Expert: Bennie719 - 4/26/2008

Question
QUESTION: Hi,

I've had my Infiniti M45 for 6 months now.  10k miles on it..barely broken in.  I was involved in an accident sending my car to the shop with 29k in damages and extensive frame damage.  The police report shows that I had no contributing actions in causing this accident and indicated the other party failed to yield right of way.

Anyway, I have been dealing with my insurance all this time but I can not get them to total the car. Threshold is 33.5k.  They won't accept my claims of diminished value so they just want to repair.  

I really do not want this car back.  I'll take a hit on leasing a new car, but no way will I want this car back with that much damage and it being so new.

My question is...can I go back to the other at-fault insurance and have them take a look at my estimate?  I have a legitimate claim with diminished value (30k repairs on a 45k car) on this car and I'm hoping that will be enough to have them declare this car a total loss.  The other party has American family insurance.

Is this a wise move?  I feel that I am owed a new car or at least given an opportunity to terminate my lease and get a new lease.  I do not want to pay $700 monthly lease payments  for a car that has had this much damage.

ANSWER: Hi Raimund,
It sounds like there would be a good chance to have the adverse insurance total the car.
Whether this would be beneficial to you depends if you carry 'GAP' insurance.
Even if you do carry GAP insurance, you could still face a hard financial hit depending on the insurance company's determination of fair market value as opposed to the balance that the lease company expects to receive if the car is totaled.
If you went into the lease with a 10% or less down payment, you can expect to lose your down payment and be responsible for an additional
payment if the insurance company settlement and the GAP policy doesn't cover the amount expected by the lease company.

I suggest that you review this thoroughly with your lease company before making any moves.

I hope this information has been of help.
Your feedback by rating my answer will be appreciated.
Sincerely,
Bennie
San Francisco Bay Area

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks Bennie.

My leasing company does have GAP and they are aware of the situation.  Moreover, FMV (per statefarm guideline) and lease buy out is not that much to where I think GAP people would flip out.  I put no money down on the lease so my financial hit is minimized.

How should I handle this with adverse insurance if they are uncooperative?  Is this a normal case that my own insurance is not offering me the best option and that I have to resort to dealing with the other party??

Answer
Hi Raimund,
If the adverse company is not willing to total the car, then you should have your own company do the repair work.  At least they will guarantee the work and any problems that are found 2-3 months later that can be directly attributed to the accident.

If you suffered any injuries in the accident, this will be an incentive to the adverse company to be the 'good guys' and total the car, so they will look more favorable to you when it's time to settle your injury claim.

In their opinion, your own company is offering what they consider the best option.  After paying for the repairs to your car, they will subrogate against the at fault company for full reimbursement.  They have to justify their expenditures.  If the adverse company feels that your company unnecessarily totaled the car, they would have the legal right to only reimburse them the lower repair cost.

I hope this information is helpful.

Good Luck,
Bennie