Sorry for your accident. I'm sure most insurance adjusters want to fairly resolve your loss, but some want to do as little as possible. If you have a good adjuster, you'll lose more than you gain by going with legal counsel. $24K sounds like a fair offer in normal times, although these are not normal times for buying a Prius. I've heard insurance is supposed to "make you whole". If you had no fault in the accident, it seems you have some leverage to work with. Be rational and speak with your adjuster with a focus on your goals, not theirs. You might inquire of the adjuster: How do they resolve the sales tax and licensing issues? If you buy another Prius for $24K straight out without a trade-in, seems like there's some serious sales tax. Will they provide a lease car until you are "made whole"? If you had no fault, why would you pay any deductible? Maybe something unique to your state? What happens if your back starts hurting, or some other hidden injury pops up for you or your passenger while the car value is being debated? Seems like the stress of not having your Prius could trigger some injury to surface. Draw attention to the fact that the longer the debate goes on, the more likely the costs will rise. The part about never paying you more than you paid for the car seems like something the adjuster believes, but if you get an attorney and the insurance company loses, they'll pay a lot more than what your car cost new. It's in everyone's best interest to find common ground quickly. If you have no fault in the accident, you have good positioning to get a fair settlement. Good Luck
As someone who work in the auto industry, I HIGHLY recommend you keep the Prius, take the insurance company's payout, fix it on your own, and re-register it as a salvaged vehicle. Did you know that "totaling" cars unecessarily is a huge portion of an insurance company's profit? They total it, take possession of it, fix it, and resell it. They know a 900 mile Prius is worth a lot. Don't give it to them - they are *aching* to get their hands on your Prius. Take their money, fix it on your own, and keep it. You will have to re-register it as salvaged and your lender (if you have one) can help you do it.
they should be paying you "fair market value" which almost never has anything to do with what you paid for it....lucky for you its a Prius, so it should be more. i had a 2004 pak 1...after taxes, license, etc... out the door cost was about $22,100... drove it 25 months, put 30,000 miles on it and it was totaled. the other insurance company paid my $23,800 simply because it was the last month before the tax credit was cut in half (sept 2006) and Pri's were in demand because of that so the market was inflated... (well then again, used Pri's were just as inflated so maybe it had nothing to do with the tax credit)
I work for an insurance company, they are supposed to pay you Fair Market Value, not what you paid for the car. Tell that adjuster that it looks like they will have to pay for your rental car for the 3 or 4 months while you wait on a waiting list for a Prius for $24,000 OTD. at $30 a day x 100 days = $3000
Any update? And why is it just your insurance that is dealing with all this? The other driver's insurance co. should already have you in a rental- and you stay in that rental til you get an equivalent Prius for the money you are paid.
Insurance companies don't fix wrecked cars. They sell them at auction. That's why most of the time you have the option of buying the totaled car back. If they were just going to fix it and sell it themselves they would never let anyone buy it from them.
Insurance companies will only give yu fair market value. Find a used Prius, Tons of them out there on lots waiting to be purchased.
