Diminishing Value
 

I was recently hit in my 98 Boxster and have front and rear damage. Does anyone know where I can find information regarding diminished value? I was asked by the insurance company for any info I could provide showing that, regardless of repair, the value of the car has diminished as a result of the accident. Fortunately, the car had no structural damage, just cosmetic.

sorry dude,i would guess it would go way down, because who would want to buy a car that has been in a accident, don't feel to bad i Fcuked my cayenne as well :D :D :D :D

You are going to need expert statements. PCA does valuations. You could ask for a before and after value. Excellence magazine is another source. Bruce Anderson also might be helpful. Don't know if he does this for a fee.

DV site to start you:

http://www.ican2000.com/dvfaqs.html

Good luck. Sorry you are in this mess.

I think it may be hard on your boxster to show diminished value. Unless the car is returned with a salvage title, how would one know the accident? Carfax doesn't always seem so accurate if a new buyer was looking for your car, and if its the car of your dream, why would you sell it ;)

Also, you don't mention if your car is of an unusual color/options combo. Diminished value on a "rare" car is worth fighting for. Not sure a Boxster can honestly be considered rare. Nice, sure, but rare? not likely.

Guess another way is, well, figure out the actual book value in its "before" condition and run a poll here asking what one would pay for it "after" its fixed.

Yes, you should try to get $$ for diminshed value (DV).
I am waiting for the Arbitration finding on my case - '02S with front frame damage.
Allsnake offered $2500 on a $11,000 claim, so I went the lawyer/court route.

You can get DV appraisals from local or Web site people. Find a certified appraiser. The DV should be between 10-25% of sale value. This could also be
computed by using Blue book values for Private seller vs. trade in value. My appraiser used 40% because of custom paint, and other options. This may be too high, but its been done on high end cars.

Another option is the dealer sale staff. If they would give you a number for a trade in on their letter head or business card the insurance company will listen better (not guarenteed tho).

The insurance companies are tough people to get the DV $$.

Good luck,
Ed :cheers:

Thanks for the input, it is helpful. I found a local DV appraiser, he wants $750.00 up front. Hopefully, I can do a little research and deal with the insurance company myself. I will let everyone know the results and my process.

hmm.. $750 to do an appraisal? Well.. he's the only one not losing money on the deal ;). Now it costs you that money, plus aggravation to get your insurance company to pay you the $2-4K for the DV, then they mysteriously "drop" you the next time your policy is due.

What's a '98 Boxster going for these days? Lows of 11-12k to unrealistic asking prices of $20k? (I say unrealistic because I am unsure of any real advantage of a '98 vs the 2000-2002 or 2003 and newer 986/986s's that are available as you get to $20k. And, by the time the cars are truly collectors items, it may not matter or be unexpected that the car had some damage at one time in its life.

i sold my 99 box for 25K, but the buyer returned it back :(