Car insurance repair older car?

[justme]

So a tree branch fell on my car. Not a dead tree so pretty much falls under act of God so no one but my insurance to fix this.

It's purely cosmetic - just a big ass dent in the roof. But my car is a 2008. So I'm worried about going through insurance and them totaling it.

Went to a body shop and one gave me a "deal" when I said hoping to not go through insurance. It's $925 not including whatever I do for a ride for the likely two full days maybe a third.

My deductible is $250 and I have rental car insurance so it's not an insignificant difference. And I've read comprehensive claims don't up your insurance that much since it wasn't your fault it happened.

So I'm really stuck on trying to figure out if they're going to total my car. I really hadn't planned to get a new car anytime soon. Was waiting for the car craziness to die down.

Anyone out there with insights or something to help me?

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

When TD hit my car with his car, we did not go through insurance as they likely would have totaled it.  This happened last year (2022) in my 2007 Subaru and he did over $3000 in damage to the side of my car.  We paid OOP to have it repaired.  

When we hit a deer a few years go, it did about $700 in cosmetic damage and we paid this OOP as well.

[andi9899]

Find the same car online and get as close as possible with mileage and features. Assume you'll get half of that at salvage if you claim it. That will help you make your decision. The claim won't hurt you if you choose to go that route. You can still keep your car if they total it.

[minnesotapaintlady]

I've totaled two van in the past three years.  I still own them both and they are driven daily (well, one I sold to my stepdad).   You don't have to give up your vehicle if they total it.  Your payout will just be less if you keep it. 

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 26, 2023 16:41:08 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

 

When we hit a deer a few years go, it did about $700 in cosmetic damage and we paid this OOP as well.

Why wouldn't you turn in a deer hit?  Those are "acts of god" and don't affect rates, or is your deductible really high?  I have my comprehensive set at like $250 because I hit them so much.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Jan 26, 2023 20:00:47 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Jan 26, 2023 16:41:08 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

 

When we hit a deer a few years go, it did about $700 in cosmetic damage and we paid this OOP as well.

Why wouldn't you turn in a deer hit?  Those are "acts of god" and don't affect rates, or is your deductible really high?  I have my comprehensive set at like $250 because I hit them so much.

I have a $500 deductible.  It really didn’t seem worth it to run it through insurance for about $170 or so.

[justme]

Jan 26, 2023 19:56:59 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I've totaled two van in the past three years.  I still own them both and they are driven daily (well, one I sold to my stepdad).   You don't have to give up your vehicle if they total it.  Your payout will just be less if you keep it. 

I know that's a possibility, but how does that work going forward? You just have liability insurance coverage going forward? Does the insurance go higher because it's a salvage title?

[justme]

Jan 26, 2023 18:46:32 GMT -5 andi9899 said:

Find the same car online and get as close as possible with mileage and features. Assume you'll get half of that at salvage if you claim it. That will help you make your decision. The claim won't hurt you if you choose to go that route. You can still keep your car if they total it.

So is there limit of how far from your location? And what about like kbb vs what they're selling for?

For example I think the kbb was 2500-3000, but the closest car being sold was two years older for more than twice as much. Two years is still pretty much the same model - three years was when the car had a whole redo.

But if the car was worth 2500 so half is 1250 so a 1000 repair means they're unlikely to total it?

Is there an "oh shit no" option or if you file the claim and they total it you either just take the cash or go having the car with a salvage title?

[andi9899]

Jan 27, 2023 1:15:53 GMT -5 justme said:

Jan 26, 2023 18:46:32 GMT -5 andi9899 said:

Find the same car online and get as close as possible with mileage and features. Assume you'll get half of that at salvage if you claim it. That will help you make your decision. The claim won't hurt you if you choose to go that route. You can still keep your car if they total it.

So is there limit of how far from your location? And what about like kbb vs what they're selling for?

For example I think the kbb was 2500-3000, but the closest car being sold was two years older for more than twice as much. Two years is still pretty much the same model - three years was when the car had a whole redo.

But if the car was worth 2500 so half is 1250 so a 1000 repair means they're unlikely to total it?

Is there an "oh shit no" option or if you file the claim and they total it you either just take the cash or go having the car with a salvage title?

Don't use KBB, the insurance company doesn't. Find what cars of that year make and model are selling for. Get as close as you can to what you have and that will give you an idea of what it's worth.


