Need opinions about taking insurance $ vs. selling car

[saint]

Okay, so here's the situation. My girlfriend got in a car accident this morning, and it was completely the other person's fault. In any case, she was driving a 97 Accord. The damage was estimated as 4000 by the body shop, and his insurance company estimated it at 2800. In any case, her car has about 110,000 miles on it or so, and the kelly blue book value is around 4500. She works in sales, and puts a lot of mileage and wear and tear on the car, so we were hoping she could just drive this one into the ground since it's paid off and bank her monthly car allowance.

So here's my question. Do you guys think that in this case it would be better to take the insurance money and sell the car, versus keeping it and repairing it?? I asked her about the damage, and from what she gathered it was nothing structural, like the axel or anything, just damage to the bumper etc. Would you guys sell in this situation, or just repair it and keep it since it "should" last long if repaired correctly? I'm not sure what to do since the value of the car is close to the repair. (but in another way, the value is unmeasurable if she can keep in 2 years more).

And another question...I'm sure the guy's insurance co. made a deal w/ the body shop to get them to do the work for 1200 less then they initially said. If she were to sell, is there a way to dispute the disparity and lower pay his auditor quoted.

I would appreciate any feedback, being young I'm not too knowledgeable about the pros and cons of this situation and would like to hear some opinions.

 

[Simply In The Red]

See if you can get a copy of both estimates to see where the discrepancy is coming from. If the car is fixed right with OEM parts, then I could see repairing it and continuing to run it into the ground since they are pretty reliable cars. If the estimate is cheaper because they are going to use aftermarket or secondhand parts or skip some items, then I might be wary and try to settle for a figure in between the two amounts to put towards another Honda. Hope this helps.

 

[saint]

Tx for feedback, i agree she should repair it and get a few years out of the way.

 

[Trampled Underfoot]

I'm no expert on the law here but arent you allowed to take the car where YOU want it fixed. Whenever I get into an accident I find the highest possible estimate and get that money for the settlement. Then I decide what to do. Sometimes I would pocket the whole thing if I had no interest in fixing it or I would then take it somewhere affordable.

 

[bubbas1]

I would hold out for the estimate you got. They will then consider the car totalled because it costs almost as much the car is worth. Then see how much they want for you to buy the car back from them. It should be real cheap. They will just deduct it from the payout cost and give you a check for the rest. Take the car in to get fixed at a reasonable place and pocket whatever money is left over.

 

[Nick Douglas]

Get an insurance lawyer, saint. Most people consider them lowlifes but they know how to get you paid. In one of the offices where I interned the husband of one of the managers was an insurance lawyer and he always was getting people a heck of a lot more money than the insurance company was offering. This is especially true when you are dealing with a dirtball insurance company that is trying to only give you $2,800 instead of $4,000. Take them to the cleaners.

 

[Simply In The Red]

Nick has a good idea, I just don't know how things work in NC. If they are lenient, then you might consider going for his idea.

 

[marine]

I just had that same experience happen to me with my minivan. I wrecked it in a guardrail on the free way and did some serious cosmetic damage to it.

The cost of the repairs were about 60% of the value of the car,
Most insurance companies will cut you off at 60% value and consider the car totaled and will give you the money to replace the car. NOT Fix it. Then, you can ask to buy the car back from them and have it fixed if you like. But I would guess with that much damage they are going to call it totaled and start looking for replacement values.