QuestionMy vehicle was hit by 3 vehicles while legally parked in the state of Michigan. My vehicle was new and was 'devalued' by a sum of $3,000.00. My insurance carrier put the claim into subrogation and they say I have no claim as to lost value. Is this true? Does the subrogation process prevent me from hiring an attorney?
Answer Hello Pauline,
While this is not always the case, many good insurance policies will pay an owner full value when the vehicle involved is a brand new car. You need to carefully review the Collision coverage section of your policy to see if that benefit is included for you. If it is, you need to cite the precise section and paragraph to the adjuster. In that case, your own company would owe you the full amount, which is apparently $3000 more than your settlement. If the claims adjuster does not agree, contact the claims manager.
If your policy does not provide this benefit, you are at the mercy of the liability carriers. They are obligated to pay you for your actual loss - which means the fair market value of your vehicle. They are not necessarily obligated to pay you the value for a brand new vehicle.
Don't take your insurance company's valuation as gospel. Do some independent research of your own. Check with dealers and do some online research. The value might actually be more than your settlement. While the liabilty carriers are obligated only to reimburse your carrier for the amount your company paid, you could try to negotiate something higher on your own if you could substantiate that your actual value was higher than your settlement.
While this could be a long shot, I still recommend you to do the research if you have not already done so.
As for subrogation and an attorney, no. Again the at fault carriers are obligated only to pay your insurance company what it paid for your damages plus your deductible. Any additional damages or valuation would be separate of subrogation, although the liability carriers would surely argue that the subrogation settlement represented the full amount of your damages.
Could you hire an attorney personally? Probably. But I doubt any attorney would take such a minimal case. In any event, that would require a legal opinion.
Start with your own policy first to determine if you actually have the "new car" benefit.
Stranger things have happened!
Hope this helps.
Jane Pytel
http://InsuranceExpertAdvice.com
http://SolutionsForYourInsuranceClaim.com
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