Car insurance question... Please help...

[silverSEV6]

hey folks! My sister got into a car accident a couple days ago (Dark, wet, coming out of a blind curve at 60mph, big cardboard box in the middle of the freeway, swerved, spun out, hit one concrete wall, spun some more across the freeway, hit another wall, stopped, and thus totalled her 07 SCION tC ).
She's gonna let the insurance take it. But since the car's paid off, she's wondering how much the insurance is gonna pay. I checked KBB.com, and the trade-in value of the car is $14,000. The private party value is $16,050. And the suggested retail value is $18,150.
Do any of you know which category the insurance is going by?
Anything will be helpful, thanks...

I posted this in the general discussion forum, but recieved only one reply, so i thought i'd post it here. Definately more heat in the GEN5 & 6 forum

[Erock08SE]

It depends on what coverage she has i believe. If its a fairly new car, some companies give you what the car was worth, others give you what the car is worth now. Best thing to do is call insurance and ask them.

[Erock08SE]

Hope shes alrite too, sounded like a bad accident.

[MrSo0h0o]

those damn delinquent cardboard boxes! lol.. all joking aside, i hope your sis is alright.. and those 07 tCs are gorgeous, i just realized they have projectors

[silverSEV6]

Originally Posted by MrSo0h0o

those damn delinquent cardboard boxes! lol.. all joking aside, i hope your sis is alright.. and those 07 tCs are gorgeous, i just realized they have projectors

Actually, the 07s dont have the projectors . The facelifted 08s do.
But my sister is ok. She partially dislocated her left shoulder (from the seatbelt), and got a couple of bad bruises.
Still, it sucks to see the Scion go. I am the original owner, sold it to her and got my "silver bullet" .
On another note, I was surprised to see that the tC has (or HAD ) a driver side knee airbag. I know that my GEN 6 has one, but its good that put those in the tC as a standard feature.

[white07cam]

how long has she had the car? i know some insurance companies will give you a brand new car if shes had it for less than 6 months. other than that i would go with the insurance company giving her the middle ground rate. hate to hear about stuff like that, no real way you can avoid it. but im impressed that its an 07 vehicle and completely paid off already

[wireless]

It depends on who the insurance company is. You'll get anywhere between trade-in and private party with most. It is going to be valued based on NADA Black Book values.

http://www.nadaguides.com/usedcars.a...=21&p=1&f=5004

[silverSEV6]

Originally Posted by white07cam

how long has she had the car? i know some insurance companies will give you a brand new car if shes had it for less than 6 months. other than that i would go with the insurance company giving her the middle ground rate. hate to hear about stuff like that, no real way you can avoid it. but im impressed that its an 07 vehicle and completely paid off already

I bought it originaly in august 06. Then sold it to her somewhere in jan-feb 07.
And yeah, its paid off because i paid cash for it.

[silverSEV6]

Originally Posted by wireless

It depends on who the insurance company is. You'll get anywhere between trade-in and private party with most. It is going to be valued based on NADA Black Book values.

http://www.nadaguides.com/usedcars.a...=21&p=1&f=5004

Thanks for the link, i checked and the trade-in is $14,675, retail is $17,050. Well, I hope that they pay $17K .
The good thing is that she didn't hit any other cars. So the insurance doesn't have to pay anybody else.

[cp44]

most likely theyll give her little over 14k, my mom got into a car accident with her corolla. A ford Explorer smashed into her from behind then she hit a Ford Contour infront. Their insurance gave us $7400 when the car's trade in was $6900 and retail was $9100.

[holimont]

Tell your sister not to take the first offer from the insurance company. They will low ball. Her argument is for replacement value - less deductible. KBB and Edmunds. The company will negotiate - tell her to stay firm.

Some policies will allow the policy holder to ask the company to provide a replacement. Try that.

[silverSEV6]

Originally Posted by holimont

Tell your sister not to take the first offer from the insurance company. They will low ball. Her argument is for replacement value - less deductible. KBB and Edmunds. The company will negotiate - tell her to stay firm.

Some policies will allow the policy holder to ask the company to provide a replacement. Try that.

Guys, thank you for your advise and input.
She doesn't want another tC. She wants something bigger, safer, and with trac/stability control. So i'm looking for a replacement car for her, but until she gets any money, cant really get serious about it...

[Engineer2048]

You're a good brother. Good luck with the insurane company.

[northshore11]

Insurance is regulated at the state level. That being said, your experience in OR may be different that an experience someone had on another state. The methods used to value the vehicle are very likely outlined by your state insurance department you should also review your sister's policy to see if it outlines valuation methods. Regardless of the value the company provides, ensure you ask for an explanation of the method used to determine the value. If you dispute the value or feel it is not reasonable explain your position to the claim rep. If your claim rep is unable to justify the value or unwilling to reconsider the value then you may want to make a formal inquiry with the insurance department, here is a link to that website.

http://www.cbs.state.or.us/external/ins/index.html

Good luck.

[clarkgrizwald]

whatever state your in you must assume insurance will butt rape you if you let them.