Total Loss E46....

14627 Views 30 Replies 17 Participants Last post by Lionelski, Sep 12, 2012

JayKayo

Discussion Starter · Apr 23, 2012

Recently, my 325Ci was totaled. I'm still currently a full-time college sophomore working almost full-time. My parents refused to guide/help me through the insurance claims process (they blame me for the collision) so if you have any idea how the insurance claims process works, please share.

Details: It was the 72 year-old's fault. He has State Farm and I have AllState, full coverage.
There were 3 witnesses and I have their phone number, cops filed a report and listed the info.
I've filed a claim already and the adjuster came and already slapped a little ID tag on my windshield, I'm guessing that it means they've appraised/calculated the salvage value on her or something. She's currently sitting at a local collision center.
I hired a lawyer and am seeing a chiropractor, whiplash got my neck and head pretty good.
I currently have a rental car, paid for 30 days by insurance. After that I'm f****d unless I get the claim money and get into another E46 but I've heard that for the money to get into my hands would take 3-4 months.

1) My vehicle registration is in the glove compartment which is jammed shut by the caved-in passenger door. Do I need to retrieve it or is it void/null?
2) Will I get more money from insurance if I show them receipts of parts that I had installed just recently? Like Vanos/oil line/hoses, headlights, angel eyes, etc.
3) What do I do now? Should I call my insurance or my lawyer to check on the progress? Or wait for someone to call ME back.

I want to buy the wreck back and part it out. Some undamaged parts are the hood (believe it or not), headlights (DEPO though), trunk, and seats. I will tell you now, the seats are comparable to new factory ones. I hand-conditioned them with Meguiar's every time I washed her and there are absolutely no creases, bumps, indents, folds, discoloration....nothing.

Feel free to make me an offer on any part(s) and/or leave me a piece of advice! Both would be greatly appreciated.

Some pictures:

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Solidjake

· #2 · Apr 23, 2012

Yikes, that is bad man. Sorry to hear about what happened.

I think NovaBimmer or something like is the man to go to for insurance information.

IxNay

· #3 · Apr 23, 2012

If the insurance co declares the car a total loss, which they surely will, they will make you an offer. You must decline their offer and treat it as a starting point for negotiation. Once you have come to an agreement as to an acceptable offer, they will give you a check, and they will then own the car. You can then agree to re-purchase the car from them. You will have to negotiate to buy back the car. Once you re-purchase the car, it is yours again and you can part it out and sell it off piecemeal. Another thing is that while this is all going on the car will be parked on someone else's property, unless you have your own property to store the car. If you let the car sit on someone else's property there will be storage fees to be paid which the insurance company will pay some of, but probably not all of, so it may cost you a lot of money to get the car out of storage if you are not careful.

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BavLar

· #4 · Apr 23, 2012 (Edited)

NADA value is what the insurance company usually goes by. We recently lost a 2004 325 and were compensated 12,600. Check was in our hands right away from State Farm after it was determined a total loss. This was pretty much retail price, and you may have to fight a little to get it up to retail replacement cost. Our experience with State Farm was very positive.

When we were trying to replace it I was not finding anything with a good interior. I almost kicked myself for not buying back the crashed car at $3300 asking price and placing the interior into the replacement car, then parting out the rest. But then persistence and patience paid off with a solid replacement that had just as good of an interior as the original. At that point I was glad I didn't do the buyback for all the reasons pointed out by previous poster.

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Herbalicious

· #5 · Apr 23, 2012

It's going to depend on mileage and the value of the car. The insurance won't pay for any aftermarket parts you put on the car.
Another problem is that the insurance company that is going to pay you is not your company it's the other parties company, If they are actually at fault. The reason that may come into play is that the insurance company paying you is not your company so they won't be as flexible in the buy back amount for your car for your car. Since you have a salvage tag on your car, they already have an amount which they are going to pay you.
The insurance is going to pay the collision center any tow and storage fees up to the day you guys settle, so if you want to keep your car you better have a way and a place to get it out of there or else you will pay the storage fees.

Good luck with everything.

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NOVAbimmer

· #6 · Apr 23, 2012

see my thread, good luck, hope you feel better

Stinger9

· #7 · Apr 23, 2012

Facelift coupe bites the dust. One less beautiful car on the road!

Sorry to see this as no doubt you are too.
What color is that car?

customisbetter

· #8 · Apr 23, 2012

So what happened?

Also I doubt your insurance will cover your modifications as they usually only count as "maintenance" which is not covered.

JayKayo

Discussion Starter · #9 · Apr 23, 2012

Stinger9 said:
Facelift coupe bites the dust. One less beautiful car on the road!

Sorry to see this as no doubt you are too.
What color is that car?

Silver grey.

