Tachus

Photographs to follow but here's the situation, a large box truck ran a red light as I was crossing an intersection and hit the rear three feet of the passenger side almost behind the rear wheel, the S spun and I ended up on the grass verge having knocked down a metal 40 mph sign, the box truck left the seen but a witness gave chase and got its plate number.

In short the worst impact damage is to the rear right passenger side outer body panel, the structure of the trunk side wall, the upper suspension link which is probably snapped, the rear light assembly smashed and the rear bumper cover torn off.
The front damage was from the speed limit sign is to the front bumper cover and the drivers side headlamp which was not broken but has been displaced rearward.

My view is that the structural damage to the front is minor and that apart from the above listed items the frame and all other components are not damaged, the doors and windows operate and I reversed off of the grass verge although the tilted rear wheel was in contact with the body panel.

I think the car is very repairable but anticipate that the adjuster will push for the cheaper path of writing it off and low balling me on the vehicle value, so any thoughts and strategies?
With thanks, Alan

fsulli6

Looter

Matt_in_VA

Catherine, I am very sorry to learn about this. But, I guess the more important part is that you did not get hurt.

I just had a conversation with Len and Ken, when we pre-drove the GGTG route and the route for next year's S2K Days in Gettysburg, about insuring my S with Haggerty for a fixed dollar amount (perhaps $50K) as I could not replace my AP1, if something like this happened to me.

Scooterboy

Sorry about the car but how is Catherine taking it?


BTW, how are you?

Lainey

Sorry to hear this, glad you were not hurt. Hope all works out well for you and the yellow car you love

Emil St-Hilaire

dlq04

Alan, I am not sure anything here applies . . . as it maybe just the opposite of what where you want this to go but, I think there's a point or two that may apply.

So you’re in a wreck and think your car should be totaled

Some tips from an attorney –

Be on your toes with the auto insurance company. Beleive me, the companies rarely pay what you are entitled to "up front." It takes some negotiating. This may sound very materialistic at a time like this, but emotionally, you may not be in the best position to watch out for your best interests.



You really should get out in front of this claim. If you want the company to total the car, sitting back and waiting for the adjuster is just spinning the wheel of chance. Maybe they will find it totaled, maybe not. They base their decision on cost to repair versus value of the car as a total. If it is cheaper to repair, that is what they do.

Damage that goes into the unit body is VERY difficult to repair correctly and your car may never feel right. This just happened to my daughter on her Maxima. It was nearly totaled, but the company decided to fix it because it would save them 500 dollars. For 500 bucks she has to live with a car that she says no longer feels right. She now wishes she fought to total the car. There are ways to do this.

A good body man on your side should meet the adjuster to explain why the car is totaled. You should research all the web sites that give car values so you can be prepared to discuss the replacement cost. If the repair cost is close to the replacement cost, argue that the company must then add in a payment for the diminution of the car when it is repaired, because a badly damaged car that is repaired is not worth the same as the car before the accident. Yes, you can claim for this.

They always start with the cost to repair. If it looks bad, they look at the cost to replace. This is where things get funky. The company starts with the same things we look at to figure out what our cars are worth when we go to sell them. They go on NADA, Kelly, etc. They plug in all the factory equipment and the mileage and get a number. If they don't like the number, they can commission a market evaluation. Basically, a company that reads the newspaper ads looks around the area where the person lives and sees what used cars like yours are available that are similarly equipped, with similar mileage. This almost always comes up less than the retail price reflected in guides, so this is one area where you can fight like mad. They get ads, so you get ads. You show how well you maintained the car, stored it, waxed it everything. Then we look at add-ons like stereos and other equipment. They hate to pay replacement cost on this and I could write a couple of paragraphs just on this issue alone. Make sure you have reciepts and be prepared to fight the depreciation issue on add-ons.

Once the value is established they compare it to the repair cost. They have a simple approach. They go with the lowest number. But here is another place to fight. Say your car books out at 24,000 and repairs are 20,000. You can guess what they will want to do. But you don't really want a car that needed 20k in repairs. So, what is the diminution in value? The analysis is the same. How much will someone pay for a repaired car that needed 20k to repair it? Your dealer could help you here. Use them as an "expert" in car values. In the above example, it shouldn't be too hard to show the value has gone down 4 to 6K. Make a claim for this. The insurer will hate it, but why should you eat this diminution? There was a recent court decision on this issue and the court allowed the adjustment for diminution so you have precedent on your side. Now the repair cost equals or exceeds the replacement cost and the carrier has a reason to total the car.
What next? Well, make sure they add in for sales tax to buy the replacement car, and if you really think your car is repairable, or you want the parts, find out how much they want for the salvage. This lets you buy back the wreck. This is a great way to get cheap parts or the start of a race car.

Kyras

When my 2007 Laguna Blue got hammered with hail 2 years ago I found the body shop with the best recommendations for repairs. I think that's the most important part of the equation. They understood that although it was "just a Honda" it was a nice Honda and not just a Civic or Accord. They gladly pushed back when insurance balked at wet sanding the paint to make it smooth like the original paint, whereas the insurance company recommended body shops would not have thought it was necessary. You need to have the repair shop on your side from the start. Yelp reviews are a starting point. Other S2000 owners might be a help.

MsPerky

^ I would agree with this. Finding a shop that has worked on S2000s would be ideal. This article from wikiHow is pretty good. The subject is how to get the most from a car that is totaled, but lots of the advice would apply to a negotiation to repair instead. One important point is that insurance adjusters are under pressure to resolve cases quickly. You need to have patience and be willing to wait and negotiate to get what you want.

https://www.wikihow.com/Dispute-an-I...-Loss-on-a-Car

Good luck!