Car insurance question

[JoeFerguson]

My 2003 Honda Civic was pelted yesterday with golf ball size hail stones. It has a whole bunch of dents on the roof, hood, and trunk door. I have comprehensive coverage with Geico and a $500 deductible. If I do file a claim and get it fixed, how much will my rate go up?

 

I'm thinking it's not even worth it to get fixed, simply because I don't want to pay $500 for a purely cosmetic repair.

[eSJayDee]

Since you haven't had any responses yet, I'll provide something similar that happened to me about 10 yrs ago.

 

1st, IANAIA (I am not an insurance agent).

 

I was driving & got hit on the top of the hood w/ a (apparently quite large) rock that left a very bad dent/mark. (Even called the police to see if there was any rpts of kids throwing rocks as I couldn't figure where it came from).

 

It was a new (leased) car & I had the same concern as you. Insurance agent (State Farm) said it wouldn't raise my rates (covered under comp, which IIRC, meant I paid nothing) but seemed to imply that were I to have another claim that it would make it more likely that my rates would go up.

 

But since it's an older car, if you don't think it's even worth your $500 deductible to repair, why bother unless you're intending to sell the car soon?

[stuckincincy]

My 2003 Honda Civic was pelted yesterday with golf ball size hail stones. It has a whole bunch of dents on the roof, hood, and trunk door. I have comprehensive coverage with Geico and a $500 deductible. If I do file a claim and get it fixed, how much will my rate go up?

 

I'm thinking it's not even worth it to get fixed, simply because I don't want to pay $500 for a purely cosmetic repair.

 

File a claim. Given the age of the vehicle, and especially the very high repair cost of cutting off and replacing a roof outer skin, as well as the cost of a new hood and deck lid...the vehicle may well be totaled out.

 

I can't speak for Geico, but years ago I got run off the road driving a 1 year old Ford Tempo. I lost $$$ overall, of course - but it was totaled because of the torn-up bodywork and the payout was reduced a couple of thousand because I kept the vehicle. It was drivable, and I eventually sold it and recovered that few thousand. There was no rate increase.

 

In any event, if you don't care to get it fixed if it's not totaled, merely return the repair check to Geico.

[stevestojan]

The answer is... depends. If you're in one of our better companies, haven't had too many incidents (tickets/accidents) you should be ok.

 

What I would do is go get an estimate through GEICO. If its a huge amount over your deductible (you'd be surprised how many cars are totaled out with nothing more than hail damage), why wouldn't you file? Hell, you can even file and keep the car if you want (GEICO -- and any insurance company -- will take some $ out for salvage, basically meaning they are not giving you the money they could have sold it for had they sold it at auction or for parts - yours being "fairly" new might have a larger salvage value; less money for you) If its just a bit over, you may want to save your cash.

[ofiba]

What are you paying the insurance for if you aren't going to use it? Run it into a tree first to really get your money's worth.

[stevestojan]

By the way, I just want to be clear in that you are actually considering driving around in a car with dozens of golf ball sized dents in it?

[stuckincincy]

By the way, I just want to be clear in that you are actually considering driving around in a car with dozens of golf ball sized dents in it?

 

Such does happen. Several years ago, a local VW dealership east of me had its' lot pummeled. They fixed the glass, cleaned up the interior etc., and sold them at huge discount.

 

Something like 20 years ago, BMW's and Nissan's east coast ports of entry had thousands of vehicles get their paint finishes ruined by a ship blowing out its stack (illegally) close to shore.

 

Also sold at very deep discount - no shortage of buyers, either.

[JoeFerguson]

The answer is... depends. If you're in one of our better companies, haven't had too many incidents (tickets/accidents) you should be ok.

 

What I would do is go get an estimate through GEICO. If its a huge amount over your deductible (you'd be surprised how many cars are totaled out with nothing more than hail damage), why wouldn't you file? Hell, you can even file and keep the car if you want (GEICO -- and any insurance company -- will take some $ out for salvage, basically meaning they are not giving you the money they could have sold it for had they sold it at auction or for parts - yours being "fairly" new might have a larger salvage value; less money for you) If its just a bit over, you may want to save your cash.