Herbalicious said:
It's going to depend on mileage and the value of the car. The insurance won't pay for any aftermarket parts you put on the car.
Another problem is that the insurance company that is going to pay you is not your company it's the other parties company, If they are actually at fault. The reason that may come into play is that the insurance company paying you is not your company so they won't be as flexible in the buy back amount for your car for your car. Since you have a salvage tag on your car, they already have an amount which they are going to pay you.
The insurance is going to pay the collision center any tow and storage fees up to the day you guys settle, so if you want to keep your car you better have a way and a place to get it out of there or else you will pay the storage fees.

Good luck with everything.

Aren't they going to pay me for the previous condition from what they can assess currently? The title was clean before the collision; it was around 112,xxx miles when it happened.

NOVAbimmer said:
see my thread, good luck, hope you feel better

Will do, thank you.

trj

· #10 · Apr 23, 2012

Sorry about the accident. I hope the insurance from the other party pays you up quickly.

The registration being in the glove box will not affect you, unless you have your title in the glove box too. Once the insurance declares the car as total loss, you just give/sign them the title and they give you a cheque. But you might want to get the registration out of there anyway, you don't want your information going to someone else. That car is going to go in the auction after they take possession of it.

And no, the insurance will not pay for the maintenance you have done in your car.
If you have receipts showing the aftermarket parts (which didn't come with your car) you have put on the car like sound system, deck, (may be try for the headlights and angel eyes) they might pay for it but not for the mechanical(maintenance) parts.
Go through your insurance rather than the lawyer if you don't have bodily injury, because lawyer fees are high. And insurance company has their lawyers standing by all the time.

And buying the car back from the insurance without having time and place to work on it would not be a good idea. You will get rid of some parts quickly but then after it becomes a very slow waiting game.

Hope it gets resolved soon and you get well soon too.

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JayKayo

Discussion Starter · #11 · Apr 23, 2012

trj said:
Sorry about the accident. I hope the insurance from the other party pays you up quickly.

The registration being in the glove box will not affect you, unless you have your title in the glove box too. Once the insurance declares the car as total loss, you just give/sign them the title and they give you a cheque. But you might want to get the registration out of there anyway, you don't want your information going to someone else. That car is going to go in the auction after they take possession of it.

And no, the insurance will not pay for the maintenance you have done in your car.
If you have receipts showing the aftermarket parts (which didn't come with your car) you have put on the car like sound system, deck, (may be try for the headlights and angel eyes) they might pay for it but not for the mechanical(maintenance) parts.
Go through your insurance rather than the lawyer if you don't have bodily injury, because lawyer fees are high. And insurance company has their lawyers standing by all the time.

And buying the car back from the insurance without having time and place to work on it would not be a good idea. You will get rid of some parts quickly but then after it becomes a very slow waiting game.

Hope it gets resolved soon and you get well soon too.

Thanks.
My passenger door's jamming the box, so I will have to ask the guys at the collision center to pry it open for me to get it out. Will insurance pay for the labor cost or should I just kick down the door? (Probably not, I know...)

I do have aches/pain, and I had to miss class/work to see a chiropractor. Currently going on a regular basis; my lawyer contacted the other guy's insurance for me already.

I most likely won't buy it back then, I don't have a place to store the wreck. Shame....even the ///\/\ steering wheel's undamaged, airbag didn't pop.

328ci906

· #12 · Apr 23, 2012

Damn, glad your OK. You may want to consider picking up a beater for the time being. With that said, I have dealt with State Farm in the past. They are normally pretty quick with claims, hopefully you will have a similar experience.

trj

· #13 · Apr 23, 2012

JayKayo said:
Thanks.
My passenger door's jamming the box, so I will have to ask the guys at the collision center to pry it open for me to get it out. Will insurance pay for the labor cost or should I just kick down the door? (Probably not, I know...)

I do have aches/pain, and I had to miss class/work to see a chiropractor. Currently going on a regular basis; my lawyer contacted the other guy's insurance for me already.

I most likely won't buy it back then, I don't have a place to store the wreck. Shame....even the ///\/\ steering wheel's undamaged, airbag didn't pop.

I would say just pry open the glovebox and inform them you had to because you have your personal stuff in there. Also it would be a good idea to ask them what to do about it, whether the place it is stored at can get the stuff in the glovebox out.
Also a good decision on your part not thinking to buy it back as you don't have a place to store it.

As soon as the vehicle is declared totaled, the insurance company will issue the cheque to you. At least thats how it works with state farm.
When my old car was stolen, they gave me a cheque in 2 weeks and the rental was covered for a month. It was enough time for me to get another beater till I was able to find my current car.
The car was found after 2 months by the police but the interior was gutted, I asked them if I could buy it back. Their reply was to go in the auction where it will be sold, they can't sell it directly to you. So, don't be amazed if they don't offer you to buy it back.

