car depreciation after a collision

torpedo2k

I recently went through a diminished value claim in Georgia. By Georgia law the insurance company has to pay diminished value. Check the law in your state. The hard part about the entire process is that there is no real formula to calculate DV. There are two types of DV- repair related related and inherent. Repair related is easy to calculate. You look at the quality of the repair and make a claim based on that the repair. Inherent is much harder. Its based on a persons perception that the vehicle has been in a wreck. Georgia law says something to the effect - damage whether real or perceived does have an effect on resale value and should be considered. I hired an expert that came out and did a full assessment and said that my claim should be ~$2500. The insurance company countered with ~$600. It took six months of back and forth and eventually I hired a lawyer to send a demand letter. I had to settle for $1600.
I have quite a few sample demand letters I would be glad to share. Just message me.

shoopajae10

If you don't mind me asking how much did it run you to hire an expert appraiser to come out and look at your car?

torpedo2k

$325. He was very professional. Used a paint meter over the entire car and justified his appraisal over about eight pages of documentation. It gives you ammunition to go after the insurance company. In my case it wasn't as big a deal. I just wanted to prove a point to the company that I wasn't going to rollover. If it were 5k+ worth of damage it is probably worth it depending on how big of a jerk the claim rep you are dealing with.

shoopajae10

I see.. thanks for the info.

The claims agent I was dealing with was a PITA. Also, very rude and unprofessional. Due to my experience with him and many other associates and how Progressive handles their business, I will never use their insurance If I'm on the market for one.