Someone Hit It: My Poor Dart
 

Some weeks ago my poor 1973 Dodge Dart Swinger got hit while parked in front of the house on our busy street. I wasn't home at the time of the incident so I obviously wasn't at fault and the guy in the car that hit mine was insured.

Vehicle: 1973 Dodge Dart Swinger (2dr hardtop)
Engine: Original 318 cid
Other info: Factory air-conditioning; paint is not original color, vinyl top removed and surface painted; looked good 20 ft away (before accident), plenty of compliments.

My problem is establishing the value of the vehicle so that I can get it repaired. I paid about $3,200 for the vehicle and have put about $10k into making it mechanically sound with engine, electrical and suspension work and have the receipts to prove it. I've also a few interior and exterior parts to go toward this restoration effort. The at-fault party's insurance company wants to total my car and offer me about $2,550 because that is the supposed market value of the vehicle and the damages are estimated to be about $3,681.

Here's what I've been told to do to help me get the car fixed:

• Get the documentation the at-fault party's insurance company compiled so as to know how they came up with the numbers they did.
• Seek out local ads in AutoTrader, Collector Car Trader, Hemmings and eBay for vehicles comparable to mine in make, model and condition greater than the estimated repair cost.

I plan on following through with that but here's what I believe my goals are:

• Ultimately, get my car repaired and back on the road
• Prove my vehicle is worth more than what they said the market value is
• Find a lower repair cost estimate and/or poke holes in what was included for the repairs.

Does anyone know of any other recourse I can take?
How the insurance company might be manipulating the numbers?
What are viable pricing resources? I was told that they don't use Kelley Blue Book because the prices are too high but Business 101 says value is determined by supply, demand and the consumer's perceived value of the product. Kelley Blue Book, Manheim Gold, Kelley Gold Book, NADA and classic car pricing guides seem like a good representation of that because they're based on auction house sales but I am really trying to do what the insurance companies (mine and the at-fault's) are telling me to do with regard to tracking down recent local ads.

This is the first car I've had to call my own and so I got only regular, basic required-by-state-law insurance which basically only covers damages done to another party if I'm at fault.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

You need to hire a lawyer, plain and simple. You need to dig out the documents as to what you have into the car, and make it crystal and bluntly clear that your car is a COLLECTIBLE, an antique, not a daily car. Offer NO statements of any sort as to an acceptable deal until you've contacted a lawyer.

I hope you have good documents as to what you did to the car, and maybe a few pictures of it's former appearance before the collision.

Agreed. a long time ago, I had a 1974 Barracuda. It was just a 318 car, but it was mine. I was told by the insurance company they would total my car ( I wa forced off the road and hit a guard rail :( ) I was told by my inurance co that the car was considered nothing more than a Pinto, so was only worth about $500. If I had been smart, I would have puched the issue...

j

THIS is a good-case for declaring the value NOW with the insurance company ...and with having vintage./classic/historical licence plates on the vehicle now.

GOOD luck with this.

Hello,

I work in motor insurance claims here in the UK so I might be ble to help bit.

As the third party (guy who hit you) is obvoiusly at fault and you are npot covered for accidental damage you will have to recover from his insurers who are being awkward over the value. As they do not have an insurable interest in your car they will pay you out and you will get to keep the car.

What you can do is request a cash in lieu of repairs settlement where they will pay up to the value of the car, the money you can use to pay for the repairs.

In the UK you can claim the cost of hiring another car from negligent third parties and also loss of use, dont know if this applies in the states, but if it does, threaten them with a claim for both - the costs they would incur here usually persuades them to up their offer.

Finally, insurers use a standard costing for repair and parts prices which are often on the high side, I would imaging you could get the repairs done for less than they are quoting.

Shop around and obtain prices for supplying the parts yourself.

Finally, if all else fails, get a lawyer!

THIS is why insurance companies use the word "totaled" !

From what I have heard(I have NOT gone through this myself on any car) .... unless you establish beforehand(or clearly show at the time of the accident) that the car is definately a "collector's item" ... your fight here will be UPhill battle.