Is this the end?

[dave smith]

Evening all my wife has had a bit of a bump on an extremely icy corner I know she wasn't driving to fast she is far to aware that she is driving around in a 3 ton killing machine.
The damage: both headlights (broken plastic bits), Grill, N/S indicator, bonnet, bumper with brackets and I think one of the chassis ends (the bit that sticks out) has a bit of a bend.
Its a Colly 1997 (P) with 150k on the clock.
Is mr insurance likely to take it away never to return? my wife loves the car to bits and is completely gutted as am I.
Cheers Dave.

 

[karl webster]

Sorry to hear the news dave. Never good but least nothing serious. They are just lumps of metal at the end of the day. A life is totally different.

My opinion would be its your car.You keep it and you call the shots!

Get them out to look at the damage and they will right it off.See what you can buy it back for then get second hand parts and fix her up. Alot end up dooring that when this happens.

Karl

 

[helen07]

Might work out well for you . My Mrs had just spent £1500 on her 10 year old Rover 414 just when Rover went bankrupt . 2 weeks later her car was written off . Insurance wanted to give her £500 . I went online and found 10 silver Rover 414's , none of which had a reconditioned engine with a 3 year guarantee , but all of which were on sale for around £3500 . I printed them all off and sent a letter to her insurance saying fix the car or replace it "like for like" with one of the cars in the ads i'd sent them .

They would never buy an old car on your behalf because they would be liable if anything went wrong . It took a while but in the end they sent a cheque for £3250 (a fair price) .

Alternatively use the same idea of sending cars for sale ads to ensure you get a fair pay out then buy the car back off them as a cat c damaged repairable .

Hope this helps .

 

[chadr]

I suppose it might depend on what you've hit - i.e. if you bumped into someone's vehicle, then you'll have no option but to go through your insurance. However if you bumped into a tree, you don't need to go through them for repairs - though you may need to notify them of the incident.

As long as nothing important is bent, most of those front bits (bumpers, lights, grill etc.) can be sorted out quite easily and cheaply with 2nd hand bits, or even repair existing bits - I know because I had to do that a few months ago.

Good luck - hope it works out well.

 

[dave smith]

Cheers guys I still haven't seen it in daylight yet so I don't fully know how much damage is done, I only know the stuff that is obvious my wife is still using it to get around so hopefully its all just cosmetic damage. What is it likely to be worth? Its in fair condition just a few scratches here and there, the interior is in good shape and as I said the mileage is 150k its an auto in Black over silver (the best colour imo)

 

[helen07]

What it's worth as far as insurance is concerned is nothing . But if you insist on repair or replace and send them as many trucks for sale ads as possible you should get enough to buy another Colorado .

Don't take your examples from ebay you will find 150k Colorado's or Prado's on sites like pistonheads and parkers with asking prices almost double what you would expect to pay . If the insurance company looks at the ads you sent them and accept the average price is between 5 or 6 grand they won't make much fuss about giving you 3500 for your truck .

 

[wobbly]

If you can, only send them private ads. They assume that dealers build in a grand, so will reduce the offer accordingly.

As the car is no longer road legal you should ask them for a courtesy car - this increases the chance of them writing it off as the hire cost is included in the calculation.

Pete

 

[dave smith]

Well they have picked up the Colly and they won't let me have it back, I can however bid for it at a salvage auction but I now don't have anything to tow it back with if I managed to buy it back!
I am going to have a go though.

 

[helen07]

They can't sell it without your consent !

I'd wanna know exactly how they were gonna compensate me . If they offered pittance i'd demand my car was repaired or replaced . It cost them money to keep your car in storage and i hope you got a rental car from them until its all settled . Insurance companies are Nazi's your only defence against them is to become so expensive it would be cheaper for them to fix your car or pay you enough to replace it .

 

[helen07]

And don't think because they have called it a write off its beyond repair , it simply means it will be cheaper for them not to fix it .

Ideally for them they will pay you a grand , then sell the car for a grand , let someone else fix it , then insure it again for another grand on third party only because its a catc write off .

 

[Graham]

Well they have picked up the Colly and they won't let me have it back, I can however bid for it at a salvage auction but I now don't have anything to tow it back with if I managed to buy it back!
I am going to have a go though.

.
And did you just stand there and let them take it?
Sorry but you were quite foolish.

That is unless you really wanted them to take it, and wanting a big pay out.

Sorry.

Gra.

 

[helen07]

Thats a bit harsh Graham many people , especially those with no experience , are intimidated by the faceless and heartless insurance companies , everyone knows they are pretty much above the law but this is only because few choose to fight what seems like impossible odds . Make reasonable demands Dave and mention the ombudsman etc and stand your ground because they will back down . I'd say £3500 would get you a decent replacement so tell them thats what you want and they are responsible for keeping your vehicle in safe storage until the matter is settled . Plus if your cover includes a rental car it should be a car of equal or better facility hence tell them you want a 4x4 rental .

None of this will prevent you buying the car back at auction later on .

 

[Graham]

Sorry if it sounds a bit harsh, may be it was.

