How does State Farm determine the value of a totaled car?

Question

I know different insurance companies have different means of determining the value of a car once it has been totaled. However, I was wondering if anyone out there knew what method State Farm uses? My car was recently in an accident and may be totaled. I want to make sure I get my money's worth if it is, as it's a fully loaded Saturn Vue. Any help would be appreciated.

It's a 2003 Saturn Vue, V6, AWD, heated leather seats, sunroof, cruise control, power tilt steering, 6-disc in dash CD changer, front and side curtain airbags with automatic transmission.

PS WTF is COMPS?

Ok now I just got this car a week ago. What do you think the odds are of the insurance company giving me what I paid for it?

Oh yes and it only has 29,000 miles on it.

Answer 1

Really, any & all insurance companies total the cost of repairing the vehicle vs how much it sells for retail, and if it costs more to repair, then they total it out & give you a check for what the car would sell for.

Answer 2

Totaled Car Value

Answer 3

All insurance companies use the same system to determine if a vehicle is a total loss. They take the fair market value of the vehicle (usually they use an independent company - many insurance companies use the same company who runs these evaluations) - which takes into consideration, the year, make model of your vehicle, the options, the condition, and mileage, etc... to determine if your vehicle is worth more or less than the average market value of the vehicle. Then depending on the state - if the repairs are more than a specific percentage of the total loss, then vehicle is then deemed a total, OR if the damages exceed the total loss value, then the vehicle is deemed a total loss.

Answer 4

N.A.D.A - This is the authority of totaled cars - also used by dealerships in determining your cars trade in value.

Big difference from Kelly Blue Book. Ans not used by most insurance agencies. I have worked in this field for a while and if the cost of repairing the car is greater than the value within 30% most insurers will total.

If there is a kink in your roof (bent uni-body) the car will be scrapped.

Good luck, saturns are very light gauge metal, they don't like crashing - and rarely survive a hard hit.

Answer 5

State Farm Auto Loan Calculator

Answer 6

really the actual value is not used. Like any part of a company that pay out they try to cut costs. The amount you were quoted is a downgraded amount. The claims-adjustor wants to get you out of there with the minimum amount of money he can ( state farm calculates bonuses on this information). Note you don't have to take it , in most states you can ask for arbitration, this is a expensive step for most insurance companies since they front the costs. It could take weeks to settle but is well worth it if you feel you are being hosed.

Answer 7

They give you blue book value, unless you can show add ons that raised it's value. Chances of receiving what you paid, almost zero. Unless you were a savvy customer, or had a good down payment, you likely paid above blue book value. The adjuster that the insurance company sends to your house, works for them, not you. He wants to go back with the lowest bid possible, that's where the add ons come into play. And you know what, if you don't get enough to pay off your loan, you get to continue paying until it is paid off, even though you don't have the car.

Answer 8

Kelly's Blue Book is the "bible" standard that determine's any vehicle's current value, based on years of car's existance--averaged out by mileage and base scale physical condition estimations.

Here's their link: www.kellybluebook.com

By the way: are you SURE the vehicle's totaled? A friend's Jeep was "totaled" by the other party's "adjuster", but later was found NOT to be a legal total loss; they just wanted the Jeep and tried deceptive means to have the guy sell it!!!!!

Answer 9

NADA and comps in your area. Give me more info and I will look retail book for you.


$12,625.00 Retail Price
$9,273.00 Is the Average Wholesale Auction Price(manheim)
$15,635.00 Kelly Blue Book

Kelly Blue Book or www.kbb.com is a horribly place to find car values. WAY WAY WAY overpriced. That is $6400.00 over current wholesale price. I would say if you get $12500.00 or more, that would be a good deal for you.

Based on 60,000 average miles.

Answer 10

I might suggest that you visit this website where you can compare quotes from the best companies: http://insurancetocompare.info/index.html?src=5YAhih52VaKMtd1

RE :How does State Farm determine the value of a totaled car?
I know different insurance companies have different means of determining the value of a car once it has been totaled. However, I was wondering if anyone out there knew what method State Farm uses? My car was recently in an accident and may be totaled. I want to make sure I get my money's worth if it is, as it's a fully loaded Saturn Vue. Any help would be appreciated.
Update: It's a 2003 Saturn Vue, V6, AWD, heated leather seats, sunroof, cruise control, power tilt steering, 6-disc in dash CD changer, front and side curtain airbags with automatic transmission.
Update 2: PS WTF is COMPS?
Update 3: Ok now I just got this car a week ago. What do you think the odds are of the insurance company giving me what I paid for it?
Update 4: Oh yes and it only has 29,000 miles on it.
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