Car accident claim - car valuation

BlueBell2

Our car was written off after it was driven into & damaged whilst parked. The other party accept liability. Repair estimate amount has meant our insurance company have decided to write it off. We got the car from an auction a couple of years ago and discovered after buying it a large amount of repairs were required on what turned out to be 'known faults'. This cost us around £3500. The value we have been offered is based on used car guides but at the private sellers rates. But i have read on the Ombudsman website they should use the the 'reputable dealers' rates. Is our insurance company trying it on? Also they say they dont need to take into account the amount we paid to fix known faults on the car. I dont understand why our company isnt supporting us, after all its the other party who are liable. We can provide bills for all the repairs. Dont they need to take this into account too?

rs65

The ombudsman site is good for their view on valuations.

I doubt that necessary repairs would enhance the value beyond what you would expect from a reputable dealer.

nobbysn*ts

Of course they're trying it on. FOS if they don't pay the dealer price.

[Deleted User]

They should pay the dealer price, but unfortunately not cover the repairs. They pay what the car is worth, not what you had to pay to make it worth that much.

The idea is to put you back in the position you were before the accident. At that point you had a working car but had to spend all that money getting it working. If they pay out enough for you to buy another similar car from a dealer that is in working order you are back where you started.

Aretnap

Are you claiming on your own insurance policy or direct from the this party's insurers? The ombudsman's view is only binding if claiming through your own insurance company but if you are yes, they should be paying the reputable dealer price.

You won't generally get much credit for money you've spent maintaining or repairing the car. Any car of a certain age is going to have had a fair amount of money spent on maintenance, and that will already be reflected in the price already. If you bought one with a lot of faults and had to sink a lot of money into it that's unfortunate but the insurer doesn't have to pay you that money back, they just have to give you enough to buy a car with no faults (or at least, no more than yours had by the time you'd finished fixing it).