2018 Model X T-Boned - GEICO says repairable?! Details inside.

[PGC9]

Have browsed many of the posts on TMC and some of the experiences many of had. Given the severity of the accident (wife was t-boned and is not at fault), I'm pretty much wanting/hoping for a total loss at this point. For the sake of simplicity, let's just say the car value is +/- $70,000 pre-accident. It has 20k miles

GEICO just provided their initial estimate back which given the car value deems it more worth while to repair it. That estimate is $29,300... The parts is +$20,000... My questions are as follows:

1) They want me to provide who I actually want to do have do the work. I have read enough to know it has to be one of the Tesla authorized spots which the Bay Area CA has a few of. Any recommendations on that so I can tell them where to take the car?

2) They will then do another estimate, a more formal estimate, measure the frame, do the scans, and so forth. I HAVE to assume this estimate would be far higher. For example, GEICO's only said 11 hours of labor for paint at $100/hour... I don't even want to imagine what I get in return when the entire right side of the car's new parts are painted, clear coated, etc. in just 11 hours at that labor rate. Am I mistaken?

3) From people's past experiences, how often is the first estimate just that, and then when it's really broken down the real true estimate ends up being higher?

4) IF they repair it, the claim is that it will be "as good as new" so value doesn't change. As car enthsiasts, we all know how ridiculous that is. Every airbag of the car deployed. Once I saw that Carfax i wouldn't touch that car with a 10 foot pole, and it'd take a serious discount before I even considered purchasing said car used. How does one account for this where if it were repaired I know own a car that I immediately want to sell myself on the open market naturally at a huge discount for an accident I am not at fault for.

Will attach photos from phone in a minute.
Any insight is extremely appreciated! Thank you, Peter

 

[PGC9]

Pictures. Have videos but prefer not to add at this point. This probably gives good base. Thank you all again!

oh and testament to the Car’s safety. Although shaken up both my wife and my younger son (4wks old!) were both Ok! Thank goodness

 

[peety3]

You can want all you want, but I have to assume that the contract/agreement you have with your insurance company means you have to accept their decisions. If the end result is that they repair it, you perhaps have an option of selling it immediately thereafter and then suing for the difference between KBB and what it sold for. Insurance companies have tons of data at their disposal and they don't want to spend a dime more than they need to. Odds are low that their initial estimate is way off; possible, but unlikely. Think of it this way: if they start the repair and costs skyrocket beyond estimated value, they have to eat whatever portion of the costs are unrecoverable.

I recently totaled my wife's 2016 Mercedes GLE, hence the reason she now drives a Tesla. In my case, the accident happened at 11:02am, I filed the claim around 1:30pm, minutes later I called the impound yard to give permission for a tow company to retrieve the vehicle, and by 3:30pm we had an email that the car was presumed to be a total loss. In theory, it got towed to their inspection yard, so in our case all of that secondary work was done "out of my hands".

When we decided to punt from a new X to a used X, we used Tesla's site to find our car. I do recall one listing said that it had been repaired to Tesla's standards. Perhaps it's worth doing a few searches to see what's out there as "Previously Repaired" and see if their presumed price matches what you'd expect it to hold.

 

[DOCAL]

Chilton do good work.

 

[DavidB]

My guess is that your insurance company will want to total the car after the more formal repair estimate.

 

[croman]

This is how it always goes. They never realize how messed up it is and expensive until they start analyzing it. It will be totaled.

 

[PGC9]

Thanks all for the great input.

will reach out to Chilton on Mon AM since thats local to me. Any other local solutions??

At a certain $$ amount is a check + the the as is version of the vehicle worth entertaining or is that a pipedream?… Ie at $40k of damage, is the salvage value of the car (see damaged high end cars on ebay all the time) $25-30k as-is and I sell it? I’m asking as I have no idea. More hassle than i want to entertain but i still ask

 

[goodbadboys9]

Thanks all for the great input.

will reach out to Chilton on Mon AM since thats local to me. Any other local solutions??

At a certain $$ amount is a check + the the as is version of the vehicle worth entertaining or is that a pipedream?… Ie at $40k of damage, is the salvage value of the car (see damaged high end cars on ebay all the time) $25-30k as-is and I sell it? I’m asking as I have no idea. More hassle than i want to entertain but i still ask

@PGC9 I messaged you & incase If you are interested please respond back

 

[PGC9]

Chilton estimate was closer to $43k. Now waiting to hear back from insurance on whether they'll pursue repair at that cost or go a diff route (ie total loss). Given the value of the battery (not inclusive of other parts), I have to imagine the salvage cost of these vehicles is higher than the typical ~20% insurance companies usually use

We'll see what the verdict ends up being. For the sake of time and simplicity, at this point I still prefer them saying it's not worth it, here's a check

Thanks all for your help

 

[K2500Z71]

If the other driver was clearly at fault, I’d go after their insurance company directly and leave yours out of it. You have a contract with your own insurer which may limit what you can recover (diminished value, etc.) but you do not with the other party’s insurer so you can probably do better that way. I have done this in the past (many years ago) and it worked out better for me.

 

[SSonnentag]

If the other driver was clearly at fault, I’d go after their insurance company directly and leave yours out of it. You have a contract with your own insurer which may limit what you can recover (diminished value, etc.) but you do not with the other party’s insurer so you can probably do better that way. I have done this in the past (many years ago) and it worked out better for me.

Negative. Always go through your own insurance company. You're paying them and they will go after the other insurance company for you. They're the professionals at extracting insurance money, not you, the customer.

