natew

iTrader: (1)

Heya guys,

Some guy hit my rx7 while it was parked on the street yesterday, he left his ins. info n stuff but im trying to figure out if I should do anything about it. The damage is to the fender and the drivers door not real major, just looks like someone drove down the side of my car.

What im wondering is if anyone has experience in this area with this car. I'm afraid that if I report it to his ins. company that they will just total it and give me cash. I really don't want a salvage title car and in which case i'd rather just get the parts to fix it myself.

So has anyone else had anything similar to this, maybe share you experiences with insurance.

Thanks.

DAVID GRIMES

It's HIS insurance company, his fault, and they are liable. Hell yes, turn it in and if they want to total it, tell them not an option... you're keeping it and you will settle for $1 less than their total offer. You are in control on this one, slick. If their offer really sucks, hit the other guy up for a cash settlement so his insurance doesn't go up. Might just work.

Good luck. Hold your ground... you own it.

Rx-7Doctor

iTrader: (13)

They are not going to toal it. First get 3 estimates form body shops for the repair.
Pick the highest one thats the $ amount you are going to settle for. In the state of Ca you have the right to pick the body shop you are going to take it to and have estimates with oem parts that need to be replaced. Since you own the vehicle, you have the right to have the check made out to you, not to you and the body shop then do what you want with the money. rx7doctor

1stgen4life

iTrader: (1)

I disagree, I bet that his insurance would try to total it and there is little you can do about it. When I got hit, it was by a kid, so the parents didn't want it to go on insurance. I agreed to take less money from the parents so that the insurance company couldn't try to call it totaled. When i spoke to my insurance agent he said that they would certainly call it totaled and give me a few hundred for it. By the way, the estimate for repairing the back of my car was about $1700. If I were you I would talk to the guy before reporting it. Get some estimates and talk numbers with him. Call your agent to get an idea of what the insurance company will try to do. Hope that helps. I know how much it sucks to be hit, so good luck and I hope it turns out well.

natew

iTrader: (1)

Well.. some more info emerges. I called his home number that he left, about 3 people answered the phone and started talking to me in spanish. Then I managed to get them to tell me that the guy wasn't home. Hm.. Settlement out of insurance is looking a little slim. Depending on what they give me I may consider totaling it and just buying a new 7. Anyone selling one in good cond in CA?

PT Ray

I actually got the long end of the stick on my accident over two years ago. A major phone company's utility van was pulling back into traffic from off the side of the road and did not see me and dug deep into the drivers side. There was no question who was at fault.

I had full coverage so I had my insurance company came a day later and look at the damage. The adjuster put a "salvage" sticker on th winshield. "OH HELL NO"! The adjuster had not even spoken with me prior to tagging my car, nor had I spoken with my insurance company. A week later the adjuster representing the phone company came and looked at the car. This adjuster stated he would have to have someone get back with me.

I was not going to give the car up. I had just put a rebuilt engine w/ new housings from Atkins 6 months earlier and was going to use that in the settlement. I also went and got a written estimate for the labor involved to tranfer the engine into another car. When the phone company called with an offer of $1800 and I get to keep the car, I countered offer with an additional $900 for the labor of swapping the engine into another car. They asked for a written estimate and all I had to do was fax them what I already had. So I got $2700 along with keeping my car. SWEET!

All I can say is do your homework before you accept an offer. During the time I was waiting for the other party to contact me, I got some legal advice concerning what was reasonable for me to ask for. My big advantage was having a major company hit me and that wanted to avoid a lawsuit.

Maguire

iTrader: (1)

how bad is the damage exactly? If its just a new fender and door, you could get that at a junkyard for a few hundred dollars. is there unibody damage? what about the rear quarter panel?

if all you need is a fender and door, find out how much you can get from there insurance without the car being totaled. Dealing with insurance adjusters takes a lot of energy, but some will be flexable. they only get paid when the deal is complete.

Lee Lyons

hmmm let me put it this way....1)YOUR POCKET 2)HIS POCKET...weigh the options

Rx-7Doctor

iTrader: (13)

get an estimate first on the damage, them pursue this. that is the first step so you know where you stand. Beside that do you have insurance on your vehicle?
rx7doctor

Rx-7Doctor

iTrader: (13)

What cionditionis the vehicle in, how many miles, is the paint in good shape, are there exisitng damage to the body besides where you got hit. Hows the interior, an insurance company looks at the overall condition of the vehcicle to make a decision. I had a 83 gsl that i hit a deer with, there was $1200.00 worth of damage
estimated, this was 9 years ago. the vehicle was in pristine condition, they wrote
me a check for the damage and i sold the vehicle. rx7doctor

natew

iTrader: (1)

Well I would say the car is in good condition. The paint isn't too great, some chips here and there and some cracks. The interior is in excellent condition, the dash is in tact, all the door panels are near perfect and the carpet and seats are only worn with no tears or rips. The body is (was) straight with no existing damage except some rivet holes from a body kit. And the engine I believe was rebuilt recently but I'm not sure.

