Somebody hit my Camaro :-( Advice needed.... - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

Yellow Camaro · 05-24-2014, 09:46 AM

So after a great 3 year run enjoying my SS and keeping it perfect with Adam's, I had a car full of foreigners pull out into the side of her yesterday. :-( I'm hopeful that by multiple standards of fault, they'll be found entirely responsible. They were basically trying to take a left turn across my lane of travel, and struck the car about 2/3 back. It took out the quarter panel, destroyed the wheel, and nicked the bumper.

Has anybody had similar damage to quarter? I'm concerned that it's such a large piece of the car and how they'll replace it. I'm also concerned that if they cut and weld in a new quarter, that it pings the CarFax as "structural damage" instead of just "accident/damage".

Also, what is a reasonable diminished value claim and has anybody had experiences with that? The car is a 2010 2SS/RS with 36k.

Thanks...

sdmbdad71 · 05-24-2014, 10:02 AM

I know a little bit about what you speak of.....

sdmbdad71 · 05-24-2014, 10:05 AM

This is what they cut away.....

Silverlsinva · 05-24-2014, 10:07 AM

Im not a insurance estimator or a body shop guy by any means but it doesn't look that bad and looks like it could be shaped out. The wheel looks like I can be repaired I do see that bit parts of paint/chrome plating missing. Also have u talked to ur insurance yet and also get their insurance info and a estimate done. I do wonder why u had to say foreigners cant it just be someone ran into u. Bad drivers are bad drivers regardless of what nationality they are lol.

sdmbdad71 · 05-24-2014, 10:08 AM

The other driver was at fault here too. I hired a 3rd party appraiser to do a diminished value report and it came in at $4850 after all the repairs. Was $9,100 in damage.

wayne watson · 05-24-2014, 10:08 AM

i feel bad for you having to go through all the hassle now. get a few estimates from good body shops and don't let them tell you they have their own or it will be half assed at best. good luck with this ordeal. went through this not long ago with the girlfriend's car, they drug it out forever

ratfinkharley · 05-24-2014, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yellow Camaro

I had a car full of foreigners ...

What does that have to do with the accident?

Yellow Camaro · 05-24-2014, 10:22 AM

sdmbdad- Thanks! And how does your CarFax look? again, I'm real concerned about the differentialization between "Accident" and "Structural Damage".

Silver- It IS pretty minor looking, but it's a tough panel and took a hard hit. Front of the other car was destroyed. I've contacted my insurance company, but not theirs because it takes 5-7 business days to get the police report. Could be a while because of Memorial Day Weekend.

Yellow Camaro · 05-24-2014, 10:24 AM

Pic of the other car...

Silverlsinva · 05-24-2014, 10:30 AM

wow tore the whole bumper off that was a big hit then. So might be a bit more than I was thinking.

OrangeVert · 05-24-2014, 10:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ratfinkharley

What does that have to do with the accident?

Agreed, this site is international. But then so is most Internet access. So what is a foreigner? Maybe someone who doesn't like Camaros! :-)

wadeh · 05-24-2014, 11:04 AM

Actually, the damage doesn't look that bad to your car...or the one that hit you. Unless there is significant damage that's not visible externally, I don't think that this is going to be too bad.

I have some experience with diminished value, as I have been through it with my Corvette. I am not a lawyer, so this is just my experience. The laws for diminished value vary from state to state, so your situation may be different.

Generally, it is my understanding that first party insurance almost never covers diminished value. The only way to make a claim is to go to the other party's insurance company. In my case, they denied the claim (Actually, they fought tooth and nail to pay anything, even though their insured rear ended my car while I was stopped in traffic, with lots of witnesses and a citation to their driver from the Police. The whole thing was rather surreal.)

The only way to pursue the matter further was to sue the at fault party. Since the amount was substantially larger than small claims, I had to hire an attorney to handle the case. It took over two years to get through the court system, but I ultimately prevailed (the other insurance company knew full well that I would prevail, but took every possible delay tactic in hopes that I would give up).

One of the key things is that I did research to figure out which appraisers the at fault party's insurance company uses when they need 3rd party diminished values...and hired one of them. That made it very difficult for the insurance company to challenge the appraisal.

Honestly, I doubt that you will need to go through all of that, though. The total damage to both vehicles in your case is much less than mine. Also, my car was much newer, with a much higher fair market value than even a new Camaro. If I were in your case, I would just have the car repaired and get on with life.

You should figure out your rights on the repair, so you know where you stand. You can pick the repair shop (do some research and find the best in your area). Also, in my case, I was able to insist that they replace all damaged parts with new, genuine GM parts. Except for paint, there is no bodywork, no 3rd party parts, and no used parts on my repaired Corvette.

I would also not worry about what CarFax says, unless you have immediate plans to sell it. The affect of an accident in a car's history drops greatly as the car ages. For example, nobody wants to buy a car with major accident history 6 months after the accident, partly because the quality of the repair has not been established. But if the major repair was 5 years ago, it's no longer such a big deal.

Hang in there. It sucks to have someone hit you, but it sounds like nobody was hurt, and that's the important thing. You may have a couple of weeks of frustration, but you will get your car back in great shape.

Hetfield03 · 05-24-2014, 11:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ratfinkharley

What does that have to do with the accident?

Well, in say India, they don't have lanes or lights or stop signs, so they're probably under the assumption that because they appeared to be not from our country, that they couldn't drive. But maybe, the op was just going for a description other than "this car with people in it."

