Advice please on settlement offer from insurance co

arrowsmith

Amanda65 wrote: »

We paid £1700 for the last July and the insurers (Diamond) calculated the premium on this basis. They have today offered us £700 and by the time they have taken off the £400 excess are proposing they pay us £300 :eek:

£1700 for an S reg Clio is overvalued, I traded in a T reg Micra almost 4 years ago and only got £1k for it. An S reg Clio is only worth £800 of anyone's money, it's getting to be an very old car.

I'd settle with them is you can get £400 - £450

Amanda65

arrowsmith wrote: »

£1700 for an S reg Clio is overvalued, I traded in a T reg Micra almost 4 years ago and only got £1k for it. An S reg Clio is only worth £800 of anyone's money, it's getting to be an very old car.

I'd settle with them is you can get £400 - £450

Different car though! The lady at the insurance company agreed their offer was very low and, in her words "just our initial offer to see if you'll take it" Should hear back tomorrow so will let you know.

And if anyone can find me a Clio, S plate or newer with under 70k on the clock in black and a recent Cam belt change within 30 miles of Surrey (the spec of the Clio that we bought last July ) that is actually available for under £1700 - I'll be very very grateful .

dacouch

The new cambelt does not make a massive difference as they are recommended to be replaced at 60000 so when buying a clio of that mileage you would expect to have been replaced at around 60000.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/results/usedcars/postcode/gu211ap/radius/1500/make/renault/model/clio/keywords/grande/sort/priceasc/fuel-type/petrol/maximum-age/over_10_years_old/maximum-mileage/up_to_80000_miles/engine-size-cars/1l_to_1-3l?logcode=s

Amanda65

dacouch wrote: »

The new cambelt does not make a massive difference as they are recommended to be replaced at 60000 so when buying a clio of that mileage you would expect to have been replaced at around 60000.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/results/usedcars/postcode/gu211ap/radius/1500/make/renault/model/clio/keywords/grande/sort/priceasc/fuel-type/petrol/maximum-age/over_10_years_old/maximum-mileage/up_to_80000_miles/engine-size-cars/1l_to_1-3l?logcode=s

Thanks so much but none of them fit the spec - either far too far away or mileage too high.

eschaton

michaelro wrote: »

And I'm the thick one...

At least you know yourself and don't need me to tell you :T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T

pompeyrich

dacouch wrote: »

For once Anihilator is correct, the ombudsman takes notice of the trade guide eg Glasses and Parkers etc. He normally totally ignores adverts in autotrader and the like unless it is exceptional circumstances.

The adverts in autotraders etc are regarded as prices the dealers are inviting potential customers to start haggling from and thus are generally ignored

I agree but my initial point was that MoreThan offered me a price as a direct result of them searching on AutoTrader, I had the same search running when they called with their offer and could see the very car they were comparing my son's car with. I was expecting a lower offer initially, having heard tales of woe and was pleasantly surprised that they looked at the market, rather than hide behind industry guides.

My arguements went out of the window, being able to see a comparable car, at a similar price, available and also realising I might be able to knock the seller down a bit, kind of left me with no great leverage. I did try telling them that my lads car was a nicer colour but they said colour is a personal choice. They did give us an extra £100 when I told them the lads excess was £600. All in all I was pleased with their handling of the situation and hope Amandas insurers operate in a similar way.

dacouch

They may well have based their valuation on Autotrader adverts for a low value or difficult to value car.

Here is the relevant guidance from the Ombudsman which to Insurers is the gospal.

Assessing the value of a used vehicle is not an exact science – though we strive to be as consistent as reasonably possible. We take into account all relevant evidence:

• We pay most attention to valuations given in motor-trade guides, such as Parker, Glass and CAP. These are based on extensive nationwide research.
• Evidence from an independent engineer can be helpful, if available, particularly where the vehicle is not a standard one (for example, because it has been heavily modified).
• Evidence from an insurer’s engineer may also be helpful, but we will need to assess the independence of the report.
• We do not usually find advertisements for similar vehicles very persuasive. A vehicle may often be sold for less than the advertised price. And small differences in mileage, year of registration, model type etc - can significantly affect the value.

and

8. advertisements

We do not usually find advertisements for similar vehicles very persuasive. A vehicle may often be sold for less than the advertised price. And small differences in mileage, year of registration, model type etc can significantly affect the value. But they may provide some assistance, if they are treated with caution.
In a few cases, where the vehicle does not feature in the readily-available guides, advertisements may be the only evidence available. Examples include vehicles with foreign specifications which have been personally imported into the UK. And where a vehicle has been heavily modified, there may be a specialist market for it – which may affect its value (upwards or downwards).


http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/technical_notes/motor-valuation.html

Amanda please take the time to read the entire link as you will find it useful

Amanda65

Just wanted to update you all on my DD's claim.

Having gone back twice to the insurers disputing the claim, they have agreed this weekend to pay out £1300, some £600 more than their initial offer :beer:.

Due to the excess (£400) DD has still had to find £600 to buy a replacement car, but it is still a lot better than the original offer and a hard lesson learned for her. Couldn't afford another Clio (despite everyone saying that the car was overvalued, couldn't get similar for her price range and in the timescale we needed) but she is now that proud owner of a Fiat Punto.

Thanks for all the pratical advice given on here - it really did encourage me to keep fighting