Geico won't pay diminshed value. Small Claims Court?

mark1210 · #1 02-12-2002, 01:07 PM

Hey All,

Can someone please lend me some advice. On Nov 30, 2001 Geico's insured plowed into my 2000 pontiac firebird and caused 2800.00 in damages. I have since gotten the car back as of Jan 5th and have been fighting with Geico about diminished value ever since. At first Geico indicated there is no such thing and later on the indicated there was but I didn't have it on my car. This past weekend Geico came out and looked at the vehicle and today I received a call indicated there is not any lost value in the vehicle. I even sent them a copy of the diminished value report from [url]www.directdv.com[/url] which indicated there was at least $2501 in lost value. They are refusing to pay. Should I go to small claims court? Is it worth pursuing? BTW, this is in Texas.

Thanks!

#2 02-12-2002, 01:18 PM

I found the following link that might be able to help you (last paragraph). If not, it provides a number to call....

[url]http://www.tdi.state.tx.us/commish/b-0027-0.html[/url]

Hope it helps. Joanna.

JETX · #3 02-12-2002, 01:23 PM

Assuming the car was properly repaired with the correct parts, what is your basis for 'diminished value'??

According to the website your referenced, the 'diminished value' appears to be a 'feel good, warm fuzzy' term meaning adjustment for "repair operation omissions or an under repair" or "poor quality workmanship or incomplete repairs".

If the car repair was done correctly, you would have no further claim against the insurance company or the repair facility.

However, if you believe that your car was NOT correctly repaired, detail the 'ommissions' or 'poor quality work' and get the repair facility to fix it. And you certainly have a right to have a 3rd party, independent review of the work done.

mark1210 · #4 02-12-2002, 01:35 PM

I feel I have a basis to collect diminished value for these reasons:

*** Frame was pulled and there evidence of this on frame
*** Bumper is not a good match of paint
*** Used bumper placed on the vehicle
*** Vehicle is worth less due to the "stigma" of the vehicle being in a wreck.
*** Paint is blotchy on the fender that was also replaced.

Are my reasons to collect not valid?

Thanks.

Juan Rodriguez · #5 02-12-2002, 02:46 PM

This is the 3rd thread Mark1210 starts on this same issue. He was at that diminished value web-site last week and gave all the data to GEICO then.

On 2-4-02 I recomended that he file a complaint with the Texas Insurance Commissioner's office. They can assist in resolving his dispute with GEICO. Even if the commissioner's office can't resolve the issue GEICO would be forced to put down in writing all their reasons why they won't pay. Mark1210 could then go to small claims court with GEICO's affermative defenses in-hand.

#6 02-12-2002, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mark1210
I feel I have a basis to collect diminished value for these reasons:

*** Frame was pulled and there evidence of this on frame
*** Bumper is not a good match of paint
*** Used bumper placed on the vehicle
*** Vehicle is worth less due to the "stigma" of the vehicle being in a wreck.
*** Paint is blotchy on the fender that was also replaced.

Are my reasons to collect not valid?

Thanks.

What did Halket say to you? He said, specifically: "However, if you believe that your car was NOT correctly repaired, detail the 'ommissions' or 'poor quality work' and get the repair facility to fix it. And you certainly have a right to have a 3rd party, independent review of the work done."

He was not lying to you. He was not making this up to confuse you. You just detailed FIVE ways in which the repair work was done incorrectly. So now go get the work evaluated and corrected as outlined in the prior post.

[email]JASON@LEGISLATOR.COM[/email]

mark1210 · #7 02-12-2002, 03:22 PM

Jason,

He also asked me what my basis for diminished value was followed by a "?" so I answered. Why ask if he didn't want to know? Also, my response was directed towards him and not you with your demeaning manner and CAPITAL LETTERS. The additional repair work will not correct the used bumper placed on my vehicle by Geico nor would it raise the value of the vehicle to the point of where it was prior to the accident and after the accident, it will also not remove the evidence that it has been wrecked.

THANK YOU

Juan Rodriguez · #8 02-12-2002, 04:40 PM

Is the used bumper replacing a new bumper on your used car?

Is the used bumper damaged or oxidized or otherwise less effective than your former bumper?

JETX · #9 02-12-2002, 09:02 PM

Okay, lets tie this all up....

Juan Rodriguez: With all due respect, your suggestion of filing a complaint with the Texas Dept of Insurance probably won't work. The problem here is that the writer is not the Geico insured, but only has a claim against a GEICO policyholder. The commission only intervenes in regards to a problem with the policy holder, not a 3rd party.

Mark1210: You have provided a list of what you feel are inadequacies in the repair that could affect the subsequent sale price of your vehicle. Lets look at them individually:
-"Frame was pulled and there evidence of this on frame"
What is this evidence?? If sufficient, you can take your vehicle to a 3rd party and get an expert statement that the car was not repaired properly.

- "Bumper is not a good match of paint"
Why did you accept the vehicle from the shop (and release them for payment) if the paint wasn't 'good'???

- "Used bumper placed on the vehicle"
It is a used vehicle. The insurance company only has to return the vehicle to pre-accident condition... when it had a used bumper. A suggestion.. read the estimate. Does it say that you will get a new bumper or 'remove and repair'. If it says new, and you got used, you could have a claim under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

- "Vehicle is worth less due to the "stigma" of the vehicle being in a wreck"
This is just your interpretation and can't be proven. Assuming your car is going to be yours for a few more years, would you really assume that a 4 to 5 year old car has NEVER been in an accident... in Houston?? And if you were the buyer, would you pay less for the car??

- " Paint is blotchy on the fender that was also replaced"
Again, why did you accept a 'blotchy' fender when you did your review of the vehicle at the shop??

Contact the shop and try to get these (bumper and paint) problems resolved. And if you are not able to fix this, you may consider filing a small claims action.....

Juan Rodriguez · #10 02-12-2002, 10:04 PM

Halket:

I am sure you are well versed in your profession and I would never question your knowledge when it comes to the Lone Star State. But you can rest assured that I do not contribute anything on this site unless I am reasonably possitive that I am correct.

I never said filing a complaint would guarantee a resolution, but GEICO is required to respond to the complaint.

Below is TDI's auto complaint form. Kindly note that there is an entire section on the form dedicated to liability claims and the form even differentiates between insureds and claimants.

[url]https://www.tdi.state.tx.us/apps/perlroot/s_cp_complform/complform.html[/url]

By the way, I agree with your assesment of Mark1210's complaint. His disputes about the workmanship of the repairs is a problem between him and the bodyshop. GEICO is not responsible for the workmanship.

In my estimation Mark1210 will have to prove that even if the car were repaired properly the value of vehicle is less due to the accident. So far he can only prove that the bodyshop did shoddy work.