 

First, to clarify, the dents aren't golf ball size. You don't really notice them until you look closely at the car. Second of all, the car was in great condition to this prior, has about 62k of miles and is completely paid off. I had every intention of driving this thing until it needs to be junked. This is strictly due to the frugal lifestyle that I choose to live.

 

I have never received any speeding tickets and have never filed an insurance claim in my entire life. I take those stupid driver safety courses every three years to get the extra discount. I'm imagining that I'm in the better category. So to clarify, are you saying I can get an estimate and file a claim and NOT have my car fixed but still keep the cash that Geico was going to give me? And by "totaling out", are you saying that Geico would determine that they owed me whatever the car was worth, or what it would cost to repair? So I could pay my $500 deductible, not have my car fixed, and still have Geico cut me a check for ~$11,000 minus salvage value? What the heck would the catch be then? My insurance rates would HAVE to go up, right?

[stuckincincy]

First, to clarify, the dents aren't golf ball size. You don't really notice them until you look closely at the car. Second of all, the car was in great condition to this prior, has about 62k of miles and is completely paid off. I had every intention of driving this thing until it needs to be junked. This is strictly due to the frugal lifestyle that I choose to live.

 

I have never received any speeding tickets and have never filed an insurance claim in my entire life. I take those stupid driver safety courses every three years to get the extra discount. I'm imagining that I'm in the better category. So to clarify, are you saying I can get an estimate and file a claim and NOT have my car fixed but still keep the cash that Geico was going to give me? And by "totaling out", are you saying that Geico would determine that they owed me whatever the car was worth, or what it would cost to repair? So I could pay my $500 deductible, not have my car fixed, and still have Geico cut me a check for ~$11,000 minus salvage value? What the heck would the catch be then? My insurance rates would HAVE to go up, right?

 

Joe - no 2003 Civic has a market value of 11K. Unless it was a museum piece with a thousand miles on it and somehow there was some pathologic Civic lover out there that just had to have it.

[stevestojan]

First, to clarify, the dents aren't golf ball size. You don't really notice them until you look closely at the car. Second of all, the car was in great condition to this prior, has about 62k of miles and is completely paid off. I had every intention of driving this thing until it needs to be junked. This is strictly due to the frugal lifestyle that I choose to live.

 

I have never received any speeding tickets and have never filed an insurance claim in my entire life. I take those stupid driver safety courses every three years to get the extra discount. I'm imagining that I'm in the better category. So to clarify, are you saying I can get an estimate and file a claim and NOT have my car fixed but still keep the cash that Geico was going to give me? And by "totaling out", are you saying that Geico would determine that the owed me whatever the car was worth? So I could pay my $500 deductible, not have my car fixed, and still have Geico cut me a check for ~$11,000 minus salvage value? What the heck would the catch be then? My insurance rates would HAVE to go up, right?

 

This would ONLY be if the car was considered a total loss. Generally, that is when the damage is 75% or more of the value of the car.

 

There is no catch. You are being indemnified (brought back to the same condition you were before you were involved in the loss). This is the point of insurance. You are losing out because your car is no longer worth much, and you get a check to fix that. If you don't use it to fix your car, your car is still worth far less.

 

Now, if you are financing, which you just said you weren't, you have no choice, the check is actually made out to you and the lienholder. (Well, you still have a choice, but now the lienholder has endorsed the check and if you don't fix the car, you're f---d when you go turn it back in)

 

Now, let's say GEICO says the vehicle is worth $10,000, but it is totaled. At auction (salvage), GEICO estimates they can get $3500 for it.

 

If you give GEICO the car, you get $10,000. If you keep it, you get $6,500 (minus deductible).

 

Even if it's not totaled, no one puts a gun to your head to use the check for your car (unless, again, you're financing), but why wouldn't you use it for that? Your car is damaged. You've been paying for insurance forever, and if you used the money for something else, you car is still damaged.

