their own Insurer due to the TPI offer being lowball than the other way round.

The fact that your car may be incurring ongoing storage costs may also present a problem. The TP Insurers may not want to pay any additional storage costs as a result of you changing your mind and claiming from them. Your own Insurers won't want to meet the additional costs either as they've made you an offer that they believed was reasonable.

If it were me, I'd be negotiating with my own Insurers at this stage and see what increased offer i can get. If you remain unhappy you can always present your case to the FOS for an independent review.


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## idrobbo

Just a thought, if you have Motor Legal cover have a word with them as to where you stand.


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## Soapybubbles

Just to revive this thread.

I’ve received my total loss amount from my insurance company. The 3rd party has admitted liability.

However my insurance has now ended for the year and my insurer are withholding my ncb because they are saying they have not yet settled the costs with the 3 rd party? 

They are giving me 1 year ncb instead of 4 years until it is settled? 

Can they do this? Doesn’t seem right to me?


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## Shiny

Your no claims bonus will be "held in abeyance" until your Insurers have made a full recovery of their outlay. Once this happens, they will reinstate your NCB and reimburse any extra premium you have paid backdated to the renewal. At this moment in time, there is a claim outstanding where costs have not been recovered so your NCB will be reduced in accordance with the Insurers step-back scale. This is standard practice.

It may be worth asking your Insurers if the TP Insurers have agreed quantum, your insurers may take a more relaxed view and reinstate your NCB if liability and costs are not in dispute and they are just waiting the payment from the TP.


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## Soapybubbles

Shiny said:


> Your no claims bonus will be "held in abeyance" until your Insurers have made a full recovery of their outlay. Once this happens, they will reinstate your NCB and reimburse any extra premium you have paid backdated to the renewal. At this moment in time, there is a claim outstanding where costs have not been recovered so your NCB will be reduced in accordance with the Insurers step-back scale. This is standard practice.
> 
> It may be worth asking your Insurers if the TP Insurers have agreed quantum, your insurers may take a more relaxed view and reinstate your NCB if liability and costs are not in dispute and they are just waiting the payment from the TP.


That's perfect,thanks for the response.

Also just to clarify,my insurer offered me 4K for the car as a total loss,which I declined, I was then contacted by an independent valuation person who offered me £5169....he told me on the phone he had no idea why I was offered so little initially?!


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## James_R

Good news eventually Soapybubbles :thumb:

Once you get your NCB reinstated anyway.

Good advice and info from Shiny as usual.


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