Car crash. Diminished value new car help

HeadlessChicken · 10-10-2025 05:29PM #1

Good Evening.

Help needed with insurance question please. My car was in an accident recently. The other driver was at fault and liability is not a question.

The car was only purchased a couple of months ago brand new for just under 60k.

I can see that the damage will run into several thousands because the rear of the car was struck hard enough to bend the quarter panel closer to the rear door on one side, leaving a larger gap on the other side rear door. So the body is twisted a bit I think. The boot hatch is not aligned properly anymore and has a gap of maybe half a centimetre on one side. Car still drives.

If I sell the car in 2 or 3 years it will be worth a lot less as a repaired car than one that hasn't been in an accident. It will make it harder to sell too at any time. I have no estimate, but for arguments sake, I will put a 10k repair bill on it (just a guess). The insurance company says they only pay 25% of the EX-VAT repair cost. EX-VAT, that is €8,130 and 25% of that is €2,032 which would be a kick in the teeth and nowhere near the actual depreciation I would suffer in that event. Going by these figures there is no number for repair cost where I would not be at a loss. No matter what, I am losing money here.

Does that seem right? They say it is industry standard but online I see mentions of percentage of market value which seems a more accurate and fair way of doing it. If I sold the car last week, it would probably have been worth 3-5k less than it was when I picked it up a couple of months ago through normal depreciation of a brand new car. It is a 252 plate. If I were to sell it after this repair, it would be worth at least 10k less, right? I know I would want a hefty discount if buying a repaired car and rightly so if the repairs included anything more than bolting on a new bumper or panel.

How do I square this circle? Do I have to accept this ridiculous rule and potentially lose thousands in value? Is my only other option going legal? I am absolutely gutted this has happened and this news has kicked me while I am down. Any and all help please.

to the admin. i posted this in insurance but maybe better here. please delete insurance thread if appropriate

Cookie_Monster · 10-10-2025 06:28PM

Why would the other person's insurance not pay for 100% of the repair costs if it was indeed their fault?

That is the whole point of insurance after all.

Sam Russell · 10-10-2025 06:33PM

You should look for a new car, and they get the crashed one.

Liability is theirs. Their offer needs to be accepted by you, or you go full legal.

mk7r · 10-10-2025 06:51PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123895437#Comment_123895437

They are, the OP is talking about the car being worth less once repaired which is true

Nigzcurran · 10-10-2025 06:52PM

Who's pays the vat?

mulbot · 10-10-2025 06:54PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123895450#Comment_123895450

How would that happen? You don't get to demand that.

Cookie_Monster · 10-10-2025 06:58PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123895489#Comment_123895489

He mentioned they'd only pay 25% of the ex vat repair costs...

mk7r · 10-10-2025 07:06PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123895510#Comment_123895510

Yes as a diminished value payment after all repairs are complete. It's to compensate people for their car being worth less after an accident repair. They use the repair cost minus Vat to calculate it

HeadlessChicken · 10-10-2025 09:53PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123895510#Comment_123895510

I think there is a bit of confusion. The insurance will pay for repair cost in full. The problem is the car is worth less after it is repaired because it was damaged.

Hypothetically, if the loss in value as a direct result of the accident after repair is €15,000 and the repairs were €10,000 EX-VAT, the insurance will pay 10k + VAT to the garage for repairs. They will then only pay me 25% of €10,000 (the EX-VAT figure) to me as compensation for the loss in vehicle value. That would only be €2,500 and would leave me with a total loss in value of €12,500.

I will not be put back into the same financial position as I was prior to the accident and through no fault of my own, in the example above, I will have lost €12,500. Using the "industry standard", there is no way an injured party can be put back into the same financial position as before. They claim they don't have to offer anything, but I think the reason they do make an offer is to make you shut up and go away. Over time the loss is eroded if you keep the vehicle and it wouldn't be realised if driven until it's scrap, but the point stands that post accident, the injured party is at a loss and is not fairly compensated.

It's a scam and I am wondering what my options are.

murphm45 · 10-10-2025 10:16PM

Can I ask where the 15k loss you're estimating is coming from? I know very little but to say a car that has been damaged and fully repaired by a competent professional (which is what the insurance company will, I assume, cover) is worth 25% less than an equivalent that wasn't damaged and repaired seems a bit extreme (the 25% is based on you saying the car is worth 60k).

Whether the 2k they're offering is enough I don't know but I would be astonished if the value reduction was more than 5k (and even that seems high)

User1998 · 11-10-2025 01:54AM

So first of all, claiming that you have only lost €3k to €4K in depreciation in 6 months of ownership is most likely wildly inaccurate. Why would anyone, let alone a dealer, pay you €57k when they can buy brand new one for €60k?

So let's be realistic here. You probably lost €5k as soon as you drove it out of the dealership and another €5k in your 6 months of ownership. I'm guessing the trade value is under €50k now. So with the accident damage you can take another 10% to 15% from that.

Secondly, your repair estimate of €10k is completely made up and has absolutely no basis. No doubt it will cost more than that to repair, and thus you will be compensated more.

So to summarise, the car is probably worth a lot less than you think, and the repair cost will be a lot higher than you think. Thus most likely not leaving you out of pocket. And the longer you keep the car the less significant it becomes

fits · 11-10-2025 05:10AM

Yes if you don’t sell the car you don’t realise the loss in value. So the answer is to take the compensation for loss in value and hold onto the car for a few years.

drunkmonkey · 11-10-2025 08:11AM

I think you’re way over estimating the damage, sounds closer to 2k if it’s just the quarter panel and boot alignment.. Doubtful the car is “twisted” that would have taken a serious belt. 10/15k is a lot of damage.

