How to buy back a totaled car cheap.
 

Does anyone have any suggestions? I am moving along swiftly in the process to my next boxster, things are looking up greatly, the one base i do not have covered is pushing down the totaled value for buying back my car.

First boast about the glass window (claim), then downplay it to the same company (buy back). Love it. Just print a few IMS threads to give to the buy back dept.

I really do wonder if i can play ims into things at all, my car having a dual row with many cars having the single. Seems to be something hard to prove though.

It's very likely that the ins adjuster has no idea about the IMS issues. I would not bring up single row vs dual row at all

Would the lack or knowledge not be beneficial, Leaving just some documentation to sway the adjusters opinion.


Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk

As you know, I also had my Boxster totaled and bought back the damaged car.

The insurance company could care less about IMS. All they care about is what the car might bring at the salvage auction because that is where your car is going if you don't buy it back.

With that being said, the going rate for a totaled car is around $3K - about the same as a Boxster with a blown engine.

With that as a starting point, submit receipts for any substantial work that you had done within the previous 6 months.

Then start negotiating. Good luck. PM me if you have any add'l questions.

Jake,

Wake up, dude. Timco was being facetious in this post, and I, for one, agree with him.

You're trying to burn the candle on both ends; on end you're ready to pitch the elevated value of your $6K Boxster because of the glass window, hoping for a $10K-$11K settlement, and on the other end you're petitioning for advice on how to pitch an undervalued worth of your car.

Stinks of greed, no other term for it.

Talk to your Dad. That's what he's here for.

Just sayin'............

TO

Oh I know it won't affect salvage value, the ims inquiry was for replacement value


Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk

A being made whole is separate from greed, looking at autotrader I need 10 to 11 to get a similar car, that is without the 8k worth of Maintenance and addons done to my car in recent years. I'm not asking for 8k to replace that but it honestly is only fare that I be made whole when someone else destroyed my pride and joy. On the apposing end with getting the salvage car back cheap, that is for the sake of seizing and opportunity to make money and contribute selling parts or a parts car to people here for a fair price, in that case, everyone wins.


Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk

And that is the life lesson. There are no "fare" police. There are only days you are at a loss, break even, or go ahead. And if you think about it, if you come out ahead, is that fair? I'm sure you don't consider a loss as being fair, do you? Well, in order for you to come out ahead, someone has to come out at a loss. You can't agree with being ahead and then complain about being fair. There is a reason Thomas More's Utopia is a work of fiction.

Am i asking to come ahead? As i said the boxsters in my area selling for 10k to 12k, the only car for 6k has severe water damage....

I do appreciate your more tame response, and i see your point, but any "Coming out ahead" will be from me capitalizing on the option to buy the salvage car, any padding to the car i purchase will come from this. A fairly fair way for everyone to win. If you do suppose that coming out ahead for me is unfair for someone, I would like to know who, 1k extra out of the insurance company still is nothing compared to what people pay into insurance every year and never take a claim out on. It doesn't hurt the other individual of the accident at all, as his rates go up regardless. I am trying to provide a parts boxster for a cheaper price to whomever i sell it to, that's fair.

There is a lot of karmic crap being thrown around on this thread. If someone totals your car then they or their insurance company is obliged to make you whole. Anyone who's ever been in a total loss situation, understands that it's kind of a subjective situation especially with older high mileage cars. In a situation like this you have no choice but to look out for you best interest. It's a negotiation...period...you try to maximize your settlement and the insurance company tries to minimize their cost. That's it, you do your job and they'll do theirs.

Submit comps for other similar cars, submit copies of any receipts for recent MX.

You don't get to negotiate salvage value in most cases. They name their number. That's it.. Take it or leave it.

Don't make this harder than it is.

The folks here criticizing you for being "greedy" apperantly place no value on a known quantity over an unknown quantity. That is an ignorant and nieve way of looking at this situation. Any car you buy as a replacement is an unknown quantity and that means greater risk of repair or failure. You need to do everything you can to mitigate that.

Thank you, and yes a large majority of vehicles i am looking at buying have yet to have their AOS or waterpump inevitably fail, which was already fixed on my vehicle when i bought it. Thank you for the information on the salvage car.

The insurance company is paying out because their client pulled out in front of another vehicle collide with it and caused damages. It's an outcome they plan for and is underwritten into the premium. You have no idea if the insurance company "lost" on this policy or not. For everything that went wrong in this situation, the payout is relatively minor.

