Insurance heads up

[haydn taylor]

I have had 2 experiences like this in the past (both in the UK) and got
raped both times,  Think long and hard if you want the pain in youre life
right now to deal with fighting the insurance company for the sake of maybe
another $1000. You are in for months of pain!!!

I had a 1964 Volvo Amazon 123GT, thgat was immaculate. I paid 3000.00GBP for
it, then put about another 3K GBP into it, so it had a value to me of about
$9K USD. It was appraised at about that by Volvo UK, and the Volvo Owners
Club, I had all the reciepts and a years worth of clippings from local and
national magazines (the car had been featured in several). I got rear ended
by a Joy rider. the insurance company offered me 300.00 GBP as per the blue
book value. I fought them for a year and a half to no avail.

Case 2 - I had an ex-works 1979 (I think), Chrysler Sunbeam TI Rally Car,
with full factory documentation and a full life history of racing. A friend
of mine was driving it, was forced off the road into a ditch where a tree
growing out of the banmk at 45 degrees attempted to peel the roof off,
thankfully there was a full FIA cage in it that got crushed to the point
that it pinned my friends head to the head rest. - the insurance company
managed to get out of paying anything at all as the crash happened on a non
public highway (it was on a 2 mile long stretch of private road.)

Case 3 - Suzuki GSXR - stolen from outside my house one night, found in a
field 2 months later totalled (the thief had chiseled the lock, and
apparently the chisel came out at speed during cornering and the steering
lock came on - hope he was badly hurt!) - insurance company paid out
$400.00, from which I had to pay 200 to get it back!

etc. etc. etc.

Insurance companies write thier own laws and its very hard to argue with
them.. what really pisses me off is that we all pay thier ripoff rates every
year, and they go up every year (despite no claims), then when something
like 911 happens they cry that they cant afford to cough up and that the
risk of terrorism is too high for them to cover. So the US Govt caves in and
gives the thieving bastards a bunch more of our hard earned money - they get
it both ways and we lose out.

sorry for the rant but.....I HATE INSURANCE COMPANIES! (in case you couldnt
tell)

Timmmy

5ktqs
----- Original Message -----
From: "Roger M. Woodbury" <rmwoodbury at downeast.net>
To: <armanmik at n-jcenter.com>
Cc: <quattro at audifans.com>
Sent: Friday, December 13, 2002 5:43 PM
Subject: Re: Insurance heads up


> Now, wait a minute.  You are a long way from done.  Just because some
> insurance adjuster yahoo SAYS that ACV is some-such, doesn't make it so.
>
> Actual Cash Value is the real dollar value that that car will bring in the
> town or area in which is was principally garaged, and the rating territory
> that was a factor in the rating of the vehicle to begin with.
>
> What you need to do is to prove the insurance adjuster wrong....or
perhaps,
> prove him right.  Here is how you should go about it.
>
> First of all, go to an authorized Mazda dealer.  If you have a recent
> picture of the car, AND all records for all the work done on the car, take
> them with you.  If you have records for maintenance on the car since it
was
> new, or newer, take them too.  The more pictures you have the better.
>
> Ask the dealer what THAT car would be worth, theoretically, at retail
> (Actual Cash Value!), if it was sitting on his lot.
>
> Repeat the exercise at two other dealerships in town, or the local
shopping
> area.
>
> Be straight with the dealers.  Explain that your wife has just survived a
> total loss accident in THAT car.  Tell them that when she gets out of the
> hospital, she will need new transportation (hence going to the Mazda
dealer
> to begin with, of course).  Tell them that the insurance adjuster is
giving
> you what you think is an unfair valuation, as the car was in much better
> than "average" condition.  Provide as much detail as you can.
>
> The three dealers should be willing to give you a statement in writing.
It
> doesn't have to be something that will withstand a Supreme Court
Challenge.
> It is only important that the dealer, authorized Mazda or someone else,
has
> stated in writing, that on the basis of the information and documentation
> that you have provided, the Actual Cash Value (ask the dealer to use those
> words!), of that car on his lot would have been "X" dollars.
>
> You may be surprised at what the Actual Cash Value is....it may be or it
may
> not be better than you have been offered, but by all means, do NOT merely
> accept what has been told you by the insurance company adjuster.  I doubt
> that he has done more than look up the value in the "books".
>
> I was in the insurance agency business for a lot of years, and I can tell
> you, that that Mazda poses difficult considerations.  Its age, mileage and
> model make it an automatic write-off, as far as the insurance company is
> concerned, because most that age are really worth very, very little.  But
> they will gladly provide a better settlement to you, IF you can prove that
> they should.
>
> A client of mine once had a VW Bus that was very old.  He had a lot of
work
> done on the engine and electrical system, as well as extensive body work.
> He had recent receipts for more than $1900.  The bus was stolen and
torched,
> and the insurance company offered him $300 which was exactly book
> value....in that case, NADA Blue Book, which was what was most commonly
> used.
>
> He did exactly what I told him to do, and the valuations from three
dealers
> in town (there were NO VW dealers, by the way), appraised the records and
> pictures of the bus at between$1800 and 2500.  My client got the $1900
that
> he had put into the bus over the previous six months, AFTER deductible.
>
> Let me know what happens, if you would, and also, I would love to know the
> name of the insurance company involved.
>
> Roger
>
> (Mercifully out of the insurance biz for twelve years).
>


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