Diminished value claim for BMW?

f0xsplit

I have had a 2013 plate, £21500 car for little over two weeks when I was reversed into. It is currently being repaired, but will most likely be a Cat D or maybe even a C.

Does anyone have any experience of making a diminished value claim, as when I go to sell this car or trade it in, it is going to be worth significantly less with it being a Cat C or D. Seems ludicrous that I should be out of pocket when the other driver admitted all liability.

Thanks for any advice with this.

lincroft1710

You do realise that if a vehicle is described as Cat C or D, it means it is uneconomic to repair. So why is a £21,500 car being repaired and not being declared a total loss?

nidO

Technically it's possible but:

f0xsplit wrote: »

being repaired, but will most likely be a Cat D or maybe even a C.

This is mutually exclusive. If the insurance company are writing the car off they aren't repairing it, and vice versa.

If the car is being repaired and has been written off this suggests that you've taken the option to retain the car as salvage for a slightly reduced payout and are repairing it yourself.

To my knowledge this then absolves the insurer of any claim for diminished value thanks to the write-off, as taking the car back and repairing it yourself was your choice, as an alternative to them giving you a payout to buy yourself a replacement, not-written-off, car.

f0xsplit

Thanks for your responses. I have never been in this situation at all, so when they claimed liability and I was contacted to arrange repair, I didn't even consider this. All I knew was that it was being fixed, and costing me nothing. So far, a repair company has come out, assessed the damage, ordered the parts and it is booked in for it to be repaired a week on Thurs. He said to me it would be a Cat D or maybe even a C. I didn't even consider the implications until now when a friend mentioned it. Should I not have done this?

f0xsplit

After reading up on the category damage, surely it wont be a Cat C or D! Maybe the guy didn't realise the value of the car.

Category the vehicle is repairable but repair costs are significant compared to the vehicle value – including time delays to source parts. Can re-appear on road.

I wouldn't say a bumper, light and few other bits would be classed as a cat c or d! unless it's a ridiculously expensive light!

lincroft1710

Are you sure that there wasn't any major hidden damage?

f0xsplit

Not that he said. No structural. I will ring the repair company for further clarification tomorrow and go from there. Is that a good plan?

Moto2

After reading up on the category damage, surely it wont be a Cat C or D! Maybe the guy didn't realise the value of the car.

They are making a calculation for repairing the car Vs paying you out minus what they can get for it salvage.
There are one or two other aspects to calculate in but that's the fundamental sum they're doing.

AdrianC

If it really is just bumper/light/wing, then a £20k car won't be written off. End of. Because nothing will be recorded on HPI, there's no loss of value to compensate you for.

motorguy

AdrianC wrote: »

If it really is just bumper/light/wing, then a £20k car won't be written off. End of. Because nothing will be recorded on HPI, there's no loss of value to compensate you for.

Thats the bottom line. Someone has got their wires crossed somewhere.

Hintza

I take from what the OP has said is that the repair company is slightly surprised that it is being repaired because in their professional view the cost of repairs suggest that for some (most) insurers they would just write the car off to prevent possible future hassle.