But again, I guess it depends on how much the owner wants to keep their LC.

Gra.

 

[dave smith]

I do want to keep it we have owned it for ten years! It has let us down twice in that time the first when the batteries failed (and to be fair I was warned that they needed changing) and the other was on the day of a job interview when the starter contacts gave up (I got he job) the guy who interviewed me asked why I was late and after I told him he said "starter contacts I know the score I drive an LC Colly too". Other than that its only had what it needed servicing wise oh and lots and lots of diesel. If I can get it back I recon I will get the parts for a couple of hundred quid. If I don't I will look for a 120 which I was thinking about anyway but I may have had my hand forced. One thing that is for sure is that both myself and my wife will miss this car if we don't get it back.

 

[helen07]

Just don't forget you own the vehicle and the insurance company has no rights to do anything at all with it unless you give your permission .My Mrs desperately wanted her Rover 414 back under any circumstances , but with thier usual arrogance the insurance company had sold it on without permission though they never admitted it . In the end they were stuck between a rock and a hard place . They couldn't give it back because it had been sold so eventually they caved in and offered a more for it than we could have got anywhere else had we chosen to sell before the accident .
We are talking about companies that deal in billions of pounds daily . To them you are just an inconvienience , 5 minutes on the phone to you would compare to you driving back from Lands End to John o' Groats because you left one sock at the B&B - its just not worth it .


6 months after we settled with insurance we got a speed camera fine in the post dated just 2 weeks after the accident , obviously the car was fixed and sold and back on the road long before we were informed it was a write off !

 

[Graham]

I do want to keep it we have owned it for ten years! It has let us down twice in that time the first when the batteries failed (and to be fair I was warned that they needed changing) and the other was on the day of a job interview when the starter contacts gave up (I got he job) the guy who interviewed me asked why I was late and after I told him he said "starter contacts I know the score I drive an LC Colly too". Other than that its only had what it needed servicing wise oh and lots and lots of diesel. If I can get it back I recon I will get the parts for a couple of hundred quid. If I don't I will look for a 120 which I was thinking about anyway but I may have had my hand forced. One thing that is for sure is that both myself and my wife will miss this car if we don't get it back.

.
Hi Dave,

Sorry about my post earlier, but it makes me mad when I hear about insurance company's doing the dirty on people.
Just riles me no end.

If it is going to go, then so be it.
Next step is to find all the highest prices private sale Colorado's that you can.
Print out the highest few, maybe 3 or 4.
I don't know what you will get for your Colorado, but here hoping all turns out well.

The 120 might be in sight sooner than you think.

Gra.

 

[Paddler Ed]

What happens if you turn round to the insurers and say that I don't want to involve you in settling this matter? If you've not got a 3rd party involved then I'm sure it should be possible.

The only issue is because you have notified them of an accident, even though you may not be making a claim, your premium will rise.

Good Luck!

I'm sure insurance is there to make sure that you are not in a position worse off than before... and that's how some older cars have been kept on the road (with a clean sheet, ie not recorded on the HPi database as a Cat C or Cat D) when the insured has argued that the insurance is there to keep them in the same position as before.

Also have a look at Brightwell's results; it'll give you an indication of the 4x4 market at the moment in terms of what things are worth. On the whole the Insurers will give you a price based on CAP Black Book, but Black Book can't keep up with seasonal fluctuations in 4x4 prices.

Another edit... just had a look at Brightwell's Results:

1996 P Toyota L. Cruiser Colorado Dsl Sw 3.0 Td Gx 3dr
221199 miles warranted, Green, Two Owners, V5 here, MoT 18 Jul'13, Tax Oct'13, CD Player, Tow Bar, Sold As Seen, No VAT,
Direct from Main Agent.
£2,300
174% of CAP Clean

Certainly reinforces the idea that the prices are stronger than Black Book prices are. CAP Clean refers to the top trade in price, so reckon on about another 50% for private and 75% for dealer price on something like a Collie.

 

[helen07]

I missed one VERY IMPORTANT detail - if your cover includes legal expensis demand to be put in touch with the legal department forthwith . They cannot refuse this , but the fact is they don't have a legal department instead they use outside firms who charge them just as they would charge you or me . This all of a sudden makes your claim a priority because lawyers would be happy to let it go on for years while collecting money for nothing . All of a sudden the choice is either pay you a grand more to end the matter or continue to pay lawyers £300 an hour for doing absolutely nothing .

 

[froggy Steve]

If you need some high prices, show them the prices here in France! Mental!

here

High miles (km) virtually no service history, smokers etc etc

Steve

 

[dave smith]

I have accepted their offer! the first offer of £2500 was as I expected, so I told the assessor who phoned me that I wouldn't be able to replace it like for like for that money ( i'd be a fool to take that sum). He had a look on the autotrader while I was still on the phone to him and agreed with me. Even better he asked me what my excess ( have I spelled that correctly?) was so I told him £350. The offer was raised to £3850 to give me £3500 clear! I am well chuffed what a jolly decent bloke he turned out to be. Just need to get it back now