Usually if the repairs exceed 70% of the car's value it's deemed a total loss. If that happens, you'll be presented with 2 offers. One offer will be higher with the insurance company retaining the vehicle. The other will be a lower offer with you keeping it. You can cash out and either repair it or not. The choice is still ultimately yours to make.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 27, 2023 1:12:04 GMT -5 justme said:

Jan 26, 2023 19:56:59 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I've totaled two van in the past three years.  I still own them both and they are driven daily (well, one I sold to my stepdad).   You don't have to give up your vehicle if they total it.  Your payout will just be less if you keep it. 

I know that's a possibility, but how does that work going forward? You just have liability insurance coverage going forward? Does the insurance go higher because it's a salvage title?

I have no idea.  Neither of mine ended up with a salvage title.  The one was fully drive-able and fine.  It only had liability when it was totaled (Other guy's insurance paid). The other van was not at all drive-able and was in the shop.  I said I wanted to keep it so they wrote up another quote.  My dad hauled it off on a trailer and fixed it and then titled it in WI.  Maybe if I would have had the shop fix it it would have come up as salvage when I went to renew my registration?  It may have been since the title was never surrendered to insurance it never got changed.

I have owned salvage title vehicles in the past and had full coverage on them (they had to be inspected), but if it's an older car maybe you want to just drop to liability anyhow?  That's all I have on my two older ones.

[justme]

Jan 27, 2023 9:15:47 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Jan 27, 2023 1:12:04 GMT -5 justme said:

I know that's a possibility, but how does that work going forward? You just have liability insurance coverage going forward? Does the insurance go higher because it's a salvage title?

I have no idea.  Neither of mine ended up with a salvage title.  The one was fully drive-able and fine.  It only had liability when it was totaled (Other guy's insurance paid). The other van was not at all drive-able and was in the shop.  I said I wanted to keep it so they wrote up another quote.  My dad hauled it off on a trailer and fixed it and then titled it in WI.  Maybe if I would have had the shop fix it it would have come up as salvage when I went to renew my registration?  It may have been since the title was never surrendered to insurance it never got changed.

I have owned salvage title vehicles in the past and had full coverage on them (they had to be inspected), but if it's an older car maybe you want to just drop to liability anyhow?  That's all I have on my two older ones.

I looked into dropping coverage last time I repriced, but it's not a huge amount so it would have taken years of savings to equal the cost of the car. So it made more sense to keep it because I'm planning on getting a new car before the savings of dropping collision/comp would break even.

Stupid metal roof not being something I can just pop back out.

[justme]

Jan 27, 2023 7:33:59 GMT -5 andi9899 said:

Jan 27, 2023 1:15:53 GMT -5 justme said:

So is there limit of how far from your location? And what about like kbb vs what they're selling for?

For example I think the kbb was 2500-3000, but the closest car being sold was two years older for more than twice as much. Two years is still pretty much the same model - three years was when the car had a whole redo.

But if the car was worth 2500 so half is 1250 so a 1000 repair means they're unlikely to total it?

Is there an "oh shit no" option or if you file the claim and they total it you either just take the cash or go having the car with a salvage title?

Don't use KBB, the insurance company doesn't. Find what cars of that year make and model are selling for. Get as close as you can to what you have and that will give you an idea of what it's worth.


Usually if the repairs exceed 70% of the car's value it's deemed a total loss. If that happens, you'll be presented with 2 offers. One offer will be higher with the insurance company retaining the vehicle. The other will be a lower offer with you keeping it. You can cash out and either repair it or not. The choice is still ultimately yours to make.

Hmm so carfax has a list of cars when I Google mine. Looks around 5000-6000 for close in mileage to my car. And carfax is showing dealer listings.

So that makes a 1000 repair seem doable.

Any insight on a comprehensive claim increasing premiums? Google seems to say that it shouldn't change much since it was no fault of my own.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

I forgot.  TD had a tree fall on his 2002 WRX back in 2014.  This he did pit through insurance as the car had a dented roof, the hood was scraped up, the windshield was broken and the side mirror removed.  It was several thousand $$ in damage.  He said it did not change his insurance any.  It shouldn’t cause any problems, but…….no telling what insurance companies will do.  I got dropped from my insurance because my car got stolen out of my apartment complex parking lot.

