Car Accident, Insurance, Estimate, and Payout

[trippypea1]

Hi everyone! Formerly Trippypea, but I lost my login info and had to re-register.

I have a question about recent car damage and insurance companies. DH has an 8 year old car, paid off for a long time with 150,000 miles on it. Since DH now works from home, it gets used a lot less than it used to so we hope to get another year or two out of it. The blue book value of the car is not very much, but cosmetically, it looks great.

At least until we took it for an oil change. The shop somehow didn't have it in park as it came off the lift and when it touched the ground, it started rolling! They didn't catch it in time and it hit machinery a few feet away, punching a nickel size hole in the bumper, plus a half dollar size dent where a similar piece didn't punch through. Nothing was leaking and it was perfectly driveable.

The shop accepted full responsibility and put in a claim with their insurance, and we took it for an estimate at one of the shops they partner with. In our state, we are under no obligation to use that shop for repairs; we can go anywhere. The estimator said the damage was minor and can be repaired, so won't be a replacement bumper, and there is no cracking in any of the plastic parts that can crack in a bumper incident. The estimate came in at over $1200 (removing, repairing, repainting, etc). The insurance company has contacted me, assured me again that we can either get it fixed there or go to anyone else we want, and has already paid us the estimate amount. If we go somewhere else, we could give that shop the estimate we have, and they can use that to put in claims for any additional damage (if any found).

My question is, do we have to get the repairs done at all? It seems silly to put $1200 into cosmetic work for a car that is only worth a few grand. Would be more beneficial to put towards a new vehicle down the road, but don't know if that is allowed? If we don't get the repairs done, do we have to return the money? If I would have to give the money back, I would just get the repair done instead. Thx!

[minnesotapaintlady]

No, you don't have to get it fixed.  I've pocketed money from car accidents several times.

eta:  If you have a loan on the vehicle though, the bank may require you do so.  Mine were always owned outright.

[trippypea1]

Jul 6, 2022 11:54:27 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

No, you don't have to get it fixed.  I've pocketed money from car accidents several times.

eta:  If you have a loan on the vehicle though, the bank may require you do so.  Mine were always owned outright.

Thanks for the info! No loan on the car.

[andi9899]

Jul 6, 2022 11:54:27 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

No, you don't have to get it fixed.  I've pocketed money from car accidents several times.

eta:  If you have a loan on the vehicle though, the bank may require you do so.  Mine were always owned outright.

What she said.

[swamp]

Jul 6, 2022 11:43:52 GMT -5 trippypea1 said:

Hi everyone! Formerly Trippypea, but I lost my login info and had to re-register.

I have a question about recent car damage and insurance companies. DH has an 8 year old car, paid off for a long time with 150,000 miles on it. Since DH now works from home, it gets used a lot less than it used to so we hope to get another year or two out of it. The blue book value of the car is not very much, but cosmetically, it looks great.

At least until we took it for an oil change. The shop somehow didn't have it in park as it came off the lift and when it touched the ground, it started rolling! They didn't catch it in time and it hit machinery a few feet away, punching a nickel size hole in the bumper, plus a half dollar size dent where a similar piece didn't punch through. Nothing was leaking and it was perfectly driveable.

The shop accepted full responsibility and put in a claim with their insurance, and we took it for an estimate at one of the shops they partner with. In our state, we are under no obligation to use that shop for repairs; we can go anywhere. The estimator said the damage was minor and can be repaired, so won't be a replacement bumper, and there is no cracking in any of the plastic parts that can crack in a bumper incident. The estimate came in at over $1200 (removing, repairing, repainting, etc). The insurance company has contacted me, assured me again that we can either get it fixed there or go to anyone else we want, and has already paid us the estimate amount. If we go somewhere else, we could give that shop the estimate we have, and they can use that to put in claims for any additional damage (if any found).

My question is, do we have to get the repairs done at all? It seems silly to put $1200 into cosmetic work for a car that is only worth a few grand. Would be more beneficial to put towards a new vehicle down the road, but don't know if that is allowed? If we don't get the repairs done, do we have to return the money? If I would have to give the money back, I would just get the repair done instead. Thx!

Pfft.  Keep the money.    You don't have to have the car repaired.  Just take the check. 

[NoNamePerson]

I kept the money from a small claim. The only thing I remember is insurance company did reach out several times about not having work done.  I think the last conversation ended with “I’m not having repairs done. Insurance lady said on that note they would close the file. Don’t know if this holds true for all companies but that was my experience. Keep the money

[haapai]

I'd probably take the cash and not have the repairs done.  Like you, I don't see the reason to do cosmetic work on a vehicle with that many miles on it. 

But I am not you and I'm definitely not your husband, who will be the one driving it.  I don't know if your plan to get another year or two out of it means driving it until the wheels fall off.  I don't know if your husband will continue to work from home or if he will demand a replacement if he ever goes back to the office.  I don't know if your assessment of the blue book value is recent.  I don't know if you have children who will need a crap car some day and if there is any chance of them driving this one. 

I'd probably pocket the cash no matter what the answers to those questions were but this is a very good time to revisit and update your plans for eventually replacing the car.  The price of cars both new and used has gone through the roof.  You may be dramatically under-estimating the cost of replacing this car unless you have looked at current prices and availability. 

It's always easier to handle bad news when you have a bit of jingle in your pocket.  It may even change your plans for what you plan to do with that $1200. 

[tractor]

On something minor like this, take the money and run. My wife recently hit a deer, initial estimate was $2,300, insurance wondered if I wanted the cash or to get it fixed. Since it's still my daily driver, I opted to get it fixed.

After a month in the shop tracking down parts (BMW), the total bill was just above $7K. I would have been stuck paying for it myself down the road if I agreed to take the first offer. Even though the damage was minor, just the damaged electronics in the broken front headlight cost $5,500 to replace. Glad I had insurance and opted to get it fixed.

[Deleted]

Jul 9, 2022 18:59:29 GMT -5 tractor said:

On something minor like this, take the money and run. My wife recently hit a deer, initial estimate was $2,300, insurance wondered if I wanted the cash or to get it fixed. Since it's still my daily driver, I opted to get it fixed.

After a month in the shop tracking down parts (BMW), the total bill was just above $7K. I would have been stuck paying for it myself down the road if I agreed to take the first offer. Even though the damage was minor, just the damaged electronics in the broken front headlight cost $5,500 to replace. Glad I had insurance and opted to get it fixed.

Dayum.  

When my car died 2 years ago I called my financial advisor and told him I needed him to transfer money to my checking account because I had found a replacement.  He asked what I was getting- a Honda Civic, I said.  He asked whey I didn't get a BMW.  I laughed and said, "why would I do that?"  I think I'll keep the Civic.

To each his own, I know.  My vices are travel and jewelry.

One other comment on the subject- probably doesn't apply to the OP but if you don't repair a minor scrape or crunch and someone hits you in the same place, their insurer may refuse to pay all or part of the claim because they're not going to pay for damage that happened from a previous accident.  Perfectly reasonable but it may be hard to quantify the new damage.