Car Written Off After Accident

colstu310

Hi,
wondering if anyone can give some advice.......my wife was in an accident yesterday & we think that the car is going to be written off. Insurance have still to assess & make the decision but based on the opinion of the police that attended & the mechanics that have seen it at the recovery yard we think it will be a write off.
My father-in-law is telling us that if it is written off then we should buy it back. The wheels are quite high spec & would easily sell on their own along with all four tyres that were recently put on that costs over £400.

Is it possible to do this? Would the insurance offer me less money?

My thinking behind it is that if the car does get scrapped then the scrap yard is only going to do the same thing & make money off my car & its parts.
thanks

EdGasket

There was a similar thread on here recently re. the same issue. I think some insurers will allow you to buy it back but I am not clear whether you always have the right to. There is some kind of formula they use to decide the scrap value; it might be more expensive than you are expecting to buy it back.

AdrianC

It's possible to do this IF the car is assessed as a Cat C or Cat D write-off. The car can be repaired and returned to the road.

If it's a Cat B, then - no, you can't buy it back - only a registered salvage dealer can. The car must be destroyed, but they can break it and sell parts from it.
If it's a Cat A, then - no, you can't buy it back - only a registered salvage dealer can. The car must be destroyed, and no parts can be sold from it.

Assuming you were honest to your insurer about the wheels (aftermarket?), then their payout includes the value of the wheels. Yes, of course if you ask to keep the car, the payout will be reduced by the salvage value of the car, including all the accessories and components, because the insurer won't be able to sell it on elsewhere.

If your insurer don't know about modifications, including aftermarket wheels, then you can't expect them to pay out for them. After all, they haven't included them in their actuarial calculations when setting the premium.

The cost of new tyres is merely a running cost, same as if you'd just filled the tank or had the car serviced.

Bigphil1474

I had a car written off last year - not sure what category but I think D, as it was officially road worthy and repairable, just not economical to repair - 10 year old fiesta. As it was going to take me a couple of weeks to sort out a replacement, I asked to keep the car and they paid the valuation of the car to me minus the scrap value - I got £720, the scrap value was set at £22 (yep, twenty two), so I ran it for about a week, got another car and scrapped the fiesta for £120. If they scrap it because it uneconomical to repair, may be worth doing the same if you can get it repaired economically, as the insurers estimates aren't always the same as a reliable back street garage estimates.

AdrianC

Bigphil1474 wrote: »

may be worth doing the same if you can get it repaired economically, as the insurers estimates aren't always the same as a reliable back street garage estimates.

Indeed. Insurance repairs ALWAYS use new parts, and are based on full manufacturer retail price. If it's an older, lower value car, there's no reason not to use used parts - huge saving. Or to live with some scrapes and dings instead of repairing.

Hintza

OP if you take the wheels off how are you going to move it?

My point is these ideas look great on paper but become a total PITA at the end of the day.

I would be pricing up the parts on EBay and talking to a bodyshop about how much it would cost to repair.

arcon5

Once you've started dismantling it also consider how you will get rid of the shell. If you've got a trailer and winch (if it has wheels that is) it could work but otherwise you'll have trouble finding somebody wanting to collect it from you

arcon5

Also, if it's a high value vehicle being written off they'll more than likely out it through a salvage auction

[Deleted User]

arcon5 wrote: »

Once you've started dismantling it also consider how you will get rid of the shell. If you've got a trailer and winch (if it has wheels that is) it could work but otherwise you'll have trouble finding somebody wanting to collect it from you

That reminds me of a bloke who used to live next door about 30-40 years ago. He used to acquire old cars, pull them to bits, get bored with them, and then dig holes in the garden and bury them.

After he went, a puzzled new neighbour sidled over to the fence one day and said "I keep digging engines out of the garden...."

:rotfl::rotfl:

Happygreen

OH has done it once as he managed to find a local garage to fix the rather cosmetic but expensive to repair damage for under the value of the car. If it's structural damage it might be illegal to put it back on the road, maybe you'll have to make it absolutely clear to them that you are not intending to do so but wnat to sell some parts of it yourself? If it's cosmetic damage only you should be able to do it but will probably have to pay for storage costs if it's in a yard somewhere as the insurance won't make any money from scrapping your car.

dktreesea

I recommend checking the market value of the car on Glass (It's free: www.glass.co.uk, register first then enter the car rego and your email address, tick "I own the car" and they will email you the market value).

In my experience, car insurers will try to get away with offering you as little as they think they can get away with for the car. Don't settle for anything less than the market value, plus any extra items of value, i.e. the wheels if they are special. it may be possible to include these details when you obtain the valuation.