 

Imagine if you house was damaged due to the October Storm. When you get your check, you could of course waste it on something, but your house still has a leaky roof

[stevestojan]

First, to clarify, the dents aren't golf ball size. You don't really notice them until you look closely at the car. Second of all, the car was in great condition to this prior, has about 62k of miles and is completely paid off. I had every intention of driving this thing until it needs to be junked. This is strictly due to the frugal lifestyle that I choose to live.

 

I have never received any speeding tickets and have never filed an insurance claim in my entire life. I take those stupid driver safety courses every three years to get the extra discount. I'm imagining that I'm in the better category. So to clarify, are you saying I can get an estimate and file a claim and NOT have my car fixed but still keep the cash that Geico was going to give me? And by "totaling out", are you saying that Geico would determine that they owed me whatever the car was worth, or what it would cost to repair? So I could pay my $500 deductible, not have my car fixed, and still have Geico cut me a check for ~$11,000 minus salvage value? What the heck would the catch be then? My insurance rates would HAVE to go up, right?

 

FYI, you don't "pay" a deductible. That is just the amount taken out of the check before we pay you. If the car is repairable, its the amount you pay to the body shop. In a Total loss claim, its just taken off the check settlement.

[JoeFerguson]

Joe - no 2003 Civic has a market value of 11K. Unless it was a museum piece with a thousand miles on it and somehow there was some pathologic Civic lover out there that just had to have it.

 

I realize this was a generous estimate. But how does an insurance company determine what a car is worth?

 

This would ONLY be if the car was considered a total loss. Generally, that is when the damage is 75% or more of the value of the car.

 

There is no catch. You are being indemnified (brought back to the same condition you were before you were involved in the loss). This is the point of insurance. You are losing out because your car is no longer worth much, and you get a check to fix that. If you don't use it to fix your car, your car is still worth far less.

 

Now, if you are financing, which you just said you weren't, you have no choice, the check is actually made out to you and the lienholder. (Well, you still have a choice, but now the lienholder has endorsed the check and if you don't fix the car, you're f---d when you go turn it back in)

 

Now, let's say GEICO says the vehicle is worth $10,000, but it is totaled. At auction (salvage), GEICO estimates they can get $3500 for it.

 

If you give GEICO the car, you get $10,000. If you keep it, you get $6,500 (minus deductible).

 

Even if it's not totaled, no one puts a gun to your head to use the check for your car (unless, again, you're financing), but why wouldn't you use it for that? Your car is damaged. You've been paying for insurance forever, and if you used the money for something else, you car is still damaged.

 

Imagine if you house was damaged due to the October Storm. When you get your check, you could of course waste it on something, but your house still has a leaky roof

 

Thank you stoj and stuck. I am doubting that it is a total loss, but I will not know unless I get an estimate. I will do that and then make a decision. Why wouldn't I use the check for my car? Because the damage is strictly cosmetic. It is not affecting the performance of my car. You would get it fixed. If my car was newer I probably would too. But at this point if I can get a few bucks out of this I will use it toward something more practical, like paying off other debt. Thanks again for the advice.

[stuckincincy]

I realize this was a generous estimate. But how does an insurance company determine what a car is worth?

 

 

 

Thank you stoj and stuck. I am doubting that it is a total loss, but I will not know unless I get an estimate. I will do that and then make a decision. Why wouldn't I use the check for my car? Because the damage is strictly cosmetic. It is not affecting the performance of my car. You would get it fixed. If my car was newer I probably would too. But at this point if I can get a few bucks out of this I will use it toward something more practical, like paying off other debt. Thanks again for the advice.

 

 

I think it will be totaled as Steve suggests.

 

Body repair and re-painting isn't cheap. The hood and deck lid will have to be replaced. Dents in the sheet metal above the structural stampings on those parts can't be hammered out. Well, they can - but it would take a lot of labor by a really skilled craftsman who would drill and pull the dents up, then fill in the remaining incongruities with lead and/or pewter. The various organic resins do a good job, but eventually they fail for several reasons. The number of folks that still have skills working and repairing body metal with pewter and lead is few. So it's a part replacement these days.

 

The roof outer skin will have to be replaced. That's cutting, re-welding, prime and topcoat painting, and a whole lot of trim disassembly and reassembly. A very major undertaking.

