Insurance write off query

[Ray L]

Suppose I unfortunately have a small accident in my 75, the Insurance Co. write it off although only a small repair necessary.

The insurance Co. then offer say £500 as write off value. Now if I have say have a £250 excess they would pay me just £250.

Suppose I want to buy my car from them, as they have valued it at £500, this presumably is the price they would require me to pay.

So I get £250 but have to pay £500 for my car, I'm losing £250 to have my own car back and it will still cost to have it repaired.

In those circumstances it would not be worthwhile making a claim in the first place.

Is this right or have I got the system wrong.

Can someone please explain?

[Typhoon190]

Generally speaking the value you receive as a pay out for the car would be based on it's pre accident value, and the buy back value would generally be a scrap or current accident damaged value, so this should always lead to you receiving a payment depending on the circumstances of the accident as per the post above.

[wraymond]

With the cost of spare parts obtained from breakers, and the expected legal changes to commercial breakers, it is likely to be a much better route to keep the car.

You could remove critical parts and expensive panels for your own use if you buy another similar car and taken together the parts' value would be likely to dwarf any settlement. My insurers have just valued my car at £950 but I have reason to believe a write-off figure would be significantly less.

[Ray L]

Originally Posted by Typhoon190

Generally speaking the value you receive as a pay out for the car would be based on it's pre accident value, and the buy back value would generally be a scrap or current accident damaged value, so this should always lead to you receiving a payment depending on the circumstances of the accident as per the post above.

Thanks for your answer.

I was really thinking of a 'my fault situation' where perhaps I hit a gate post etc. and damaged a wing and say headlight.

Even if I think my car is worth perhaps nearly £2000 I would imagine an Insurance Co probably saying my 75 has a market value of say only £500 or so. Taking the excess deduction into account I would lose out if I bought back at scrap or current accident damaged value.

[Vossy]

I had a similar situation with my previous car, a car ran into the front nearside of my Vectra, she must have hit it just right because it broke my headlight and scuffed the wing, her Peugeot 206 had a creased bonnet, broken grill and coolant gushing out of it.

Insurance wrote off my car because the scuff would mean a repaint of the whole of the front and a mains dealer light unit was a quarter of the cost of the book value of the car. I accepted the payment from them (I think about 700 quid) and they let me keep the car for no cost, I didn't lose any no claims because it was the other drivers fault.

The "scuff" actually buffed out with my rotary polisher and a second hand light unit was £40 quid.

I did have to get the car checked at a VOSA station though (£45 quid) and a new MOT even though it was only tested two months prior. Kept the car another three years after that and sold it on with no problems.

My advice, keep your car and fix it for what it will cost, you will then have a car that you know and like.

[sewerman]

Originally Posted by Ray L

Thanks for your answer.

I was really thinking of a 'my fault situation' where perhaps I hit a gate post etc. and damaged a wing and say headlight.

Even if I think my car is worth perhaps nearly £2000 I would imagine an Insurance Co probably saying my 75 has a market value of say only £500 or so. Taking the excess deduction into account I would lose out if I bought back at scrap or current accident damaged value.

In this case I'd just fix it, going to the insurance would 99% be a write off . If you have £250 excess you might as well just get it fixed.

Also read your policy in my Churchill one it says in the event of a write off they keep the car

Scott