When the cost of repairing a car has gone way above the value of that car then the car is deemed to be a total loss and this sort of claim right here is a bit different from all other minor claims that you are quite familiar with.
How to total a car for insurance is what this article talks about and on the part of the insured, this right here would demand a little bit of effort. There are key things that you need to know when dealing with a car that has been totaled and this article is here to guide you as you read.
How To Total A Car For Insurance
You would need to have a property damage liability if your insurance is going to cover for a total loss and the property damage liability is a must in every state. The surest way that anyone can use in getting payment out of a property damage liability insurance cover is by ensuring that a claim is filed against the property damage liability of the other driver.
This is the most assured and the easiest way that you can get money out of a total loss and you can also run through this with a collision insurance which doesn’t really care who is at fault. If you do not sustain any injuries then you can file a claim against your insurance company as you would do if it was another accident.
This is where a claims adjuster comes in to make an inspection of the vehicle that has been damaged and this is also where the total loss labeling of a vehicle comes in. If the claims adjusters conclusion is the cost of repairing the damages on the vehicle is greater than the actual value of the car then it will be considered as a total loss.
However, if you agree that your car is a total loss then there are quite some things that few insurance companies like the GEICO company would actually require
Removal of personal items and license plates
Giving out the key to the claims adjuster
Turning in additional keys
Filling out of associated paperwork
Contact a leasing company if you lease the car
The quicker you get done with all the things listed above, the smoother and the faster the process would be. After a car has been labeled as a total loss, it is then taken by the insurance company and they are in charge of notifying the DMV that the car has just been totaled. Depending on the state you are, the car might be labeled as a salvage and anyone who is into purchasing of salvage vehicles from insurance companies can come and make a purchase.
However, one other thing that you should know is even after the car has been totaled, you can still decide to keep it. Maybe because you just want to keep it for sentimental purposes or maybe you feel you might want to sell it off yourself. Your insurance company is going to allow it and if you decide to take this option then you should also know that you would not be getting a high payment and GEICO also tells its customers that there are states where drivers are not allowed to keep totaled vehicles.
It is also possible for you to disagree with your vehicle being labeled as a total loss and what you must do from here is providing more documentation which shows that the vehicle in question here worth more than the amount it was previously given. This would however be a nice point for you to hold on to if they initially made a mistake when accounting for the modification of the vehicle. If you also feel like the compensation isn’t good enough then you can take your case to a legal adviser so he could fight for your cause.
If a financed or leased car is totaled, there is still some possibility of getting paid a decent amount of money as compensation. The insurance company is going to pay for the value of your car but you should however bear it in mind that the value of the car must have depreciated and it also would not reflect the original value of the vehicle.
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