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Prius 2010 in Collision

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by erinmck32, Oct 12, 2009.

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  1. erinmck32

    erinmck32 New Member

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    Hey Everyone!

    My husband, our month-old son, and I were in a collision in our BRAND NEW (1,000 miles) Prius 2010 yesterday. A young lady failed to stop at a stop sign and collided with our rear driver side as we were traveling about 57 mph down a state route. Luckily, there were no cars traveling the opposite direction of us, and no one involved was injured.

    The other good news for Prius owners is that an EMT on the scene told us Toyotas in general, and our Prius specifically, handled the collision very well.

    Here's my question: Do any of you have any experience and could you offer your opinion about whether our car might be totaled? I know we will find this out in time, but we're fretting as we just spent so much money (for us) on a brand new car, and we will basically refuse to accept a "fixed" new car as a result of this, even if it means taking it to court ... We certainly hope that will not be the case.

    The front is crashed into from when we skidded across the road and ran into the embankment. The driver side is completely screwed up, both doors. The back bumper is messed up. Additionally, our tires can't be unscathed because they skidded quite a ways across the road. All but two of the car's airbags deployed. (SEE PICS)

    I've heard the Priuses, as with other hybrids, are sometimes more expensive than most cars to repair. I've been reading up on what % repair cost it takes for an insurance agency to decide to total the car. We have Nationwide, the driver at fault has Grange.

    So far, our insurance company is being evasive, although it's early in the procedure.

    Anyone had a remotely similar experience or can lend your advice / opinion?

    Thanks!

    Sad way to find out about this forum and join it!

    Best,

    Erin
     

    Attached Files:

    #1 erinmck32, Oct 12, 2009
  2. garygid

    garygid Senior Member - Blizzard Pearl

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    Looks like a Total to me - probable frame damage?
    But, I am not an expert.
    Your insurance people should be able to tell you quickly, I think.
     
    #2 garygid, Oct 12, 2009
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  3. erinmck32

    erinmck32 New Member

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    Okay, thanks for the opinion! Crashes are never good -- but especially with a brand new car that you love (and thinking about what could have happened to your new baby, etc.)! We are eager to start shopping for our next one, since they are currently so hard to find at the dealers. I'll post when we find out what the agency has to say.
     
    #3 erinmck32, Oct 12, 2009
  4. DonDNH

    DonDNH Senior Member

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    Glad no one is hurt. Yes, Toyota's are pretty safe.

    With the amount of visible damage, I'd hope that my insurance company would total it. Several years ago, I was hit on the passenger's side rear quarter panel. After repair, the car just never drove right even after several trips back to the dealer that did the repair work.
     
    #4 DonDNH, Oct 12, 2009
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  5. pinzvidz

    pinzvidz Junior Member

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    The main thing here, everyone got out with little or no injury. Damage doesn't look serious, but with LH side airbags and front airbags deployed, that could be enough to warrant a write-off...
     
    #5 pinzvidz, Oct 12, 2009
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  6. erinmck32

    erinmck32 New Member

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    Thanks, Don. Yes, that is my concern ... We bought the car new because we wanted something safe and reliable. Even if the best mechanic on the planet were to fix our car, we would never have the peace of mind. Maybe irrational, but I think it's something most people can understand. Plus, if anything were to go wrong down the line, I'd always suspect it was a result of the crash.
     
    #6 erinmck32, Oct 12, 2009
  7. erinmck32

    erinmck32 New Member

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    Yes, I've heard airbags alone can be quite pricey to replace. We'll see how everything pans out!
     
    #7 erinmck32, Oct 12, 2009
  8. ceric

    ceric New Member

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    My niece was hit at an intersection. Both vehicles just started to move (therefore, low speed). Her Civic was hit on the rear right door and quarter panel. The damage was much less than yours. And, yet, it was declared totalled by the insurance company of the offender.

    "Toyotas in general, and our Prius specifically, handled the collision very well."
    For the price point of a Toyota, yes. However, if a Prius hits a BMW-3 head-on, I am not so sure that Prius will do better than a BMW-3.

    Glad that everyone is OK. Side curtain airbag probably saved the driver from a concussion.
     
    #8 ceric, Oct 12, 2009
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  9. adamace1

    adamace1 Senior Member

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    Glad everyone is ok. My guess is it wont be a total, But thats just my guess. And i wouldn't worry to much if a Toyota dealer fixes it, you trusted them the first time, i'm sure they would do a god job.

