Rear ended (Need advice!)

akkando · 07-21-2018, 10:37 AM

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Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

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Originally Posted by akkando

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Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

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Originally Posted by samsamdar

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Originally Posted by kivyee

You will probably have to get a lawyer involved, preferably a friend who will do it pro bono or get one that only get their fees when there's a payout. What was their justification for the $600 offer for DV? They understand the quality of the repair doesn't have much to do with the DV right? Personally I would never buy a car w more than 10k damage unless if it was an exotic car...And even then I'd probably still rather buy an accident free one.

They said they weren't allowed to explain how they got to $600...

Because DV is a negotiation. Just like an injury settlement. There are no equations or math used to figure this sort of settlement out .. the only eventual way it would be decided is based on a trial and a jury making a decision.

You can pay a " DV specialist" as @DanG suggested earlier , and I bet that person WILL come up with a lot of charts and math and calculations for you .. but they aren't definitive valuations that are admissible, , certainly not in TEXAS... so while you may be paying for a report ... it's not worth much toward actually proving your case. The only U.S state that has DV as formula is GEORGIA.

The only way to PROVE DV would be to truly put your car up for sale and sell it to the highest offer you can attract in the market and then compare that value with the value of other M2 that haven't been wrecked.

Until you actually do that ... whether or not you actually experience DV is technically moot and certainly any discussions regarding DV are simply negotiations.

Can't you just look at sales of similar cars that were in an accident vs ones that were not to get evidence that accident m2s that were repaired sell for less?

It's obvious there is diminished value here. All of the evidence supports that. There is nothing to indicate value has not been lost.

Sounds like a great idea! So how do you find out what all the other M2 are that have been wrecked .. and how do you find out if the damages in those collisions is similar to what happened to OPs car... and how do you find out what those vehicles sold for .. on the open market ... particularly if they were not sold on the open market and simply traded in on a new vehicle after repair ?

You would ask the seller I assume. Maybe they won't give you the information, but they might. I'm confident any information that could be gotten would support diminished value. I don't think you would find any evidence that value was not reduced.

But hey the insurance company could feel that even though every single similar car that is an accident car sold for less than non accident cars, maybe yours is a unique snowflake that sells for the going rate for similar used cars, but we know that ridiculous. I think if any data at all can be found, all of the data will point to DV.

samsamdar · 07-22-2018, 12:56 AM

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Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

Sounds like a great idea! So how do you find out what all the other M2 are that have been wrecked .. and how do you find out if the damages in those collisions is similar to what happened to OPs car... and how do you find out what those vehicles sold for .. on the open market ... particularly if they were not sold on the open market and simply traded in on a new vehicle after repair ?

No one said it wasn't obvious that there is diminished value here. He has an offer from the insurance company for $600.

So whether or not there is diminished value is not up for debate, what is up for debate is how much that value is.

I can tell you there are only two ways this gets decided.

1) negotiation and settlement.
2)lawsuit and a trial.

In my estimation, The chances of #2 happening are about 1% or less.

Thanks for the advice! I've been negotiating with them and I'm supposed to hear a new offer from them on Monday! Also, the rental company is not the one paying for my car... the man who hit me had his own insurance and I am dealing with them. If it comes to it, would I have the right to sue the man that hit me?

doug_999 · 07-22-2018, 08:38 AM

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Originally Posted by samsamdar

Thanks for the advice! I've been negotiating with them and I'm supposed to hear a new offer from them on Monday! Also, the rental company is not the one paying for my car... the man who hit me had his own insurance and I am dealing with them. If it comes to it, would I have the right to sue the man that hit me?

Small claims court maybe? Otherwise the lawyers fees would eat up most of your winnings.

and you need to prove loss. That's ultra tricky because as we know, a trade-in at dealer A with a perfect M2 and at dealer B with the same M2 can have wildly different numbers. And those same two dealers could have wildly different numbers with the car having a damage report. Then we have the condition of the car, the mileage, etc.

I think if the car now has a CarFax or Autocheck damage record that's probably the key here. I can tell you that with my wife's Mini 7 years ago, they would only consider DV until I proved it - which meant I had to trade the car in - because the fact is, the DV number changes the older the car gets coupled with the condition it is in at trade.

In a perfect world, there would be some formula - like a percentage of the damage costs and it would be country wide not state specific.

PS - wife's trade was valued at $6,000 at one dealer and $7,500 at another. Went with dealer #2 who I assume did the maintenance the car needed (and a few repairs) and then listed it on their site, complete with CarFax showing the accident, for $12,000. It was gone in 3 days.

spellbmw · 07-23-2018, 02:32 PM

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Originally Posted by stefan

Diminished value is a fight you will lose. I could be wrong, but it seems nobody is successful with this.

