Bad weekend

sorry for the accident and glad you and your passengers are okay, first thing I think you should do is contact a lawyer for the sake the insurance company will try and pull a slick one on you, just my opinion.
 
I think I would see where things are going before I'd involve a lawyer.Once an attorney is in the mix all negotiating will have to involve him.You will no longer get to talk to the insurance company,they will hold up their hand,and say sorry,you have representation,any conversations we have will have to involve him.You can get friendly advice from a lawyer,but the second you tell the insurance company that a lawyer said this or that they will clam up.Once the magic word lawyer is mentioned they will not want to see or hear one thing either of you might say or do misconstrued .They used to ask if you had signed with a lawyer,now they ask if you are getting advice from a lawyer.
 
I am wondering what others have paid to but back the vehicle after a total loss. Hagerty made me an offer but it seems awfully high to me.
 
Unfurtunately Greg,that is the reality of insuring an old car.Unlike modern cars,old cars have a very good chance of putting a lot of money back in the insurers pocket.I was lucky with mine.The rep had checked on getting a dozer hauled to my property to get the car out,and they decided it was cost prohibitive.I got to buy it back for $765.I bought cherished salvage after that.That was also the time I found out it existed.
 
Colorado Greg said:
I am wondering what others have paid to but back the vehicle after a total loss. Hagerty made me an offer but it seems awfully high to me.
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Are you saying that they made you an offer for a price to buy the car back from them after it is declared a total loss? And you think that offer is high? It probably is.

Consider that their opening bid.

If they haul it off to a scrap yard they won't get much for it. That's the floor. MINUS their cost to haul it there.

You know what you have in the way of engine, transmission, other stuff that was not damaged in the wreck. That's all the wreck is worth. Think of it like you are parting it out.

You should not assume the frame and rear axle came out undamaged.

.
 
Colorado Greg said:
I am wondering what others have paid to but back the vehicle after a total loss. Hagerty made me an offer but it seems awfully high to me.
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Greg I also have Hagerty, so I am interested in how this all plays out for you.
I had forgotten about 'Cherished Value' buy back (Like Keith was talking about) so just this morning I went to my Hagerty account to look into that, and I guess I'll have to call them I couldn't see where you could add that on-line. I've never heard anything but good things about Hagerty,, I think they will treat you right.

Jim makes a valid point on your car. I'd bet that frame has gone south with that kind of an impact, the car is only worth what it could be parted out for in my eye sorry to say. I think you'd be better off taking Hagerty's check and looking for another Coupe there are plenty out there. Even if you find a pretty good car but needs some work done you'd still be money ahead vs. trying to restore your car.

In another thread I started about today's crazy costs of paint and even minor body work...the reputable guys on here that are hands on on that subject, talk like a GOOD paint job done properly will run between $30,000-$50,000:eek: with minor body work.

With those costs you have just been priced out. As a comparison, we have a good driver quality '30 Dlx. Roadster. Going by the OLD CARS WEEKLY PRICE GUIDE (and I think they are the most accurate) our car falls somewhere just north of #3 Good condition. OCW has a very detailed description of how to value your car.

A #1 absolutely mint condition show car '30 Dlx. Roadster (and as they explain very few if any honestly really make that grade) is valued at $59,000. If you try to restore your car hell you'll have almost THAT in paint not counting your massive body work needed. It is no where near cost feasible in my eye to pump in excess of $100,000 into a Model A Ford. At that money you are in Boss 302 or big block '70 Chevelle convertible range, those cars will continue to appreciate I'm afraid our little Model A Fords will never see the light of THAT day:)

I'm just being practical. If it were me and I were you, I'd suggest take Hagerty's settlement and start shopping around for something else......

As a VERY wise businessman (my father) told me as a teenager among many valuable lessons in finance, economics, banking, and etc.--- "NEVER LET EMOTIONS DECIDE YOUR BUSINESS DECISIONS,, you will get burned every time."
 