Insurance companies aren't nonprofits, and let's face it, we are only hearing one side of the story. I really don't know what is fair in this situation; however, I think it is a wrong to hold an opinion that "big companies" should always take a mulligan and pay out because they are perceived as "big" and can absorb the hit - and, for your information, people who do as you claim - pay in and make no claims - often see their rates rise (usually, as is often claimed, their costs increase due to, oh I don't know... The number of claims made in the given zip code which translates to higher rates for the area). So, one could argue that those people who pay in, yet make no claims, may have increased rates to compensate for people like you who do have accidents and generally make the cost of insuring everyone in the area more expensive... Which isn't exactly fair, but I digress as this is just me free-thinking and isn't based on facts, which you can relate to, yes? ;)

As a parent, I wouldn't want to dedicate garage space to the wreck or have it in the yard as an eyesore for my kids or the other homes in the neighborhood... But I try to keep things classy ;) Out of curiosity, what do your parents think? Have you told them of your burgeoning parts business?

I would never wish a bronco to hit a 981, but i just came close.

And for the second part, my parents are entirely happy with me buying back the salvage (if the price is right) same as me, and if the price is right, i already have a buyer, the car will be hauled by a wrecking company i know the owner of to north carolina the day i head up to buy my next boxster which i have already contacted the seller of and have plans of likely buying. The unclassy salvage will be out of the yard in no time, you remind me of me ;) this is why we don't get along, I am okay with that.

just see what the adjuster is willing to sell it back to you for. if it seems high, make a counter offer which you feel is reasonable. I did a buyback on a truck of mine which was totaled and was more than satisfied with the offered price, which was about 10% of what would have been wholesale for the vehicle. you just need to play it by ear and weigh your options. the car if kept by the insurance company will go to auction, and that is a crap shoot on what they will get, and there are transport fees, auction fees, time lapses for getting their money, etc. which they will need to deal with...

My son was worried when his Miata got totaled (other driver's fault). We had just put new tires on it and had done a lot of work to it. They ended up giving us $3500 for it, and we were happy. I just told the adjuster what I wanted and didn't back down. It was easier because the other driver was at fault. The $3500 was the cheapest part of that claim anyway, even the minor injuries, x-rays, etc. came to way more than $3500. (Just bumps, bruises, sprains, etc...). The insurance company is way ahead on this one, imagine if you had broken a bone in the accident? That one thing alone would exceed the value of the car.

I would keep in mind I bet it is a lot of hassle to part out a car. I didn't even consider doing it for a second with the Miata. There are a million of them. Our cars on the other hand, I would consider parting mine if it ever got totaled. Our parts seem to go for a lot more :)

If you have room then I would say go for it. DOn't offer too much. Maybe when they are approaching a number you like for the value, say you will take that plus the salvage. Maybe they will be glad to be done with it give it to you. I wouldn't feel like you were cheating anybody if you get a good deal on it.

PS I want dibs on your back underbody tray and the small side one, if they aren't all scraped up. :)

I like your idea about the that plus the salvage, and as i said i will likely sell the car total for someone else to part out, could definitely make money, and i do have all summer, but i have found a car that i am interested in buying that i do not want to pass up on. I know the general rules are to not buy on impulse with these cars, but this one is so good i refuse to post it to the forum in worries that someone will go snatch it up before i can :P And yes i am very greatful that no one was hurt in my accident, really it should never have been a situation where my car would be totaled (apprently the bronco is too because its worth nothing) but its better to have a totalled car than to have a hurt body. Thank you for your advice.

The way I understand it, the ins company does not owe you another Boxster base 2.5 with glass window. They owe you exactly what your car was worth. If another Boxster (any) costs more, that's your problem. If you paid less than what they deem your car to be worth then yes, you come out ahead.

You can tell them if you don't get a car soon then your back might be starting to hurt from all the walking and you might need to get it checked out... :)

USAA offered me a ridiculously low price on my totaled Volvo once. I was very good with maintenance and keeping receipts. I had to show them all my work and effort. Show all of your cards, after their first offer.

Here's a question. What is the going private sale rate (not from a used car dealer) in your area for a same year Boxster with same mileage in moderate condition? I think you mentioned that generally 986's are in the $10K area.

If you do get another Boxster I would suggest not driving it to school anymore.
You've got far too many inexperienced drivers in very high proximity to each other.
I don't even trust my Porsche to a commuter parking lot populated by people with 20 years driving experience... I ride my $300 fixed gear track bike rain or shine, even in the snow. The Boxster stays safe at home. If the hike were too long for the bike, I'd get a Honda.

