Auto Insurance Claims: Car strikes house, Liablity Damages

Question
A car slides off the snow covered road and strikes a home (KY). Does the car insurance pay for replacement cost on the home or just the actual cash value?  The adjust said all they owe is actual cash value, but that doesn't seem fair. The house did nothing to contribute to this accident, but yet that portion of the claim is being penalized.  Thank you, James.

Answer
James,

  Unfortunately, I cannot provide legal advice.  What I will suggest is that you ask the adjuster to provide you with the case law or statute on which he/she is relying to make that determination.  Normally in a tort situation (in KY), damages are not calculated on an ACV basis because the ACV is not reflective of the actual damages.  An ACV is used when one is using their own insurance policy to recover damages (the policy will say it uses ACV).  Confusing first party claims handling with third party claims handling is a common mistake by rookies and causes a lot of un-needed frustration for accident victims.  Check with an attorney to find out your legal rights or to make specific legal inquiries.  As an insurance adjuster, this is a liability claim and I would calculate your damages based on what it would cost to put you back in the same condition you were in prior to the loss.  If I had to put new items on your very old and rickety home, I might deduct a "betterment", because that is a real way of calculating the dollar amount of your damages.  You might argue that a repair itself is cause for diminished value damages even if the repair is perfect (which has been done successfully in the past).  I will say that doing a little research on tort laws and measure of damages, you should be able figure out how the damages would be calculated if you sued the driver of the automobile.  Don't be surprised if you find your answer in the law, and the insurance company still refuses.  Just realize that if a decision cannot be explained and presented to you in writing, then it is no decision at all.  Get everything in writing and be prepared to fight if you have to.  

    I hope this helps.