Hetfield03 · 05-24-2014, 11:33 AM

Or, perhaps they spoke broken English

05-24-2014, 09:46 AM	#1
Yellow Camaro Drives: 2010 Rally Yellow 2SS/RS Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 417	Somebody hit my Camaro :-( Advice needed.... So after a great 3 year run enjoying my SS and keeping it perfect with Adam's, I had a car full of foreigners pull out into the side of her yesterday. :-( I'm hopeful that by multiple standards of fault, they'll be found entirely responsible. They were basically trying to take a left turn across my lane of travel, and struck the car about 2/3 back. It took out the quarter panel, destroyed the wheel, and nicked the bumper. Has anybody had similar damage to quarter? I'm concerned that it's such a large piece of the car and how they'll replace it. I'm also concerned that if they cut and weld in a new quarter, that it pings the CarFax as "structural damage" instead of just "accident/damage". Also, what is a reasonable diminished value claim and has anybody had experiences with that? The car is a 2010 2SS/RS with 36k. Thanks... Attached Images

05-24-2014, 10:02 AM	#2
sdmbdad71 Drives: 2013 VR 1SS/RS/1LE/NPP Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Palm Coast, FL Posts: 182 View My Garage	I know a little bit about what you speak of..... Attached Images

05-24-2014, 10:05 AM	#3
sdmbdad71 Drives: 2013 VR 1SS/RS/1LE/NPP Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Palm Coast, FL Posts: 182 View My Garage	This is what they cut away..... Attached Images

05-24-2014, 10:08 AM	#6
wayne watson Drives: 2014 camaro ss ,1967 chevelle ss, Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: loganville Posts: 1,209 View My Garage	i feel bad for you having to go through all the hassle now. get a few estimates from good body shops and don't let them tell you they have their own or it will be half assed at best. good luck with this ordeal. went through this not long ago with the girlfriend's car, they drug it out forever __________________

05-24-2014, 10:24 AM	#9
Yellow Camaro Drives: 2010 Rally Yellow 2SS/RS Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 417	Pic of the other car... Attached Images

05-24-2014, 10:07 AM	#4
Silverlsinva Drives: 2013 Fiat 500 Abarth Grigio Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Manassas, Va Posts: 3,124	Im not a insurance estimator or a body shop guy by any means but it doesn't look that bad and looks like it could be shaped out. The wheel looks like I can be repaired I do see that bit parts of paint/chrome plating missing. Also have u talked to ur insurance yet and also get their insurance info and a estimate done. I do wonder why u had to say foreigners cant it just be someone ran into u. Bad drivers are bad drivers regardless of what nationality they are lol.

05-24-2014, 10:22 AM	#8
Yellow Camaro Drives: 2010 Rally Yellow 2SS/RS Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 417	sdmbdad- Thanks! And how does your CarFax look? again, I'm real concerned about the differentialization between "Accident" and "Structural Damage". Silver- It IS pretty minor looking, but it's a tough panel and took a hard hit. Front of the other car was destroyed. I've contacted my insurance company, but not theirs because it takes 5-7 business days to get the police report. Could be a while because of Memorial Day Weekend.

05-24-2014, 10:30 AM	#10
Silverlsinva Drives: 2013 Fiat 500 Abarth Grigio Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Manassas, Va Posts: 3,124	wow tore the whole bumper off that was a big hit then. So might be a bit more than I was thinking.

05-24-2014, 11:04 AM	#12
wadeh Drives: 2011 2SS/RS/M6, Silver Ice Metallic Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Snohomish, WA Posts: 124	Actually, the damage doesn't look that bad to your car...or the one that hit you. Unless there is significant damage that's not visible externally, I don't think that this is going to be too bad. I have some experience with diminished value, as I have been through it with my Corvette. I am not a lawyer, so this is just my experience. The laws for diminished value vary from state to state, so your situation may be different. Generally, it is my understanding that first party insurance almost never covers diminished value. The only way to make a claim is to go to the other party's insurance company. In my case, they denied the claim (Actually, they fought tooth and nail to pay anything, even though their insured rear ended my car while I was stopped in traffic, with lots of witnesses and a citation to their driver from the Police. The whole thing was rather surreal.) The only way to pursue the matter further was to sue the at fault party. Since the amount was substantially larger than small claims, I had to hire an attorney to handle the case. It took over two years to get through the court system, but I ultimately prevailed (the other insurance company knew full well that I would prevail, but took every possible delay tactic in hopes that I would give up). One of the key things is that I did research to figure out which appraisers the at fault party's insurance company uses when they need 3rd party diminished values...and hired one of them. That made it very difficult for the insurance company to challenge the appraisal. Honestly, I doubt that you will need to go through all of that, though. The total damage to both vehicles in your case is much less than mine. Also, my car was much newer, with a much higher fair market value than even a new Camaro. If I were in your case, I would just have the car repaired and get on with life. You should figure out your rights on the repair, so you know where you stand. You can pick the repair shop (do some research and find the best in your area). Also, in my case, I was able to insist that they replace all damaged parts with new, genuine GM parts. Except for paint, there is no bodywork, no 3rd party parts, and no used parts on my repaired Corvette. I would also not worry about what CarFax says, unless you have immediate plans to sell it. The affect of an accident in a car's history drops greatly as the car ages. For example, nobody wants to buy a car with major accident history 6 months after the accident, partly because the quality of the repair has not been established. But if the major repair was 5 years ago, it's no longer such a big deal. Hang in there. It sucks to have someone hit you, but it sounds like nobody was hurt, and that's the important thing. You may have a couple of weeks of frustration, but you will get your car back in great shape.

05-24-2014, 11:33 AM	#14
Hetfield03 Drives: 2010 2LT/RS Black/IOM Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Kentucky Posts: 1,434	Or, perhaps they spoke broken English