I agree with the first statement, not the rest. If you were following along, the people involved are high school students, yes? If the pay out is the $8-10k Jake (plus whatever the other side may be) is suggesting... I'd argue I do have an idea of whether the insurance company lost out. Assuming the kid is 16-18 years old, he couldn't have been driving for more than what? 3 years? You think this kid paid $8-10k+ in premiums over >3 years?

My guess is the kid was a part of the parent's policy and thus, insured for less as a result of a family plan. Even so, if the kid paid for his own policy, I seriously doubt he was paying in a like amount to what is being paid out, in total. Just think about it and revisit your statement. :cool:

Insurance is based on aggregate risk and not based on what any certain indidual paid in during a length of time or what the insurance company paid out for an accident.

Each of us are placed into a risk group based on factors such as age, driving history, location, value of car, car model, etc. Then each of us pays what the insurance company calculates (based on historical actuals for each risk group) to be our "share" of covering ALL of the claims. Those participants who are placed in higher risk groups pay a higher share of the total and vice-versa for the lower risk groups. Over time and over a large number of participants, the number of accidents is fairly stable as are the total cost of claims so it becomes fairly easy for an insurance company to estimate the cost of insurance to an individual.

Thus, it is generally irrelevant whether any single person has paid in enough over time to cover their particular claim. We all cover some amount of all of each others claims!

Alternatively, we could all be "self-insured" where we pay into our own personal fund and pull from that fund when we need to pay a claim. However, that would require each of us to pay in at a very high rate so we could each cover the worst case claim.

Generally, it is much cheaper to "share the risk" among a larger number of participants since the odds of an expensive claim is fairly low. This keeps the amount we have to pay lower yet still provides each of us worst-case coverage.

This is why insurance, as most of us know it, exists.

Haha! I have to agree. I have a reserved parking spot at my office with lots of space between my car and the others. I won it in an auction during our company United Way fund raising event. It's $100 well spent. When the weather is unruly or when I need more people space, I leave the Boxster at home and drive the Honda Civic as mentioned below. I ride both road and mountain bikes but I live 27 miles from my office, so, biking to work is not very practical. :)

Concerning insurance. When the other guy was at fault, I expect the insurance company to bring my car back to its previous state or replace with like in kind. That's what insurance is for.
James

I just added my 16 year old daughter to my policy and the guy stated it would go up just slightly...$1800/year.

@BIGJake-
Just wanted to say I'm impressed with your level headed maturity and reasoned thought throughout this escapade. Not sure I could have have pulled off such equanamity at your age. If only your grammar could catch up...:p
I feel pretty sure most of us would be less free with the preaching if you were a bit older. And yeah, I question the wisdom of putting such a fine sportscar in the hands of someone that hasn't suffered enough mediocre cars to really appreciate it, much less a high profile car that is expensive to maintain at a time of life when funds are usually scarce and any flying above the radar results in getting shot down.
But I like your attitude and humility, keep making lemonade. And if you can keep your ego separate from the car, and afford to maintain it, then I say ignore PL's usually very sage advice and just drive the stick out of it everywhere you go!
BOL with the replacement.

We are planning to ask permission for a different lot after this. They just built another high school in the area and we have several extra lots just they are not aloud to be used, i will attempt to ask and i have already concluded that if i cant then i may end up parking off campus near by.

I park at the very corner of the lot, where i know everyone that parks near to me, however that did not protect me when leaving, as usual i left out when the parking lot was empty (mostly) and this individual decided it was time for him to stop loitering just as i drive by. :ah:

Ours went up 1.200 and that was with adding my car as well, sorry to hear. What does she drive?

I don't think you really understand how insurance works... See thstone's very simple and accurate explanation.

To put a finer point on it: Insurance companies don't price individual policies to be profitable. They price the that particular risk group to profitable.

In simply terms the concept is this - if underwriting shows a $20,000 payout for every 50 teenage drivers annually, they build a policy based on that info that will generate enough revenue from the insured drivers in that risk pull to cover the planned costs (based on stats) plus a number of other multipliers plus the company's administrative costs, plus a margin.

So if on average the payout $20K annually for every 50 insured and the average premium for this group is $1600; the company has $80K in revenue for every $20K it pays out.

I've completely made up these numbers, but the concept stands true.

