Pre accident value, less salvage, total amount. what does this mean

mcneil

My car was wrote of 6 weeks ago with me and my husband in it, thankfully both of us are ok. It took awhile for the other person to admit liability. My car was insured for 5000euro and after refusing an offer of €4000 from the other insurance company, i have received a letter saying that this is their final offer after being referred to their internal engineer , the pre accident value of the car was €4800, less salvage is €1330 and total amount is €3470. What does this mean, im thinking maybe im only now going to receive the €3470 rather than the €5000 that the car was originally insured for.

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question but weve never been through anything like this before or know anyone who has.

mgbgt1978

It looks like they have valued your car at €4,800. They are giving you €3,470 and they have accepted an offer of €1,330 for the Car from a Car Dismantler, who will pay you seperately. The Insurance company should have informed you who this salvage company is and given you contact details for them.
It's becoming common practice for Insurers to just pay out the 'pre-salvage value' and let the policy holder get paid directly by the salvage company for the balance.

mcneil

mgbgt1978 wrote: »

It looks like they have valued your car at €4,800. They are giving you €3,470 and they have accepted an offer of €1,330 for the Car from a Car Dismantler, who will pay you seperately. The Insurance company should have informed you who this salvage company is and given you contact details for them.
It's becoming common practice for Insurers to just pay out the 'pre-salvage value' and let the policy holder get paid directly by the salvage company for the balance.

IMO i was thinking they were deducting 1330 for the car recovery and holding fees. If not, will i have to pay this from my final offer or will the insurance company look after this.

Aint Eazy Being Cheezy

Reject it. It's not your job to go collecting money on their behalf. Let them pay you the €4800 assuming you're happy with it, and collect the salvage money themselves.

mgbgt1978

That's not how they work these days. They put the crashed car out to tender on particular websites, they get various offers and accept the best one.
They then pass on to you the details of the successful bidder. All you have to do is agree a pick-up time with the salvage crowd and that's it.
TBH it's sometimes works out in your favour, especially if you're claiming back Motor Tax as you will have the End-of-life cert straight away, rather than chasing your Insurance company for it.

You can be pretty sure this is all included in their T & C's, and if they want to do it this way they are fully entitled to do so.

mgbgt1978

mcneil wrote: »

IMO i was thinking they were deducting 1330 for the car recovery and holding fees. If not, will i have to pay this from my final offer or will the insurance company look after this.

The Recovery, etc. is part of your Insurance Cover. It simply appears that they are (at the end of the day) valuing your car at €4,800. If you are unsure about this just give them a ring to confirm.

mcneil

mgbgt1978 wrote: »

That's not how they work these days. They put the crashed car out to tender on particular websites, they get various offers and accept the best one.
They then pass on to you the details of the successful bidder. All you have to do is agree a pick-up time with the salvage crowd and that's it.
TBH it's sometimes works out in your favour, especially if you're claiming back Motor Tax as you will have the End-of-life cert straight away, rather than chasing your Insurance company for it.

You can be pretty sure this is all included in their T & C's, and if they want to do it this way they are fully entitled to do so.

Its a cat-c right off and my husband was asking is it possible we keep it and fix ourselves. My daughters boyfriend is coming home from NZ next week and says he could fix it cheaper than the garages.

mgbgt1978

Yes you can keep the car and get the pre-accident value (less salvage) from your Insurer. You really should contact them to confirm the figures though, as you seem a little unsure about their valuation.

mcneil

mgbgt1978 wrote: »

Yes you can keep the car and get the pre-accident value (less salvage) from your Insurer. You really should contact them to confirm the figures though, as you seem a little unsure about their valuation.

They are closed untill tuesday.

mcneil

mgbgt1978 wrote: »

Yes you can keep the car and get the pre-accident value (less salvage) from your Insurer. You really should contact them to confirm the figures though, as you seem a little unsure about their valuation.

Is the less salvage value negotiable ?

mgbgt1978

It would seem that you have already negotiated the value up by €800.

Rackstar

mcneil wrote: »

Its a cat-c right off and my husband was asking is it possible we keep it and fix ourselves. My daughters boyfriend is coming home from NZ next week and says he could fix it cheaper than the garages.

it'll give him something to look forward to when he comes home too

mcneil

mgbgt1978 wrote: »

It would seem that you have already negotiated the value up by €800.

that was before i knew what this salvage value meant. I would be happy if they dropped it to 1000 which will give me more to play with fixing the car. Its been wrote of for 6500 to fix but thats with all new parts and from a dealer fixing it.All that needs fixed is a front bumper, back door and a part of back cill fixed. Thats all IMO thou from looking at it

mgbgt1978

Your Insurer can't 'drop' the salvage value.
That figure is what a 3rd party is prepared to pay for the damaged car.
There is no reason for your Insurer to give you more money, and still allow you to posssibly sell the salvage for an already decided figure.
Your Insurer has come up with a figure to allow you to replace your car with a similar model. You thought that €5,000 was reasonable....they are offering €4,800 (including salvage).
You will be doing very well if you can get more from them.

mcneil

mgbgt1978 wrote: »

Your Insurer can't 'drop' the salvage value.
That figure is what a 3rd party is prepared to pay for the damaged car.
There is no reason for your Insurer to give you more money, and still allow you to posssibly sell the salvage for an already decided figure.
Your Insurer has come up with a figure to allow you to replace your car with a similar model. You thought that €5,000 was reasonable....they are offering €4,800 (including salvage).
You will be doing very well if you can get more from them.

I would have been happy with what i insured my car for and that was 5000. I am not being unreasonable in my wanting this but if the final payment is 4800 then i wouldnt be to unhappy.

colm_mcm

You could value the car at €50,000 and they'll still only give you the market value.