As an aside-- I don't mean, to be mean, on Model A Fords I love them... have had them since 1971 and plan on keeping at least one in the old car stable until I die. They are fun little cars, a blast to drive. Neat looking I love the lines, the designs... They don't take up much room. I just cringe at people who dump $120,000 into one, five years later decide for whatever reason when life changes, the car has to 'go', and stark reality punches you square in the face:p
 
Those cars don't go to the scrapyards.They go to auction,either parked in a lot and bidders leave their bid in the office,or,as more of now,done online.Guys like me buy that kind of stuff after seeing less pictures than shown here.Around 04 I looked at an A roadster that had been in a flood.While parked in his garage the water had just left the distributer poking up.I was there with the guy doing the estimate to repair it,which was to disassemble every last piece to clean the silt out.Plus,a new LB interior.The estimate exceeded the insured cost,so it was considered a total loss insurance wise.The owner thought he was going to collect his money and keep it.The insurance guy told him no,if we pay this claim,we are taking it.Both the repair shop owner and I were more than willing to pay the $10,000 they were going to pay out.I don't know how it all shook out.,but I did find out that the owner had looked into it and the law was not on his side.
 
Jeff/Illinois said:
Greg I also have Hagerty, so I am interested in how this all plays out for you.
I had forgotten about 'Cherished Value' buy back (Like Keith was talking about) so just this morning I went to my Hagerty account to look into that, and I guess I'll have to call them I couldn't see where you could add that on-line. I've never heard anything but good things about Hagerty,, I think they will treat you right.
"
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You have to call to have Cherished Salvage added to vehicles already covered on your policy with Hagerty. I just had them add it to the four cars I have covered a few weeks ago. Took about 15 minutes and added $59 annually to my premium.
 
Hagerty is giving me the full $15k (agreed upon value) but their buy back price is $3,675. That is a lot higher price than I was anticipating. They also told me it would go to CoPar if I didn’t but it back. Sure wish I would have known about the Cherished rider.
 
Are you putting a claim in to your own company before attempting to settle with the at-fault party first?Is that a state requirement? Are you a no-fault insurance state where everybody collects from their own carrier?My guess for the buyback was about $3000.I have a feeling that if I'd mentioned the Mitchell OD in my car,(unused)the Brumfield head(unused)and the 4 Firestone whitewall tires(also unused)that I'd put on over the winter that I would not have gotten my car back for $765.Their price is high,but that car looks to have thousands in valuable parts to offer.The Copart 12 miles from me has a spot for the old and exotic cars,and a lot of them are stored undercover.It looks like they sell them whole,not part them out.
 
One thing to keep in mind if you have a car that you've put some expensive "upgraded" components into - like a Burtz engine, downdraft carbs, Mitchell transmission or overdrive, maybe radial tires. Some if not all of those components may be economically salvagable for use in another car or resale in spite of the vehicle being declared a total. I currently have $25K value on my cars, which I think is probably reasonable replacement value if all the components are stock. I've invested in some "upgrades" so I am going to add "Cherished Value".
 
Zax40 said:
You have to call to have Cherished Salvage added to vehicles already covered on your policy with Hagerty. I just had them add it to the four cars I have covered a few weeks ago. Took about 15 minutes and added $59 annually to my premium.
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Thanks brudder--I'll hit them up Monday morning that is more than reasonable and you have four vehicles! Heck that is two steak dinners around these parts... your costs may very:)
 
Jeff/Illinois said:
Thanks brudder--I'll hit them up Monday morning that is more than reasonable and you have four vehicles! Heck that is two steak dinners around these parts... your costs may very:)
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That might get you a salad and a baked potato to go with your steak around here.
 
I called Hagerty and had them add "Cherished Salvage (R)" to my two cars. Charge was $15. Piece of cake, well worth it.
 
I ended up accepting the 15k and I negotiated a better deal for the buyback.
The bad part is I cannot get a salvage title for this in Colorado. They don’t accept salvage title on classic cars for some reason. I’ll have to get a bonded or builders title if I want to rebuild this car.
 
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You were in an accident that you were very lucky to come out of in one piece.Then you were paid the full agreed value,and got to buy this huge pile of excellent parts that you know the quality for X amount of dollars.And,you got some very expensive schooling out of it.Could have been lots worse.Here in N.H. when my coupe was declared a total loss the adjuster said,when you redo the car,send us a picture and we will up the value to whatever we agree on.We're a non-title state for old cars,so there was really no paperwork involved.The car is still on Hagertys books,insured for the $765.value they placed on it at the time of the loss.It is free as it has so little value,it just remains on my policy with a few other cars.
 
Sucks about the car, glad everyone's OK. I went through a similar crash with my truck a couple years back here in the Atlanta area. Insurance tried to lowball me on the repair costs, but I reached out to delivery van accident attorney Seth Gladstein. Handled all the insurance back-and-forth and made sure I got a fair payout, so I wasn't stuck paying out of pocket. If you're dealing with a similar mess, might be worth a call to someone local who knows how to push back on these claims.
 
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