    I got to thinking I didn't consider the cost of the air bags/sensors ect.. so i might be wrong.
     
    #9 adamace1, Oct 12, 2009
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  10. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    Glad also that everyone is OK, though you all might consider an evaluation. Whiplash can come back to haunt later.

    With that said, I have seem some insurance companies come within a couple of thousand dollars of the new price and still proceed with the repairs. A few thousand here and there really adds up quick for them. Don't mean to be a downer.

    Peter
     
    #10 spiderman, Oct 12, 2009
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  11. Mitchellsprius

    Mitchellsprius New Member

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    Looks totaled to me, too many areas damaged. May depend on your insurance company and since the car is worth so much. My guess totaled.
     
    #11 Mitchellsprius, Oct 12, 2009
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  12. Econ

    Econ Member

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    Agree, the air bags are a lot of $ and the frame my be bent. You should hear from the insurance company soon.
    Good Luck
     
    #12 Econ, Oct 12, 2009
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  13. erinmck32

    erinmck32 New Member

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    I appreciate everyone's input so far! Thank you very much. As I mentioned earlier, I'll post the outcome when we find out ... Hopefully none of you will ever need the information, but you never know!
     
    #13 erinmck32, Oct 12, 2009
  14. philobeddoe

    philobeddoe ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

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    glad to hear no one was hurt

    your insurance adjuster will know better than anyone if it's a total, but a brand new car with only 1000 miles, you're better off letting this one go and getting a replacement

    fwiw, i was rear ended last weekend, and my Prius has but a dimple and scratches on the bumper, yet hardy old me spent the night in the hospital

    i cannot believe how well these little cars absorb and transfer energy
    great design

    i'd love to see a thread of Prius collision photos

    it's certainly a selling point and a welcome pleasant surprise for me
     
    #14 philobeddoe, Oct 12, 2009
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  15. tpfun

    tpfun New Member

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    Wow, just a couple feet to the front and the outcome would have been totally different for the worse.
     
    #15 tpfun, Oct 12, 2009
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  16. G3priusV

    G3priusV Member

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    It is heart breaking to see your husband and baby's picture next to your ruined car! But I'm so glad that all of you guys are okay! But it is better for all of you to get checked up as you may wake up with a horrible pain of whiplash next morning/s. Anyway, for your car, it does look like totaled! If not, have your adjuster consider as totaled even the repair cost is less than the value! Before that, work very closely with the shop estimator, call him or visit him just about everyday you can! Because when my car got in a colision, at first the insurance company's preferred shop estimater came up with about $2000-4000 less repair cost than the car's market value and then I told him 'Just consider it as totalled otherwise I'll come back to you everytime I hear/ see something wrong with the car in the future in which after he told to the adjuster to total the car! :) That way you don't have to deal with a repaired car which can't ever be same as a new car! And on the other hand I'm sure your insurance company can make some money as they salvage/sell your car's undamaged parts!
     
    #16 G3priusV, Oct 13, 2009
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  17. G3priusV

    G3priusV Member

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    Oh just to add another thing, hope you guys have a gap insurance that can completely pay off what you owe on the car after your insurance company pays the market value of the car! Good luck and wish you and your family the best! :)
     
    #17 G3priusV, Oct 13, 2009
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  18. octavia

    octavia Active Member

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    glad everyone ( except the new car) are OK.

    I'll repeat the bit about getting checked out. I was in an accident years ago that I walked away from and thought I was fine, only to find later that I have a chipped vertebrae and that I now have considerable chronic pain flair ups from. The medical and insurance folks involved did not offer to x ray me and I was to young to realize I needed to insist.

    fingers and toes crossed that you get what you need from the insurance company!
     
    #18 octavia, Oct 13, 2009
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  19. exbauer

    exbauer Active Member

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    yikes sorry to hear about this. glad to see everybody involved are okay. from the looks of the picture the prius should be totaled. i hope they do.
     
    #19 exbauer, Oct 13, 2009
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  20. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Glad everyone's safe and sound! By the looks of it (visible damage), I'd say it's a write-off (we don't know how much internal damage there is) but two bumpers, two doors and 5 airbags is quite a bit to replace (not to mention all the smaller bits like the rims or the suspension)
     
    #20 Tideland Prius, Oct 13, 2009
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