I'm very familiar with them. That's who my insurance company hired to negotiate with me.

Worth $295? That's a deal. I researched the owner, Richard Hixenbaugh, before I started negotiating with him. He has been doing DV claims for over 30 years - over 40,000 vehicle appraisals. He gets invited to speak at seminars across the country on DV. He also knows how particular Corvette owners are and was very easy to negotiate with. I had a number in mind when I called him. He threw out a lowball number. I told him what my appraiser told me my claim was worth, and we met in the middle. We were finished in less than ten minutes and I had a check in a week. You won't find a better guy in Georgia to do this for you. Be prepared - when he gives you a number to expect if he is representing you take him at his word. The guy knows what he is doing.

 

I won't mention the name of the Independent Appraisal Company. We prepared a DV report for a Tesla in 2017 that came to $25,000. That unnamed Independent Appraisal Company who was working on behalf of Metropolitan Insurance, came back at $6.250. I should have mentioned, stay away from appraisers who do work for insurance companies as well as car owners. Had that unnamed Independent been working for the Tesla owner instead of the insurer, they would have fudged their numbers to fit the client's needs. Very easy to discredit these guys in court. Also, are they looking to impress State Farm in order to get them as a client? A client like State Farm is a lot more valuable than you are. Just a word to the wise.

 

So in my case the at fault company paid me $2k for my diminished value claim. I didn't agree with that amount and hired a DV appraiser for $300, he did a report and appraisal and came up with $9k in diminished value. I sent all this to the at fault insurance company (USAA) and they told me to pound sand, I followed that up with a second email and eventually a phone call with a higher level manager. They still wouldn't budge and in Ky small claims court is limited to $2500 so not a good option for me. Eventually I cashed their check before it expired. I could still explore pursuing legal action against them with an attorney but I am thinking the risk is not worth the reward.

 

Tell State Farm to **** off.

That's the same BS tactic they tried to use on me.

Hire a third party company (I used AutoLoss) to prepare the DV claim. They also supplied me with information about how to negotiate with the at fault's insurance company. It's worth the expense and added time.

I settled for about half of the the repair bill. State Farm will come around, there is no denying the legitimacy of diminished value, especially with a Corvette.

 

A fair settlement for a minor repair history on a late-model Vette can be as much as 20% of the pre-accident trade-in value. That's as compared to an approximate 10%-15% loss in value for typical cars.

 

So are you saying Collision Claims Associates is not a good company to hire? If so, why?

 

What are you talking about?

 

This question was asked:

I answered it:

....and you responded with this:

Collision Claims Associates is an independent appraisal company, hence my question to you.

 

I did not mention any particular appraisal company. What you should have focused on is what I actually did write.

 

I have had success in a diminished value claim on a daily driver. Utilized a Texas state code which reflects the loss party has the right to determine how monies are applied to the loss both in the order and the types of the loss. I used a local professional appraiser who has since retired.

The following are the principle factors we used for determining the loss:

1. What is the value of the vehicle one second before the loss?
2. What is the value of the vehicle one second after the loss?
3. What is the cost of repairs to return the vehicle to it's preloss condition?
4. What is the value of the vehicle after repairs have been completed?
5. What is the value of loss of use?

 

I did. You said to stay away from independent appraisal companies that work for insurance companies. I negotiated a fair DV deal with the independent appraisal company who worked for my insurance company and would use him if I ever needed to use an appraiser for a DV claim. He has clients who aren't insurance companies.

So I was curious if this company would fall under your "stay away from appraisers who work for insurance companies" statement. Do you ever work for insurance companies?

 

We do not accept work from insurance companies but there is no altruism involved. We would be more than happy to prepare diminished value reports for insurance companies if they accepted that our methodology doesn't change to suit their needs. No insurance company would agree to this for obvious reasons. Independent appraisal companies that work for both insurers and car owners ABSOLUTELY do not use the same methodology and modifiers for both. If they use formulas or algorithms they must "keep two sets of books" so to speak because no insurer will accept a DV appraisal showing the actual amount a car has lost after collision repairs. Modifiers must be changed to suit the client. Any savvy attorney would shred their credibility.

Our methodology is simple. We query multiple Chevrolet dealers, speaking to the sales managers. There are one or two other independents who say that they went to the trouble of contacting dealers but then go on to say that they can't reveal the names of said dealers. Why would an insurance company, or a magistrate for that matter, accept this as valid evidence? Our report lists all six dealers, their contact info, the person we spoke to and their opinions. After describing the car and the repairs that were done, the sales managers will give us their unbiased opinions of how much less they would typically pay for your car. I say "unbiased" because they are advised that the car isn't available for purchase or trade. We obviously can't fudge these numbers to suit a State Farm or an Allstate. It is what it is. And our credibility can not be challenged.

 

I am in Texas and you are in Florida. Can I hire you guys and if so, how much?

 

That makes perfect sense. I think I got a good DV check from Collision Claims because he works with both insurance companies and individuals. The fact that he was working for my insurance company is why his first offer was a lowball. When we started talking about Corvettes, owners, and prospective buyers he agreed with me and we reached an agreement in about five minutes.

 

We are fortunate to work in all 50 states because the idiosyncrasies of each one are important to know and pass along to the client. For example, in New York there is case law supporting payment for repairs or diminished value but not both. Insurance companies still pay for diminished value claims in NY but if push came to shove and the car owner has to proceed to litigation, it would take a forward-thinking judge to rule in favor of the plaintiff with the existing case law in place. Insurance companies do pay for the simple reason that, if the current case law is overturned on appeal, every one of them could expect a flood of claimants. California had a similar situation but has updated its jury instructions.

CACI 3903J – Damage to Personal Property (Economic Damage) The harm to plaintiff’s automobile.
To recover damages for harm to personal property, plaintiff must prove the reduction in the automobile’s value or the reasonable cost of repairing it, whichever is less. If there is evidence of both, plaintiff is entitled to the lesser of the two amounts.
However, if you find that the automobile can be repaired, but after repairs it will be worth less than it was before the harm, the damages are:
(1) the difference between its value before the harm and its lesser value after the repairs have been made; plus
(2) the reasonable cost of making the repairs. The total amount awarded may not exceed the automobile’s value before the harm occurred.

 

I didn't forget about you, Fast Dawg. Regarding Collision Claims Associates, I have conferenced with Richard in the past. No doubt that he is competent appraiser. Our methodologies differ as does our client base. However, in Georgia, knowing that there are some excellent appraisers as well as abysmal ones, I consider Richard to be one of the good ones. For total loss disputes, when we have needed an umpire in GA, I have recommended him several times. I am absolutely not saying that they are not a good company to hire, FYI.

 

Thanks for your response. Richard was very easy to deal with and if I ever need an appraiser again I’ll use him.

Have a great weekend!

 

I finally received my check from the other party's insurance Monday. It wasn't exactly what I was hoping for but it was close enough.

For point of reference, car was hit on June 19th. But, as mentioned before, getting an appraisal from a pro is worth the money/ time spent fighting with the insurance.
Also as a point, my insurance did nothing to help me at all.

 

GREAT NEWS!! Glad that you shared this because many are skeptical that successful diminished value settlements are fake news.

 

Great news! I'm surprised your insurance didn't help you. What company do you use if you don't mind me asking? My insurance company was the insurer who cut me my DV check - not the company the person that hit me used. Once I negotiated a deal with their appraiser I had a check from them within a week.