Repair Or Replace Car After Accident – How Insurers Determine Next Step

In this article, we would be discussing how insurance company determine if you repair or replace car after accident but one thing we want you to know is that this is only of importance to you if you are not at fault for the accident. It is also applicable to you if you have taken out replacement or collision value insurance.

You would be insured against civil liability alone if you are at fault for the accident and you would also be required to pay for all damages that comes up. The first question here is what is replacement value?

When someone else is at fault for your involvement in a car accident, the person is the one to cover up for all of your expenses and this also means paying for any injuries sustained to your body and also paying for compensation that your vehicle must have suffered.

What this simply means is that the driver at fault or in more clearer words, the insurance company of the driver at fault is going to bear the cost for the body injuries and also for the cost of repairing or replacing your vehicle.

Replacement Value?

The term replacement value simply means coverage that offers extra protection against the damages done to your vehicle or any of its parts if your vehicle ends up getting repaired or replaced. The explanations that comes below helps in providing more insight on replacement value relating to repairing or replacing a car after the car has just been involved in a car accident.

Repair Or Replace Car After Accident

One question that you might be asking yourself right now is how possible is it for insurers to tell if a vehicle should be repaired or if it should be replaced. This is a very easy thing to ascertain because if the total estimate that would be used in repairing your vehicle is greater than the value of the vehicle itself then the vehicle definitely needs to be replaced. The same rule applies if you vehicle has been labeled a total loss but you would not lose your vehicle, instead you would be paid financial compensation that would amount to the present value of the vehicle as at the time of the accident.

If you have a 43D replacement value then you are going to receive cash compensation value that would be equivalent to that of a new vehicle but if your insurance has a 43E replacement value then your vehicle would get replaced with a similar vehicle. Your vehicle will be repaired if your insurance company determines that it can be restored to the condition it was in before the accident. However, it is the duty of your insurer to make sure that your vehicle is certified safe right after repairs but it doesn’t hold the power to say your vehicle should be repaired using refurbished parts. This is because new vehicles lose their initial values quickly.

If your insurance has a 43A replacement value coverage then you would have your vehicle repaired using new parts but the case is very different if your insurance has a 43B replacement coverage. If your insurance contains a 43B replacement coverage then your vehicle would be repaired using new parts but only if it is difficult to get the used parts. During the event of a car accident, getting to replace the vehicle or repairing it should be done using a product that is more recent.

This is very important because it helps to improve your vehicle but you should also know that you would be billed by the insurer because of this improvement. If you have a replacement value coverage then you have absolutely nothing to be worried about because the bill would not be on you.