Car accident and I think there is frame damage. How can I get new car? Car was a month old. His fault in CA.?

Question

My brand new car (1 month) was in an accident. He made an illegal left as I made a LEGAL left and we collided. Police report is supposed to say its his fault. I think there is frame damage because part of the dash inside was popping up. Initial damage estimate is 2000 (not counting frame damage)

Can I get the car totalled? How?

I dont want the car anymore. What can I do.

Will i lose value?

Answer 1

Unfortunately it is not up to you whether or not to total out your car or not, it is up to the insurance company. If you feel there might be frame damage, have it checked out by a reputable body shop and voice your concerns.

Check to see if your state is a diminished value state. Yes, your car will lose value from being in a vehicle accident. But where I live in (Georgia) they offer diminished value, which is the loss in value amount. Now, of course had I not requested it, I am sure they would have not paid for it, even though it is the law. My car was 3 years old and I only got $500, but beings that your car is new, you would get more.

Police reports do determine who is at fault, in in many cases will give a citation to the at fault party. It is then up to the insurance company of the at fault party to accept liability, which they will do after an investigation. That is exactly what happened with me...they investigated the accident by looking at the police report and contacting their insured, before accepting liability.

I am sorry, even if a body shop tried to fix the frame, I wouldn't accept that because your car would not be the same. I don't see it as safe either.

Unfortunately you won't get as much as you paid for the car since it has already lost value once you drove it off the lot. If you purchased gap insurance it would at least cover the amount you owe versus the amount the insurance company says its worth.

Answer 2

The police report merely gives information as to what was said, and who was involved. They do not assign blame, so it wont say "it's his fault."

The insurance company will evaluate damage, probably by having a body shop give an estimate, and they, not you, will decide whether or not is it a total. Generally if the repairs would be more than the current worth of the vehicle, they would give you the current worth and take the car rather than repair it.

If you don't want it anymore, sell it.

Of course you will lose value. The minute you bought the car it went from being a new car to a used one, and lost value.

If the market value is what they give you, and that is less than what you owe at the bank, you will have to make up the difference.

I'd suggest you find out if there is frame damage, and then discuss your options with your insurance company, they can answer any questions you might have.

Answer 3

You get a new car by going to the dealer, and buying a new car. Your 1 month old car lost value the second you drove it off the lot - probably around 10%. So I hope you put a big down payment on it.

Police reports do NOT determine fault. The adjusters will.

There is NO WAY anyone is going to total a brand new car (what did you pay for it? $15,000, $20,000?) with only $2,000 of damage. They're going to fix it. Your car isn't totalled. You usually need to have damages at least 85% of the value of the car, before they'll total it.

Get it fixed, and trade it in for another new car if you don't want it any more.

Answer 4

Ok, here we go... for starters, I understand you wanting a different vehicle based on the fact that a rear seat in a Tiburon sucks when there is a car seat in it.. you have to be quite a contortionist and have major upper body strenght to put a kid in and pull them out of a rear ward facing car seat(if one will even fit in the back seat, otherwise, sounds like you will be having lots of fun getting in and out of the back. Next, as far as the dealership, they should disclose to you any major damage, as long as it exceeds by a certain percentage the total value of the car. So, for example, if a car is worth 15k, and the benchmark is 50%, they would have to disclose any accident exceeding $7500 in repairs. This is assuming they knew of the accident, which some do, and some dont. I am guessing that Carmax has pulled a carfax, because they are quoting a specific month and year for the damage, which is how a carfax usually reports. See if you can post on here to see if someone will pull a carfax for you on their account. Some people here have unlimited accounts, and as a nice gesture, in a case like yours will pull it for you. My advice is to go to some different dealers, and see what kind of deal you can make. Most dealers do not pull a carfax, and unlike them, you are not required to disclose damage you know about to them. It is not the most moral and ethical thing to do, but it is a solution to YOUR problem. However, you seem to owe an awful lot of money on this tiburon. Did you get any additional items (warranty, credit life, etc? If so, you can cancel for a refund of any unused portions). You might have a situation where you are in a negative equity situation. You will find out soon enough. Good luck with everything.

Answer 5

Ok buddy... SOMEONES in for a wake up call.

Your car isnt totalled.. there is no way.. i repeat NO WAY.. they will total it b/c "you want them to"

Its simple.. they owe you repairs... or the actual cash value.. whatevers cheaper.

Damage to the frame does NOT total a vehicle. any reputable body shop can fix frame damage - it happens all the time.

again... your in for a wake up call... your head is up in the clouds if you think your getting a new car... your car isnt even new anymore.

Answer 6

Unfortunately you don't get to make that designation. Have a good body shop look at it and give you their opinion if the frame is bend and be sure to check the motor mounts.(some times they get damaged and no one notices until later) If he says it has frame damage maybe insurance will total it.

Answer 7

take the car to another auto body shop and get another est. you are by law entitled to take the car anywhere you want.
take it to a shop that would most likely cost the most, no mom and pop shops. tell them that you think there might be frame damage and surely point out the dash. good luck

Answer 8

CHECK WITH EITHER YOUR INSURANCE OR CALL THE BOARD OF INSURANCE IN YOUR STATE BECAUSE IN SOME STATES IF THE FRAME IS BADLY BENT THE SHOP BY LAW CANNOT REPAIR IT, THEY WOULD HAVE TO REPLACE IT AND THIS MIGHT GET THE CAR TOTALED OUT.

GOOD LUCK AND REMEMBER THAT YOU WILL ONLY GET ACTUAL CASH VALUE AND NOT THE AMOUNT THAT YOU PAID UNLESS YOU PURCHASED GAP INSURANCE.