Last Friday I sat stationary on an interstate highway off-ramp waiting for traffic to move. I heard tires squealing behind me and BAM!!! Long story short, my 05 Convertible S/JCW is totaled. The other driver was cited for negligent driving and holds 100% of the fault. She does have State Farm insurance, but I have a foreboding feeling I will not get much for my "old" car. I went on-line hunting for a replacement in the $11Kish value range KBB placed on my car, and I can't even find a used car like mine for sale!

 

Sorry to hear this! What a drag!

 

Very sorry to hear that... be patient and you will find one comparable enough if not maybe better. Good luck and hope you walked away unharmed from the accident.

 

Don't let them settle with you at an unfair price, sue them if need be for the difference to replace your car. She is 100% at fault, can't lose in small claims court IMO, although not a lawyer. I once rejected a low ball GEICO settlement and told them to total the car and give me my money, they blinked quickly - I won.

 

Wow..!! I am really sorry to hear that..

I just bought mine locally (Lancaster)... If I hear or see anything I will drop you a PM. Are you going to stay with the R53 or go with something newer.

 

There probably won't be much of a settlement. The woman who hit me carries only minimum liability... 10/25/50. State Farm can give me the maximum of her property coverage (10K) and be legal. I imagine I could obtain the services of an attorney and sue the woman, but based on her address I don't think she has a pot to pee in. Yes, I would like to stay with an R52 in British Racing Green as I love cruising with the top down. The JCW package power spoiled me!

 

Do you have insurance? Do you have uninsured/underinsured rider?

If so, your insurance will cover you completely, and go after her, and her insurance.

 

If you think you're going to get a low-ball offer, then document document document! If your car has mods, put together a list of them, along with receipts of when they were installed and how much it all cost. Start digging through all of the classifieds you can find to see if you can find car like yours in similar condition and mileage and so on. The more info you can find, the better.

 

That's the trouble of owning well maintained sub-$15K cars - if you get into much of an accident, the insurance company will likely total the car.
There is not much you can do, other than document and argue for higher payout for your totaled car.

Chances are you will not be able to find the same condition well maintained car with the insurance payout anyway. But if you use the money to upgrade to something newer/faster, this pain could lead to something positive in the end.

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Thanks for the feedback folks!

 

Document the realistic market-driven replacement cost for the vehicle - similar condition / year / etc and DO NOT accept their first 'offer'. Counter with WELL-DOCUMENTED proof that it is insufficient to replace the car that their 'insured' totaled. There are many factors involved in settlement payout, not just the 'book' value ... You could also explain that you are aware that some injuries sustained in automobile accidents may take some time to manifest and that your health is of paramount importance to you ...

 

You people aren't reading his post correctly:

The other party only has 10K liability. That is the max he will get, the rest needs to come from the other driver, or his underinsured policy.

 

How can they sell a policy that only has $10k liability? That's crazy. Might as well not have any insurance.

 

DMV Minimum to register a car.

 

In NC it's $25k. A little more reasonable.

 

Virginia Commonwealth minimums:
$25k for injuries per person per accident
$50k for total injuries per accident
$20k property damage per accident
+ uninsured / underinsured coverage to match.

So ... if a person with only $10k in coverage totals someone's $60k Lexus ... ??

In the meantime, you should go after your own insurance company to cover the difference using your uninsured / underinsured motorist coverage. Believe me ... they will sue the other driver for it. That's what the coverage is for and you PAY for it ...

Best of luck.

 

Good news and bad news. Apparently the woman who hit me has plenty of insurance coverage, so the property claim might work for me. The bad news is the insured's company seems to resist comparing my car to a like vehicle. They provided a detailed "AudaExplore Autosource Report" which I closely studied. What leaped out at me was the 38 vehicles used "compare" with my car were all 05 "S" types, not a JCW amongst them! Apples and oranges. Using their methodology, I searched for an 05 MINI S JCW convertible for sale... could only find three in the US! Averaging the three prices put the value at $13,500. Found a hardtop in Phoenix for $12,950. Of course I submitted all of this to the company. Today, they offered me $11,000, saying they found an comparable 05 MINI JCW in San Jose valued at $8,800. Says it has an automatic! I didn't think JCW's came with autos? I rejected the offer and will see where it goes.

 

Good for you Keep at it!! These insurance companies are so devious and yes they are going to lowball what your car is really worth..not to mention it still will not replace your car, the car you took care of and enjoyed. Which in my opinion has no price! Of course it is just my opinion and a number has to be placed, just don't settle for anything you won't be happy with.

 

This just showed up in for sale section.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...excellent.html