2016 sierra slt wrecked...

Tony Bianco · February 9, 2016

UPDATE*****

Well state farm adjuster came out to the dealer today, and made a new estimate totaling about 17,000 dollars. In this estimate the repair consists of removing the frame and all associated components and reinstalling everything. They will be replacing both doors, rocker panel, pilar, cab side, and bedside. Everything is OEM components and the only thing they will be repairing is the buckled floor.

I just can not wrap my head around completely disassembling this truck down to the frame and putting it back together. This thing is going to be a rattle trap. I have had suggestions about getting a lawyer or attempting to go the diminished value route (although that can't be done till after its repaired). I don't know how to proceed here. I haven't yet spoken to State farm directly outside of the first drive up adjuster.

Any advice or suggestions?

Why would you go to a lawyer?

The insurance company is doing what they're supposed to do. If the repairs haven't met the threshold then it's a repairable vehicle. Diminished value will be decent, but the truth is .... "it is what it is". A lawyer will tell you the same thing. It's unfortunate that this happened and also that the vehicle will have lost a decent amount of value. Still, the body shop will likely supplement a little more in hidden repair cost, but it won't be anything near what you might hope for.

FYI, the body shop submitted the most recent estimate to the insurance company. The insurance company would have compared their estimate to what the body shop estimated and that's it. The body shop and insurance company are on the same page.

With what they're replacing (mainly pieces and not much for repairs) I seriously doubt it'll be "a rattle trap". It's when there are repairs done that you might have this problem. Complete parts ...... not so much. I think I mentioned that they would likely go with new OEM since the vehicle is so new.

Tony Bianco · February 9, 2016

Get a lawyer and don't sign, agree and accept anything less then a brand new truck fresh off the dealer lot with 0 miles on the clock! If you have to sue the person who hit you then go that route, but no way in heck should you be forced to accept having your brand new truck torn apart like this.

That makes no sense. Even the comment of suing the other owner is ridiculous. LOL.

In essence you're saying the damage is the insurance company's fault. The truck still has a full factory warranty. It isn't deemed a total loss so anything that might be a problem will eaither be covered by the warranty of the GM or by the warranty of the body shop.

Wow, this forum completely screwed up my posts ........

Daryl LBZ · February 9, 2016

This whole thing is depressing. Makes me glad I no longer own brand new pickups, just a cheap Cruze.

chrisuns · February 9, 2016

Hmm, my truck was involved in a roll-over brand new and 2-rear ends later on and even 240k miles later no-one can tell which side it flipped, nor does it rattle. Granted, I bought it used (at a deep discount). As long as it's a good body shop, you'll unlikely be able to tell on a cab-over-frame design. I would be sure to inspect the truck during the repair process.

Now a sub-frame car, 9/10 I can tell when one has been wrecked. They almost always drive "twitchy" or have a noticeable handling "detail" to them.

BIGDOGx · February 9, 2016

That makes no sense. Even the comment of suing the other owner is ridiculous. LOL.

In essence you're saying the damage is the insurance company's fault. The truck still has a full factory warranty. It isn't deemed a total loss so anything that might be a problem will eaither be covered by the warranty of the GM or by the warranty of the body shop.

Wow, this forum completely screwed up my posts ........

Lol not as ridiculous as someone saying tough luck, sorry but you just have to bend over and accept what ever the insurance company deems acceptable.

I still say talk to a lawyer to the original poster and make sure all other avenues have been exhausted, the truck will never be what he had before the accident no matter if they use oem parts or aftermarket imo!

BIGDOGx · February 9, 2016

Double postage.

gsracer · February 9, 2016

Firstly im not the litigous type, and while you may think its rediculous I feel that getting a rebuilt truck with 99 miles with the frame replaced is kind of the short end of the stick. Im paying good money for a new unmolested truck and will now be sattled with this heap with a dirty carfax that is down 20 percent easily on its current value. If i wanted a rebuilt truck i could have bought one and saved a substantial sum of money. Hell if it was my fault i would just eat it but this was through no fault of my own. And while the insurance company may not be at fault their insured is and through the nature of the industry state farm is liable. Hence the whole point of insurance.

Tony Bianco · February 9, 2016

Lol not as ridiculous as someone saying tough luck, sorry but you just have to bend over and accept what ever the insurance company deems acceptable.

I still say talk to a lawyer to the original poster and make sure all other avenues have been exhausted, the truck will never be what he had before the accident no matter if they use oem parts or aftermarket imo!

If you had knowledge of how this system works and the inside politics of the insurance companies etc then you might see how your line of thinking is off.

Tough luck means there's no other avenue.

BIGDOGx · February 9, 2016

If you had knowledge of how this system works and the inside politics of the insurance companies etc then you might see how your line of thinking is off.

Tough luck means there's no other avenue.

I know how the system works, the insurance company's will try and #@#@ you over at ever chance they get and it's up to you to not allow it to happen!

Tony Bianco · February 9, 2016

Firstly im not the litigous type, and while you may think its rediculous I feel that getting a rebuilt truck with 99 miles with the frame replaced is kind of the short end of the stick. Im paying good money for a new unmolested truck and will now be sattled with this heap with a dirty carfax that is down 20 percent easily on its current value. If i wanted a rebuilt truck i could have bought one and saved a substantial sum of money. Hell if it was my fault i would just eat it but this was through no fault of my own. And while the insurance company may not be at fault their insured is and through the nature of the industry state farm is liable. Hence the whole point of insurance.