The drop in value might be nothing, lost of cars get paint every day, if done correctly nobody should notice. In 3 years another panel could be due a touch up, that’s the one a dealer will point out they have to spray when trading in and knock you for it.

User1998 · 11-10-2025 08:30AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896507#Comment_123896507

Absolutely nothing wrong with a car getting a bit of paint but when it gets recorded as damaged on a history check that's when it becomes an issue

Sam Russell · 11-10-2025 08:50AM

Many insurance policies offer new for damage that occurs in the first year, but not all.

The 25% compo is an opening offer. You can counter offer such as a new car. They might accept if the damage is slight, or make a higher offer. Likely legal costs could be enough to get them to budge. Junior negotiators handle the first round.

Remember, the OP is the injured party.

HeadlessChicken · 11-10-2025 09:41AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896170#Comment_123896170

The figures are academic. I don't know the actual loss until the damage is calculated or the car is written off. What I do know is that 25% of the EX-VAT repair figure is never going to equal the diminished value. I used figures of 15k and 10k for demonstration only.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896340#Comment_123896340

The car is 2 months old not 6. My focus is not on depreciation it is diminished value caused by the vehicle being involved in an accident.

Using your own example if the car was 6 months old it loses €10k in depreciation over 6 months leaving the depreciated value at 50k. Use 15% diminished value that is €7.5k leaving the car value at €42.5k. Post accident/repair the car has lost nearly twice the value in the 6 month period (or more than twice if it was only 2 months old). To recover the €7.5k loss the EX-VAT damage would be €30,000 or €36,900 inc-VAT. That is more than 50% of the vehicle value and is a write-off.

Unless the vehicle is written off, I am guaranteed to be at a loss under the insurance companies calculations. Do you agree with that analysis?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896368#Comment_123896368

Crashed and repaired cars are not unknown to cause issues down the line. Some cars are never the same after. I had a used Mercedes years ago that had been repaired at an approved shop and it suffered water ingress when it was washed or there was heavy rain. The repair seemed sound. The seals were replaced but water always got into the boot from somewhere. I sold it on soon after for the same money but I was honest about the water ingress.

If I change my car every 2-3 years, why should I be put out by the insurance company and have to accept a loss not of my own making? Eating the depreciation is my own choice and of my my making. Eating the diminished value is not something I want to accept come time to sell. I am always 100% honest with buyers and the car will be discounted because of the damage it has suffered.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896507#Comment_123896507

I am sure the damages will be in excess of €10k. The bumper is destroyed. Boot lip is bent with the boot lift damaged too. Rear lights smashed. Panel gaps wider on one side and pinched on the other side. There doesn't need to be much damage to run into the low tens when repairing a lightly damaged bumper can cost a couple grand.

There is always a drop in value after an accident unless you are willing to conceal the truth. I've been burned before by dishonest sellers and I wouldn't dream of doing that to anyone else.

Guys we are going a bit off topic here.

I didn't come here to debate the costs involved. I mistakenly thought it was clear that the figures put out there were academic (because I don't have the costs yet) and only the formula was to be used to prove that the insurance company will never cover the true diminished value to put me back to where I was pre-accident.

Can anyone give their experience, or provide options outside of going legal if the insurance company is offering less than the actual diminished value on my vehicle after repair? I won't be counting a couple hundred euro here or there. But we could be talking thousands. I won't know until the numbers roll in but I do want to prepare myself in any event.

In most other civilised jurisdictions, a percentage of the market value of the vehicle is paid out in compensation post accident/repair. In Ireland, the injured party is literally robbed by the formula used to "compensate" their loss in asset value.

Thanks.

steinbock123 · 11-10-2025 11:18AM

Come back when you have the actual estimate for the repairs, and in the meantime maybe post a picture of the damage.

HeadlessChicken · 11-10-2025 11:43AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896868#Comment_123896868

Do you think the estimate will change how the diminished value formula is calculated?

I would rather not post the damage to my vehicle. It would serve no purpose other than to satisfy curiosity.

The damage is very similar to the image below.

jippo nolan · 11-10-2025 11:55AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896911#Comment_123896911

that could possibly be a write off with that amount of damage!

mulbot · 11-10-2025 12:27PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896911#Comment_123896911

Why can you not post a picture of your own car?

HeadlessChicken · 11-10-2025 12:51PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123896984#Comment_123896984

Probably for the same reason you wouldn't post a photo of yourself or your house on here if asked.

Unless there is a crash repair expert in here who can somehow see hidden damage through a digital image, posting a picture serves no benefit other than serve curiosity. The image I posted is similar to the damage visible to my own vehicle. The only visible differences are the car is not the same make or model and the rear doors are not pushed up against the front doors. It illustrates what I can see on my own vehicle.

mulbot · 11-10-2025 12:55PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123897029#Comment_123897029

Its just the back of a car, blur the plate,it's not like your car is one of a kind. Hard to know what the damage estimates are from people here who might know based on a different picture

User1998 · 11-10-2025 01:03PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123897029#Comment_123897029

People post photos of their cars all the time, it's completely different to posting a photo of yourself or your house🤣🤣

HeadlessChicken · 11-10-2025 01:04PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123897039#Comment_123897039

I would prefer not to take the risk if that's OK with you.

I'm not asking for damage estimates. That is for the body shop. Nobody here can tell me the cost of the repairs.

I am asking about my options if the diminished value offer is leaving me thousands of euros worse off.

Say I want to hand the car back under the 50/50 rule. What then? I would be eating a chunk in diminished value as a result of someone elses negligence. Same story when selling or trading. The longest I have ever kept a car was 5 years. I normally move on within a couple of years.

HeadlessChicken · 11-10-2025 01:07PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123897051#Comment_123897051

With all due respect. I would prefer not to. There is a high chance I could be identified as regular poster on motors here and facebook. There is no reason to post my vehicle.