A few years ago a mate had his motorbike stolen which was then recovered after a high speed chase with police - some damage to his bike - mostly minor but some other modifications made to it.
In short the insurance company where writing it off so he got a payment off of them, but was then able to buy the bike back off of them for “pennies” but could only then get it insured 3rd party (can’t remember if fire & theft as well or not) - so there’s a potential option for you to explore.
Brace yourself for a nasty shock then.
The insurance company assessors are wizards in finding the way they can pay the absolute minimum. They will scour ebay/gumtree/autotrader for similar spec cars and what they are selling for. They will derive their value based on the cheapest ones out there and you will have to fight for every penny that gets you closer to the £1600 you are hoping for.
Make a not of all the specific features your car has that sets it apart from the market. Milage is one thing for sure. Lack of rust in the shell and chassis is another. More simple stuff such as seat (leather, heated, good condition) and hood. All the things that go to prove your car is at the top end of the market not the bottom that they will be looking at.
Some years ago I had an assessor on the backfoot when I pointed out none of the vehicles he used to assess the value of mine had electric heated memory seats. I got more money as a result.
You might get lucky.
Ultimately, it will cost you whether you repair yourself or whether you get the insurers to do it.
Hi there - any update yet, or are the insurers dragging their heels ?
Hi,
Yes, the insurers are dragging this. I only received their offer yesterday. They said that since they value my car at £900, they wont repair it, and will write it off. I didnt agree with this, called them, and it turns out that they had my mileage wrong, 90k vs mine 48k (and cars are 2k+ for this mileage). So he will “reevaluate and let me know later”.
So Im guessing if they will value my car at 1600, then repairs will cost less than 60% of the value, so they will repair.
Anyway, waiting for their second offer…
its taking waay too long…
Another update.
And its a good one!
Insurers came back with a cash offer for a full repairs costs of 920, so I am getting 870 (50 excess). No write-off and I get to keep using my current insurance as well.
So now all I need to do is to use this cash to fix the car myself.
I think that this is the best possible outcome, even though it took quite a long time to reach.
Thanks for everyone’s help, really helped me through this.
Good to hear that it’s finally sorted satisfactorily! Good luck with the repairs!
Yes, glad to hear everything worked out alright with your insurance company in the end.
And thanks for keeping us all posted.
This is a great outcome in the end! It’s a good job you questioned the original offer as they had the mileage wrong? Happy for you
Things don’t always work out as we want but it has for you!
Barrie
Great result - better than I expected, and I’m an optimist! Good luck in getting your repair sorted and happy motoring.
Colin