I agree, it's definitely the short end of the stick.

I don't know all of the ins and outs when it comes to legalities, however the owner of the damaged vehicle has every right to pursue whatever avenue he wants to. My advice is derived from real world experience in seeing other owners deal with the repercussions of something like this.

We had a vehicle towed in a few months ago that had temp tags and showed the purchase date of the day before the wreck. Less than 20 miles. This vehicle was damaged by another person who was insured with Allstate. This owner attempted to sue her insurance company (Allstate) for costs to replace her vehicle. The damage was somewhere around 90% of the threshold. Allstate won.

The end argument was that the vehicle was legally insured. The insurance company had acted legally and in accordance with the agreement the insured had signed when accepting the policy. The insurance company is not at fault for damages incurred whether minor or severe. The insurance company has no obligation to the claimant's vehicle other than to repair the vehicle if repairable.

I would say consulting with an attorney might help to ease one's mind with all of this, but any avenues are likely to be disappointing if nothing else.

Tony Bianco · February 9, 2016

I know how the system works, the insurance company's will try and #@#@ you over at ever chance they get and it's up to you to not allow it to happen!

Yes and no, but hey ...... you know the system.

ewbldavis · February 9, 2016

This has been interesting to say the least.

The accident does suck. I see OP's point on repair - given that the truck has less than 100 miles on it, you should at least discuss this with the adjuster and say "hey, less than 100 miles, I really should get a new vehicle". Communication is the key, and maybe talk to your lawyer just to see where you stand.

In the end, you may end up with same truck repaired. I've wreck a couple vehicles, and proper repair leaves them in like-new condition and drivebility. If someone says neh-neh, then they need a better repair shop IMO and accepted it that way on their own.

Good luck!

Tony Bianco · February 9, 2016

Thought I'd contribute this info even though OP's vehicle isn't considered a total loss.

These are the threshold limits set per state. Insurance companies more or less work with the states to determine the limits.

Below are total loss thresholds by state -- the point at which a vehicle must be given a salvage title. In states without a specific threshold percentage, TLF refers to the total loss formula: cost of repairs plus scrap value must equal the pre-accident value of the car.

Total loss thresholds by state

State Threshold State Threshold State Threshold Alabama 75% Louisiana 75% Ohio TLF Alaska TLF Maine TLF Oklahoma 60% Arizona TLF Maryland 75% Oregon 80% Arkansas 70% Massachusetts TLF Pennsylvania TLF California TLF Michigan 75% Rhode Island TLF Colorado 100% Minnesota 70% South Carolina 75% Connecticut TLF Mississippi 70% South Dakota TLF Delaware TLF Missouri 80% Tennessee 75% Florida 80% Montana TLF Texas 100% Georgia TLF Nebraska 75% Utah TLF Hawaii TLF Nevada 65% Vermont TLF Idaho TLF New Hampshire 75% Virginia 75% Illinois TLF New Jersey TLF Washington TLF Indiana 70% New Mexico TLF West Virginia 75% Iowa 50% New York 75% Wisconsin 70% Kansas 75% North Carolina 75% Wyoming 75% Kentucky 75% North Dakota 75%

Dropsix · February 9, 2016

to OP, my heart goes out to you. Sorry to hear for your bad luck!!!

Can't even imagine...

mr. tim · February 10, 2016

I feel your pain GS. I had the same thing happen to me 2 months ago. I was rear ended after only 6 weeks of ownership and less than 1500 miles on it at the time. Total after body shop supplemental costs was near $15,000. The rear section of my frame was straightened and new OEM bed box, tailgate, bumper, hitch, rear sensors, camera, wiring ect... were painted and installed. Truth be told, the body shop did an excellent job repairing it. Color match, body lines all matched up. I had my truck on a rack just the other day to check out the underside and there is no sign of damage to the frame. My point is that if you pick a shop you are comfortable with, that is GMC repair certified, you should notice no difference between pre and post fix.

That doesnt help the fact that it was damaged though. For me, i hounded on the insurance company for diminished value even though at first they told me they didnt know what i was talking about. Technically from the research i have done and the people i have talked to, including 2 used car managers/appraisers at my local dealerships, if the fix is performed to factory standards, there should be little drop off in value of the vehicle on paper. In the real world, consumers are just not willing to accept that when purchasing a new vehicle, therefore it drives down the value. Diminished value, as it was explained to me, is supposed to offset that up front by compensating you for what that difference would be. The formula used is completely arbitrary and heavily favors the insurance companies - go figure.

The formula most states use is called "17C". The insurance/appraiser goes to NADA to get the value of your vehicle post damage. Adjustments are made based on low or high mileage and added to the NADA value. Then, the NADA value is multiplied by .10. Why .10? Nobody knows. It was pulled out of someones @$$ somewhere along the line. The product is then considered the cap or maximum value of diminution. Great, write me a check for 4K and be done. Nope there is more. Depending on how severe your damage is, there is another multiplier applied. In my case, my damage was deemed Moderate. Im no appraiser, but i would consider the OP's damage to be considered Heavy. In any case, apply the multiplier. The last multiplier is applied for mileage. Again. Take how many miles your vehicle has and subtract them from 100,000 miles. Why 100,000 miles? Beats me. After you get that number, make it a percentage. No math, no conversion formula, just take the number left over based on 100,000 miles and make it a percentage. Multiply that to the number you got in your damage severity section and that is how you get your diminished value amount.

Garbage.

I attached my diminished value form.