|
Addicted Member (>300 posts)
|
momo5,
WARNING - This is one of those 1000-odd word posts!
Very sorry to hear about this - I offer my commiserations. I had a non-fault accident in my (then) Lancia 16v Integrale in '98 and argued with my insurance company for over a year. However, it was worth it as they paid me more a year later than I had originally agreed to accept just after the accident. I challenged my insurance company
interpretations of value and other matters, with fact, hard evidence and expert opinions. My accident occurred in France and that was where my car lay for about 9 months. I chose to recover the car at my own expense and parked it on my front lawn. The insurance company appointed a UK engineer to assess the vehicle - and the rest
is history - he found in my favour completely. My insurance company then also fully compensated me for the recovery costs that I had expended. I offer some tips which greatly assisted my case, there may be things here which will help you:
Immediately go out and buy the current car magazines which contain classified adverts, including (but not limited to) BMW Car, Total BMW, Autocar, Auto Trader, Top Marques and Exchange and Mart - with these last 3 you can do a search on their websites and print the findings (showing the time/date on the pages you print - normally happens automatically). Why? You need to gather as much evidence as possible to show what the value of your car is in the 'marketplace' (not the fictional marketplace in the insurance company's mind, but the real one!). Scan all the adverts, and select all the BMWs which closely resemble your car ie year. You must do this exercise now (as in buying the mags and looking at the websites) as you have to prove the value now at the time of loss, not in 1 or 2 months time. Purchase a copy of Parkers older car price guide and use their mileage adjustment figure to compare cars found in the adverts with your own car's mileage at the time of loss. For example, let's say yours is a `90 model with 65,000 miles. You find another '90 model for sale but with
95,000 miles - use the Parkers mileage adjustment chart to calculate the increase in value which should be applied to the 95,000 mile car if it had done 65,000 miles ie the same as yours. Draw up a complete list of as many similar BMWs as possible using this method, and then 'average' the value - hopefully this figure will be higher than whatever your insurance company will be offering. To make the figure more accurate, you can ignore 'rogue' cars (for example, someone might be selling their BMW for GBP1,500, but they have advertised it as
a shed in need of TLC etc etc, clearly this should be excluded).
Contact as many BMW dealers and specialists as you can. Ask them (or look at their websites) for their list of similar cars to yours they have for sale (their cars will be higher prices than private sales etc) . Add to the list above.
Detail all your modifications (if any, and assuming they were 'declared' in the first place), how much they cost and when they were done/fitted to the car. Why? Because the modifications add value to the car (yes, the insurance company actually agree with this statement). They have a
rule of thumb which will depreciate the mods at a rate according to when they were fitted. For example, you fit Mod A 3 years ago at a price of GBP1,000 - they then depreciate this 1,000 from that point according to some formula they use - but you get the idea. There is one crucial assumption here, and that is that you have previously informed your insurance company 100% about every single little modification done to your car (whether you did it or a previous owner). If you declare a mod they didn't know about you will be uninsured and they will pay you nothing (they will argue that the undeclared Mod made the car more appealing to thieves, enhanced the performance etc - which is probably a fair comment on their part)!
Have you got photographs of your car? Why? Because this will show what an exceptional condition your car was in etc (and hence it must have a higher value).
Retain all your servicing bills etc as you need to demonstrate that the car was well looked after (and hence has an increased value).
Very important. Do not accept the first (or second, or third, of fourth) offer that is made to you by the insurance company. At the end of the day they are out to minimise their loss - if necessary at your expense. You must challenge each offer they make with fact (which is why you need to collect the evidence as suggested). If you
are desperate for the money, well you might decide that you need to capitulate on this issue, but, for example, in a theft case I believe most companies will not pay out on a theft claim for 6 weeks in case the car is recovered. So an individual would be without dosh for at least 6 weeks in such a case, unfortunately.
