Legal Question in Insurance Law in Missouri

Help! They are trying to Total my car!

I was rear ended by a 16 year old and am trying to deal with his auto insurance company. The company is trying to Total my car. The car sustained only a slightly bent bumper and I am still driving it. They want to only give me $988.00 and total the car. I can buy it back as salvaged title, therefore they want to send me a total check for $744.00. My question is, since I have found a place that will repair my auto for $980.00, can I have the right to stand my ground and have the insurance company pay me the $980.00 AND not TOTAL my car? I thought the law is that they must put my car back to the way it was before the accident. Totaling my car is in no way putting my car back to the value it was.


Asked on 10/11/02, 4:17 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Richard McLeod McLeod & Heinrichs

Re: Help! They are trying to Total my car!

Welcome to dealing with insurors. They can't dictate the terms, but if you don't cave to them they can force you to sue them, and of course for $980 you can't afford to hire a lawyer. Catch 22.

The law is this: the person who damaged your property owes you the difference in value before and after the accident. If it is a total loss, it is the value beforehand. If not a total loss, repair cost is some evidence of the loss in value, but is not determinative. We all know of cases where the repair cost could be thousands, and the value of the car was far less than that.

So I'd send the insuror the estimate and ask for that amount, but be prepared to take less. They know that they can wait you out.

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Answered on 10/11/02, 4:34 pm


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