Recieving a claim after the vehicle in question has been sold...

I got rear ended by a truck two weeks ago. Previous to this, I had been looking for a new vehicle. My trade in value on my truck was $4500. I got rear ended, and it messed the back of my SUV bad enough that I did not feel safe driving it (the crash bar hit the rear end and I needed rear end work done).

I had been working with the car dealership about trading in my vehicle, so I called to let them know that I had been in an accident and I would not be trading in my truck. The damages to my truck were estimated at $3500, but insurance company found some used parts and the body shop said they would be able to do it for $2500.

I said that was fine. Well, the car dealership called and told me to bring my vehicle in and let them look at it.

My husband took my SUV in and they gave me $2000 trade in value, so I ended up going ahead and getting a new vehicle and trading in my old one. Does the insurance still have to pay me for damages to my old vehicle?

I ended up having to lose out on $2500 trade in value on my truck and I have to buy new car seats for my kids. I did not feel ok driving the vehicle with my children in it. It was not safe for them or myself. Where do I stand now with getting reimbursement?

Answer:

Hello,

You can get pay for the car seats. Just call them (hopefully this did not happen long time ago) and ask them to pay you for having to buy new car seats.

Regarding the trade value, you have an uphill battle there. Although you do have a loss of $2,500, the insurance company will likely agree that it was your inability to shop around and the fact that you did not negotiate with them. This is what made the value of your vehicle lower. This argument is not necessarily strong, but insurance company will make it.

Insurance companies fight this type of claim very aggressively! You may consider going to small claims court and collect the difference.

See our pages on small claims here:

http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com/small-claims-court.html

And on diminish value claims here:


http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com/diminished-value-claim.html

Good Luck
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