My son's '09 was hit on the left front tire area by a Toyota Forerunner. It was a heavy enough impact to push his car sideways about 10 feet and leave debris all over. The airbags did not deploy. He is very fit and was not injured. The other driver made a left turn and just didn't see my son going through the intersection. Allstate, my insurerer, said the other driver was %100 at fault. The car is leased and we put down $5000. The car is about a year old. The damage estimate from Allstate's approved shop is about $15,500. Q: At this point, I would appreciate your thoughts on whether the car should be totaled and if I should ask that it be totaled. I am worried about possible damage to the power batteries or other damage that may not be readily apparent (although the shop says they guarantee their work). Your thoughts appreciated.
Difficult to say but I have seen many posts on here with people who've had all sorts of problems following repair after a heavy accident. There are a few posts of folks with a/c issues following repair and there is the cabbie from Canada who has had no end of trouble with a Prius taxi of his that had been badly damaged and then repaired. Check out his latest post; http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...-buy-another-prius-taxi-nothern-ny-state.html and then check his stats for the history to this issue. I'm not saying you will have the same problems and there are probably lots of repaired Prius out there running fine.
Q: At this point, I would appreciate your thoughts on whether the car should be totaled and if I should ask that it be totaled. I am worried about possible damage to the power batteries or other damage that may not be readily apparent (although the shop says they guarantee their work). Your thoughts appreciated.[/QUOTE] We had our leased 08 Prius T-boned in 2008 in IL. by an unlicenced, undocumented individual who ran a red light in a small truck. Our vehicle was fairly well damaged in the front left and engine compartment. We contacted our British Columbia insurance company who arranged an inspection of the car to confirm that is was totalled. It was! By the time we had returned home 6 days later our Toyota dealer in Nanaimo had the exact same model and color ready for us to drive off the lot. I hope you have the same good luck. Gary
I've had nothing but trouble with Allstate. Your in good hands all right as long as you like to get crushed by them. If the other guy is at fault you should be getting paid by them weather it's subrogated or they just pay you direct. I would DEMAND that they total you car. If not I would hint at getting a lawyer and say gee my son is feeling some pain maybe he should go to a doctor after all to get checked out. Then I bet they can't get you a check for a new Prius fast enough. Remeber all your aggravation costs should add up to a new 2010 Prius.
I would demand a total. Especially since it wasn't your fault. Allstate should go after the other insurance and get them to total it. That would happen in a perfect world. Glad to hear everybody was okay in the accident though.
Get a Lawyer anyway...... It's only going to matters easier to handle.... Rember that insurance companies are looking out for themselves, no matter what the cute and fuzzy commercials say!!!
And lawyers are looking out for their clients. If they make "matters easier to handle" it will be at a price. IF the car is not totaled, you are entitled to diminished value because of the accident. This amount can be significant. If necessary, I will research who I had handle one of these claims. The insurance guy who came to look at the car was a joker. He even drove a Prius, so when he pulled up I thought he would have a bit of understanding. Not so. But in the end, with enough arguing and documentation, I did get the diminished value claim pushed through for about 2/3 of what the independent company said it would be. So even with a lawyer getting me what I deserved, I would have ended up exactly the same. But that was probably just a coincidence. Also, if the car is repaired it may be on a "Salvage Title," which will diminish its resale value significantly.
$15,500 of repairs on a '09 should be well above 80% of the current value (even with the up to $2000 buffer), making it totaled. I wouldn't try to get a new car repaired if it has frame damage.
A quick look at www.kbb.com shows a 2009 with <24000 miles is "worth" $20170. IMO you are very close to a total. The traction battery is behind the rear seats so IMO the batteries aren't damaged. I would expect damage to the coolant system, inverter, transaxle & frame. I would also contact the other insurance company & get an estimate from a Toyota shop. The leasing company or bank owns the car so nothing is going to happen without their approval. Start shoppong for a 2010 at www.aaa.com by building a car & getting up to 3 dealer quotes.
Unfortunately, it is the insurance company, not the owner (leasee or leasor) who determines if the car is totalled. However, even if it isn't and they fix your car perfectly, the accident history will hurt the turn-in value at the end of your lease ("diminished value"). And guess who will get stuck paying for that! Get a lawyer, otherwise you'll have a hard time getting the diminished value payment from the insurance company (they pay your lawyer's fees also).
If the repair is $15,000, the salvage value of the vehicle is about $5000. Therefore, the vehicle will be totaled. The insurance company does what is cheapest for them. If the car is not totaled, you may have the option of setling with the insurance company for the repair cost, and selling the car youself for salvage, pay of the lease, and get a replaement vehicle. Check your lease balance.
+1 on getting it totaled. All the high voltage components are where it was hit. The inverter being the big one. Even the cable going up to the inverter needs to be in tip-top shape to prevent arcing from the high voltages. Because of the impact there, I would total it.
When they start to take the car apart they could easily find more damage. There's no way to know for sure before they do. Yes I do. However, since you only lease it, it is not your car. I would suggest you go back to the dealer and ask for a whole other car, one that has not been wrecked. Yes. The traction battery is in the rear. It probably didn't even notice the crash. However a lot of other stuff is up there in the front. Important and expensive stuff. That would be my concern. That you may keep having mysterious issues that you would repeatedly have to try and "prove" were related to the crash. I'm also thinking that it may be challenging to try and get the crumple zones and unibody straightened out.
If there was no personal injury and they have not yet refused to call it totaled, a lawyer is not necessary. If someone was injured or they expect you to drive around in that vehicle again then call a lawyer. This should cost you nothing out of pocket.
