My Tesla Model S P85 Accident - Is it REPAIRABLE or TOTALED?

[PearlModelS]

Mine was just hit and is now at a certified Tesla body shop. My concern is whether it should be totaled or not, also. I just don't know exactly how they determine that. Of course, if there's structural or battery damage, I would assume they would total it. I'm ambivalent about getting a repaired car back. The driver's airbag at steering wheel and feet went off. The front driver's side is crunched. I'm told there are suspension problems there. I'm worried about a conflict of interest between the shop wanting the repair money and the insurance company not wanting to replace the car. Any tips on how to approach this and what to look out for?

I always thought airbag deployment would mean the car most likely would be totaled?

If you don't want the car fixed, get an independent adjuster to fight for you.

 

[Curly Sue]

Loss of Use

Most car insurance policies have guidelines for rental coverage/ loss of use for a policy. Quite often it is something like $50/day for 30 days, but you should check your policy. Claims adjusters have some latitude in this area (and they can be more flexible when the liability for an accident is on someone else, since they know they will likely get their money back from subrogation). In any case, most adjusters are probably going to balk at someone renting a Tesla for $500/day, even though that may seem morally correct.

Based on what the OP said about the accident (being the "last car" in a three car accident), he might be partially liable for the collision (since he was following too closely). But I did not take the claim, and I don't know any of the details of how the accident happened.

St. Lucie Appraisal from Fort Pierce, FL does Loss of Use reports as well as Diminished Value. Insurance companies are supposed to reimburse you for a comparable vehicle. You don't have to actually rent a car in order to claim Loss of Use. A Tesla S rents from Hertz for $500 a day but is only available in the Los Angeles area. The next closest comparable car is a Porsche Panamera which rents for $350 a day so what good is a $50 a day rental? The insurance companies are happy to pay for those. A 60 day repair (not unusual) should net a Tesla owner $20K+ just in Loss of Use not to mention diminished value which, in the case of the OPs car, would be in excess of 50% of the fair market value.

Both good reasons for the insurance company to consider totalling the car.

 

[EarlyAdopter]

That $500 a day quite from Hertz is way off. Enterprise in San Jose rents Model S's for $1000 a week. So does rent-a-tesla.com in Houston. I've used both and they're great.

That Hertz price is either back from when they first got the car or it's the walk-up, undiscounted, no-one-actually-pays daily price.

You're far more likely to get insurance to comp $142 a day than $500 a day for like-kind loss of use. So long as you're not at fault of course.

 

[Pollux]

When are they opening a branch in Boston?! San Jose/SJC? Or San Francisco/SFO?

That $500 a day quite from Hertz is way off. Enterprise in San Jose rents Model S's for $1000 a week. So does rent-a-tesla.com in Houston. I've used both and they're great.

That Hertz price is either back from when they first got the car or it's the walk-up, undiscounted, no-one-actually-pays daily price.

You're far more likely to get insurance to comp $142 a day than $500 a day for like-kind loss of use. So long as you're not at fault of course.

 

[EarlyAdopter]

When are they opening a branch in Boston?! San Jose/SJC? Or San Francisco/SFO?

From the Enterprise Tesla Model S site:

this vehicle is currently available at
West Los Angeles Newport Beach Pasadena Palm Springs Encino Las Vegas Scottsdale LA INT’L Airport San Francisco San Diego San Jose

 

[ZBB]

From the Enterprise Tesla Model S site:

FWIW, the Enterprise site in Scottsdale is about a block away from the Tesla Service Center. They have at least 2 Model S avail -- I've seen a black and a white there...