Left_ya_shook

This past Saturday i was on my way to dinner, a older man in a Toyota decided to run a red light. Me and my brother are alright, could have been worse(The Z06 brakes did an amazing job).

On impact i moved him about 4-5 feet, i caught him in the driver rear door/rear tire. The damage looks minor but being fiberglass and plastic it did a lot of damage. It seems to have the front end pulled over, it cracked the driver fender also the inner fender. The bumper is obviously damaged and the passenger fender has stress cracks/waves in the paint by where you can see it has pressure. There is more damage but to much to explain.

My question is what do i do?the other guy got cited, it wasn't my fault. Its a 2009 Z06 i just bought it in April. I'm afraid now it will show in carfax it was in an accident, so therefor the value has now dropped. I don't know if a dealership will even take it in on trade seeing it will have a accident in the history. I'm also concerned while i drove it home it did pull a little and every time i hit a bump u could hear a cracking/ something loose.

Lastly, if they insist to repair it. I know that they will not be able to make it look factory, the inner fender which they will have to replace has a large amount of adhesive, that is applied by a machine to help hold and seal the inner fender to the frame(I can already see a cob job when it comes to that no matter the shop). Which all this comes down to i get a new car about every year to two years, I don't want to take a major hit because of this.


If you have any suggestions that would be very helpful

Thanks

97Black

"Which all this comes down to i get a new car about every year to two years, I don't want to take a major hit because of this."

You already take a huge hit when you do this. I'm sure with the right shop they can fix it properly.

capevettes

Bring it to a competent, well recommended shop that repairs Corvettes. Talk to Corvette people in your area to get a good shop. Get it fixed properly, drive it for a year or so and trade it in. There is a diminished value if the dealer does his homework. There just isn't much you can do about it.

Left_ya_shook

Okay, i guess i can rephrase a little. I realize the car looses value no matter what.

Also if the accident would of been my fault the the loss in value to my car would be my fault. But the guy ran a red light so now the car that was spotless is now a motionless car sitting in my garage.

What I'm saying is are you going to buy a car that has a history of being wrecked, over a identical car that is squeaky clean? When i buy a car i would never buy a car that shows a history of being wrecked,Unless I'm getting it 10-15k under what i could get the same car for that has not been wrecked(even that would be questionable). You would be an idiot to take a wrecked car and only save 5k because the fact you don't know how bad it was really hurt (in my case main damage is in front, but it hit hard enough that the roof is pinching the rubber between the it and the back pillar, it is also out of alignment).

Also if you buy that car with the wrecked history how will you explain the damage when you go to sell it?(another issue when a buyer would look at it)

Im going to my dealership today to see what they say about the value of the car now. A friend took his XLR-V to a dealer to trade, which he got hit and left the license bolt marks on it and insurance paid the whopping $250 fix. When it showed it had a history of being wrecked they wouldn't take it in on trade( they said they would have trouble selling it because the carfax)

I have the body shop that i know will do a good job, that's not the problem. Even though no shop will be able to match the factory seal between the inner fender and frame(which is visible when looking in the engine bay) Also paint will be an issue i have the jetstream blue color, last time i went they couldn't mix that color at the shop they said they have to order it.

once the adjuster comes i will post the cost of the repair.

xcutter

The other person is at fault. Get an estimate of the cars value before and after the repair. Sue for the difference.

sublime1996525

Sometimes you can go after the guy who caused the accident and be paid the diminished value difference. It all depends on the insurance and a good lawyer.

john_g_46

If his insurance company is different from yours, 3rd party diminished value claims are recognized in nearly every state. If he has the same insurance company as you, you're pretty much SOL.

john_g_46

Forgot to mention, you're entitled to a Loss of Use claim as well.

Kenny94945

FWIW:
Begin repair process.
Buy replacement Z06.
Sell repaired car.
Settle diminished value.

There you have "hard" monetary facts so you can be made whole.

Good luck and hope all us never have to deal with a situation like yours.

