TVR generally - When is a car an insurance write-off?

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
View Threaded
Fri 7 Jan 2011 11:28
TVR generally - When is a car an insurance write-off? - Stephen H

Can anyone help me with a question about insurance write-offs?

A few weeks ago I skidded and crashed my cherished 1993 TVR Chimaera into a wall at about 20mph. The damage to the front end split the firbe glass nose, headlights & wings. Fortunately no damage to the chassis or engine.

I got aquote from the body shop that my TVR dealer recommended which came out at £6k + £1k VAT - total £7k. The insurance company sent an Assessor to look at the car (unfortunately I was not there at the time) He reported back that the car was only worth £6.5k and was not worth repairing.

However I found out that his valuation was based on a mileage of 71,000 miles - where as my car has actually only done 17,000 miles. MOTs & full service history verify this

The insurance co has said they will ask him to revise his assessment of the value - but said that it would have to be over £12k before they would consider doing the repairs.

Is this normal for insurers to expect the value to be so much in excess of the repair cost? Any suggestions as to what I should do?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 7 Jan 2011 12:57
TVR generally - When is a car an insurance write-off? - Andy P

The insurance company will declare a car a write-off if the repair cost is close to or more than the car is worth.

A '93 4.0 Chimera with 33k on the clock is would cost around £8000 from a dealer, which is perilously close to the repair cost, hence the declaration.

What you could do is see if you can get panels from somewhere like this:

www.b-link.co.uk/tet/tvr-chimaera.php

see what cash settlement the insurance company is prepared to offer, buy the car off them and get it repaired yourself.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 7 Jan 2011 20:12
TVR generally - When is a car an insurance write-off? - LucyBC
It's your car and you can decide what happens to it.

Agree an acceptable value with the insurer less the excess and what they could obtain for the salvage and get them to send you payment.

Then get it repaired yourself using a supplier like AndyP suggests and a reasonably priced specialist repairer.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

We give you the low down on how to save on insurance, little-known tricks and tips, what insurance groups mean and how to use insurance aggregators to beat insurers.

Insurance group finder and how to save on insurance

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide