New Truck Rear-Ended - Looking for help/advice

muddkatt · December 15, 2015

Stupid question...what do you mean by "tort"? Liability? Like if you didn't have full coverage, they don't have to fix it?

It is amazing, with all the money we shell out for insurance, how you fight with them (or others) to get a fair deal. Keep posting the updates.

Its a Pennsylvania thing...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_tort_and_limited_tort_automobile_insurance

14GMCZ71 · December 16, 2015

Purchased my '91 Chevrolet Silverado 5.7 350 V8 regular cab long bed 4X4 Z71 used in 1994 with 37,000 miles on the odo.

Drove it until last August 2014 when the engine quit with 194,000+ on the odo. Crank broke. Had low to zero oil pressure for over a year.

Due to extenuating circumstances during 2014 I decided to drive it til it wouldn't go anymore. Paid for itself many times over.

Purchased my '14 GMC Sierra ( $7,000.00 off sticker ) the day after the '91 quit. The local vocational school installed a 350 four bolt main

crate engine in the '91 and is completing remaining work. Sentimental reasons for me to get the '91 going again.

Plan on keeping the '14 for at least 10 years.

njs2247 · December 16, 2015

good luck with the situation, i have to say it but i would NOT buy a new vehicle. I lease them with ZERO down.. Z...E..R..O...

this way no matter what i'm not beat.. i carry $200 deductible for comp/collision and GAP handles the rest.. just taught my kid same lesson.. 2016 malibu ZERO down.. you get completely screwed purchasing a new car/truck given you have to fix it out of warranty at some point, maintenance, and this terrible scenario, just to name a few reason NOT to buy.. work a manageable car payment into your life, invest the would be down payment and keep recycling... never own your primary vehicle.. a vette? sure, kids first car? go ahead.. not your primary.

hope they buy you out of it, ask for your "equity" back and LEASE

only difference between I who lease and you who buy is in the end your money is tied up in the truck and mine is giving me dividends in the market.... i'm liquid, you get the shaft selling or trading... or you can ride it into the ground nickel and diming you to death all the way... these newer vehicles are not to be trifled with out of warranty repairs lol

Just traded in my 08 Sierra with 160K miles and the only "major" repairs I had to do were the water pump and all 4 shocks lol. The truck before the 08 had 100K+ miles on it too with no repairs needed except for new brakes. The money I saved from not having a car note for the past 3 years went into my portfolio for some extra dividends. I even got instant equity in m new truck because the dealership gave me 8K for my 08 Sierra. The point is, is that buying a new truck or car does not equate to getting "completely screwed."

mr. tim · December 18, 2015

Update #4

I had my appointment today with the independent appraiser for the damage to my truck. He agreed with a new oem bed box, oem tailgate, oem bumper and the misc emblems and such. He felt the damage to the frame was not severe enough to warrant a new frame. All damage looks to be done behind the rear most suspension mounting points as the vehicle still tracks true. If pulling the frame doesn't measure out, or at any point the collision center doesn't feel the vehicle could support its max trailer weight reliably, the independent will approve of a new oem frame. I am ok with fixing the frame. So far I've had 5 different auto body techs and 2 mechanics look at the frame and all of them but 1 felt the damage did not warrant a frame replacement. The only reason 1 would do a replacement is because the truck was brand new.

The independent didn't bat an eye when I told him I had 1k in undercoating and spray-on bed liner. Added it right in without a word.

The toughest discussion I thought would come when I asked for deminished value. He agreed that my situation lends itself well to receiving deminished value compensation. He said he would start and send the paperwork to the at-fault party's insurance company and ultimately it would be up to them. Like the insurance agent the other day, he didn't flat out tell me no or act like he didn't know what deminished value was.

Overall I would classify my situation as so far so good but not out of the woods yet. Here's to hoping that all of it works out for me in the end.

CBPOLopez · December 18, 2015

Sorry that this happened and that you're having to go through it all, but glad you're doing well and, so far, everything is working out.

thewhitestallion · December 18, 2015

First of all, glad everyone was ok. Secondly, I feel for you, getting in an accident sucks but I feel for you because your truck is brand new. I hope the best for you and everything works out in your favor. Just be glad he had decent insurance and not "amigo insurance" or "fred loya" insurance (real companies in Texas lol) because those are the insurance companies that will screw you over.

BlackZ71Silverado · December 18, 2015

Sorry to hear about your brand new truck getting destroyed. The good thing is that you're ok.

With all of the parts you listed in need of replaced, I can tell you without a doubt that the truck is never going to be the same. If it were my truck, I would do whatever I needed to do to get another brand new truck. With that much damage and work needed it's surprising that the truck wasn't considered totaled BUT it is new and that may be why. Either way I would want a new truck, not one twisted back into shape or taken apart and reassembled.

When it comes to vehicles I am rather picky, we all should be. We pay good money for these trucks and work hard to afford them. Having the truck completely disassembled and put back together again just doesn't make sense, there's just too much that can go wrong. Don't settle for less than a new truck in this case, you deserve it.

If worst comes to worst, once it's "fixed", which it will never be perfect again after all of that work, trade it in for another. You will take a loss but I'd rather suck it up on the loss rather than be miserable with a truck that should have been totaled to begin with.

Sent from my crappy iPhone 6

using Tapatalk

Chris · December 18, 2015

First of all, glad everyone was ok. Secondly, I feel for you, getting in an accident sucks but I feel for you because your truck is brand new. I hope the best for you and everything works out in your favor. Just be glad he had decent insurance and not "amigo insurance" or "fred loya" insurance (real companies in Texas lol) because those are the insurance companies that will screw you over.

Fred Loya is in California as well. A friend of mine had his mustang hit by a guy using Fred and it was a nightmare for him.

ewbldavis · December 18, 2015

Update #4

I had my appointment today with the independent appraiser for the damage to my truck. He agreed with a new oem bed box, oem tailgate, oem bumper and the misc emblems and such. He felt the damage to the frame was not severe enough to warrant a new frame.

I am curious - if you asked the appraiser if he would trust a repaired frame towing a 9000# trailer (lowest rating for 1500), would his opinion change?

I also understand his position. Seems like he is being reasonable for the most part. Thanks for the updates and sorry again..you just want your ride back I am sure!

Edit: LOL...sorry. Was re-reading and saw comment about towing. That is a fair deal I think.

mr. tim · January 23, 2016

Update #5

The repairs are complete. The frame was able to be straightened and did not have to be replaced. I took a long look at it under the lights in the body shop yesterday when I picked it up. All lines and color match look great. To my eye I couldn't detect any flaws. I was pretty surprised and pleased to be honest.

The original independent adjuster came out prior to me picking it up to take pictures and measure the tires I was told. I haven't talked with him yet and will probably contact him on Monday. The last time I talked to him, he has started to file paperwork for deminished value.

In a magic wand scenario, I get around 5k for deminished value, the trade in value still reflects the 3-4K in equity I had in the vehicle, the claim doesn't get paid in full till after I receive the check which means it won't hit car fax till then which would give me some time to try to trade out into a 2016 Sierra/Silverado.

Stuff doesn't ever work out like that but it's nice to dream about! Once I get through the deminished value stuff I'll update one more time and then hopefully this post will help others in my situation in the future.

O_J_Simpson · January 23, 2016

Good news. No if you were smart, take the diminished check & trade it in before the dirty car fax his home. You will be miles ahead on down the road issues.

gSwift · January 23, 2016

I've got a friend that owns a body shop and he mentioned once that CarFax is behind 6 months to a year on getting accidents logged. Not sure if this is accurate but if it is then it would give you more than enough time to trade out.

GMCSierra4x4 · January 24, 2016

Sorry about the accident. I almost took a loss on my trade for the same reason. I was rear ended and they replaced the bumper and hitch. The hitch was replaced because the holes for the receiver pin were elongated. I brought a copy of Carfax and the gave the dealer a copy of the repair invoice as proof. They paid above average trade, but only because I had an independent shop make me a cash offer in advance and I could prove no major damage.

Most dealerships ask about accidents. If you say no because it isn't on Carfax, they can pursue it as a fraudulent transaction when discovered after the fact. Frame damage will go on Carfax as a major collision. Also, they usually run a paint depth meter over the truck and can tell when aftermarket paint has been applied.

paxtonman · January 24, 2016

They rear ended you, start going to the Dr., you'll get a new truck....

mr. tim · January 24, 2016

Sorry about the accident. I almost took a loss on my trade for the same reason. I was rear ended and they replaced the bumper and hitch. The hitch was replaced because the holes for the receiver pin were elongated. I brought a copy of Carfax and the gave the dealer a copy of the repair invoice as proof. They paid above average trade, but only because I had an independent shop make me a cash offer in advance and I could prove no major damage.

Most dealerships ask about accidents. If you say no because it isn't on Carfax, they can pursue it as a fraudulent transaction when discovered after the fact. Frame damage will go on Carfax as a major collision. Also, they usually run a paint depth meter over the truck and can tell when aftermarket paint has been applied.

I would never lie about the accident if asked. But I would never just offer up that information either. Of all the cars I've bought and traded over the last 15 or so years, I've never had any of them run a paint depth gauge over any of them. Even on my sporty cars. Although that is a good idea and I don't know why more dealers around here don't do that.