Auto Insurance Claims: Total Loss for Mazda CX-7 with GEICO, state insurance department, kelly blue book

Question
My Daughter was involved in a single car accident (no apparent injuries) that damaged all of the sheet metal and most of the suspension on her 2007 Mazda CX-7. We did some research and found that the value of the vehicle should be around $14k. She then met with the adjuster. He showed her values of car ranging from 13-20k, but with each on, he would start adjusting the value down. He used a $700 base-line adjustment for each car, then various adjustments (mileage, Dealer Take prices, etc) until each one came down to what appeared to be his magic number - 12.5k. What is the best strategy to get the adjuster to move to a compromise and / or how effective is trying to use a public adjuster or an attorney if logic doesn't work?

Answer
Public adjusters work mainly in homeowner's claims and rarely in auto claims.  I suspect the fee would not be worthwhile.  The insurer probably won't change their value for an attorney, unless a lawsuit is filed, in which case they might make a business decision to settle.  Again, the attorney's fee would almost certainly exceed the value to you, which is why attorneys rarely handle these types of claims.

You should first try to prove your case to the claim rep.  Provide written evidence (as noted below).  They owe you the actual cash value - which is the amount you could have sold the vehicle for on the open market before the accident.  If this does not work, complain to his/her supervisor.  If this does not work, you can complain to the state insurance department.

You said your value is about 14k.  Make sure you are correct and have considered all the issues.  Factor in mileage, condition, and options.  Recent repairs and maintenance add no value as this is expected condition.  Use various online services like NADA, Kelly blue book, and Edmunds.  They will all be different but most experts consider Kelly to be the most realistic.  NADA is almost always too high.

Also, check the classifieds, cars.com, craigslist, and autotrader.com for comparables.  But consider that cars almost always sell for less than the list price.  You might want to call a couple car dealers and get their opinion.  Explain you may be buying a vehicle from them and you need their help.  Then write down their contact information and provide it to the claim rep along with their opinion.