Last night was fun some advice needed

[Robbie260]

Had a bit of fun last night, not a scratch on me but insurance wants to write off my car due to age and mileage. It’s just cosmetic damage car runs and drives fine everything works, crash was so slow didn't even set off the air bags or even auto tension/lock the seat belt. No one else involved.

Tough old beast glad wasn’t driving anything lesser lady had to be cut out the car just a mile further back. Cops skidded when they arrived and another nearly went into the Armco.

 

[daleyd]

Ouch! Can’t help with advice much but glad you’re ok!

 

[Robbie260]

Ouch! Can’t help with advice much but glad you’re ok!

Cheers mate only damage is a bruised ego and slightly peeved as I just spent £1500 for its MOT.

 

[willie.macleod]

Glad you are OK, I'd ask if you can buy it back from the insurance company - take the payment and use that to offset the cost of the vehicle/MOT costs. Remove the worst of the twigs/leaves etc and stuck the back bumper back on but other than that I'd just drive it!

 

[Arc Tourist]

Woah, glad it wasn't worse and no one hot hurt ! Lots of black ice in my neck of the woods.

 

[ChrisBailey]

Somebody side swiped my brothers 2013 BMW 4 series. Just scratches and a dent on the near side. Insurance wrote it off after their body shop quoted £7K to sort it.

He took the insurance payout of £8K and baught the car back for £2K.
Got a mobile body repair done for £700 and it looks perfect again. Hes £5K up too.

See what insurance will pay out and if its economical to buy back and repair yourself.

 

[optima21]

glad you're ok,

just drive it, I was in the same position 20 years ago when I has a little bump, mechanically the car was fine, just cosmetic damage and Ive been driving it since, none of the panels on the front of the car are straight though on older cars its called "character"

 

[Kayos]

Someone rear ended my Astra van, got paid out and the van back. Doesn't even need a VIC if you keep it, just an mot once fixed

 

[AVI_8]

It might be worth speaking to the insurance company if you want to keep it, maybe see if they would agree to a cash settlement.
If the insurance company writes it off it’ll go to Copart or similar online auction where someone will buy it, fix it with second hand parts then flip it for a few quid profit, it costs insurance more to have cars repaired nowadays than to write them off.

 

[Robbie260]

Glad you are OK, I'd ask if you can buy it back from the insurance company - take the payment and use that to offset the cost of the vehicle/MOT costs. Remove the worst of the twigs/leaves etc and stuck the back bumper back on but other than that I'd just drive it!

Was thinking that as it’s just the bumper that’s damaged really, there is another dent on the rear but I have a spare new bumper I was going to fit anyway so no harm done.

 

[CompoSimmonite]

Our Skoda Fabia was written off after being rear ended due to age. Insurance gave us a decent payout and we kept the car. 3 years later all I've done is fit a new towbar as original took the brunt of the accident and tailgate still has a cosmetic dent

 

[merryman]

Insurance write offs come in categories A and B are scrap, S has some structural damage, and N is purely cosmetic. Be sure they have classified it as S or N before buying back.

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

Or, avoid all the hassle of all of the above and ask for a 'cash in lieu settlement'. The car never leaves your ownership, you don't have to 'ask to keep it' and there is no record of any classifications. Done it twice with my older cars, no issues, no hassle, both repaired by me with second hand parts.

Look it up, I'm surprised it's not more commonly known about for people that do their own spannering.

 

[reb78]

As others have said. Buy it back and repair it yourself.

We had this with a D2. The other half was driving with a trailer on. Someone cut in in front of her on the M$/M5 interchange and bascially removed all of her braking distance. They then braked and she smacked the back of them. Initially the insurance said they would repair it. I estimated its value at £2500 so expected it to be written off. They costed repairs and then said they would write it off. They valued it at £4500 (I think their finger must have slipped to the D3 line on the valuation table as this was the last of the D2s...). Buy back was £1300. Excess was £250 so we ended up with £2950 in a payout and I fixed it for £400 (most of that was the new bumper). Its a Cat C now but all i had to do was MOT it to put it back on the road.

You will easily be able to do the same as you are a mobile mechanic from what i remember! I guess just check for any unseen damage underneath like damaged suspension but you have probably already done that.

 

[Other Daniel]

Was thinking that as it’s just the bumper that’s damaged really, there is another dent on the rear but I have a spare new bumper I was going to fit anyway so no harm done.

I do wonder, in that case, why you've even bothered to contact the insurance company at all ?
Trying to turn a profit off the insurance companies, contibutes heavily to driving up the premiums
for all of us.

 

[daleyd]

I do wonder, in that case, why you've even bothered to contact the insurance company at all ?

Probably because the police were involved?

 

[Robbie260]

Or, avoid all the hassle of all of the above and ask for a 'cash in lieu settlement'. The car never leaves your ownership, you don't have to 'ask to keep it' and there is no record of any classifications. Done it twice with my older cars, no issues, no hassle, both repaired by me with second hand parts.

Look it up, I'm surprised it's not more commonly known about for people that do their own spannering.

May do that cheers though it’s business insurance so don’t know how they will take it.

 

[Robbie260]

I do wonder, in that case, why you've even bothered to contact the insurance company at all ?
Trying to turn a profit off the insurance companies, contibutes heavily to driving up the premiums
for all of us.

Ah it was what the my breakdown cover told me to do that to get it towed out. Didn’t want to but at that time wasn’t sure how damaged the car was.

 

[Robotstar5]

If possible, don't let them take it away as you may never see it again as they can make more money putting it through places like Copart

If the insurance company has assessed it as a write off it will probably already be on the MIB as a write off so will be shown on V5 and any HPI type searches

At least they've dropped the VIC requirement on repaired write offs now, cost us forty odd quid when I replaced the bumper on Mrs Robo's written off and bought back Suzuki

 

[Morrisman]

Unless you actually make a claim for repairs they won't write it off, surely? Seeing as it happened just last night I'd be surprised if they have come out and even had a proper look yet.