Some of you probably remember this little 30 mph mishap in February when a guy runs a stop sign and I hit him a Glancing blow in the right corner, and lightly with right rear (cracked the fender)......Bent, frame, all new plastic parts in front end.....including new frame welded in just behind back of A frame mounts. The repair is done perfect (saw it myself....you cannot tell it was done......the car drives and performs perfect).....paint is very good. Darin Odle and his guy's in Newtown, In. can flat fix a car.....which is why it went there! They know their business

Not a great pic....but trust me.......it is Very Good.......perfect....no.

So here's the deal and where I need the help of THE People that know....you my Corvette Friends. If we don't know the value of these cars.....who does?
What have I lost in value? What is my diminished value? And YES....the Indiana Supreme Court recognizes it for people with my situation.

Two IDENTICAL VERY nice 03 Vettes....I mean identical........one is "X $$$"........the other is identical......drives perfect, new Bilstein Sports, fresh oil, tranny and rear end too.....but has had a $19,000 repair job done to make it perfect again..........again........if YOU were going to buy one.........how much less would it take for YOU to buy mine now?

THAT is DV = X - ?!
I know what I think it is........please give me your thoughts or experience.

And by the way....I lost the use for 55 days.....they said "we might have been able to upgrade you into a $30 day car"....Yeh Baby....A Taurus !!!!!!!! WRONG-O-DONGO

 

LOL! a Taurus!
I'm glad your happy with the repairs. I know it takes a lot to please an **** car owner like myself and other Vette owners. I work in a body shop (painter) and know what it's like to experience what you hav egone through.

Nice car

I'd say if the car is worth $30k you could sell it for $26-27.

 

 

4-5k less than a comparable other

 

I just went through a very similar situation with my daily driver (non corvette). Car was in the shop for 4 weeks and i filed a "Loss Of Use" claim and received a check two days later for the same amount it would have cost had i got a Rent-a-Car for that time span. Also i tried to file a "Diminished Value" claim (which is allowed Texas) but my claims adjuster said that they can't pay out on that until i provide evidence that i actually suffered a loss....which they said can only be done by selling the car and proving i actually suffered a loss. Hopefully you won't have to go through that. Best of luck!

As for the value difference for your car i'd say ~$4K.

 

I remember when it happened, man it came out great...

It's spring, drive that blue beauty....

Bob

 

I know some other members have already guessed how much less your car would be worth, but the real question is whether or not they'd really buy it themselves for that much less.

Personally, if I knew your car was in an accident like that, I wouldn't touch it...period. Now, if you were to sell it to me for $5000, I'd probably buy, then sell it, but I wouldn't want to own it, does that make sense?

I know you're trying to get some compensation for your loss, so you might want to pose the question to the other party..." Would YOU buy it?"

 

yeah i just personally would not buy it after an accident like that unless it was the deal of the century. But If I was to give a number I would say on a 30k car it would drop the value about 5k

 

It would have to be a heck of a deal for most people to even think about buying a salvage title vehicle.

 

I am glad to see that it came out close to perfect. I remember reading about your accident a while ago. Did it effect your Title at all? Do you still have a clean and clear title for it?

Honestly, if you really want to know the truth, post another thread with a Poll and same pictures and let public vote. It will give you an honest and fair idea.

 

You need to get a certified appraiser to give you a value for your car after the wreck/repair. That should be sufficient for pursuing your claim. What we think isn't worth anything to you.
97C5envy the insurance company was just trying to avoid your claim. You should not have to sell your car to extablish diminished value. Once again, get an appraisal and press on. Get your insurance company to help.

 

Honestly, a small wreck like that isn't that big a deal. You guys would be surprised how many "brand new" unsold cars I have worked on/painted in the last year at my job. A lot of folks don't realize that their brand new baby has already been fixed/painted before they even bought it "brand new". Transport damage can be a B**ch.

 

I know you probably dont wanna hear this and I know your car is probably a beauty again, but if I was looking at used cars and you showed me the picture of the car during the wreck I would not purchase that car.

JT

 

I would take an educated guess that you lost about $5K in value. The major issue is not the body work, but the frame work. If I were to see frame repair on a carfax or similar report, it would really make me nervous.

Good luck and I hope they make things right for you.

 

In Oct I got hit to the tune of $12k+ (see pic below). Mine was all cosmetic and no frame damage.

I got $35 a day for the 6 wks it was in the bodyshop and $3500 in DV. Mine is an 02 with 50k mi at the time. The loss of use was even though I was using my daily driver.

 

 

I'm presuming the other guy's insurance paid for the repairs; if not, your insurance policy (a contract) almost certainly prevents you from recovering DV from your own company no matter what your state allows. GENERALLY, you're looking at 20-25% of the repair price, but I've seen higher. HOPEFULLY, you haven't signed anything yet with the insurance company... They always try to trick you into doing that. If I were you, I'd get a PROFESSIONAL Diminished Value Appraisal. Your body shop guy can probably recommend someone. Talk to the guy first, ask for references, experience, experience testifying in court, etc. What you're paying for here is a potential expert witness, so you want someone that isn't just breaking into the biz or doing it part-time out of his garage... Generally, it's better for the appraiser to see the car before it's repaired, but since everything is well documented and you have photos, it's fine. The appraisal will run you about $300, but it will give you much more leverage with the insurance company to recover DV. You should also ask to recover the cost of the appraisal. If I were you, I wouldn't settle for less than a PENNY of what the DVA is. The reason is, if you're in a state that entitles you to it, it's as close to a slam dunk as you can get in court -- granted, you might have dueling experts, but insurance companies usual estimate of 10% is FAR TOO LOW especially for a 'luxury' sports car (as distinguished from a Mustang or Camaro). So the likelihood of you recovering 20% or more if you took it to court is extremely high, and you'd probably also get attorney's fees. Thus, unless your appraisal is just CRAZY, insurance companies will almost always pay whatever the appraisal says (but sometimes only after you make clear that you're prepared to sue) because they know they'll lose ultimately. Good luck!!

 

If I had to guess, $4-5K in DV. SeaLawyer makes some excellent points - get an appraisal and go from there. Best of luck with this.

 

 

Looks all has truned out well!