Landru

Precisely. The OP has to demonstrate a loss and it cannot be theoretical. The car has to sell first, then sue for the difference in book value vs. what's recieved on trade.

z10

I had a car in the shop back in March and was con concerned about Carfax. The owner of the body shop, who i've know for many years told me he new of several cars his car had repaired, of which one was a c5 that had $30k worth of damage. Insurance would not total the car. They fixed it and it never showed up on Carfax. He told me that he has never been asked to report damage to Carfax. I'm curious how good the reporting to Carfax really is.

capevettes

I understand your question and agree that the loss of value is unfair since you did nothing wrong. My wife was in her almost new Avalon and was rear ended while stopped at a stop sign by an idiot recently. He was cited, the car was fixed and now has a diminished value through no fault of her own. As other have said, the only way to recover the loss is to consider civil litigation. Lawyers arent't free and you will spend alot of your own time chasing a small amount of money. We considered it and decided it was best to move on and chock it up to one of life's unfair situations. It $ucks but sometimes it's just better to move on.

bass mechanic

from the local resident insurance agent on this forum, seek repairs from a reputable shop of your choice and then submit a claim for dimished value. the insurance company has an obligation to you to make you whole again.
the best way to determin your lost value is to have a dealer give you a trade in value without the damage and then what would the value be with the damage. then you have a good case for diminished value.

morganjo5

Manager of my Chevy Dealer Collision Shop told me 80% of damage never appears on CarFax. I had a guy in a pick up truck run his elevated truck over my front fender and hood while I was at a dead stop trying to enter a road way. Damage about $10,000 and it never appeared on CarFax when I traded it in to another dealer three years ago.

Bruce in Arizona

JohnTheStigGalt

This is TOTALLY incorrect. Do a search for my many threads on the topic of "diminished value"...

OnPoint

Sounds like odds are high your frame is bent.

If that is the case, odds are high your car is totaled.

SVT F15O

He can only hope it is totaled. I know I would be hoping for that if I were in his shoes. Accidents in one of my nice vehicles is always my biggest fear. It seems just about nobody does GOOD body work.

tim414

Good shop definitely indicated here. Diminished value is definitely viable in Texas.

And you do not have to sell vehicle to get it.

Look at 'JohntheStigGalt' threads. Thats definitely true where I'm from.

You can get it. Tim

Left_ya_shook

Thanks for all the replies, the adjuster is coming tomorrow morning so ill will know more tomorrow.

I don't want to come across as I'm just looking to get money out of this accident (which it seems some might think) all i would be asking is that they compensate a little to understand that obviously the value has dropped, how much it has dropped, their are to many variables to account for to put an exact amount on it. But I'm sure we could agree on a price, something is better than nothing.

If they are idiots about the whole situation and try to repair not replace the cracked pieces. I will call my brother who is a lawyer, I'm not a fan of using lawyers though it always seems to be a drawn out type solution. I'm more of a smooth and easy transaction type of guy.

Ill keep you guys updated on what happens.

Also to make matters worse I got a call that My 360 forged rims and tires are finally done and at the shop!! But it seems they wont be on the car for a while anyway :/

JohnTheStigGalt

As I state in my numerous threads on the topic -- negotiate the damages to the car FIRST. AFTER that is settled, then address the DV issue (after having an independent DV appraisal done). In other words, don't even mention the term "diminished value" or anything that might remotely suggest anything related to diminished value until AFTER you're satisfied with his repair estimate, or he'll try to screw you on the cost-to-repair estimate. The adjuster is not your friend, even if he's a friendly guy. He's out to limit his company's liability by giving you as little as possible without you realizing you're getting as little as possible. WHATEVER you do, don't sign anything until you've talked to your brother (at a minimum).

If the car is written off as a total loss, then DV is irrelevant.

Standard disclaimer: Although I am a lawyer, I'm not YOUR lawyer and the information provided is not to be construed as legal advice or be considered a substitute for a consultation with a competent attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.