Insurance Advice - Parked Car Hit from Rear (Agreed Value Policy)

virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 00:18
Last edited 29/06/2023 - 15:37 by 1 other user

My car was safely parked on the roadside (at a time and place permissible for parking) and it was hit from behind (I wasn't inside the car).

Mine is an old, small car, maybe worth $6k-$7k in today's market. I exchanged the licence details with the driver of the car that hit mine and put a claim with my insurance. I doubt if my car is repairable (or worth repairing); it will depend on the assessor. Let's say if it's to be written off, how does the insurance company decide its worth? If they look at the market price as per their auto-valuation model (and my insurance policy), it maybe worth only $3k given the age and model of the car.

However, if one was to buy a similar car in market today, it's hard to get one under $6k at least. In such a scenario, how do I ensure that I get the market worth of the car from the insurance company? Is the value negotiable at all? Anything else that I should keep in mind while dealing with the insurance? I will appreciate any advice as I am a newbie when it comes to car insurance dealing.

Also, if I wasn't at fault, will the claim impact the future car insurance premiums? I know it shouldn't but when buying an insurance, they often ask if one had any claim (irrespective of who was at fault) in last 5 years or so. What significance or effect does this info have on insurance policy premium? Thanks!

PS: I checked my insurance and it's on agreed value, which is approx 50%-60% of current market value if I was to replace my car today.

Automotive Car Insurance Insurance

Comments

  • angywoo on 29/06/2023 - 00:24
    +2

    If you put a claim in with your insurance company, you will get whatever your car is insured for with them should the car be written off. For example: Market Value or Agreed Value.

    • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 00:38

      Thanks. Is there a better way to deal with it? Agreed value in my policy might be half the value the car would cost in the current market if I were to buy another similar car, unfortunately.

      • LVlahov on 29/06/2023 - 03:40

        Just note for future reference, you can adjust the agreed value of your policy at any time (prior to an accident or theft occurring). If you know market prices have changed and you'll be in the lurch if something happens to your vehicle you are free to increase your coverage at that time and pay a higher premium.

        You can't really complain if you agreed to a lower insured amount, got cheaper premiums for doing so, and then failed to put your coverage up when you realised you were under-insured.

        My only other advice to you would be.. you do not have to claim on your own policy.
        You are able to claim directly to their insurer/the party responsible, and request they pay the full market value of the vehicle. Insurance is a safety net that you can use if needed (such as if the third party cannot be located or made to pay up), but legally if at fault, THEY are responsible for reimbursing you for the full market value of your vehicle.

        • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 07:41

          That's a great advice. Now that I have already put my claim and my insurance arranged to tow my car to a yard before it gets assessed, is it a good idea to cancel my claim at all? Not sure if it can be cancelled now that they initiated the towing work, etc.

          Or can I work with the other guy's insurance company to get some difference (beyond my agreed value from my company) to get a fair market value in total - does it work that way?

          • hothed on 29/06/2023 - 09:52

            @virhlpool: Hi @virhlpool

            I had the same situation. I claimed with my insurance. They said car was worth $X. Market value was worth $X + $Y.
            I cancelled my claim with my insurance company and went through their insurance company and said market value was $X+$Y.

            I did not get full market value, because insurance are scummy bastards, but it was better than the value the car was insured for under my policy.

            Good luck.

            • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 15:28

              @hothed: Thanks. It means I will need to wait till I can find their insurance claim detail and eventually what they are willing to offer, before I cancel the claim with my insurance.

          • LVlahov on 29/06/2023 - 17:35
            +1

            @virhlpool: Although my situation wasn't exactly the same as your's, I had had my car towed and assessed by my insurer and while I did go through with their offer in the end (it wasn't the value of the car in dispute but that I favoured that amount being spent fixing it rather than writing it off), they were perfectly fine with me closing the process there, and refusing their offer, and taking a different route. Think of the assessment period as being an examination of the situation, not an agreement to go through with it to the end. Ultimately (and legally) the vehicle still belongs to you, until you agree with their final offer, and so you are free to pull back at any time prior to accepting their payout.

            • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 21:42
              +1

              @LVlahov: Thanks for the great clarity in your comments, mate. It clears a lots of doubts.

        • brandt on 29/06/2023 - 14:48

          Can you claim other party's insurance company for the gap between your insured value and replacement value?

          • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 15:28

            @brandt: I don't think so. Either this or that.

          • LVlahov on 29/06/2023 - 17:42
            +1

            @brandt: I think you could, and if you were to pursue an independent legal route I am absolutely sure you could (you having an agreement with third party doesn't affect the responsibility of the culprit to offer full compensation for their act), but it is perhaps easier logistically to go for the whole amount directly from them.

