Quote:
Originally Posted by NOHOME
Any airbags go off?
In order for that quarter to buckle, the frame had to give. Frames are designed to give...once. Pulling it back in position does not reset the strenght of the frame member.
If there is any damage to the DS quarter, the entire car is going to need painting.
In my case, front fender, new door, and full paint on DS to avoid blending was 4k. This was for a 5 mph bump with no structural damage.
Diminished value most often takes the form of a civil claim, eithe small claims or via one of the many shyster legal firms that specialize in the claim. If you are not planning to file any medical claims (I would not dismiss the option) then mention that unless they make you whole in good faith, you will consider filling such a claim; it will end up costing them more in response effort than you are looking for.
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No airbags went off.
I just got off the phone with the repair shop and the insurance adjuster. They haven't finished pulling the car apart yet, so I have no idea about costs right now. I did ask about the "uni-body and/or frame" damage and the shop explained that there very well could be frame damage, but the buckling seen on the exterior rear quarter panel doesn't always indicate frame damage. He said given the angle of the hit, the frame could be perfectly intact but the sheet metal buckles if there was enough force at the fender/bumper connection point.
He did say that if this was the case, they would typically "pull" the sheet metal to see if they can get back in spec or replace the entire quarter panel and re-weld (shitty in either case). He also mentioned that I would be VERY surprised how quickly the cost can add up with this type of repair, but not to get my hopes up of it being a write off. To be deemed a total loss in Ontario, the repair costs would need to be over 75% of the current replacement value of the vehicle. So I'm guessing that there would need to be $15k+ worth of damages to be written off...?
Also, the insurance adjuster echoed exactly what you just said about diminished value. We don't have that here in Ontario like many US states do (totally sucks). If I wanted to go after any depreciation due to the accident, I would have to take the guy to court and try and recover that way. Which I'm sure would cost me more in legal/time/aggravation than what I would receive in compensation (if anything at all).
Bah this sucks.