QuestionWhile at a party on St. Patrick's day, a coworker of mine backed into the driver's door of my 1992 Mercedes-Benz. When the front end of the vehicle was only moderately damaged in 2005, I paid (from my own pocket) nearly $6,000 to Mercedes to repair the front bumper, fender, and headlamps. The vehicle is an extremely rare, limited edition Sportline. Only 700 of these were imported to the US for this model. It was the rarest, most expensive, and is the most sought after version of the vehicle in the US. It has been garage kept, serviced, and remained generally flawless since it left the factory. In 2005, when I spent a considerable amount of money to purchase this rare vehicle, it had 80,000 miles. Extremely low for 13 years old. At the time of the accident it had just turned over the 100,000 mile mark. What I am trying to get across is that this car is extremely rare and I plan to keep it for quite some time. Repairing the vehicle to any other condition other than perfect will significantly decrease its value and using any parts other than the new parts all individually stamped with it's serial number would be sacrilege. It was important enough to me to take the money from my own pocket, spending easily three times more for perfection.
However, I am not sure the insurance company will see it this way. Damage is to the driver's door, and has broken or damaged almost all parts on and inside the door. New parts from Mercedes are estimated at $2,250+. Installation and paint with my personal tried and trusted expert are estimated at $3,000. I would like to request from the other party's insurance company (State Farm) a check for $6,000 to cover anything that may pop up. (ie hood is now out of fitment, left side audio speakers do not function now, cruise control does not function now.
Personally, I think 6k is almost too little for me to ask since no repair can bring the car back to 100%, but I would be fine with covering any expenses associated with repairing the audio system or cruise control, as I can see that while they both quit working IMMEDIATELY after the accident, their age may have a role to play in this.
Any body shops I have gone to have given me ridiculously low quotes on the repair and will not use factory new parts. I will have my personal people repair the damage, but wanted another opinion just for the record. What should I do to have this taken care of? I am scheduled to meet with their adjuster tomorrow and expect the worst. Should I hire an attorney? I am sorry for this long question, and sincerely appreciate your time and expertise.
AnswerHi Russell,
I'm sorry for the late reply, I was out of town.
Unfortunately for you, the insurance company is going to look at this vehicle a 15 year old car with over 100k in mileage. I don't know exactly what model you have, you did not say.
In most states, the insurance company is allowed to specify the use of aftermarket parts and /or salvage parts from a junk yard on any vehicle over 1 year old or with over 12,000 miles. They will also deny any claims for things not working that can not be proven by an expert to be directly caused by the collision. Further, you can not simply make a demand for damages for an amount of money that there is no specific supporting documentation. They will only pay you what they determine to be an agreed price to repair the car to local industry standards. So if your chosen body shop charges higher than the prevailing rates to fix a chevy, you may be forced to pay the difference.
Everything I have said hear indicates the sad state of affairs we are all in. The insurance companies buy the laws that suit them, they but the state legislatures and they buy the state insurance commissioners offices.
You should stand and fight the good fight. Continue to argue. Do all of your arguing in writing, by certified mail/return receipt requested and demand that they only answer you in writing. This will put them on the defensive because they are not used to people not conforming to their way. Push hard and perhaps you may at least get some of what you want.
I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh
