Fair Car Value: 10 Tips from Auto Accident Attorneys

Whether you were injured in a car accident or not, you still need to deal with the property damage to your car. How do you get full and fair value for your car damage? How do you make sure that the insurance company is not taking advantage of you?

At PritzkerOlsen, P.A. , our Minnesota auto accident attorneys represent people injured in auto accidents. As part of our service for our clients, we also help them get fair value for the damage to their car. Even if you are not injured , you still may need some help with getting fair value for your property damage.

PritzkerOlsen, P.A. has recovered millions for accident victims, including a recent settlement for $3,750,000. For more information e-mail Fred Pritzker at info@pritzkerlaw.com, call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or fill out our online, attorney-consultation form. All consultations are free.

Minnesota Auto Accident Attorneys Provide 10 Tips for Getting Fair Value for Your Car Damage

These 10 tips from Minnesota auto accident attorneys at PritzkerOlsen, P.A. can make a difference:

Get a Copy of the Insurance Company Appraisal. When the insurance adjuster finds out that your car is a total loss, they contact a company that performs a market survey of vehicles similar to yours to determine the value of your car. They do this by keeping a database of classified car advertisements, inspecting some vehicles at dealerships, and past evaluations of similar vehicles. Insurance companies often do not include vehicles that are priced higher than what they want to pay in their survey; thus, the average price they generate is often lower than actual market conditions. You have a right to a copy of this report. When the person from the insurance company contacts you (the adjuster) and makes an appraisal of your car, request a copy of it.
Don’t Accept First Offer. Do not accept the insurance company's first offer. If you do some research, you can probably get more.
Do Your Own Research or Contact One of Our Auto Accident Attorneys. Right away, you should do your own market research. The best place to start is by searching the Internet. Thousands of cars are advertised on the Internet at any given time. Go to cars.com. The site has a searchable database of cars by make, model and location within a certain mile radius. Look at the prices of vehicles within 40 miles of your home that are the same make and model as yours (although keep in mind that a year older or newer than yours is also considered "comparable"). Click on the vehicle listing to get more detailed information on these cars. Print out the details for the 10 highest priced cars. Also, look in the auto classified section of your local paper. Make copies of ads for similar vehicles that favorably price your car. If all else fails, call an auto dealer and ask what they believe is the market price of the same year, make and model of your vehicle equipped with similar options. Have them fax or write their answers to you. Average all the figures to get an idea of the true market value of your car.
Find Out the Blue Book Price. "They didn't offer me blue book price, why not?" This is a common question. The answer is that no law requires an insurer to pay for the loss of your car based on the blue book or any other price/value book. It is simply evidence of what a reasonable sum might be and for that reason you should also use it in coming up with a counter proposal to the insurer's offer. To check blue book value, go to carpoint.msn.com and click the pricing link to Kelly Blue Book. Type in your year, make and model, and be sure to check all the options your car had plus mileage. Chances are, the blue book value is higher than what the insurance company offered you. Let the adjuster know your car's blue book value.
Send the Insurance Adjuster Information on Comparables. When the insurance company sends you its market survey results, chances are that none of the "comparables" you found will be on it. You should then mail or fax your research to the insurance adjuster and ask him/her to raise the original offer in light of the higher values your research has uncovered.
Read the Insurance Company Report. Read the insurance company report very carefully. It's supposed to contain comparable values for vehicles available in your area. Many of the vehicles they claim are available in the local market area are neither available nor in the local market. Highlight vehicles that are over 75 miles away. Also highlight ads that are over 3 months old. When you write or speak with the adjuster, tell him/her how many vehicles were either not available or not in the local market. Explain that this makes the report flawed. In addition, certain vehicles on the report may have extra information to document the comparison between it and your car. Verify all this information by calling the dealer or source. If the company claims to have inspected the car, call the dealer to see if they remember anyone inspecting the car. If you have time, go look at the vehicle yourself. It may be in far worse condition than yours.
Get Value for Options. Options make a world of difference in valuing a vehicle. Everyone knows that a car with power windows, power locks, air conditioning, a cassette player, deluxe interiors, etc. is more valuable than a car lacking those options. The problem is that insurance companies do not figure in options at their full value in determining the price of your car. By Minnesota Statute (§72A.201 Subd. 5(9)), it is an unfair settlement practice to "reduce or attempt to reduce for depreciation any settlement or any offer of settlement for items not adversely affected by age, use, or obsolescence." When insurance companies add on only a few hundred dollars at most for all the options you have, they are depreciating them. For example, if your car has a working AM/FM cassette, you should get the full value of that AM/FM cassette player, not something far less. Go to carpoint.msn.com and use Kelly Bluebook to find the retail value of your car as it was actually equipped. Then compare it with the same car lacking those options. The difference between the two is what you should argue the insurance company should add to the value of your car. This can be a significant amount.
Send Pre-Crash Pictures of Your Car. Emphasize the good points of your car. If your car is older, but with low mileage, this should add value. The same is true if the car was in good shape. If you have pictures of the car from before the crash, make sure you send copies to the adjuster.
Be Polite, Yet Firm. The way you present yourself can influence the insurance company's willingness to offer a fair price. Be polite, yet firm. If all goes well, they will probably offer a higher amount. If you don't get a reasonable offer, the law allows you to take them to small claims if the amount in question is under $7,500. Advise the adjuster that you are willing to take that step, if necessary.
Know the Law. Every state has laws governing car accidents and auto insurance. A Minnesota auto accident attorney will help you understand your legal rights and remedies under Minnesota law.

We hope these tips about your property damage claim help you achieve a fast and fair settlement of your claim. Please contact one of our Minnesota auto accident attorneys with any questions about your car accident. For more valuable information you will need if you have been in an auto accident, please see our online brochure, What You Need to Know if You Have Been in a Car Accident.

We are a national law firm with offices centrally located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For help with any auto accident, attorneys at PritzkerOlsen, P.A. are available for a free consultation.

Free Case Consultation

Free Information

Top Settlements and Verdicts

Motorcycle Accident Lawyer
Wins Millions for Client

Attorney Fred Pritzker won $6,000,000 for a client whose right leg was amputated when the motorcycle on which she was a passenger was struck by a drunk driver. If you have been in an accident with a DUI driver, you may have a cliam against a bar or other place that sells alcohol.

Truck Wheel Accident Death

Our law firm recently won $2,850,000 for a family whose loved one was killed by a truck wheel that crashed through a car windshield. Read about a truck wheel off accident.

Tow Truck Accident

Attorneys Fred Pritzker and Elliot Olsen obtained a $2,750,000 recovery for a 59 year-old truck driver who suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI), the loss of his left eye and significant disfigurement when the tow chain being used to pull the man’s semi tractor-trailer out of a ditch broke loose from a front-end loader to which it was attached.

Semi-Truck Crash Settlement

Pritzker Olsen attorneys Fred Pritzker and Eric Hageman recently obtained a hard-fought $2,560,000 recovery for a couple who were seriously injured in a semi-truck crash. The husband suffered serious head injury (TBI). Read about the semi truck crash settlement.

Our lawyers have recovered millions more for our clients. Contact us for a free consultation about your accident.

This is attorney advertising. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The result of each case is determined by the specific facts and the applicable law.

Practice Areas

Other Practice Areas

Personal Injury and Wrongful Death