I recently got bumped by a dodge challenger and the impact was above the driver's side rear wheel today I got a call from my insurance agent telling me, my car is a total loss. I was shocked to hear that. Please let me know your thoughts. As far as I know, I don't think this should be considered a total loss. I am thinking about getting another one, even if the insurance pays out the current value of the car. No airbags deployed, no warnings in the screen.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Declared as a total loss
- Thread starter Krish93
- Start date
thesmokingman
Active Member
You should be happy its a total loss. There's serious damage there even though it might not look like it.
Mentioned this numerous times and been there myself.
My car looked totally reparable. Esp since it was only months old and at the time used ones were going for more than new. Agent didn’t even expect it to get totally. Certainly didn’t think I would get paid out more than my purchase price; but they based on news comps which again were more than new.
Anyway I did have an airbag go off. Appraiser said when it comes to Tesla’s they just total the car regardless if an airbag goes off. Sure other insurance companies do something similar.
I questioned them about it and they basically said they have too much experience with Tesla’s haven more hidden issues as it goes through the repair process. They’ve paid out some much to repair in the past that they know it’s just cheaper to scrap.
In my case not only did I get more than I paid I was able to apply and get rebates all over again. It’s a very rare case but I make thousands off them totaling out my car.
Young Phenom
Member
Unless there was battery damage it shouldn't be totaled.
But who knows how insurances are handling Tesla now. That repair could be 20k or more who knows.
My Y had barely any damage when I was rear ended and it cost the other insurance 12k.
But who knows how insurances are handling Tesla now. That repair could be 20k or more who knows.
My Y had barely any damage when I was rear ended and it cost the other insurance 12k.
PWlakewood
Active Member
My P90DL was just declared a total loss. The battery pack was impacted by the lower rocker and the case sustained damage. Now the battle to get the most money out of the insurance company. The initial estimate was 25k but after adding the battery were at 45k and there would be more once Tesla added on. I’m an estimator at a body shop and it’s really easy to total certain vehicles especially Teslas. I’m not shocked that your model 3 was declared a total loss just based on those pictures.
Everyone seems to be ignoring that "total" means "costs more to repair than replace" - an economic total - and this is math between what the car is worth damaged vs fixed. When an insurance company totals a car, they get to keep and sell that car, and they get a lot back.
Teslas go for silly money even when damaged. If the salvage market thinks they can fix it cheaper than other body shops, it makes sense for an insurance company to total it over even "minor" damage. If you have $10K of damage but it's only worth $5K less on the salvage market, it's economically totaled.
Teslas go for silly money even when damaged. If the salvage market thinks they can fix it cheaper than other body shops, it makes sense for an insurance company to total it over even "minor" damage. If you have $10K of damage but it's only worth $5K less on the salvage market, it's economically totaled.
I’m aware. In my case I got paid more than I paid due to comps though. Even the claim rep at the start said your not going to get what you paid. But she was shocked with what she came back with as was her boss who had to sign off. They could have just paid what I paid. But she said their policy was to pay whatever the comps are. The comps which they showed me had less options, more miles, and were much older but still more than buying new from the factory. I get that I was lucky based on their policy and also by what the market is, where paying.
Yes, this is the way insurance has to work.
Because you have no car now. And you need to go buy a replacement. And those replacements are expensive.
It has nothing to do with what you paid. It's all about making you "whole" which is defined as what it would cost you to go buy your exact car on the open market right now. Why would you be happy with what you paid if replacements cost $10K more right now?
Kinda like acting like your house appreciating means you made money- well, your neighbor's house is worth more too, so you can't sell your house for more and then go buy less expensive houses in the same area, and you need somewhere to live, so it's kind of irrelevant.
That analogy doesn’t fit in this case. My replacement car cost the same as the totaled one. I placed an order for another new one the same day the first one was totaled. I also got rebates on the second car as well that I also got out of the first car. I paid X for first car plus rebates. So basically I pocketed the rebates from the first car, the amount over the purchase of totaled car that insurance paid. Plus my warranty started all over since it was another new car. I came out ahead in each situation. Not typical and I got lucky. But it happens.
Last edited:
How long did it take from ordering the car to getting it? The main reason the used market for Teslas can be higher than new is the wait time to get one.
If you really can sell a Tesla for more than buying a new one, you could have done all of this yourself. Sell the Tesla you have for more than you paid. Buy new one for less, plus pocket rebates. Repeat, make bank. Why aren't you doing this over and over?
When I placed the order for the replacement I was told it would be 4+ months. Which I was okay with as I was work from home during the pandemic. Actually we both were. Plus we had already bought another new car at the time. So there was no need to hurry the replacement Tesla. I figured I would be going back to work when it was ready. In a actuality the car was ready in under a month. Since I was still work from home and we had the other new car I questioned just flipping the Tesla back to the market again. But I ended up just keeping it. I really enjoy driving it over the other other new car which is an Audi eTron. I don’t keep flipping as I already have a regular job that pays me well and two side gigs that pay me more. My dads been in the car business for decades - flipping and leasing cars - not something I enjoy. There are other ways to make money I enjoy more.
Occhis
Member
Kimmi
Member
Similar threads
