Some guy ran a red while i was turning and put a lot of front end damage to the front of my year old mini cooper s... not too sure if its gonna be totaled out yet, still waiting to hear from the insurance company. I'm working on getting some pictures up!


https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...05064/1899.jpg

 

 

yeah she looks like a goner. Glad you're ok.

 

Im hoping she'll pull through on this one but i fear the worst.. i know when the airbags deploy they usually like to try and total them out... and luckily no one was hurt! a shame to think that a 2011 with just 18k miles may make its way to the salvage yard.

 

I don't think that's covered under the warranty.

But really, isn't it better to have the car totaled? I mean resale value and reliability-wise? Either way that sucks

 

Sorry about the loss of your 2011 MINI...

It seems that you hardly had a chance to enjoy motoring with her but I am glad to hear that you are ok!

Good luck and here's hoping that you get a new MINI soon!

 

That'll buff out.

Not.

But... for a year old car with the damage essentially front axle forward, the insurance company just might TRY.

 

Who is found at fault?

I had someone run a red and hit me but because there were no witnesses it was his word against mine and he had the right of way and lied and said it was green.

 

This is another reason I dropped my Collision deductible from $1,000 down to $500 and advocate others to do the same.

I handle sooooo many claims like this, both drivers say they had a green light, no independent witnesses, no police report to assist with the liability decision... ends up being a Words Versus Word claim and each insurance company handles their own insured's damages.

You're not considered at-fault by your own insurance company but you will be out your deductible. Sucks when you know you're not at fault. But without the evidence.....

 

Sorry.

Wish you the best on the claim and stuff.

 

The other driver got issued the ticket and was found at fault. So there should be no issues with my rates getting jacked up. I'm worried what I'll end up with if they do total it out tho.. My car stickered at 28,500.... One year old and 18k miles. Insurance is never easy to work with... I should hear from them today or tomorrow.

 

So a preliminary estimate came in at 13k to fix... They sent me the spread and I know they are missing things. For instance they left out my intercooler.. It's going to my choice of repair shop for a better evaluation. But... Has anyone ever heard of diminished value compensation..? Obviously the fact my car was wrecked pretty good will impact the resale value.

 

Take it one step at a time. Get it into the shop and have them tear it down. There's definitely going to be a supplement (additional damages found). 99% of the time when a car is hit like yours was, there is a supplement that is around 10-20% of the original estimate. At $13k, it probably isn't a total loss, but with the supplement it could wind up being totalled. Without knowing more about your car, my rough guess is that it would take roughly $17k to become a total loss.

If the car is repairable, then yes you can make a diminished value claim against the other carrier (assuming they accept liability). They'll evaluate it and determine an amount to offer. You can't make a diminished value claim with your own insurance company, it's probably excluded on the policy.

 

Fascinating thread. I'm buying a new MINI precisely because our previous car (2007 Prius) got totaled from behind when I had to stop short for wildlife (no one hurt - not even the wildlife ) . In any case, I'm glad to know you were not hurt, x-star.

Even though the headrest was padded and properly positioned and my head was only an inch from the rest, I had a concussion. The amount of violence and force packed into that millisecond is truly unimaginable unless you've experienced it (I was at a dead stop and he was probably at 40-45 mph). The most valuable lessons I walked away from my accident with - besides the complete compensation of the vehicle from the other person's insurance company - are:

1) I always check headrest adjustments for me and my passengers. I suspect I would have cracked vertebrae in my neck if mine had not been that night.

2) Lighting is EVERYTHING on a dark windy road. My new MINI will certainly have the rear fog light. And I'm not thinking twice about xenons with adaptive headlight control.

3) If anyone tails me at night - I pull over and let them pass.

Good luck on the insurance thing, x-star. Sounds like the preferred verdict is TOTAL.

 

Re: the Diminished Value claim. Keep in mind that not all States required carriers to pay DV claims. So the liability carrier may not honor your DV claim.

If they do extend a DV claim, ask them what documentation they'll need. Not all carriers require the same supporting documents. What we ask for is two vehicle valuation appraisals from a certified appraiser. One based on the value of the vehicle after the repairs are done. The other, the value of your vehicle today, had it note been involved in the accident.

Hope that helps.

 

Thanks for all the help guys! And yes... I'm coming to the conclusion that it might be better off as a total loss in the long run. Although I love my mini, I do at some point plan on selling it and with a wreck like this on car fax, I wouldn't think a dealership would even want it on their lot. And the insurance company valued my car at 26k.. Damn these things hold their value! And since the other guy was at fault his insurance accepted liability so I wouldn't be claiming dimishimg value on my own insurance company if things do go that way.

 

What Klayfish was saying is, if you let your insurance company handle your claim and then subrogate (seek reimbursement from) the other company, you can't present the Diminished Value claim to your carrier.

$26K value ? You will need to get to about $20K in repairs to make it a total. But hey... no insurance company wants to pay a shop for starting to repair a vehicle and then also pay the owner for the total loss. So maybe they'll go ahead and total it for you so they don't end up in that position. Ask them.

 

I understand now. And I'm gonna get ahold of them today and entertain some options. I'll keep you updated. Thanks again guys.

 

No worries, glad to help !

 

well didn't have to worry about diminished value... they ended up totaling the car out... after a few weeks of driving a rental prius they finally came up with a verdict. and to everyones disappointment I'm sure, i purchased a 2012 Volkswagen Golf TDI... but i sure do miss my mini!! but... $115 per month less car payment and 45mpg on diesel rather than 32 on premium gas... saving money should be a little easier from now on.. so, if anyone is interested in a lightly used Alta Cold air intake kit for their mini let me know.

 

Aww, well at least the Golf is an infinite amount better than the evil prius they had you driving around in. Throw that CAI up in the marketplace, you'll have it sold in a few days.

 

Don't count on getting that 45 MPG from the VW. EPA estimates for diesels seem to be more optimistic than those for gasoline engines.

Still, 35 or 40 is better than 32, so you're still making a gain there.

 

Congrats on the "total". You'd have spent a long time being unhappy otherwise. Now, if you find you don't like the VW after a few months, you can still trade. The VW is a nice ride, though.

 

HAHA!! Yes, being 20 years old and pulling up to a party with a prius is quite humiliating... but getting that 50 plus mpg really got me thinking... and thats where the Golf kind of stepped in. and ill be sure to post that Alta CAI on the market place as well, thanks!

 

actually to my surprise, on my first tank, a mix of city and highway i got an average of 44.5 according to the display.. and i am by no means a light-footed driver. on my 30 mile way home from work the other day i tried seeing the best i could get and pulled in my driveway with a 48.7 average. my brother has the TDI jetta and gets over the rated estimate as well, not quite as well as me however due to him being an automatic. but i was very impressed with the numbers put out from a decently powered vehicle.