Accident, What can I do?

[ppanther417]

What is the name of your state? Iowa

Hi, I was in a 4 car accident on May 21st 2007 in Des Moines, IA. My car was a 96 cavalier. I was the first car. The insurance of the person who claimed responsibility for the accident will only pay for the value of the car which is only $2600. I have put over $10000 in aftermarket parts but only have $4000 in receipts and they won't pay for them because the receipts were over 5 years old. They consider it as no value to the car. They won't even give me a penny above the value of the vehicle. Now I don't have a car to drive to work or money to even pay for the rental car that I am paying for myself. I believe that they won't pay for the car because I have put so much money into the car that it exceeds the cost to fix the damage since they already claim it as a total loss. They probably didn't think I spent that much on my car. My car runs great and probably will last a really long time. It's even still driveable but the whole back end is gone. I did not spend 10yrs keeping it in great condition and maintenance free to settle for $2600. I wonder what others settle for? What can I do?

 

[Ozark_Sophist]

You could have spent more on insurance.

 

[ecmst12]

They are not going to pay for more than the value of the car because that's all they are legally required to pay. The depreciated value of 5 year old aftermarket parts is pretty much zippo. Even if you'd had the improvements insured, they still wouldn't be worth much now. You're getting 2600 for a 10 year old car, that's certainly enough for a down payment on alternate transportation, or enough to totally pay for another 10 year old "fixer-upper".

 

[msgb]

Was your car inspected and appraised? Did the inspector not see the aftermarket parts?

If you truly believe the value of your car is greater than the what the insurance company is offering, you could hire your own appraiser to appraise the value of your car. Their figures may be more favorable to you.

Good luck.

 

[moburkes]

Was your car inspected and appraised? Did the inspector not see the aftermarket parts?

If you truly believe the value of your car is greater than the what the insurance company is offering, you could hire your own appraiser to appraise the value of your car. Their figures may be more favorable to you.

Good luck.

What does the appraisal have to do with the actual cash value? And, what would you expect a car with no back end to appraise for?