1. Ain't gonna happen.
2. Ain't gonna happen.
3. Depends on what is wrong. This sort of thing does depend on your insurance policy and your state law, also.
4. Alignment, at the very least.
5. Do not accept ANY cost, no matter what BS her insurance co. may try to pull. If necessary, threaten to sue and/or file a claim with your own insurance co. Personally, I always file a claim with my own insurance and let my insurance co. deal with the BS from the other insurance co. Make sure if you do this, though, that it won't affect your own claim record.

Welcome to the world of random accidents.

If you lose time from work or have medical bills, then you have an actual claim that you could sue for. The hassle of getting your car fixed is, unfortunately, just part of life.

 

[QUOTE=cases2000,Sep 30 2004, 07:05 AM] Thanks everybody for your input. I went to Progressive last night and things seemed to go smooth until they said that they would buy the parts and that they could be

 

fyi

rear quarterpanels are welded on so the will not be replacing that panel, I know it sux to have stuff patched but thats how the car is built.

check your exhaust to make sure it's straight, couldn't tell from your description if it was affected.

A little dammage to the rear quarter, a rear bumper, and an exhaust ended up costing my Ins co upwards of 3500, but don't be suprised when the adjuster comes back with something in the 1500 range, just make sure you go to a good budy shop that will argue on your behalf to make it right.

 

Dont let ur insurance company go after them, cuz if they do you will have to file a claim with them, which, whether it was your fault or not, it will count against you and raise ur rates. Always go thru her insurance.

 

Both of mine have been replaced. But then again, so has everything behind the rear suspension. I had a rather big impact on the track in May.

But yeah, replacing the rear QP is a lot of work.

 

That is 100% dependent on the details of your insurance policy. My policy does not count anything as a claim against me unless my insurance co. is unable to collect the money from the other insurance co. (only payments of $750 or more count as "claims").

In my case, it is to my advantage to file a "collision" claim with my own company, and let them do the work of settling with the other co. YMMV if your own insurance policy is structured differently.

 

OK.. I used to be an adjuster for 2 years. and body shop estimator for 1 year.... Here's the run-down:

1) You CAN get something. By law, the responsible party must pay your 'loss of use' Go to a rental car company and find the cost to rent an s2k or comparable car (z4, z3, crossfire, slk) and demand that money = cost per day X days in the shop. You dont have to accutally rent the car, but this is money thats owed to you.

2) I'm in california, and dimished value is illegal out here, dealers cant hold it against you on a trade in, so i can offer little info. If you live in a state that WILL factor in diminished value on your car, IMHO, this is DEFINATELY money that's owed to you.

3) let the shop fix the bumper if possible, as long as the gaps and fitment on your damaged bumper are still good. This guarantees perfect fitment. If they do not fit, OEM is your best bet. Reconditioned (basically repaired at bumper shop) is also not bad. Plastic bumper are EASILY fixed. If you go though the other lady's carriers, they cannot force you to use aftermarket (california law). Never get aftermarket bumpers... horrible. Last result is used, but i doubt they'll find one.

4) Suspension is tricky. The shop should do a wheel test to see if the wheel is bent. Obvious damage to the wheel will usually require recondtioning (fixed at a wheel shop). Usually turns out pretty good on non-painted wheels. I wouldnt worry about reconditioned wheels. Ultimately, an alignment will determine if your suspention was damaged.

5)Dont worry about the insurance company sending you to one of their 'preffered' shops. It's usually better, because the insuance company will GUARANTEE their work, unlike your shop of choice. I.E. If the paint doesnt match, or fades or peels, they will pay for respray. Shop of choice? you'll be SOL. Also, preferred shops omit the adjuster from insurance. You deal directly with the shop estimator, who usually knows what they are doing and know what they are talking about. Most insurance adjusters are hired off the street and havent a clue on how to fix a car.

Last note:
"Never go throught your insurance companie unless you are at fault. Why? Because they will make you pay the collision deductable on your car and then they won't fight to find you 100% in the right they will make you take some blame you'll forfit a portion of your deductable if not the whole thing and then they will raise your rates. "

Completely ignore this quote from excel.
If you go thru your own carrier, they have to pay for the damages up front, meaning they are out of pocket the money. They will later collect this for damages from the responsible party (other carrier), along with you deductible, and reimburse you for it. If they dont FIGHT for your 'at-fault' status, they cannot collect their money back... trust me, they WILL fight for you, because it IS their money they shelled out for the repairs. They cannot, by law, raise your rates if you are 100% not at fault.


Good luck.

 

^ holy shit did i just type all that?

 

DUDE you are wrong here! I've had this happen and I had to remove my insurance company from the arbitration because they don't care about a few hundred dollars when there was a disagreement. So I had to get a lawyer when they informed me that someone hiting me from behind wasn't 100% responsible because I used excessive stopping force on a freaking dodge stratus! They WILL ALWAYS want your collision deductable FIRST and they might return it to you later if you are found 100% not at fault, but you then open up the door to them to fight for you which like I said means that they might let 10% lay on you just to avoid the expense of a fight. Then your stuck getting a freakin lawyer! Also you can't go out (if you claim it on your insurance) and get just any car. If you have State Farm like I do and you use them to fight for you you're covered only for 80% or x amount per day no matter who's at fault! What a mistake! If you go through there insurance company then you can get a comparable car and stick it to them for the whole cost!

Ask a lawyer, he'll inform you this stuff is common knowledge.

 

excel, I have State Farm too. The way it works in my policy is that if State Farm ends up paying more than $750, it is a "chargable" accident. If they get all (or almost all) the money back from the other party's insurance, it is not chargable to me.

This sort of thing varies state-by-state. YMMV.

The only time I didn't get back 100% of my costs when somebody else was at fault was also the only time that I didn't go through my own insurance company. The other company made some stupid claim that their party was only 90% responsible, so they would only pay 90% of my costs. I was young and dumb and thought I had to accept what they offered. These days I would have just said, "that's interesting, I think I'll let my lawyer take over this negotiation". Except I wouldn't have needed to do so, because I would have already made a claim through my own insurance co. and they would be the ones dealing with it.