            In an event where you received part compensation from your insurer, and part from the culprit (or their insurer), or the full amount from the culprit (or their insurer) they would be responsible for the same total regardless.

            i.e. they are responsible for making whole the situation, which is "as if it never occurred", not responsible for an arbitrary amount between you and your insurer. If the insurer wore 50% of that cost, and you 50% it would be 50/50, if the insurer made you whole, then it would be 100% to them, if you cover 0% of the loss with them, 100% to you.

            Just because you under insured your vehicle doesn't mean the culprit or their insurer escapes responsibility for the size of the loss they caused. Your insurer escapes that liability, not the other parties.

  • Aust on 29/06/2023 - 00:50
    +4

    If you’re not happy then you need to provide them with info on other vehicles for sale in a similar condition.
    3 would be a good start, take the average and argue your reasoning from there.
    The above is for market value, if you have agreed value then you paid a premium knowing what you were going to get so that’s strait forward.

    • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 01:23

      My policy has an agreed value way lower than what it would cost me to replace the car, so it's a painful situation if the car is to be written off. Especially in today's market, car prices are insane.

      • jackary on 29/06/2023 - 01:59
        +7

        If you have an agreed value, I would have thought you were out of luck…

      • brendanm on 29/06/2023 - 07:12
        +1

        Agreed value is a value you agreed to at the start of your policy. Your premium would have been cheaper as you chose to I sure the vehicle for a lower amount. It is non negotiable, if it had been insured for market value, it is negotiable.

      • djsweet on 29/06/2023 - 10:09

        agreed value is agreed value…
        I imagine you are out of luck with your insurer. Only course of action would be to cancel you claim and deal with the other party's insurance. You should be able to get full market value out of them with enough persistence.

  • barge-in hunter on 29/06/2023 - 06:55
    +1

    If you have agreed value in your policy, that’s the max payout you’ll receive if you claim under that policy

    There is nothing obligating you to claim through your insurance- in fact, this is probably one of the best case scenarios to deal with the other insurance company direct (assuming the other driver has full comp). That’s the only way to possibly get a larger payout.

    Just remember, you’ve been paying an insurance premium that equates to that agreed value. If you went with market or a higher agreed value, your premium would have been higher as well

    • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 07:37

      Is it possible to cancel the claim with my insurance company now? I needed an immediate help to tow my car so I had to put a claim with my company right away. If I were to find out the other guy's insurance company and their claim number, help would have been delayed since I don't have their contact number in the first place. I just have the rego and licence details.

      • barge-in hunter on 29/06/2023 - 08:31
        +1

        You’ll need to speak with your insurance company to figure that out.

        It sounds like you don’t yet know if the other driver is insured? In which case, it might not be worth the risk

        • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 15:30

          I am keeping my claim ON until I hear from the other person about their claim number/ insurer. I will cancel mine only when I hear the outcome of the other party's insurance. It's allowed to keep the claim ON and cancel it (or accept it) after you hear their final offer.

  • DarkOz on 29/06/2023 - 07:20
    +7

    Think of it this way. The money you have saved from paying lower premiums over the years is/was part of your insurance pay out.

  • iamherenow on 29/06/2023 - 07:21
    +1

    This should be covered on the other driver's insurance. Tell them to make a claim and get the claim number off them. Then call their insurance company and they will deal with your car. I wouldn't make a claim with my own insurance unless it's clear the other driver didn't have insurance and would be refusing to pay for repairs.

    • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 07:32

      I put a claim with my insurance right away as I don't have a phone number of the other guy so I am not in touch. Also, the car had to be moved to a holding yard so I needed immediate service which was provided by my insurance as part of the claim. I am not sure if I can cancel the claim mid way now.

      Is it a good idea to cancel my claim and rely on his insurance? I will need to find out who their insurance company is though and it's all tricky without having a contact.

      • John Kimble on 29/06/2023 - 08:35
        +3

        Next time get contact details and ask who their insurance is with

    • wongus on 29/06/2023 - 10:23

      How do you get the other driver to make a claim. I recently witness the other driver in a hilux with a tow bar reverse into my car. No damage to his car but pushed the plastic and left a mark on my car. I got his license and phone number but couldn't get any further as he wasn't making a claim with his insurance (supposedly with RACQ). I had 3rd party liability insurance which covers damage to other vehicles but not my own. So many drivers around that give no shits to others. Not the first time my cars have been damaged / scraped whilst parked and no note provided. At least this time I saw the incident as it happened.

      • Euphemistic on 29/06/2023 - 12:15
        +1

        This is a very good reason to get comprehensive.

      • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 15:32

        It's sad.. If the other driver doesn't end up making a claim, then one really needs to rely on their own insurer (comprehensive). In my case though the damage to their car was not small so I am hoping that they would make a claim.

        • Euphemistic on 30/06/2023 - 07:15

          That’s why we have insurance. To cover risks associated with being out in the big wide world. Some people choose to take on some of that risk themselves (TPP) others choose to pass the risk to an insurer - at the cost of higher premiums.

  • JimmyF on 29/06/2023 - 08:48
    +3

    I doubt if my car is repairable (or worth repairing); it will depend on the assessor

    Generally if repairs total 70-80% the cost of the payout figure, they'll write it off, rather than repair.

    Let's say if it's to be written off, how does the insurance company decide its worth? If they look at the market price as per their auto-valuation model (and my insurance policy), it maybe worth only $3k given the age and model of the car.

    If written off, it will be what your policy says. Did you take out a fixed price or market value one?

    However, if one was to buy a similar car in market today, it's hard to get one under $6k at least. In such a scenario, how do I ensure that I get the market worth of the car from the insurance company?

    Is the value negotiable at all?

    The insurance company will give you a Market value offer of what they think it is worth assuming you have market value coverage. You can accept this or you can counter by providing examples of why this isn't correct for the current market conditions etc.

    ie if offering $3k as you think but the cheapest one for sale in Australia is $6k, you could claim that $3k isn't the true market value.

    Edit -

    My policy has an agreed value way lower than what it would cost me to replace the car

    I see you have agreed value based on this comment elsewhere, you have been paying a 'lower' insurance cost to reflect the lower coverage value. You can't just magically increase this now you are looking at a claim. You'll get the agreed value that you both said the car was worth.

  • Euphemistic on 29/06/2023 - 09:02
    +1

    As you’ve got agreed value for your insurance, that’s what your company will pay out. If you want more than that talk to your insurer and cancel
    The claim, then go through the hassle of negotiating a ‘fair’ value for your car. They’ll offer low at first, but you need to have your research done and be able to show them what market value for your car would be.

  • cnmarine on 29/06/2023 - 10:27
    +1

    Did you get the address of the licence? Did you get any contact info? Without it, you'll have to pay excess as well…………

    • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 15:33

      Yes, I managed to get those details so no excess thankfully.

  • Drakesy on 29/06/2023 - 10:29
    +2

    What i've seen work before is getting similar km & year ad examples and sending thenm through to the insurer to reflect the true value of the car.
    This has and will work.

  • adam on 29/06/2023 - 17:18

    You're entitled to compensation from the other driver (or their insurance agency) for any damage / replacement costs for your vehicle. So you can negotiate with them / their insurance company for this.

    If, however, you're dealing with your insurance company then you have to accept the terms of the agreement (your insurance contract) that you've entered into with them. They will certainly be talking to the other insurance company and anything they payout to you they will claim against the other company. If you've already started dealing with your insurance company and have claimed services from them (like a tow or rental car) and cancel the claim (to pursue a claim directly with the other insurance company) then expect your insurance company to charge you for those services.

    I would have a discussion with my insurance company (and escalate if necessary) arguing that, if you are not at fault, that the agreed value limit needn't apply as they will be claiming all costs against the other insurance company.

    I have made at fault and not at fault claims in the past (for written off vehicles) and found the insurance company is much more generous with the payout figure when thye can pass the costs onto another company (this has always been for market value policies).

    If talking to your insurance company results in no change, i'd cancel the claim, pay them whatever costs are due but then negotiate compensation from the other insurance company for all these amounts. If the other insurance company won't come to the party then see a lawyer, you will win hands down and get all costs reimbursed.

  • virhlpool on 29/06/2023 - 21:58

    If you've already started dealing with your insurance company and have claimed services from them (like a tow or rental car) and cancel the claim (to pursue a claim directly with the other insurance company) then expect your insurance company to charge you for those services.

    Is that how it works? My insurance company told me that I can withdraw the claim at any time if it is better served by the other person's insurance company. I am not sure if I have to pay anything to my insurance company in that case. If anything, don't they charge the other party for those expenses which you are referring here? If I have to pay for the services for which I had to rely on my insurance (until I found other insurance's offer to be better), then what's the point in having the comprehensive insurance in the first place? I could be wrong but I am genuinely concerned.

  • virhlpool on 17/07/2023 - 15:32
    +1

    Thanks all for comments and the valuable advice. I was able to claim the market value through the other driver's insurance policy. Process was pretty easy except the long wait times when calling insurance companies. Their call centres suck.

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