My Jeep got hit - and now the other party's insurnace is screwing me

[Blaine B.]

About 3 weeks ago my Jeep was parked legally on the street outside of my friend's house. A female driver was driving the opposite direction but claims to have served to avoid an animal and ran into the driver's front corner of my XJ, mostly hitting the tire...Bumper, fender, and headlight were bent, as well as my draglink and tierod, and my driver's side lower control arm mount was tore. Also I believe the axle housing is bent, as the driver's side axleshaft did not appear to be centered inside of my Alloy D30 tube seal.

So a week later it gets towed from the scene and goes to the bodyshop for an estimate (a well known collision center that happens to be a preffered shop for Metropolitan insurance.) Originally I was going to take it to the Jeep dealership bodyshop, but since insurance was making the estimate anyway I just figured I mind as well have it towed to their place for convenience of them since I planned (and still do plan) to do the repairs on my own.

Two weeks after that (today) I finally get a call from the Insurance adjuster (from Metropolitan Insurance; the other party's insurance.....I have AllState personally)

They claim the vehicle as a total loss, and are only giving me an offer of $1000 for the vehicle with me keeping the Jeep.

They claim the vehicle is only worth $1500 (although when I bluebook it I get $2185.00) and that there is $6000 worth of unrelated damage to the vehicle from my modifications (trimmed fenders, lift, SYE, basically any mod I did to it)

I do not have receipts for everything that I put into the Jeep but so far I have acquired $3770.06 worth of receipts for stuff I have put into the Jeep. Hubs, axle bearings, wheels, lift, SYE, driveshaft, muffler, etc.)

The adjuster is claiming those receipts mean nothing because they are not considered "normal" items on a vehicle.

Also she said the damage to the vehicle was around $900.00. For some reason the body shop did not include the damage to my steering or the axle housing...

What kind of BS is this? When I talked to my personal insurance, the body shop, and one of the people at Metropolitan's national claims center, they said the receipts could only increase the value of the vehicle and I should give copies to the adjuster. I do have copies of every receipt I have as well as a copy of a maintenance log for the vehicle which also contains any piece of work I've done on it detailed down to the month and year that I did the work.

I am going to go talk with my personal insurance agent tomorrow to see if they can help. I do not have full coverage but I do not THINK that will matter at this point since I don't except them to pay anything, just to help get me the amount I deserve.

I've never come across anybody who got into an accident and then anything that wasn't stock on the vehicle was considered "unrelated damage"

Infact I've know people where the insurance will add up every mod on the vehicle and give you whatever it is valued at currently (of course no full price because it depreciated, but some money regardless)

What do you all think about this matter? I do feel I am getting SCREWED up the behind.

[WB9YZU]

Sounds normal to me. It isn't right, but it sounds normal. You have a specialized vehicle, and they don't "do" specialized vehicles, just unmodified cars and trucks.

It used to be that it took 3 estimates, submitted in triplicate and notirized by your Rabbi to get a claim taken care of. Now, in most cases, you take it to who you believe will do the best work. Never have the other party assess the damages, they will always estimate low

[FlexdXJ]

Sue them! Insurance companies are always screwing over regular joes. Just because some dumbass hit your LEGALLY praked vehicle and said it was to avoid an animal! hmm.... hit an animal or hit a car hard choice. Yeah it could be someones pet but animals are easily replaced

[bigalpha]

A few months ago, I bought a brand new 08 Mazda 3. I took it through the touchless carwash because my girl doesn't like the carwash things touchiing the car.

Anyways, this particular carwash has an arm that goes around the car and sprays water/soap. Well, as it was going around the rear of the car, it cut too short and got stuck on our bumper and cracked it.

Then, there was a whole thing about trying to find the owner of the carwash (no info posted on site) and file a claim through his insurance. His Insurance is Columbia Insurance.

Basically, their field agent said that my car was rolling forward and that's why the arm hit the car. My insurance, USAA is in teh process of going after them.

Did you file a police report and call your ins. co. as soon as it happened? They should be able to get your vehicle towed to dealership for estimate. I wouldn't go anywhere else besides dealership. Especially if other company is paying for repairs. Good Luck.

[JNickel101]

Yep, get your ins. co. to go after them. its in their best interest to - because if they don't, they're out a payment each month....

[hubs97xj]

I avoid dealing with the other guy's agent whenever possible- they are looking to get you to agree to something ridiculously cheap, nothing more. Tell them to talk to your agent, and make sure your agent knows where you stand. Also, go to a different shop for the estimates. There's a reason that's a preferred shop for the other guy's insurance.