 

If you don't mind the cosmetic damage, take the settlement minus the salvage deduction and continue to drive the vehicle.

 

And it wasn't a crash that caused the loss. I doubt your claim would raise rates.

[jester43]

My 2003 Honda Civic was pelted yesterday with golf ball size hail stones. It has a whole bunch of dents on the roof, hood, and trunk door. I have comprehensive coverage with Geico and a $500 deductible. If I do file a claim and get it fixed, how much will my rate go up?

 

I'm thinking it's not even worth it to get fixed, simply because I don't want to pay $500 for a purely cosmetic repair.

same thing happened to my 02 mini a couple years ago. there were 4-5 dozen dings and a smashed windshield. the insurance took care of it with a new hood, roof and fenders and paint job. the car looked so brand new that i turned around and sold it for almost what i had paid for it. my rates did not go up a dime because it was not my fault.

 

ps...it took them a week to do the work, because they do have to take the car completely apart, but my insurance also got me $$ toward a rental car.

 

 

of course i had just SWITCHED to horace mann from geico. good luck.

[Bmwolf21]

By the way, I just want to be clear in that you are actually considering driving around in a car with dozens of golf ball sized dents in it?

Maybe he was going to get a bunch of those bullet-hole stickers and make it look like he was driving through a shootout...

[Stussy109]

Joe - no 2003 Civic has a market value of 11K. Unless it was a museum piece with a thousand miles on it and somehow there was some pathologic Civic lover out there that just had to have it.

 

LOL thats what I was thinking.

[The Tomcat]

My 2003 Honda Civic was pelted yesterday with golf ball size hail stones. It has a whole bunch of dents on the roof, hood, and trunk door. I have comprehensive coverage with Geico and a $500 deductible. If I do file a claim and get it fixed, how much will my rate go up?

 

I'm thinking it's not even worth it to get fixed, simply because I don't want to pay $500 for a purely cosmetic repair.

 

That claim by itself will not hurt you. If you have a few more "incidence's" it may.

 

It is your right NOT to get it fixed. If its a $1000 repair and they pay you $500 it doesn't have to be repaired. That being said. The check may not be made to you. It might be made to the repair shop. It all depends on the company. But to answer your ? That by itself will NOT hurt you. (its under $1000 as well) but too many of those don't look good for you.

 

1 more thing. Just because someone else had something happen to them doesn't mean you'll be treated the same way. There are SO many variables in auto insurance that each case is different. Get the estimate and we'll deal in facts, not hypotheticals.....

[loyal2dagame]

all claims hurt your rates now as insurance companies have changed from merit based pricing to credit based pricing. it is not going to impact your rate as drastically as if you rear-ended another car, but it WILL eventually cause a rate adjustment when your policy is re-scored by the insurance co.(usually every annual renewal or every 3rd year renewal depending on the company)

[stevestojan]

all claims hurt your rates now as insurance companies have changed from merit based pricing to credit based pricing. it is not going to impact your rate as drastically as if you rear-ended another car, but it WILL eventually cause a rate adjustment when your policy is re-scored by the insurance co.(usually every annual renewal or every 3rd year renewal depending on the company)

 

This is just 100% BS. Is there a small possibility it will effect his rates? Perhaps, if he has recently filed a large number of claims, had several tickets, etc, this could be the straw that breaks the camels back, so to speak. But to say this WILL cause a rate adjustment is nonsense without knowing any other factors.

[Ramius]

Something like 20 years ago, BMW's and Nissan's east coast ports of entry had thousands of vehicles get their paint finishes ruined by a ship blowing out its stack (illegally) close to shore.

 

Also sold at very deep discount - no shortage of buyers, either.

 

My girl's mom can get you a brand new fully loaded Nissan Pathfinder for waaaay below sticker price. They literally have like 50 miles on them. The cause of the price drop? They were used in a bank robbery and are considered "stolen." The thieves stole the cars from the dealer lot, drove 10 miles up the road, robbed the bank, and then ditched the vehicles about 10 miles further down the road. Police recovered them and returned them to the dealer, with essentially zero harm done to them.