Car total loss, refused offer advice please!

amberfinn53

Hi guys!

Long story short someone crashed into my drivers side of the car, destroyed the side and door and its been listed as a total loss, it was non fault on my part and the other driver has agreed it was their fault so this isn't a problem.

This is my first time ever having any sort of insurance claim so a little guidance i would be very grateful for!

My car was a 2008 Renault Megane Convertible

The offer i got was £2000, which is way below what i think its worth, now for me to get the same replacement car in the same colour and milage we are talking £3700-£4500.

I have briefly spoke to my insurance company, diamond, as it was referred back to them, i have made it clear i expect a lot more but haven given exact amounts.

Idid say if they were unable to offer a reasonable price then i wanted a like for like car as it was prior to the crash. they said this was not possible at all. Just wanted to check that is correct?

They also said they don't used adverts as a guide price, due to them being open to negation. i have 5 different ads varying from 3800-5000, does anyone have any other ideas of where to look to find *sold* price ones as eBay hasn't turned up anything.

Also is there anything else i should be doing?

I just want a fair price for it that enables me to get the same car in the same condition and same milage!

Thanks for anyones advice

Piercedmrsp

Oh poor you - it's horrible going through insurers at the best of times but the first time being a total loss sucks immensely!

I had a similar thing with an insurer a few years ago (after a similar accident coincidentally). They offered a very low price for the car so I went onto Auto Trader and pulled off adverts for the same car with similar mileage, same trim level, etc. I stuck to within 50 miles of my address (apparently used car prices vary according to geography - who knew!) and used a mix of private and trade adverts - 4 in total I think. I sent the ads to the insurer and said I would accept the average price across the adverts as this was a true representation of what the car was worth given its age, mileage and where it was located. They agreed and paid up.

Give it a try, it'll only take you a few minutes and you then have evidence to back up your claim it's worth more. If they then claim the car is worth less than your figure ask them why and dispute those reasons if they're incorrect (a friend has a car de-valued because they valued it as a 3 door instead of a 5 door, for example).

Good luck!

EDIT: Should have said, they won't locate a replacement car for you and give you that instead. That only happens if a car is damaged when it's less than 3 months old and replaced with a brand new one (I think that's right)

Aretnap

How much is your excess, and does the valuation include it? Generally your excess will be deducted from the settlement you get from your insurer and you'll have to reclaim it separately from the at fault party's insurer.

As for the valuation you should expect, see the Financial Ombudsman's guide here

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

Note section 8 about adverts - by all means make use of them, but if push comes to shove they will not be as good evidence as the trade guides, which are based on actual selling prices.

They're correct - they just have a duty to pay you the car's market value (whatever that is - and less your excess) - they don't have to find you an identical replacement.

amberfinn53

my excess is £500, but i was told at the start of the claim process that i would need to pay no excess for anything as it was going through their legal partners albany? it has been referred back to them as we were unable to agree a price, does this change the excess? or can i state i don't need to pay any as they stated it at the very start?

Thanks for the advice, i have gathered 5 adverts, but just couldn't find any sold ones. i guess i just need to keep arguing!

Quentin

Albany are claim handlers who will have been negotiating with the third party, not your own insurer.


If the claim is now handed back to your own insurer (ie Albany have "washed their hands" of you), then expect to now pay your excess (which isn't covered by your insurance), and have to pursue the third party to reimburse you along with your other uninsured losses.