Wife got in an accident today - Need Advice

[tomplum]

Interesting people's thoughts. I'll be watching how Progressive treats you.

Back in my Progressive claim, I was towing a trailer at the time. They flat out said we don't deal with repairing trailers. Pick out one you like kind of thing and they paid me for it. The truck had some damage in the rear frame rails from the hitch , so that was repaired and a new hitch.

 

[Cub 7275]

@Cub 7275 :
We had a payout from USAA in 2019, my daughter's 2005 Ford Escape was considered a total loss after a collision... their appraiser used similar cars from used lots in the greater northern California area, probably found them on-line, adjusted here and there for mileage. I was surprised they just used used car dealer asking price as the starting point, considering there's no way I'd ever pay the asking price from a used car dealer. The settlement was IMO more than fair and I was happy to take it.

Glad you guys were satisfied with the payout and given your experiences I wish ours were totaled. For repairs USAA now has the body shop estimator send pictures to a third party company who then decides the repair cost using all the "recycled" rusty junk yard parts they can find as well as whatever aftermarket parts are available. Once the "official" third party estimate is generated the insurance company immediately sends out a check to either the body shop or the vehicle owner. You have no choice in this so it makes shopping around more difficult. It is also especially important to note if you are not having the car fixed where the insurance estimate is generated since now you'll have to deal with all the stuff the estimator missed, which was a lot in the case of one of my two sons accidents earlier this year (neither was at fault).

This process is kind of like letting the fox guard the hen house since there are many reasons, both innocent and malicious, that the body shop estimator may not be accurate with the initial estimate. At least in the old days USAA sent out an adjuster to oversee the repairs and act as a second set of eyes. I was quite dismayed to find the junk parts are billed at prices that are around the same as brand new OEM parts that anyone can buy from a dealer which offers discounted prices. Even the aftermarket parts were no great savings, if any, over discounted OEM cost. Sure there were some seemingly unreasonable OEM prices even with the discount, like $700 for a rim or $1,200 for a headlamp assembly and I can accept the ins co pushing for alternatives in those cases ($200 for a reman rim $500 aftermarket headlight). I assume the body shops get a better OEM discount than John Q Public can so there is simply no excuse to use mostly junk yard parts and/or questionable quality aftermarket parts "to keep costs low"!

Also be sure to read all the fine print on the "repairs are guaranteed for life" that the insurance company touts if you go to one of their preferred shops. You will find it has very little value, though it sounds great. It is not a lifetime guarantee for the paint, or for the aftermarket parts, or against corrosion, etc. About the only true benefit from it is if you move away from the area of the original repair shop, and there is a blatant mechanical defect in the repair that is covered under this limited guarantee, then it will allow you to go to any of the insurance company's approved shops to have it fixed instead of having to go back to the original shop. There is very little that is "lifetime" about this gimmick to get you to use their shops.

I wound up replacing a rusty impact bar with new OEM on the first car and seeing the crap parts they use in that repair I installed a bunch of new OEM parts on the second car before bringing it to be repaired. Yep I'm dumb, but the bottom line now a days is that nobody cares if your car gets fixed right, it's all about profit. We are a no fault state so USAA had to pay for the repairs even though the other parties were at fault. Our rates went up over 50% this year.

Oh and the icing on the cake this year was a notice from a third party with a very specific miles driven per year adjustment for one of our six vehicles, which wasn't even accurate. When USAA was questioned if they are paying a third party to investigate their customers and if the third party was buying our information from the car manufacturer (Ford in this case) I did not get an answer. Not cool. Other family members dumped USAA years ago, I'm the idiot that stayed with them. YMMV

 

[EddieWalker]

Back in the 90's I totaled my Ford Bronco. I had full coverage with Allstate at the time. They had to hire a helicopter to get it out of the canyon where it ended up on private property. I have no idea what that cost them, but that was on them once they paid me for the Bronco.

I had a friend who worked for Allstate at the time and he told me to refuse their first offer. He said that they have a timeline that they are required to get these things settled by, and the longer it took, the more they would pay. I forget the details on the timeline, but after several months, they just about doubled what they where offering, which I agreed to.

My parents where T boned in their Blazer while visiting family in Canada. It was the farmers fault who hit them. No question about that. They also had Allstate, which also offered them a very low amount for the vehicle. My dad refused and dragged it out a lot longer then I did, but his results where a lot better then mine. They more then doubled their pay off amount from their first offer when he accepted it.

 

[HawkinsHollow]

So Progressive is coming to get the car today and will have a price for us by middle of next week. I talked to the adjuster and I did not see any point in arguing about them taking the car or leaving it at our house before a payout is given. The adjusters point is that it is still our car and we still have the title.

