Auto Insurance Claims: Diminished claim, party claimants, selling your car

Question
Hi

My car was hit by another and that car was declared at fault. The insurance company of the car at fault is ready to pay for the damanges. But now my car value is reduced as what it would have been if i had sold before the accident.

Can i claim for my unrealized diminished losses?. When i called the adjuster of the insurance she said i cannot claim.

thanks
venkii

Answer
Yes, diminished value is payable to all third party claimants in all 50 states. What you have to realize is that the liability carrier has no legal duty to you, but their policyholder does. So they can lie to you on the phone, but will be reluctant to do it in writing.

Get an appraisal from a local appraiser with a specialty in diminished value claims. Go to www.ican2000.com and look under local DV help to find one. As far as whether you lost value without actually selling your car goes, your asset has lost a substantial portion of its worth.