[goodburbon]

I have progressive insurance, I used to be with another company, but I was once rear-ended and that driver had progressive. I stood there while the adjustor did his thing, pointed out to him what pieces were custom and their costs. He cut me a check right there, no fuss. I went home, bent everything back and bought a winch.

[BigRed86]

x2 I would bring it to another shop and have them look over all the damages. It never hurts to get a second opinion.

[goodburbon]

first thing is to contact your insurance, if that goes nowhere you may be forced to lawyer up or take the 1000 and enjoy it.

[.40CalPatriot]

Dont know if this will help you in anyway, but check your states driving laws. Here in Colorado it is illegal to swerve to miss an animal in the road due to the fact that you could cause an accident, and if you do you are liable for all damage that you cause.

[RichP]

I had the same thing happen with my S10, I was inside watching TV when the neighbor backed out of his driveway and slammed into the side of my truck, I called my insurance company [Erie] told them what happened and they asked me only one question, 'what were you doing when this happened' I said I was inside watching TV, they said 'no problem'. climbed into the passenger side and crawled across then I took it to the Chevy dealer, got a rental and a week later it was good as new. The truck had 350,000mi on it and was 5 years old. All I did was sic my insurance company on them. It had a mickey thompson set of forged aluminum wheels that were discontinued so I got to pick out 4 new ones from the catalog :D

Go through YOUR insurance company, after all if you were suing a neighbor you would not use HIS lawyer would you ? so why use his insurance company.

I told my wife never to swerve into a tree or oncoming lane to miss an animal, the insurance companies will tell you the same thing, and never brake, in fact speed up so you can punt it further.

[Jester99]

It all sounds about right. You didn't tell us how old or how many miles you have on your Jeep. I don't know of any insurance companies unless they are very expensive that pay for mods you have done to your vehicle. You are only insured for your stock vehicle. Regardless of the fact that it wasn't your fault, the insurance company still looks at it as "you were hit." I was totaled twice on my 88 under 200k and I wasn't offered anything for it!

[bigalpha]

never to swerve into a tree or oncoming lane to miss an animal, the insurance companies will tell you the same thing, and never brake, in fact speed up so you can punt it further.

Got an email in my gov't account about this. The new theory is to hit your brakes, then let off right before you hit deer/moose/bigfoot so the body will roll under your vehicle instead of through your windshield.

That'd be some hella impeccible timing.

OP: call your ins co and let them get on the other guy.

[87xjco]

Sorry man! It always is a risk to be driving around an older vehicle that you've put alot of money into. Insurance never pays well in that situation whether it's your own provider or another persons insurance.

Consider that if you've added additional equipment to your vehicle, it doesn't add any value if you are retaining the vehicle when it's totalled. In other words you can't get paid for the value of all the additional parts and get to keep them too.

Also consider the vehicle isn't necessarily worth the value of the vehicle and the cost of all it's additional parts, the vehicles worth what it could be sold for in it's condition before the accident. We've all seen people spend $10,000 on their vehicle and not be able to sell it for $5000.

[fscrig75]

Don't take the vehicle to their mechanic, take it to your own. I believe the law allows you to choose which shop works on your vehicle.

[RichP]

Got an email in my gov't account about this. The new theory is to hit your brakes, then let off right before you hit deer/moose/bigfoot so the body will roll under your vehicle instead of through your windshield.

That'd be some hella impeccible timing.

OP: call your ins co and let them get on the other guy.

If you hit your brakes the nose dives and the animal comes across the hood and thru the windshield, not good. If you slow down it's like chokeing when you hit golf ball with a driver.
I hit a buck two summers ago, it ran out in front me and I was doing 60 heading up to the raceway for a service call, the buck changed direction and lost traction, he went down and it hit him with my passenger side tires, jeep went up on 2 wheels for what felt like 10 miles :shiver:, I thought I was going over. In reality it was like 20ft :D BUT the locker spit him out and delivered him right onto the hood of the Chevy cavalier that was tailgating me. I kept going as I did not notice anything till I was headed back home after rebooting their router 20 minutes later. On the way back I saw the cavalier being loaded on a flat bed with the aforementioned buck sticking half out of the windshield on the passenger side, the driver gave me the finger as I tooled on by... I wonder if he learned not to tailgate.

[WrenchMonkey]

Dont know if this will help you in anyway, but check your states driving laws. Here in Colorado it is illegal to swerve to miss an animal in the road due to the fact that you could cause an accident, and if you do you are liable for all damage that you cause.

That's gold: "Check your local laws, you may be liable if you hit a parked car."