My wife is leery about driving the car after the accident. If it was me I would fix the door, remove the side airbag and drive it till the wheels fall off and put the remaining $8-9K in my pocket. My wife thinks it is unsafe without the side curtain airbag. I told her it is not unsafe, it is just not AS safe. Not sure I am going to be able to convince her of this.

The vehicle is in really good shape other than the door that got hit. Is there any way to come out ahead by buying it back and selling the good parts on it? Looking at used parts for this thing on ebay: Hood $600, 1 seat $300, door, $400. Seems kind of like a lot of work, but if they let it go for $1200 some money could be made. My gut is telling me that this would be an uphill slog and probably not worth it. Looks like another car payment in our future. Thought we were done with that for a while.

 

[ning]

Glad you guys were satisfied with the payout and given your experiences I wish ours were totaled. For repairs USAA now has the body shop estimator send pictures to a third party company who then decides the repair cost using all the "recycled" rusty junk yard parts they can find as well as whatever aftermarket parts are available. Once the "official" third party estimate is generated the insurance company immediately sends out a check to either the body shop or the vehicle owner. You have no choice in this so it makes shopping around more difficult. It is also especially important to note if you are not having the car fixed where the insurance estimate is generated since now you'll have to deal with all the stuff the estimator missed, which was a lot in the case of one of my two sons accidents earlier this year (neither was at fault).

This process is kind of like letting the fox guard the hen house since there are many reasons, both innocent and malicious, that the body shop estimator may not be accurate with the initial estimate. At least in the old days USAA sent out an adjuster to oversee the repairs and act as a second set of eyes. I was quite dismayed to find the junk parts are billed at prices that are around the same as brand new OEM parts that anyone can buy from a dealer which offers discounted prices. Even the aftermarket parts were no great savings, if any, over discounted OEM cost. Sure there were some seemingly unreasonable OEM prices even with the discount, like $700 for a rim or $1,200 for a headlamp assembly and I can accept the ins co pushing for alternatives in those cases ($200 for a reman rim $500 aftermarket headlight). I assume the body shops get a better OEM discount than John Q Public can so there is simply no excuse to use mostly junk yard parts and/or questionable quality aftermarket parts "to keep costs low"!

Also be sure to read all the fine print on the "repairs are guaranteed for life" that the insurance company touts if you go to one of their preferred shops. You will find it has very little value, though it sounds great. It is not a lifetime guarantee for the paint, or for the aftermarket parts, or against corrosion, etc. About the only true benefit from it is if you move away from the area of the original repair shop, and there is a blatant mechanical defect in the repair that is covered under this limited guarantee, then it will allow you to go to any of the insurance company's approved shops to have it fixed instead of having to go back to the original shop. There is very little that is "lifetime" about this gimmick to get you to use their shops.

I wound up replacing a rusty impact bar with new OEM on the first car and seeing the crap parts they use in that repair I installed a bunch of new OEM parts on the second car before bringing it to be repaired. Yep I'm dumb, but the bottom line now a days is that nobody cares if your car gets fixed right, it's all about profit. We are a no fault state so USAA had to pay for the repairs even though the other parties were at fault. Our rates went up over 50% this year.

Oh and the icing on the cake this year was a notice from a third party with a very specific miles driven per year adjustment for one of our six vehicles, which wasn't even accurate. When USAA was questioned if they are paying a third party to investigate their customers and if the third party was buying our information from the car manufacturer (Ford in this case) I did not get an answer. Not cool. Other family members dumped USAA years ago, I'm the idiot that stayed with them. YMMV

One of our cars (2009 model) got hit this past spring; USAA sent us to the fanciest body shop in town. There's no talk about junkyard pieces, all OEM parts. I got an identical estimate from my preferred shop - they obviously use standard books and time tables. I was assured by USAA that anyone can fix it, and if other damage is found that they can send in pictures and estimates for getting that repaired - same process for their preferred shop.

I'm not sure how they appraise repair costs for vehicles that don't have OEM parts available; presumably you've got to get them somewhere.

tbh I'm kinda doubting your story here, junkyard rusty parts. Hope you have a better day today.

 

[Hughman]

Is there any way to come out ahead by buying it back and selling the good parts on it?

I did this once. In my case, no collision insurance so when I wrecked my wife's Rubicon I had the tow truck drop it off in my driveway. Spent the next couple of years stripping it down to the frame. Use a bunch of parts building up three other wranglers, sold a bunch of parts on Craigslist and I still have a shed full of parts, most of which I don't need. It's a lot of work.

 

[HawkinsHollow]

I did this once. In my case, no collision insurance so when I wrecked my wife's Rubicon I had the tow truck drop it off in my driveway. Spent the next couple of years stripping it down to the frame. Use a bunch of parts building up three other wranglers, sold a bunch of parts on Craigslist and I still have a shed full of parts, most of which I don't need. It's a lot of work.

I hear ya! But are you ahead on the deal? Good idea or bad idea?

