Diminished Value Claims

[Curly Sue]

Official what's what in diminished value

You can claim diminished value against a third-party in every state except Michigan. Your claim goes against the at-fault driver's property damage portion of his or her policy. No state prohibits third-party diminished value claims except Michigan.

First-party diminished value claims which are made against your own company if the damage was caused by you is allowed only in Georgia, Kansas and Washington.

When it comes to obtaining information about your car's diminished value, expect that nobody at Tesla Motors will lift a finger to help you. You'll need to go outside the company. Hire an independent appraiser that gets dealer quotes - no formulas or algorithms or other funky approaches that the insurance company will toss back in your face. Not that they won't also do that with a comprehensive, well-written appraisal.

Diminished value is a fight but better to fight than accept losing anywhere from $10K to $50K in value on your S.

 

[Curly Sue]

I've received a number of emails asking about an appraiser that does Teslas. We used one from Fort Pierce, FL who did a good job.

 

[DA808EV]

I've been dealing with AAA regarding my DV claim for almost a year now and they are now denying my claim stating that the damage to my vehicle was all cosmetic and since there was no structural damage that there is no DV. The adjuster was comparing it to a color option in regards to how the market will value what the car is worth or what people are willing to pay....
I submitted two different appraisals and one of them stated I should receive about $18k in DV and the second appraisal stated about $25k in DV. The total cost of repairs to my MS was just over $14k and the reason I submitted two appraisals was because the first one was not sufficient enough for AAA to consider.
I too was close to giving up on my DV claim as it has been a year of dealing with AAA going back and forth every few weeks and following up with them. I feel as though I should also be getting a lose of use claim as my MS was in the shop for 30 days and I commute approx 120 miles a day for work. I live in OC and if any of you have any other advice, please let me know. Thanks!

 

[shipkj.fl.us]

DV claim and signing release to insurance

I had a not at fault claim and before the insurance of the other driver agrees to release payment to the shop they insist that i sign a release. Any suggestion how to deal with a DV claim. Prefer not to involve a lawyer. Here. I am in Fl in case that makes a difference

 

[ChadS]

Sorry, I'm no help as I've never dealt with a DV claim.

However, I did find it interesting that my latest policy amendment from PEMCO seems to explicitly state that they will only fix my car to restore appearance, safety and functionality. They don't state it explicitly, but it seems to be saying exactly that they won't pay for DV. I guess the silver lining is that I won't have to worry about arguing about it. Still, I know the lowered value after an accident - regardless of the quality of the repair - can be quite significant.

 

[bhzmark]

1. make the DV claim with insurance (research the right amount to ask -- you tell them, don't let them tell you).
2. when they deny (as they always do) tell them you will file a claim against their insured (the person who hit you) in court and you will win and they can pay you now or they can pay you when they lose in court.
3. do not wait for their response but within a few days send them a draft complaint or small claims court filing form filled out and tell them you will file in one week unless they pay.
4. they will likely then send you a release letter that says if you agree to release them and their insured in full they will send you a check for $xk. Negotiate the amount as necessary.
5. when you are happy with the amount, and your car is fixed, and your neck doesn't hurt, then sign the release letter and get the check or wire xfer.

with some scumbag insurance cos that is the only way get DV $.

btw DV is only for claims when someone else damaged your car -- they are liable to make you whole -- not just fix your car, but give you the DV difference also.

If you damage the car yourself, your ins co just has to pay to fix your car. you are stuck with the DV that you caused yourself. Unless your ins policy says otherwise which it never will.