Hi Folks,
Thanks for all your kind wishes in the other thread. I finally settled with the insurance companies, and would like to share my first-hand experience. I realize that not all insurance companies operate this way, so please take this as just one person's experience, nothing more.
Health: Still suffering from tense muscles from the shoulder to neck to tample areas. Acupuncture and acu-pressure treatments help some. I'm sore in my sternum, base of neck, and right chest area. It's been 24 days, it may take up to three months before all the sore spots show up.
Property Damage:
Since the other party's coverage limit is only $25k, I have to work with my own insurance to get the totaled value of my M5 covered. Here's what happened. They hire an independent appraisal company (ADP) and surveyed all comparable local M5 sales in the last 6 months. That sets the average value. ADP then looked at my specific car and gave me credits for pristine mechanical and physical conditions. I then sent them all the documentation of my 'enhancements' (SSK, coil-over, Power chip, IATS etc.), and ADP made a judgement call on how that would add value to the car. At the end, they exceeded my expectations by about $725. I'm really happy with the results. They add sales tax on that as well.
My insurance will subrogate the other side to get the $25k back. I will get refunds on the vehicle registration fee and insurance premium. The other side will reimburse my $1k deductible (good will gesture), plus a minimum amount for loss of use. If I had rented a car, they'll cover the rental. Since I didn't rent, the loss of use is an in-pocket amount to me. It's really minimal, and covers the period from the date of accident to when the insurance settlement amount was first proposed. The loss of use is part of the $25k limit, the $1k deductible reimbursement is not.
Buy Back:
I have first dib to buy back the car. They contacted a few salvage yards to establish value. It came to $11,750. However, as the engine breached the fire-wall, and the transmission has dislodged and sunk, I'm not sure those parts can be easily and cheaply salvaged. I passed on the chance for a buy-back.
Bodily Injury:
They have an insured limit on that as well, and that will cover my time off from work, actual medical bills, and a 'pain and inconvenience' amount. At the end of the day, I will have to sign a final waiver to conclude this part of the settlement. This may be a long time coming. If the pain lingers, I have up to two years to settle. If their coverage limit is too low, I'll have to go after the lady in court (civil or small claims). I hope it won't come to that, as I have no intention to get rich over such an unfortunate event, for all involved. I'll post update on this in the future.
So all in all, the total financial settlement as a result of the accident seems ample to replace my M5. I'm taking the opportunity to look at a number of cars/SUVs other than the M5, and will take my time deciding. In the mean time, I'm tooling around in my Highlander, with an occassional blast of the RUF (if it ever stops raining
) tossed in for fun.
Nevertheless, I learned a lot about how insurance works in this particular matter. Until next time, please be safe.
CP
Webmaster 
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