[andi9899]

Jan 28, 2023 13:30:32 GMT -5 justme said:

Jan 27, 2023 7:33:59 GMT -5 andi9899 said:

Don't use KBB, the insurance company doesn't. Find what cars of that year make and model are selling for. Get as close as you can to what you have and that will give you an idea of what it's worth.


Usually if the repairs exceed 70% of the car's value it's deemed a total loss. If that happens, you'll be presented with 2 offers. One offer will be higher with the insurance company retaining the vehicle. The other will be a lower offer with you keeping it. You can cash out and either repair it or not. The choice is still ultimately yours to make.

Hmm so carfax has a list of cars when I Google mine. Looks around 5000-6000 for close in mileage to my car. And carfax is showing dealer listings.

So that makes a 1000 repair seem doable.

Any insight on a comprehensive claim increasing premiums? Google seems to say that it shouldn't change much since it was no fault of my own.

If it changes at all, it won't be much. It's at fault collision claims that will mess you up and this isn't one.

Assume you'll get half of what the car that comes closest to yours sells for to keep it at salvage. You can claim it and cash out. Get the car fixed and keep any overage if you want.

[tskeeter]

Justme, a word of caution.

Most cars made over the last several decades are of unibody construction.  The means that the passenger compartment in a critical structural component of the car.  The combination of a stiff floor pan and a stiff roof keep the car from folding in the middle.  Anything more significant than a minor ding is really not cosmetic damage.  It’s likely significant structural damage. 

While it may be possible to disguise the damage, I wouldn’t be interested in driving a car that was structurally compromised.  I suggest that you talk with the higher priced body shops about exactly what repairs they are proposing and why.  And compare that information to what the shop that will give you a “deal” said they will do.  And then make a decision about which shop is likely to do the highest quality repair.  (Shortcuts and crappy work that might endanger your life is never a good value.)

[justme]

Feb 3, 2023 1:43:18 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

Justme, a word of caution.

Most cars made over the last several decades are of unibody construction.  The means that the passenger compartment in a critical structural component of the car.  The combination of a stiff floor pan and a stiff roof keep the car from folding in the middle.  Anything more significant than a minor ding is really not cosmetic damage.  It’s likely significant structural damage. 

While it may be possible to disguise the damage, I wouldn’t be interested in driving a car that was structurally compromised.  I suggest that you talk with the higher priced body shops about exactly what repairs they are proposing and why.  And compare that information to what the shop that will give you a “deal” said they will do.  And then make a decision about which shop is likely to do the highest quality repair.  (Shortcuts and crappy work that might endanger your life is never a good value.)

I've had two say they can bump the roof out front the inside, bondo it smooth where needed and paint. The one that spent the least time looking at it and writing the report came back twice as much or more in both repairs and time. He practically threw the estimate at me while the others went over damage and asked what i wanted repaired (don't care about superficial scratches on door) So I'm confident either they didn't want to do it or just wanted money.

The part of the roof the doors go into is separate. They can open close no problem. It definitely has a separate roof panel.

[tskeeter]

Feb 10, 2023 1:18:37 GMT -5 justme said:

Feb 3, 2023 1:43:18 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

Justme, a word of caution.

Most cars made over the last several decades are of unibody construction.  The means that the passenger compartment in a critical structural component of the car.  The combination of a stiff floor pan and a stiff roof keep the car from folding in the middle.  Anything more significant than a minor ding is really not cosmetic damage.  It’s likely significant structural damage. 

While it may be possible to disguise the damage, I wouldn’t be interested in driving a car that was structurally compromised.  I suggest that you talk with the higher priced body shops about exactly what repairs they are proposing and why.  And compare that information to what the shop that will give you a “deal” said they will do.  And then make a decision about which shop is likely to do the highest quality repair.  (Shortcuts and crappy work that might endanger your life is never a good value.)

I've had two say they can bump the roof out front the inside, bondo it smooth where needed and paint. The one that spent the least time looking at it and writing the report came back twice as much or more in both repairs and time. He practically threw the estimate at me while the others went over damage and asked what i wanted repaired (don't care about superficial scratches on door) So I'm confident either they didn't want to do it or just wanted money.

The part of the roof the doors go into is separate. They can open close no problem. It definitely has a separate roof panel.

Good to hear that two of the shops agree that the damage is cosmetic, not structural.  When one shop’s estimate is significantly less than other estimates, I always wonder why it’s so low and worry about shortcuts.