 

[PGC9]

If the other driver was clearly at fault, I’d go after their insurance company directly and leave yours out of it. You have a contract with your own insurer which may limit what you can recover (diminished value, etc.) but you do not with the other party’s insurer so you can probably do better that way. I have done this in the past (many years ago) and it worked out better for me.

Unfortunately “clearly at fault” is rarely 100% a lock. No insurance company (esp without me getting lawyers involved) will put up no fight, from my experience

As such going through mine got the whole process started. Now if they do end up repairing it then yes my insurance would fight theirs to be reimbursed AND as such ill fight them on the diminished value reimbursement too

but again in perfect world id prefer to save all the headaches and repair time estimates and be given a check

Am i totally off base?

 

[BM3B]

Sorry about the crash, glad to hear your family is ok. Do you know how fast the other driver was going?

insurance companies will total the car generally once repair cost meets or exceeds 50% of value, since they can get a good amount for salvage. Your 2018 X was worth $70,000 according to KBB, so once Geico accepts that the repair will be more than $35,000 then they will total it. You are nearly there, they may push back that the shop hourly rate is too high. I used to have Geico, never more. They wouldn’t let me bring my damaged M3 to my Tesla certified repair shop of choice, they insisted on an inferior one that charges half the hourly rate. Fortunately my M3 was totaled, I even got the sales tax and license fees back! Happy day.
You should tell Geico now that you need “diminished value” payment if they repair it. This closes the gap with what people are willing to pay (value) for a damaged vehicle. This may help them see the light and total it. Good luck!

 

[dmurphy]

insurance companies will total the car generally once repair cost meets or exceeds 50% of value, since they can get a good amount for salvage.

The formula for loss varies by state. For example, here in NJ, they use a total loss formula. If (book value + salvage value) > repair cost, it gets fixed. If less, it gets totaled. Each state is different: Total Loss Threshold by State - Total Loss Appraisals - Appraisal Engine Inc

They wouldn’t let me bring my damaged M3 to my Tesla certified repair shop of choice, they insisted on an inferior one that charges half the hourly rate.

Also not accurate. Your insurance company may not like it, but you DO have the legal right to have the vehicle repaired at the shop of your choosing. They may make it difficult to do so, but it’s your right — and they are obligated to pay reasonable bills.

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[Big Dog]

If the other driver was clearly at fault, I’d go after their insurance company directly and leave yours out of it. You have a contract with your own insurer which may limit what you can recover (diminished value, etc.) but you do not with the other party’s insurer so you can probably do better that way. I have done this in the past (many years ago) and it worked out better for me.

Bad advice for California.

And btw: CA has a funky formula by law for totaling cars: The TLF in California is Cost of Repairs + Salvage Value ≥ Actual Cash Value. If the sum of the repair costs and the salvage value is more than or equal to the ACV, your car is deemed a total loss.

 

[PGC9]

Bad advice for California.

And btw: CA has a funky formula by law for totaling cars: The TLF in California is Cost of Repairs + Salvage Value ≥ Actual Cash Value. If the sum of the repair costs and the salvage value is more than or equal to the ACV, your car is deemed a total loss.

correct. The 80% rule does not apply in this case, that formula backs in to them repairing it

Based on todays conversation the “constructive total loss” formula is most likely. They have inquired with the “third party salvage companies” that provide a bid on the car as it sits.

given how much of the car is in good shape + a 75kw teslaX batt with 20k miles (aka not that many charges), i am hopeful it gets us to total loss realm. Basically needs to be worth 22-25+ as is to make that a consideration by the insurer

Hope to have a verdict in coming days. Thx all

 

[dmurphy]

correct. The 80% rule does not apply in this case, that formula backs in to them repairing it

Based on todays conversation the “constructive total loss” formula is most likely. They have inquired with the “third party salvage companies” that provide a bid on the car as it sits.

given how much of the car is in good shape + a 75kw teslaX batt with 20k miles (aka not that many charges), i am hopeful it gets us to total loss realm. Basically needs to be worth 22-25+ as is to make that a consideration by the insurer

Hope to have a verdict in coming days. Thx all

fortunately, it’s not black-and-white. The decision to write off a vehicle has some wiggle room for the adjuster, based on the likelihood of additional repairs and or supplementals once they get into the work.
At a $43,000 repair, that’s very major work. Also means the odds of future return work or finding additional, possibly vehicle-ending, damage is likely. So if it’s even in the ballpark, a good adjuster would recommend totaling out the vehicle.

Might be worth letting the adjuster know your preference for that. A good one will do what they can to make you whole, which in a car with such extensive repairs needed, could very well be a check.

 

[PGC9]

Well the verdict is in & its a “discretionary total loss”… salvage value of ~25k (or so they say)….

bc my wife prefers the tsla to our range we replaced the X with a Y and ill just he tesla-less for a bit . hopefully a cybertruck at some point!!? (Early 22?) and ill use my non electric sports car to hold me over??

thanks all for the help & advice

 

[BM3B]

Glad it worked out in your favor, make sure they add title license and tax fees to the total, at least in CA they did this for me. It’s a few grand!

 

[abh029]

Well the verdict is in & its a “discretionary total loss”… salvage value of ~25k (or so they say)….

bc my wife prefers the tsla to our range we replaced the X with a Y and ill just he tesla-less for a bit . hopefully a cybertruck at some point!!? (Early 22?) and ill use my non electric sports car to hold me over??

thanks all for the help & advice

I'm in a similar situation. Bought my model Y for about 65K and car is totaled now. How was your experience dealing with Geico - did you have to haggle on price? Since tesla prices have increased since, did they factor that in?