The damage is only a door, fender, and paint for the two. I actually have a parts RX7 that has a good door, however the paint is a different color. :-/

brownmound

I was parked doing a rebar inspection one day at a jobsite...came back to find that a woman had backed out of her driveway and into my driver's side door. Totalled the door, glass smashed, and a sizeable dent to the quarter panel. I was sure the insurance company would total the car, because estimates were coming in at $1800-2400 and the blue book is much less.

But as we all know, the sentimental value of these cars is priceless. So I figured it would be worth it to try and convey that to the woman, and I did so over 3 1/2 pages of single spaced letter. It worked, we settled on $2000 and she cut me a check.

There are good people out there.

Letter to come on my website...

Right on.

ops

brownmound, my 7 is the same color i got them plaid seats tho

natew

iTrader: (1)

Thanks guys. I got an estimate today, came in at around $1600. I talked to the insurance company and they seemed pretty reasonable but they still hadn't gotten a hold of their "insured" aka the *** that hit me.

-xlr8planet-

iTrader: (3)

I speak and write in spanish

let me know if you need to send an email or something

RotaryRevn

Isn't there some type of "specialty" insurance our there for car enthusiasts? Where they insure classic cars and you have a pre aggreed on amount if the car was totalled, what they would pay you? I heard it's not very expensive either if it's like a weekend hobby car. I'm probably gonna have 10-15k invested in my first gen by the time I'm done with it and want to be sure I'm paid what it's worth if anything happened to it.

cosmicbang

Yes, get specialty insurance. It is a lot cheaper, and well worth the peace of mind. Considering that a good paint job alone costs $3,000-$8,000, it would be very dangerous to take chances with insurance.

John64

I just changed my insurance to American Collectors Insurance. Its not for everyone but it was a pre agreed upon value for $4000 on my 85 RX7. You limit your driving to 2500 miles a year, only to meets, car shows or an occassional drive. It must also be garage kept. No deductable for ......drum roll $97 year!!!!
P.S. they will not cover your car for grocery getting or leaving in a parking lot, that kind of stuff. But if your were on your way back from a show they will.

cosmicbang

Shop around; the various companies all have different restrictions and criteria. Mine is about $110/year for $10,000 coverage, no mileage restrictions. Another car is ~$140/yr for $35,000 value.

mpetersrx7

Man where are you guys getting insurance through. I pay alot more than that with Allstate even though they know the mileage is around 5k per year and is a 3rd car.

natew

iTrader: (1)

I have a feeling what they're talking about doesn't cover liability. Only covers damage to the car itself and if it was caused by someone else. So you'd have to buy that insurance and then still pay for your standard liability insurance through someone else.

cosmicbang

You probably have a standard indemnity policy. Hagerty is very popular, as is Grundy. BTW, my Allstate agent also represents Hagerty. Be sure to read the policy very carefully. Here is an interesting article:
http://www.bricklin.org/TechCentral/TCCar_Insurance.htm

A Few Insurance Companies offering Collectible Vehicle Policies:
Acorida Insurance Services, (800) 648-1600
American Collectors Insurance, (800) 360-2277
Condon & Skelly, (800) 257-9496
The Gorsline Company, (800) 805-0034
Grundy Worldwide, (800) 338-4005
Hagerty Classic Insurance, (800) 922-4050
Heacock Insurance Group, (800) 678-5173
J.C. Taylor Antique Auto Insurance, (800) 345-8290
K&K Insurance, (800) 548-0858
Leland West Insurance Brokers, (800) 237-4722
Parish Motorsports Insurance, (800) 274-1804

cosmicbang

No. It covers everything: liability, collision, other-than-collision, theft, flood, etc. It includes damage and medical expenses to people, property damage, the car, etc. There is no requirement that the loss be caused by someone else's fault. There are some exclusions--similar to other policies--for war, nuclear weapons, insurrections, etc.

RotaryRevn

who's is yours through? that's pretty good with no milage restrictions.

RotaryRevn

How's about if your coming back from a cruize and you stop off at a restaraunt to eat and someone hits your car while it's parked in a parking lot? Or if you had to run into pep boys to pick up some premix and the car gets hit?