Ya think?
:roflmao:

Robert

[Begster]

Infact I've know people where the insurance will add up every mod on the vehicle and give you whatever it is valued at currently (of course no full price because it depreciated, but some money regardless)



Usually I know insurance companies to give you less or not cover your vehicle if you have altered your vehicle in any way like this. You are now driving a modified vehicle that does not have the OEM safety and collision features it was designed with. i.e. a lift and big bumpers negatively affects the safety of a vehicle, and thus they can make the argument that the accident may not have happened if it was a stock vehicle (I know it doesn't apply to this case, but still)


But anyways good luck with the insurance company, I've been in the same boat. I was driving in the left lane of a 2 lane road and the right lane ended and merged into mine. The F350 dully decided it didn't want to merge, sideswiped me into oncoming cars, and didn't feel the need to stop. Well, in Massachusetts its illegal to leave the scene of an accident, and the police decided they didn't need to give her a citation, and her company decided it was my fault cause I swerved into her.

[bigalpha]

Hey, don't feel bad, I just called my insurance co. and they told me that there was "conflicting statements" between my story and the report the other insurance company produced. NO SH*T!

That, and since it wasn't another car that hit me, it was a carwash instead, their department that usually goes after other companies can't do anything.

Ha.

[Hammered]

what if you swerve to miss a black helicopter? Do they usually cover that?

[SeansBlueXJ]

what if you swerve to miss a black helicopter? Do they usually cover that?

Only if you had your tinfoil saftey hat on...

[alex22]

Now ya got me thinkin. I've gotta call my insurrance company tomorrow and ask what would happen to my coverage IF I put a lift on my jeep. I've got State Farm.

Who would of thought that new (OEM replacement -assuming that part) hubs, axle bearings, wheels and a new muffler would make your car worth less?

~Alex

[Blaine B.]

I am going to do the repairs myself. If I had full coverage I could have went through my insurance company first and then they would go to the other party's insurance to get reimbursement. But I only have liability and so I had to go through the other insurance initially. I have had two meetings with my insurance agent though.

[tbburg]

Off topic, but:
...,let off right before you hit deer/moose/bigfoot so the body will roll under your vehicle instead of through your windshield.

That'd be some hella impeccible timing.Get a bull bar or "stinger" that mounts at least 10-12" above and sticks out 2-3" further then the bumper. Anything shorter then the stinger goes through the grill or under the wheels
'Taller then the stinger, the stinger knocks it forward and down, then under the wheels. Works great for everything but people,...

So don't hit people.

[bigalpha]

So don't hit people.

You take all the fun out of it :tears:

[wolfpackjeeper]

a girl hit my wife's blazer in the parking lot, 3 times in less than a minute actually. The other company told her she HAD to take it to a certain place, I said no thanks I have my own shop. Now, the shop they were going to use has bad service and I do not trust, and while I know the people who run the shop I chose, they have great service and great integrity. You can have who ever you want do the repairs, and in NC where this happened, the other adjuster will come out and go over the car with your guy in the interest of fairness. We were happy with how it turned out.

[NW-ZJ-SCOTT]

small claims court. dont accept the check! DO NOT ACCEPT THE CHECK!

[98XJSport]

dont accept the check! DO NOT ACCEPT THE CHECK!

Thats the big thing. Accept the check, and it turns out there is more damage, too bad. SOL.

[red91]

Sounds normal to me. It isn't right, but it sounds normal. You have a specialized vehicle, and they don't "do" specialized vehicles, just unmodified cars and trucks.

It used to be that it took 3 estimates, submitted in triplicate and notarized by your Rabbi to get a claim taken care of. Now, in most cases, you take it to who you believe will do the best work. Never have the other party assess the damages, they will always estimate low


I'll volunteer for that half.

Make your insurance company work for you.

Go and get YOUR estimates.

Then let them duke it out. Hopefully you have a rental car in your policy, and if so drive the PISS out of it.

[Blaine B.]

Well I said I'd take $2000, they countered with $1500, I said I'd settle for $1750 and I will not pursue them to hire an independent appraiser like the independet appraiser clause states they have to do. I said if they do not settle for $1750 we'll need to have further discussion, and if they do accept $1750 I'll end this on the spot.

[Hammered]

so did you start jeep shopping yet?

[Blaine B.]

No, I replaced the steering and had my bodyshop friend cut the CA mount off, straighten it, and weld it back on. Been driving it since the evening that they took the rental car back. That was my deadline! Got some new longer coils and shocks in the front, still have to do the rear. So for now it has ghetto lean to the rear because I didn't have time to lift the rear to the same height.

[IslanderOffRoad]

Go through your insurance. If your ins. feels its worth more and she's obviously at fault they'll pay you less your deductible and pay you for the deductible once they get paid by the other insurance company.

I used to work in insurance and her company is full of shit.

[Blaine B.]

MetLife called today and said they accepted my proposal of $1750, and I am keeping the Jeep too.