2 Months and she's DONE

[theblackdogman]

Yeah they want to repair it however GEICO is telling me some shady things when I inquired about diminished value. "Neither Geico nor State Farm will report anything on the accident to those agencies." I'm going to consult with a property damage lawyer before I allow any repairs on the car and find out 100% what my rights are and what should be happening as I don't trust either of the insurance companies.

Consult the lawyer but throw any insurance questions my way as well. I can answer them.

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[sgtmorph]

Not sure if this helps but here's my brief story:
On 11/12/13 (lol) I was driving maybe 35-40 down the road in my 2011 Civic Si sedan.
Didnt even realize it until after it happened, but my car just spun out and hit a telephone pole.
I had hit a patch of black ice i didnt see.
GEICO valued my Si then at $19,500.00 and stated around $11,000-something in damage.
They considered it total loss since i had a side airbag deploy and A-pillar was bent.

The point in me mentioning this is, I dont think you necessarily need 75-80% for them to consider it total loss. But then again...idk

 

[theblackdogman]

Yep, agreed, the total loss threshold in NY is 75% but the adjuster can make the determination to total the vehicle with enough pressure. Some state have their own custom formula like CA.

There is another option. In some states, if your car is a total loss, you can have them take the salvage estimate off the amount of the check and then release the car back to you. It is then your responsibility to get the car back to the point where it could pass a DMV inspection and have a salvage title issued.

 

[MattyNice]

Your best bet is to have both companies look at it and make their own determination and then you can pick the better one. Your problem is transportation in that situation as the rental will only be provided so long. More than likely, an attorney that will handle the car only, if you can find one, will have fees that will surpass any benefit you may gain.

It does look repairable to me. Most cars are. They are totaled as it’s cheaper to total it than repair it. I wouldn’t worry about the frame. The civic, as most vehicles on the road, don’t have frames. They are unibody construction and easily repaired.

 

[CGMIXN]

If they repair and your not happy which we all know none of us would be trade her in for a new one.

 

[RyouSiRIOUS]

If they repair and your not happy which we all know none of us would be trade her in for a new one.

Yeah, I called the sales guy yesterday and asked him to give me what the trade-in value would be once repaired. I need to gather information to present to GEICO for "proof" of diminished value..as if they don't know a car with that much damage is going to be worth less money. Once I get this all settled and a diminished value claim thrown their way I'm just gonna go shop for an R.

 

[BogdanM]

If it helps, in EU a car with any kind of frame damage is considered total loss automatically, no matter how much it costs to have it fixed. This is because there is no official repairing method which guarantees 100% that the frame has the same strength after repair as it had before. As a result, no insurance company and no officially approved repair shop wants to get into such repairs, they will refuse it due to them not being able to get the car to the same state as it was before the accident. As such, the insurance company will fail to deliver their part of the deal (as per the contract), repairing the car to the exact same state as before the accident.

Only way to repair a car with this kind of damage is in some shady repair shops, paying out of your pocket but that car will never drive straight again.

 

[RyouSiRIOUS]

Consult the lawyer but throw any insurance questions my way as well. I can answer them.

Thank you for your help, brother. What all do I need to do as far as getting a diminished value claim to GEICO?

 

[theblackdogman]

Thank you for your help, brother. What all do I need to do as far as getting a diminished value claim to GEICO?

The diminished value claim will go against the other persons insurance company. Typically, the other persons insurance will try to get you to pay for an appraisal after the car has been repaired. After that, there is a "formula" that many use to determine the diminished value. Here is a catch though, some insurance companies may tell you that they don't recognize diminished value. If that happens, you can actually hire a company for about 250 to handle your diminished value claim for you. Although it will eat into your settlement, it is totally worth it for not having to deal with the headache.

So to start, just call the other persons insurance company and tell them you want to file a DV claim then see where that takes you.

 

[Yal]

There are inspectors that can do a diminished value evaluation, probably costs money, but if you want to go through with it, you'll need the evaluation and possibly an attorney.

Progressive, and I believe AAA don't do diminished value. When the vehicle is repaired, they consider it good as new and "warranty" the repair for life.

I had a big panel on the back of my BRZ replaced and when I went to get rid of the car, through a "buy center" they gave me $20k for the car and we found out that the repair was never reported to CarFax.

 

[RyouSiRIOUS]

The diminished value claim will go against the other persons insurance company. Typically, the other persons insurance will try to get you to pay for an appraisal after the car has been repaired. After that, there is a "formula" that many use to determine the diminished value. Here is a catch though, some insurance companies may tell you that they don't recognize diminished value. If that happens, you can actually hire a company for about 250 to handle your diminished value claim for you. Although it will eat into your settlement, it is totally worth it for not having to deal with the headache.

So to start, just call the other persons insurance company and tell them you want to file a DV claim then see where that takes you.

Alright, that sounds fair. Monday I will authorize the collision center to proceed with the repairs. Once complete I will pay for an appraisal and go from there. Thank you all for your help and I will keep this thread updated.

 

[RedBullHondaF1]

Yeah they want to repair it however GEICO is telling me some shady things when I inquired about diminished value. "Neither Geico nor State Farm will report anything on the accident to those agencies." I'm going to consult with a property damage lawyer before I allow any repairs on the car and find out 100% what my rights are and what should be happening as I don't trust either of the insurance companies.

You should sue for sure. GEICO of course is telling you shady things....its you're right to get diminished value. https://www.wikihow.com/Collect-Diminished-Value

With a bad carfax...when you go to trade in your car you lose 20 percent of the value vs the same identical vehicle that has a clean carfax...so yea...they are fucking with you.

 

[racer]

You'll spend more getting appraisals and fighting the insurance company than you would get in a diminished value claim. You car, sadly, is not a limited production, 1 of 200 cars built worldwide. Its a Civic Si. It will be full repaired and warrantied like someone above mentioned. It is, in fact, "as good as it was". You've lost more value in depreciation than from the accident. How much do you view your "diminished value" claim to be worth? $1000?

 

[augustus]

This is the crap our elected officials should be fixing (along with healthcare). The only things shadier than insurance companies are car dealerships. Everyone knows it and nothing is ever done about it.
Good luck RyouSIRIOUS, try to stay calm! Document everything.

 

[numbakrunch]

I would try to have State Farm handle the claim since they use OEM parts. Geico will use aftermarket parts whenever possible. BTW, I don't think these cars have frames, they are unibody.

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