Negotiating total loss settlement on truck with mods

You can have the vehicle inspected. In WA state you can even choose the shop you go to. I would avoid going to your own insurance co for an evaluation, they don’t make money by paying out

 

I’m not a lawyer, but using common sense, when you purchase insurance, your premium is based on the value of what you are insuring. If you later increase the value of your asset and do not inform the insurance company, they are under no obligation to insure the added value.

 

I work for a major auto insurance company and would never insure with who I work for.

I have and I love Amica. 2 cars, homeowners, umbrella with them. I would do life but I am basically uninsurable at this point unless I pay big.

I will mention everyone craps on insurance companies but don’t forget the states DOI basically write the policy’s and the companies then make changes they are allowed to. Then it is a crap shoot on the quality of the adjuster you get.

 

I went through this in November.... good luck. Like others have said, unless you had aftermarket parts coverage you are basically SOL. I was stonewalled by my insurance and finally gave up because it was seriously affecting my mental health. I had a 2017 TRD offroad premium 2wd. Had katzkins, MX4 bakflip tonneau, brand new wildpeaks, side steps... insurance basically gave me generic upgrades for all of these items. bakflip? $300. Leather seats, worth $150. They tried to compare my truck to base model offroads. Their calculations for mileage didnt make any sense, their comps don't make any sense... they asked me to write an email with my requests and they ignored my email. I went through 3 adjusters, every one acted like they cared, and then as soon as I sent my detailed info with pricing/photos/invoices they just ignored me. They offered me $30k after tax, I was able to get them to $32k. I tried for $34k and it was useless. I did only pay $30k with tax and put 60k miles on it... so I came out on top, but man they made me feel like a psycho the way they gas lighted me. I walked away with $15k in cash after I paid my truck off. I ended up $4500 out of pocket to get into a 2022 lunar rock offroad with tech package and 4wd which was my ultimate goal. Good luck to you, you're better off trying to pull after market parts off the truck if they will let you and you are able to.

 

Which insurance company?

 

it depends on the state. I'm in fl which is a no fault state. (I posted #67 in here with what happened) but my truck was totaled and I had to go through my insurance. I was rear ended at 65mph, and 60 days after my insurance paid me out I got a letter from her insurance telling me to go through my insurance... thanks guys glad I didn't wait! Insurance is tough right now because car values are so high they do not want to help out much

 

I had Liberty Mutual. The woman who hit me (rear ended me on the freeway doing 65ish while I was stopped in traffic) had geico. I'm in FL which is a no fault, sue happy, low insured, high fraud state. I cancelled with Liberty Mutual the day I got my 2022 tacoma and moved my wife and I over to State Farm. I didn't have a local agent, I had just signed up online... I have a local agent with state farm. At least I have a real person who has a financial interest in my happiness now.

 

With new car inventory and prices where they're at I think you did alright for the $4500 out of pocket. A fresh start too. I could share stories about a few different insurance companies I've had over the years. Most are great until you need them.

 

Thanks to those who posted useful feedback. There's no personal injury claim. Just negotiating the total loss settlement with my insurance company who will in turn seek reimbursement from the at fault party's insurance. The bummer is that the truck looks pretty damn good but took irreparable frame damage

 

yea in the end it worked out great. For the 3-4 months I was trying to get paid, find a truck, deal with rental car prices while trying to be patient... it was hell. But I always knew it would be worth it in the long run. The woman that hit me had basic coverage as well of course... luckily I have uninsured motorist coverage, and being in FL and still having neck pain, I'll be seeing my old insurance again

 

OP please be sure to follow up on how this works out, so others here can lean and make their own decision as to separately insure their aftermarket doodads.
Good luck!

 

Auto adjuster here.

Modifications to a vehicle are considered property damage just like the vehicle. However when dealing with an accident that is not your fault you are left to deal with the other parties property damage limits, and most states its $25k minimum and most people carry minimum.

You need to carry underinsured and uninsured motorists coverages so you can tap your own policies for property damage that exceeds the other carriers limits. However not all states allow UMPD or uninsured/underinsured property damage coverages (Missouri is one state that comes to mind). So in those cases you need to talk to your insurance about carrying exclusive policies that cover your mods.

Also make sure your own coverages cover your ass. Make sure you have collision and comp coverage, with rental, and tow, and underinsured/uninsured motorists policies.

But you MUST have added coverages on your policy to cover full property damage of modifications for an accident that is your fault.

Every state is different.

I just dealt with a Tacoma total loss and cut checks for full property damage value on mods (about $15k). You have coverages, you prove damage and value, I cut you a check. That simple. My hands are only tied if you don’t have adequate coverage.

 

For anyone interested in the outcome- the settlement wound up being approx. $46k after a couple of weeks of negotiating.
Rundown: In 2019 bought a new Tacoma TRD Off Road in California, wound up being about $50k out the door. Put over $10k into it (conservative estimate) for cheap spacer type lift, BFGs, Icon compression wheels, C4 fab hybrid front bumper, pro grill, flowmaster, sub & amp, Prinsu rack & baja designs light bar and fog lights, tints... that's all I remember right now. Total loss was in Oregon and wound up w/ $46k and change. Truck had about 50k miles. Ultimately it ended up being a bit of a loss since I couldn't snag the Prinsu rack or other parts I had into it. Just bought a new 2022 Tacoma TRD Off Road from the dealer for just over $40k out the door (no sales tax in Oregon). So I fared OK. Happy to help anyone going through the process themselves