My 2c? First off I'd ask for a new exhaust since yours is...probably...damaged. Have the shop put MPE on. And then yep I'd get to modding!

My 2010 135i was rear-ended at a stop light when I had had it for about 16 months. The repairs were done by Kuni Collision, an authorized BMW repair specialist as well as the parent for Kuni BMW. They did an excellent repair job on it.

My diminished value case was successful, though not at the full DV estimate; it was a corporate vehicle that hit me and accepted full responsibility for all damages, repairs, rental costs, etc. After six months of letters and escalation, I finally settled the DV for about 85% of the estimated DV. It can work, but requires patience. If it were to happen again, I would get a lawyer to push it through.

M3 Adjuster · 07-27-2018, 11:33 PM

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Originally Posted by spellbmw

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Originally Posted by stefan

Diminished value is a fight you will lose. I could be wrong, but it seems nobody is successful with this.

My 2c? First off I'd ask for a new exhaust since yours is...probably...damaged. Have the shop put MPE on. And then yep I'd get to modding!

My 2010 135i was rear-ended at a stop light when I had had it for about 16 months. The repairs were done by Kuni Collision, an authorized BMW repair specialist as well as the parent for Kuni BMW. They did an excellent repair job on it.

My diminished value case was successful, though not at the full DV estimate; it was a corporate vehicle that hit me and accepted full responsibility for all damages, repairs, rental costs, etc. After six months of letters and escalation, I finally settled the DV for about 85% of the estimated DV. It can work, but requires patience. If it were to happen again, I would get a lawyer to push it through.

No. You did it the right way. Lawyer takes 30-40% right off the top.

That's IF you can find an attorney to take a property damage case ..

M3 Adjuster · 07-27-2018, 11:37 PM

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Originally Posted by samsamdar

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Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

Sounds like a great idea! So how do you find out what all the other M2 are that have been wrecked .. and how do you find out if the damages in those collisions is similar to what happened to OPs car... and how do you find out what those vehicles sold for .. on the open market ... particularly if they were not sold on the open market and simply traded in on a new vehicle after repair ?

No one said it wasn't obvious that there is diminished value here. He has an offer from the insurance company for $600.

So whether or not there is diminished value is not up for debate, what is up for debate is how much that value is.

I can tell you there are only two ways this gets decided.

1) negotiation and settlement.
2)lawsuit and a trial.

In my estimation, The chances of #2 happening are about 1% or less.

Thanks for the advice! I've been negotiating with them and I'm supposed to hear a new offer from them on Monday! Also, the rental company is not the one paying for my car... the man who hit me had his own insurance and I am dealing with them. If it comes to it, would I have the right to sue the man that hit me?

Yes, that's how one would file , however the driver's insurance company would certainly hire attorneys to represent him.

M2018 · 09-13-2018, 11:35 AM

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Originally Posted by samsamdar

Thanks for the advice! I've been negotiating with them and I'm supposed to hear a new offer from them on Monday! Also, the rental company is not the one paying for my car... the man who hit me had his own insurance and I am dealing with them. If it comes to it, would I have the right to sue the man that hit me?

Samsamdar,

So what's the outcome of the DV? I had an accident too and it's the other driver's fault. Total repair cost by Classic BMW Collision Center came out like $8,500. They have done a great job though.

samsamdar · 09-13-2018, 02:07 PM

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Originally Posted by M2018

Samsamdar,

So what's the outcome of the DV? I had an accident too and it's the other driver's fault. Total repair cost by Classic BMW Collision Center came out like $8,500. They have done a great job though.

Hey there! So I've gotten about 50-75% of the diminished value that they really should be giving me but at this point, there was no point in fighting for it. I would've lost that extra money in lawyer fees. I'm sorry to hear about your M2! Hopefully it wasn't as bad as mine.

rich8566 · 09-19-2018, 08:10 PM

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Originally Posted by samsamdar

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Originally Posted by M2018

Samsamdar,

So what's the outcome of the DV? I had an accident too and it's the other driver's fault. Total repair cost by Classic BMW Collision Center came out like $8,500. They have done a great job though.

Hey there! So I've gotten about 50-75% of the diminished value that they really should be giving me but at this point, there was no point in fighting for it. I would've lost that extra money in lawyer fees. I'm sorry to hear about your M2! Hopefully it wasn't as bad as mine.

So just to be clear, you received a DV settlement of 4,000?