 

[CliffordK]

Good luck getting it back if they total it. From my experience and others I know, it can be very difficult.

An acquaintance had a the right side of her pickup bed hit. Not her fault. The pickup drove just fine. The bid to repair was around $10K, and the insurance company totaled the vehicle.
The insurance wanted us to get a salvage bid, and we went to two local wrecking yards who lowballed us. So, the insurance company gave an offer of about their value of the vehicle minus the salvage value, and she kept the pickup. Meanwhile, I found a matching pickup at a salvage auction with a good bed and bad cab. A bed swap, and she made out like a bandit.

My wife is leery about driving the car after the accident. If it was me I would fix the door, remove the side airbag and drive it till the wheels fall off and put the remaining $8-9K in my pocket. My wife thinks it is unsafe without the side curtain airbag. I told her it is not unsafe, it is just not AS safe. Not sure I am going to be able to convince her of this.

I'd fix the airbag too. You can buy them on E-Bay. You may also have to replace the airbag sending unit.

You should be able to find a bunch of parts at the local salvage yard. Prices seem to have come up over the years, but you'd save on shipping.

You'll need to do some welding if the rocker panel, or the A/B pillars are bent. Although, a lot of the newer cars are glued together.

If it was me, I'd let the insurance agent look at it, but I wouldn't let them "take" the car.

 

[Hughman]

I hear ya! But are you ahead on the deal? Good idea or bad idea?

Not really ahead financially. In my case, it's a jeep thing. I have three more in the garage at the moment. It was a learning opportunity to see how they are put together. I have lots of bits and pieces to play with and just about every part is easily marketable on Craigslist. Since I didn't have an insurance claim, after I stripped it someone bought the tub with clear title. Still wonder if it's back on the road.

 

[Cub 7275]

@Cub 7275 :
We had a payout from USAA in 2019, my daughter's 2005 Ford Escape was considered a total loss after a collision... their appraiser used similar cars from used lots in the greater northern California area, probably found them on-line, adjusted here and there for mileage. I was surprised they just used used car dealer asking price as the starting point, considering there's no way I'd ever pay the asking price from a used car dealer. The settlement was IMO more than fair and I was happy to take it.

Seriously? What possible motive could I have to make this up??

Look up USAA’s “Quality Replacement Parts Program” and their “Curb the high cost of vehicle repairs with USAA’s quality replacement parts program” literature. At best this slightly reduces the cost to us ratepayers while keeping company profits up, but it is at the expense of properly repairing the vehicles. Here in the rust belt our cars don’t wear out, they dissolve. Junk yard parts from the rust belt are not “like kind and quality” to new OEM or even to new aftermarket parts!

And if we are to be questioning each other’s statements, are you saying that not one single A/M (aftermarket) or LKQ (junkyard) part was used in your 2009 car’s repair?

I also have to wonder if most people really inspect their cars after a major repair. Missing fasteners, wire looms left unsupported, etc. are the rule not the exception.

On the first 2019 Fusion, which was rear ended, when we got the car back the rear parking sensor covers didn’t look quite right. We pulled the rear underside splash shield (which was missing one of its fasteners) to see if it was something as simple as the sensors were left loose. That is when we noticed the otherwise hidden from view impact bar. The thinner pieces could be broken off with bare fingers!

When I questioned the body shop about it they said they painted it with Por15 rust inhibitor, like that made it all good. It also shows they knew darn well it was a substandard part. Sure it will hold the rear fascia up, but will it do its job and collapse to absorb energy the same as a new one if the car is ever rear ended again? I didn’t think so. The recycled trunk lid came pre dented with a 1” long minor dent that they missed. Who knows what other dents they bondo’ed over in the name of “keeping costs down”. Supposedly the recycled parts are to come from a similar year vehicle. Ford used the same impact bar as far back as 2013. No way a ten year old steel part in the rust belt is going to cut it as a suitable repair part.

After the first repair debacle I was determined not to let it happen again with the other son’s identical 2019 Fusion. One shop refused to quote the repair if they had to deal with USAA. All the USAA recommended shops I checked with said that USAA forces them to use recycled junk yard and aftermarket parts. Most claimed they inspect the used parts and reject unsuitable ones. The Ford dealer’s shop that I would have preferred at that point was booked several months out.

No question that the first repair shop is to blame for installing a substandard part. USAA said I could force them to install a new impact bar, but since the car was away at school it was easier to just change it myself when it was home on a weekend.

But USAA deserves much blame for pushing hard on all of the shops to use recycled junk they call LKQ (like kind and quality) because it sounds better. And for an example from the second Fusions estimate, a LKQ (ie junk yard) upper tie bar is on the estimate at $250. A brand new Ford OEM tie bar bought online from the local dealer was $253.23. An A/M (aftermarket) left fender liner at $41.00 while OEM cost was $35.22! And so on.

I’m glad you’ve had good experiences with USAA.