BRZ accident advice

[wrohdejr]

Also depends if the air bags went off. Most insurance companies wont deal with the car if the air bags got deployed. To big of a liability issue if they fail the second time.

[tacoss23]

Noooooo...no no no nooooooo..... (peter griffin's voice).

First, I'm surprised with a Unibody damage of any kind they are not outright declaring it Total Loss.

I totaled my S4 in 2005, and the car looked okay from outside, very similar situation like yours. Anyways, when they actually inspected the car they told me the unibody had suffered some damage and that alone granted the case to be a total loss.

What a poster above said is 100% accurate. Take it to the dealership (it's your right), they will do an appraisal and I guarantee you they will come up with numbers that make a good case for a Total Loss. You can actually hint them what you are considering (buying a car from them). They will do it.

If you let the insurance handle the case, they are not interested in totaling your car right away, specially if you have GAP. Their bodyshop/repair shop is interested in making as much money as then can, they know the tricks if they work with them. So...all in all, you are dealing with 2 parties that are not interested financially in totaling your car, not a good place to be.

I would even considering taking the case to a lawyer, at least to pressure your insurance company. You do not want a car with that kind of damage.

[BostonJohn]

Thanks for all the advice everyone. To answer a few questions:

It's a BRZ limited so right now damages are ~60% of the total value.

Driver side airbag did deploy.

I did choose on of the best shops in San Diego and i'm sure they would do great work. But I had similar thoughts as the posts above, the shops #1 interest is getting the price just below the total loss and getting a nice pay day. The shop actually called me right after the appraiser left and said they are already ordering parts and ready to go, just need my signature. I politely asked them to wait until I can further negotiate with the adjuster.

Overall I found the appraisal process a bit suspect. It seems they fully expect the price to increase as they tear it down. However, if they submit a lower price now and get the work going, the insurance company won't back out half way to total it. They seem very very very eager to start the work, thankfully they can't without my approval.

Well here's hoping tomorrow brings better luck if I can get ahold of the adjuster and start pleading my case.

[FV]

Claims adjuster here!

For my insurance company, 70% is the line where we total a car. If a car made a left in front of you, then the other party is at fault (may vary depending on your story and points of impact). You can talk to the other insurance carrier about diminished value. Unfortunately, your own insurance company won't work on diminished value with you (probably a clause some where in your policy).

As far as the shop goes, yeah every shop would rather work on your car. See if you can get your insurance company to approve a tear down before the shop repairing anything. The shop would get paid for the labor hours/storage fees during the tear down so it shouldn't be too bad for them.

Good luck, I would want my car totaled our for a accident that major.

[brz_star21]

I've heard some great suggestions. My 2 cents is that a car never really quite drives the same after being in a major accident, even if the repair is done right. Fight as best as you can to get it totaled or to get a significant diminished value compensation.

[Turbowned]

IF you have a Limited that only equates to about 60% damage; I hope they total it so you can get another one.

[Turk]

A) Get a sledgehammer
B) Find your car
C) Make sure it's totaled

[Jive Turkey]

i went through this with my STI last summer. i'm also a law school student so here is some words of advice and what i went through.

first and formost ARE YOU OKAY? forget the car, how are you feeling? did you go to the hospital, it sounds like pretty gnarly impact. make sure to get yourself checked out. and if anyhting go to physical therapy.

second, what kind of insurance does he have. the guy that rear ended my STI had minimal state required coverage, so my insurance had to cover the entire fix. and tehn basically my insurance is going after his. (also i was hit buy a drunk, very very drunk driver .32 BAC). if you haven't done so already, lawyer up. can't stress this enough.

now, as for the car. i cannot stress enough to take it to a body shop that YOU are comfortable with. honestly, i ddn't do that with my sti because of a few reasons but looking back i wish i took it to the body shop i wanted. when its at hte shop you need to make it clear to the adjuster AND the shop that you only want OEM parts. the insurance company will try to sell you and make a statement with oem replacement parts...decline at all costs. first of all oem parts are more expensive, so in case you want it totalled that can help you cross the threshhold. secondly oem parts will fit better. period.

as far as people saying the car will never drive the same, that is neither here nor there. it all depends on how it's fixed. my sti drove the same....i was standing still and was blasted at 65mph in the rear (no homo) and it was repaired and drove perfectly fine...however the paint wasn't the same and some of hte body panels werne't perfect so i traded the car in.

anyway right now i'm going through arbitration with his insurance for a UIM ( Under insured motorist) claim.

your car however, i would want totalled. especailly since an airbag went off, and the car is so small you'd need to replace so much to get back to OEM spec, and you dont know if any of hte driveline is damaged for sure. who knows what could have been done to the motor....did the adjuster come and appraise it all? does he know if hte car runs?

i know this sounds bad...but make sure the gets totalled. yes its a new car, and value is quite high but this is not something you want to get back and not be at 100%...

here is what my STI looked like...

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...159652&page=14

[BostonJohn]

Since a few people asked I am OK. I immediately went to the hospital to get checked out. Other than some whiplash I came out pretty unharmed.

The appraiser and body shop already list some frame damage but I think it could be worse. If you notice in the picture below all of the bottom panels have popped off the car, front to rear. This tells me the entire unibody was flexed and stressed.

Since a picture speaks a 1000 words, here she is:

[Jive Turkey]

glad you're okay. you in a rental car now? i had 3 rentals when i was getting the sti fixed...teh reapir took almost 4 months. in that time i killed 2 rental cars and the third one was struggling neutral bombs and e-brake drifts FTMFW

[kuhlka]

Originally Posted by BostonJohn

Since a few people asked I am OK. I immediately went to the hospital to get checked out. Other than some whiplash I came out pretty unharmed.

The appraiser and body shop already list some frame damage but I think it could be worse. If you notice in the picture below all of the bottom panels have popped off the car, front to rear. This tells me the entire unibody was flexed and stressed.

Since a picture speaks a 1000 words, here she is:

Have it trucked to a dealership and tell them you'd like to get a new BRZ 'if it turns out your car has to be totaled'. It's amazing how estimates skyrocket when you mention that. Having a car repaired only saves the insurance company money because they don't have to pay the full value of the vehicle.

You get to choose where your car gets repaired, not the insurance company. Don't let them jerk you around.

I can't see anything in your post. Make sure your pic posted.

[Tt3Sheppard]

If you have $17k in damage its going to be a total loss. Supplements will definitely bring that over.

[BostonJohn]

The car did not go to the dealer, it went to the shop that I selected. My concern was that if the damage was only superficial I didn't want the dealer doing body work.

I've since chatted with the appraiser and the adjuster. Both are saying it does not meet their 75-80% damage requirement for total loss. I asked the appraiser if the supplements brought it over the 75% mark would they total it even after repairs start... he said no.

The adjuster on the other hand said that at anytime if the repairs exceed the total loss mark they will stop, even if they are only days away from completion. I don't buy this for a second, maybe I can get that in writing =)

[Frstorm]

Take it to the dealer. Their estimate will be a lot higher and if its frame damage your tile will be marked with a word I forget and the car value is cut in half. I went through this with my 09 tc. Luckily not my fault and guy had heartford and they said anytime its frame damage we total it since the car isn't worth fixing