Car insurance companies don't ever really loose, the just win by a lesser margin some years. They would not be going concerns for very long if they weren't underwriting policies that made sense...

It's not winners and losers, it's a number's game. Jake is a line item, it's not personal. A decent adjuster will not be taken advantage of, and it's Jake's responsibility to be his own advocate (the adjuster likely won't). It's not being greedy, it's being prudent.

Sorry man, I just can't help myself.

Aloud?

Timco, spell check doesnt work on homophones :troll: :p

And how is that determined? In most cases it is determined with regional comps. If Jakes car is modded (which it is) than that must be taken into account.

Have you priced the 4 bow glass top assembly from Porsche lately? $11,500...

The scenario you mention (actual cash value) is more in line with how a collision claim would be handled. If driver (policy holder) trashes their own car than most insurance companies will pay them "actual cash value" on a collision claim. If the insurance company finds out the policy holder had a $50K hand built engine installed on a car they underwrote as being worth $19K, then the policy holder is SOL as they had a duty to make insurer aware of the car's mods and the value of those mods.

However, This is not a collision claim...this is a liability claim. The at fault party's insurance company responsibility extends beyond actual cash value. They must make Jake whole.

Whole, as in compensation for rental, time off work, injuries, and property loss. If I had over $10k in mods, I sure as hell would get a rider or make sure I am covered for replacement value, not just car's value. A new top and things like that seem to fall under "things you need to do to keep said car on the road" not performance mods. You can't claim the car is worth more because it just has an oil change and fluids flushed...it's what you have to do. Same with a top. That top may have helped the car hold a high BB value, but you do not get to add $11,500 to the fair market value.

I cannot speak to liability. My accident was 100% her fault, no doubts or arguments. That helps. I agree it goes beyond cash value, but not adding up every dollar spent on repairs. No car goes up in value the exact cost of it's new shocks or tires unless those items are superior to stock, but then only to someone else who wants the mods. The ins company just sees the car has shocks and tires like any other car. Now, you may be able to claim those mod items as yours separately, and insist they take the car but you want the items you bolted on. If mine had a similar fate, you bet those delete pipes and UD pulley would come off and stock would go back on.

Yeah but now that I think on it the parking lot is not the issue. It's that inbound and outbound traffic on those roads is full of teen age drivers. Put it this way, I avoid those areas whenever possible. For instance on Friday nights there's one stretch of a road near me that's full of the Too Fast Too furious spikey haired types from the local highschools. These guys raise the probability of an accident with an innocent third party (me) by 10 fold at least. They commit ever flagrant violation of intelligent driving. They don't allow for enough braking room, swerve in and out lanes, run parallels boxing others in, texting while driving, stoned, etc., etc. I will purposely drive around that road, which will put me a good 5 miles in the other direction. Well worth it says Mr. Boxster.

What happened to you was not a once off but merely the numbers at work. You are driving an expensive car in an enviornment where the majority of drivers have not fully developed their frontal lobes. The instinct to sense danger, and immediately get off the throttle is not there yet. And won't be there for another 7-8 years. I think if you asked the average forum member here what they would think of parking their Porsche or driving it around a high school they would probably laugh. You've learned that now but maybe lightning doesn't strike twice in the same parking lot. Something to think on.

p.s.
When I was in HS my principal drove a vintage Jaguar. He parked in a lot that was right at the exit road and assigned one security guy to stand next to all day long. No one was allowed to park within like 10 parking spaces of it.
And on my first day of class in college my Professor announced to the class that the E-Type Jaguar parked in front of the lecture was his and if he saw anyone near it would be an automatic F or painful death.

High School? I won't even park at certain grocery stores! Wouldn't even think about setting foot in a Walmart.......for parking reasons and personal reasons.

Also will not use mall parking lots. It's all about avoiding potential vandalism or other drivers.

^ Unfortunately I have no other choice since I only drive on weekends and have only one car.
But when I'm at those places that you avoid... I park far, far away from the front entrance. If there's an incline to the lot I park at the top of the grade so that the shopping karts aren't headed my way with an errant gust of wind. It's amazing how many people will do circles for five minutes just to avoid a five minute walk from their car. Whenver a lady passenger whinges about the walk I remind her that the average healthy and fit female needs to walk 7,000 steps a day.

If I have to pay 2k to put a glass top on my next car it sure will not be with my money, not saying insurance owes me 2k but of the 8k in recent (non regular repairs) I was at least some reimbursement.


Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk