LGT--6 days new, 230 miles, WRECKED!

[tennebrac]

I'm not trying to get one over on GEICO (the other driver's insurance company). I just need to be made whole after this accident that was not my fault at all. Anyone pulling a Carfax on this car is going to see "Major Collision" and there can be no doubt that this is going to reduce the value considerably even if all repairs are done perfectly. It is also going to be fairly obvious that it was in an accident that at least involved replacement of a door since the build date info decal is going to be missing.

 

Comparing two identical cars, one with a clean history and one that shows "Major Collision" which one would you buy?? And if you had to buy the one with the collision you would certainly want a substantial discount.

 

Florida law permits recovery for diminished value when you are pursuing a "tort theory" against another driver or his insurance company due to negligent driving. It does NOT permit recovery when you are pursuing a "contract theory" against your insurance company if your insurance contract does not permit recovery for diminished value (and now days all insurance policies exclude this as a recovery that you can get against your own insurance company). Laws vary by state but I believe that Florida is consistent with the majority of states.

 

I respect the views of the other posters, don't think anyone is being @ssholish in any way.

 

For those wanting to see what the Supreme Court of Florida had to say on this issue, check out the case of Seigel v. Progressive Auto Insurance Company decided in 2002 (PM me for the link or just do a Google search--you should be able to pull up the whole case).

[G.T.Subie]

Did u get GAP insurance on this car ? Because the insurance Co. my not give you what u owe on this car. Given the fact that is isnt the same value it was when it had 0 miles. Not to be downer ,but i know that if its totalled they wont give what you paid.

[G.T.Subie]

NVM just saw the date of original post:lol:

[easton]

Are there any passenger cars that still have a frame? I thought that frames went the way of the carburetor and at about the same time? With a unibody, if you get hit hard enough, doesn't the whole thing sort of loosen during the collision as it absorbs energy? I thought that is why many salvaged cars squeak.

[panos]

You should have a dedication waiver in your insurance, mean that IF THE VALUE OF YOUR CAR IS DEPRECIATED IN THE FIRST 6 MONTHS OF OWNERSHIP (BY ANY VALUE) THEN YOUR CAR WILL BE REPLACED. DO NOT SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN A NEW CAR. Some insurances have this for up to 1 year.

[eamiller]

Are there any passenger cars that still have a frame? I thought that frames went the way of the carburetor and at about the same time? With a unibody, if you get hit hard enough, doesn't the whole thing sort of loosen during the collision as it absorbs energy? I thought that is why many salvaged cars squeak.

 

Actually, there are a few body-on-frame cars left (other than pickup trucks) including the Crown Victoria/Lincoln Towncar. Unibody really just means that the body is the frame instead of being attached to a separate frame.. HOwever, the front of the vehicle is basically a detachable frame which is fastened to the cabin. This allow for easy replacement of major frame members after a frontal collision (most common type). Unfortunately, in a side collision, the "frame" isn't easily replacable since it's all welded together.

[miles]

rape geico now, and we all pay later

 

I am in NY and have never heard of the dimished value issue (and my friend owns a body shop)

 

Before posting, try reading this thread from the beginning.

[crafty]

Before posting, try reading this thread from the beginning.

 

 

Ditto

 

It must be the forum police - I can tell by the fancy red writing

 

Find something more constructive to do than call people out on the carpet -

[miles]

mmanus88, first you say (post#76, page 8).

your damage sounds more extensive than mine. an adjuster from geico was out to my shop the very next day and they came up with about 7 grand of damage. sometimes wehnt hey rip the car apart, that figure rises a bit, but i doubt it will for my car.

 

as for your situation, 13 grand is just the begining, i would ebelive. it coudl rise higher, like i said before. an accident like that is a true black mark on the car's record. go after the other insurance company and get every penny you can out of them. you might loose some money from the car's value, but if you were to repair it and sell it in the future, u would be at even more of a loss. all i can say is keep fighting for a total; 13k is an awful lot to repair.

 

as for me i was happy ym car is getting repaired because i have so much audio equipment in there, but thank youf or teh care of my health. not one scratch on me. as much as i disliked the other driver i'm lucky he was not hurt either; that wouldve been a whole different story.

mmanus88, then you say (post# 98, page 10)

+1

 

you "rape" geico and they will just raise your premium until they get their money back, even longer jsut because they were willing to cut you a check right there. i jsut got my check from geico, a little over 6 grand. car will be done being repaired in 2 weeks.

 

legacy gt, that is not nesecarilly true. depending on what was damaged, of course, a car can be rebuilt to run just as it was before an accident. everything comes down to how good your mechanic is. thankfully i am blessed with a great one, he does not cut corners. i will give an ubiased report on how my car runs in about two weeks, with pics of all that audio installation i promised to post long ago

First you say (post #76, page 8)

go after the other insurance company and get every penny you can out of them.