In a theft case, if the car is recovered, you are entitled for it to be brought back to the condition it was in prior to being stolen - ie the insurance company will pay for this. You will need to assess the car at the time if indeed it is recovered - but again, you will be looking for everything that was not there when you last saw the car. This will include bodywork dents, paint scratches, damaged or unclean upholstery, petrol (eg it might have had a full, tank and now it has an empty tank), the engine might be damaged (would need an engineer to look at it) etc etc. You see
what I mean, but there is no way you want to accept back a car that is not in the same condition as it was prior to the theft. If there is damage to be repaired after recovery, contact the BMW dealers/specialists for appropriate repair
quotes.
Approach the one of the BMW clubs (better still, one you are a member of). In special cases (as they are 'experts' which might be accepted by your
insurance company) they will sometimes write a short note say, on the typical value of a particular car, or model of car etc.
Other points you will want to raise with the insurance company:
The purchase price of your car ie when you purchased it).
The car is rare.
The vehicle was in pristine pre-theft condition, or whatever?
The vehicle has a number of costly modifications as described in my insurance proposal - as these were professionally completed by xyz company - the value is enhanced considerably.
The vehicle has a full and complete service history from day one - copies can be supplied on request.
The vehicle was (insert no of owners) owner until I purchased it.
The value of the vehicle in the UK is actually much higher than your offer (which you can illustrate by facts as I have described).
Any recent work done to the car (eg your new set of tyres etc) should also be pointed out, as whilst this doesn't increase the value - it does mean that the value can't be decreased by a proportional amount because the tyres were worn out, if you follow.
You may wish to inform your insurance company of the name, address and tel no of some BMW dealers/ specialists - so that they can double check what you are saying. I certainly know that my company contacted one or 2 Integrale specialists.
Did/do you have the car handbooks and service book etc? Why? Well again, this shows that the car was well cared for and would (very very slightly) add to its value come resale time.
The following might also apply to your car, if so use the arguments:
My car is a relatively rare vehicle in the UK. A pristine example, such as my vehicle was in its pre-theft condition, is even rarer and this consequently enhances its value significantly. This fact can be ably demonstrated by asking
oneself how many (insert type of car) one has seen on the road in UK? The answer is likely to be very few if indeed any. Contrast this with the number of Ford Escorts one sees on Britain's roads and I think the point will become clear.
Equally, my car should not be confused with the xyz model (insert examples of lesser models, but which a layman, or non-expert, might 'group' in the same category as your vehicle) which are
completely different vehicles. Consequently, the vehicle's rarity makes it a much sought after car in the UK which enhances its value enormously - with well maintained and cared for cars worth the most. This latter point applies to my vehicle.
The vehicle has a full and documented history right from the date of purchase from (insert dealer name). This confirms the vehicle's provenance and there are therefore absolutely no doubts about its origins, its previous use etc etc. A rock solid history such as this for this highly specialised vehicle adds value.
I did not just make the decision to purchase this particular vehicle in an instant. My decision, was based on painstaking research, over many weeks, with much time and effort spend in finding a suitably well-maintained vehicle with provenance. Many magazines were purchased, telephone calls made, vehicles viewed and test driven, both in the UK and abroad and emails sent etc. Such research is essential when purchasing a specialist
vehicle such as (insert your vehicle). Consequently, my efforts paid off in finding a pristine example with corroborated
provenance - which adds value to the vehicle.
Phew... a lot of reading. I hope this helps you. I cannot state enough though the point that you must have facts and evidence to go head to head with your insurance company - don't lie or state any untruths otherwise they will soon blow you out of the water (to say nothing of possible prosecution). I did have all the facts and evidence for my case and I won. Its a wonderful feeling, you know one up for the little man etc.
Anyway, good luck and let us know how you get on.
Regards,
Neil
1990 Alpina B10 Bi-Turbo No 0138
1992 Lancia Delta Integrale Evolution 1 'Edition Ronald Holzer' (extensively modified) No 1 of 8.
Last edited by NRL BITURBO; 10th November 2001 at 00:17.
|
not even to say they've found someone 
Linear Mode