I know it can be hard to let it go after you put so much into it, but the car can be replaced. At least you are not seriously injured(although the pain is there). Definitely keep going to the chiropractor and you already have a lawyer so wouldn't be much of an issue.

Good luck with everything.

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nbesheer

· #14 · Apr 23, 2012

A few months ago some guy totaled my 330ci I had full coverage with allstate, and they had progressive. The other parties insurance is going to talk to you, get documents ready, such as a note from you employer stating how much wages (how many wages?) you lost due to sick time. Theyre going to give you money (at least in my case) for pain and suffering, I then had them pay the remainder of the car rental bill, I had a $22/day car for 30 days, allstate covered $20/Day for 14 days and I had to pay upfront but was reimbursed by progressive. I told them I wanted my hospital copay, as well as the cost of gas because I had just filled up ~$70. it was my first time too and I was scared lol and looking back i could have got more because I had just got a $1,700 transmission repair but I didn't know to fight for that. Progressive had sent a claims adjuster to my house a day or so later so it was pretty easy, she was real pretty too, Hey Nena

but what ever settlement you sign for the money will also have you agree not to pursue further action against them.

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///MPR77

· #15 · Apr 23, 2012

customisbetter said:
So what happened?

Also I doubt your insurance will cover your modifications as they usually only count as "maintenance" which is not covered.

Large items, like new engine,and/or Trans are covered on my policy.

Aftermarket upgrades can be covered.... if you get it photographed, itemized, and APPROVED; you will pay a little more on your policy, but not an option for you now.

Glad you're alright.

Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G

Stinger9

· #16 · Apr 23, 2012

///MPR77 said:
Aftermarket upgrades can be covered.... if you get it photographed, itemized, and APPROVED; you will pay a little more on your policy, but not an option for you now.

You're exactly the kind of customer State Farm really wants! Excuse me, "I have headers, a blower, and competition shocks on my car. Can you insure me?"
They need more low risk guys like this!

My advice; maintain a low profile.

///MPR77

· #17 · Apr 23, 2012 (Edited)

Stinger9 said:
You're exactly the kind of customer State Farm really wants! Excuse me, "I have headers, a blower, and competition shocks on my car. Can you insure me?"
They need more low risk guys like this!

My advice; maintain a low profile.

Hey man...wait a minute. I am like a, damn good Neighbor, and a considerate driver.

I was talking about CF Hood/ Trunk Lid, but I get these cheaper than the OEM Replacement value that would be alotted in a claim, so for myself.....I just maintain a low profile.

Btw...
I'm 35 years old, umkay; so, I'm not the guy you just thought up on the toilet. Form these perceptions of me all you want, and attempt to flame; however, fail you will.

Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G with Beats Audio using Bimmer App

JayKayo

Discussion Starter · #18 · Apr 23, 2012

nbesheer said:
A few months ago some guy totaled my 330ci I had full coverage with allstate, and they had progressive. The other parties insurance is going to talk to you, get documents ready, such as a note from you employer stating how much wages (how many wages?) you lost due to sick time. Theyre going to give you money (at least in my case) for pain and suffering, I then had them pay the remainder of the car rental bill, I had a $22/day car for 30 days, allstate covered $20/Day for 14 days and I had to pay upfront but was reimbursed by progressive. I told them I wanted my hospital copay, as well as the cost of gas because I had just filled up ~$70. it was my first time too and I was scared lol and looking back i could have got more because I had just got a $1,700 transmission repair but I didn't know to fight for that. Progressive had sent a claims adjuster to my house a day or so later so it was pretty easy, she was real pretty too, Hey Nena but what ever settlement you sign for the money will also have you agree not to pursue further action against them.

Ahh ok. I've kept the receipt for gas, had to fill my rental up right after I got it (cheap rental companies, always give you a car with a near-empty tank) and I also have been told that I would be paying around $4 a day on top of insurance for the rental. With all the documents, should I just give them to/contact my lawyer and have them sort it out or is it safe for me to talk directly to the other party's insurance?

328ci906 said:
Damn, glad your OK. You may want to consider picking up a beater for the time being. With that said, I have dealt with State Farm in the past. They are normally pretty quick with claims, hopefully you will have a similar experience.

Thank you. I currently have a rental car, paid for by my insurance.
I hope you're right about my case too. This Jeep makes me realize just how much I took my E46 for granted. :tsk:

Stinger9

· #19 · Apr 23, 2012

JayKayo said:
This Jeep makes me realize just how much I took my E46 for granted. :tsk:

I'm teaching a sixteen year old stick on my car. What do you think he thinks about taking an e46 thru the backroads of PA?
THAT sharpens your appreciation for an e46.

NOVAbimmer

· #20 · Apr 23, 2012

wait, you're paying on top of what your insurance company authorized for rental?

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