Diminished Value Car Insurance Claim

Aaaand last night as I'm driving home on the highway traffic comes to an abrupt halt. The pickup behind me stops, the guy behind him was towing a 7K lb trailer and could not. He slams into the guy behind me who is then driven into the back of my truck. Sucks to be in an accident, sucks a bit less when it's not your fault.

I have an appointment tomorrow to assess the damage, however, I know that the value of the vehicle is diminished now that it has an accident against it. I know there is a vehicle for filing a claim to the auto insurance for the diminished value of the vehicle. Has anyone done this before? From everything I'm reading the insurance companies will pretend you don't know what you are talking about but it is a legitimate request and I am entitled to additional compensation.

Personal experience anyone?

 

Need to check the laws / court decisions in your state.

 

I'd say the best you could hope for is for them to total your truck out.

The truck has a value to it right now, filing for a "diminished" value would be hard to prove as the truck loses value every day you own it.

 

Colorado is a diminished value state, so by law I am entitled to something. I'm just not familiar with the process as the only other real accident I was involved in my vehicle was totaled. No diminished value there!

 

It is by no means a totaled kinda situation. I will let the assessor determine how much, but the value of this collision will more than likely be less than the diminished value of the vehicle were I to sell it. It's the delta between used vehicle with no reported collisions vs. used vehicle with 1 reported collision that I'm interested in recuperating.

 

Are you keeping the truck 10 years?

If yes, there will be no DV that can be calculated.

If you dump your cars every 2 years, then there will be. But it won't matter because you have extra money to spend on cars and the point is mute.

 

Well, even KBB doesn't have a "is it wrecked" choice that I've seen. Sure a buyer could run a carfax and see the accident claimed, but you as a seller could stand firm on your price.

So, the only diminished value would be what a buyer sees. That could be any number they choose.

At the end of the day the insurance company will only give you what it costs to repair the vehicle and whomever repairs it 'should' be qualified to fix it "good as new". So there is no real diminished value based on the accident.

 

Several years ago was rearended in a new F150. As part of my claim against the other guys insurance my insurer told me about Diminished Valuation in Texas. If I ever sold the 2000 F150 (still running great with 265,000) I am sure CarFax would tell about the damage.

I did receive several Grand for Diminished Valuation in addition to being repaired. But another poster is right the insurance companies really hope you don't know about Diminished Valuation.

 

A little late to the game here, but thought I'd add my experience. I also live in Colorado and was hit in an audi a4 I owned a few years back. I researched DV claims quite a bit and had success in the end. Here are the steps to take:

1. Get your car fixed and make sure the repairs are done properly
2. Research to see if your state acknowledges diminished value claims and what type of success other drivers have had in getting money (Colorado is a such a state)
3. Get a 3rd party appraisal of your car's diminished value. Research companies and use a reputable one as you will spend $300-400 on the appraisal. They will provide you with a report that shows your pre/post value solely due to the fact you now have an accident listed on your carfax
4. Send a request letter to the insurance company and attach the appraisal (I could maybe track down the letter I used so you can have a template to start from)

After that, you have to bug the hell out of them as they hate paying diminished value. The insurance company I was working with had another 3rd party appraisal done and ended up offering close to what I was asking for. Sometimes they will either low ball you (in which you need to negotiate back and forth) or try to give you some BS as to why they shouldn't have to pay you (e.g. "we made your car whole again"). In the end, you can send a letter threatening to sue their insured (the person who hit you). That will usually make them pay up or you go through small claims court and sue the other driver (the insurance company is liable for them and if you win they will pay you).

In most states you can submit a diminished value claim up to 2 years after your accident

I ended up getting $3k on top of the $7,500 repair bill for a car that was worth at the time around $24k (IF it didn't have the accident on the carfax).