----------------------------------------------

Then you say (post# 98, page 10)

+1

 

you "rape" geico and they will just raise your premium until they get their money back

----------------------------------------------

 

mmanus88, geico is the insurance co. of the guy that hit tennebrac.

 

[miles]

tennebrac, I look forward to your updates.

 

I hope everthing goes well!!!

[crafty]

not sure who mmanus88 is, and I suppose it doesnt really matter

 

I agree - good luck -

[mmanus88]

i said go after them for every penny because apparently, this wasn't his fault. the other guy had a misunderstanding that insurance= free (sorry if u didn't mean that its how i took it) so people should go after their money from the insurance co, of course, but should also understand that premium will go up. u'd be suprised how many people are ignorant of this fact.

 

crafty, what is that supposed to mean?

[tennebrac]

I'm gonna give you all a seating chart: Me (not at fault)=State Farm; Other Driver (admitted fault)=GEICO.

 

GEICO is paying the rental car & the repairs and reduced value. I can't get reduced value from State Farm since it is my insurance company and it is not collectable to a driver under his own insurance contract if excluded (which they all are) or Florida law (see prior post).

 

State Farm is paying the medical costs up to my policy limit under Florida's no-fault law whereby a driver's own insurance pays for these things. State Farm can't raise my premiums on account of this pursuant to FL law since the accident was not my fault. State Farm will get reimbursed these costs anyway from GEICO on account of subrogation. FL is one of only a few no-fault States.

 

I appreciate the dialogue and advice, just wanted to clear up any misunderstanding of what was going on.

[mmanus88]

in NJ both "participant's" insurance goes up, unfortunately. you are lucky to live in a "nofault" state.

[tennebrac]

Update: The car is done, except for the airbags which are on back order. The shop has no idea how long its gonna take for them to get here. I'm going to take a look at the car tomorrow and will make sure to have the camera w/me.

[LegGTLT]

Hope the car looks great buddy... I wish you the best!

[drkru]

Glad you are okay. Makes me feel not so bad about my (see post) major hail damage. They're just cars and they can be fixed...Hang in there - I know it really sucks. All that excitment for the new car and wham.

[tennebrac]

UPDATE: The car is close to being done. There are some parts on order, including the airbags and one of the windows. Here is what it looks like now, approx. 7 weeks after the accident (note--the hood was popped open when I took these). GEICO has told me that they'll talk diminished value, but only after all of the repairs are done.

[mlrtime]

Looks like a brand new car, minus windows... and dusty wheels.

[BLACKonBLACK Limited]

Hope it drives as good as it looks.

[tennebrac]

UPDATE: Picked the car up yesterday after 2 rounds of inspecting it for things that needed correcting (misaligned molding, overspray, rough spots on the paint needing sanding, small pieces of dripped clearcoat on the underside of the trunk and hood etc.). The car was at the shop & dealer for 8 weeks.

 

First observations re appearance: The body shop did a good job. The car looks nice. The paint is a very close match. The finish and clearcoat look identical. I looked carefully and could not find any gaps that looked out of whack. The body shop put extra insulation/sound deadeners in the doors and I can tell the difference re road noise. The doors close with a solid thunk. The windows open and close properly and smoothly.

 

First observations re ride: The ride seems tighter than I remembered it (but this could be because I have been driving a Sentra for the last 2 months). The car no longer has the slight pull to the right that it had right off the lot.

 

I'm babying the car since it has less than 1K miles. Hard to keep the RPM's under 4K. Have gone over a couple of times already. No studdering and no strange smells.

 

We have great cars. Not many could have taken this kind of hit and recovered as well.

 

Thanks to all for your advice, support. This thing has been a pain but sh*t happens and you move on. I'll try to get some pics tomorrow.

[starlabs]

Kudos, man. You took it all in stride better than many, I would say.

 

Congrats on your LGT, version 2.0

[tennebrac]

LGT version 2.0?

 

My buddy is calling it "The Bionic Subie", but I like your idea better.

[laz]

Congratulations on the rebirth of your leggy. I know I would have been destroyed, and I was thinking about this thread today when I saw a couple of cars crashed beyond repair on 95 south near Baltimore on my way to DC. My thought was if I was earlier there is always teh chance of tha being me, but then again is the same whereever you are. But also how those cars will never ride again! Enjoy it, and I just hit 750 Miles on mine, and have done a few over 4K runs as well, hard not to.

 

X

[mmanus88]

if anyone cares about me

 

i am getting my leggy back tomorow or tuesday, its been about 6 or 7 weeks (6 i beleive) and i am very eager to get it back. i saw the car all put back together, and the work was incredible. everything is an exact match, these guys really knew what they were doing. i was especially impressed because this was supposed to be a total job, but we pushed for repairs and got it from GEICO. i was only pissed off because i had akickin sound system installed two ays prior to the crash, and miss my navi flipout. this crash also gave me a chance to go from 18 to 17 inches on my rims, a big help here in NJ. will have many pics posted within the next few days. car should look brand spankin' new.