TripleJackInGA wrote...
Also, make sure the insurance company reimburses you for deminished value.State Farm lost a big law suit over this not too long ago and had to pay out a *lot* of money to past claims.Basically, they have to not only fix the car, but compensate you for the value of the car going down.You will never get as much for the car when you trade/sell it, as you would for one that has not been damaged, thus the reimbursement.
If I am not mistaken, diminished value is only a factor when you are involved in an accident where someone else is proven to be at fault. While it is definitely worth looking into, I don't believe you can get your own insurance company to cover the diminished value.
BTW... I have 2001 Ltd Inferno Red and was involved in an accident in September of 2002. A guy in a Ford Explorer ran a red light and hit me in the driver's door. The L-rd (and the side airbag) saved me from very serious injury. As in Pinstripe's case, the body shop had my vehicle for 2 months. After staying on their backs, they did do a good job and you cannot tell that there was ever a problem.
And I was able to force the other insurance company to pay DV. They (as they always do) try to rip you off at every juncture. The way it works is they tell you to hire an independent appraiser, have the vehicle appraised and submit that report to them. If they *think* it sounds reasonable, they will pay it. If not, they will hire their own appraiser, compare the two estimates and then try to meet you half way.
Someone once said that "insurance companies are the scum of the earth..." From my experience I have to agree with them!
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