How do I know if insurance company offer is adequate?

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How do I know if insurance company offer is adequate?

I was hit by a medical transport ambulance while stopped for a bridge opening. He
was cited for following too closely and inattentive driving. My car 2000 infinity i30
has been declared a total loss by their insurance. They are pushing for me to agree
to settle for 2700.00, repair bid is 4600.

Asked on June 4, 2016 under Accident Law, Virginia

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 7 years ago | Contributor

If the other drive (the ambulance driver) was "at fault" (driving carelessly) in hitting you, as it seems he was, you are entitled to the lesser of the repair cost or the then-current fair market value (blue book value); or rather, that's what you'd get if you went to trial and won. Often, you accept less than that if you take a settlement before having to file a lawsuit, because you save on all the costs and time of a lawsuit, making a lesser amount worthwhile.
So if the repair cost is $4,000, but the current fair market value was less than that, they'd only owe you at most the fair market value. If the FMV was, say, $3,600, then if they are offering $2,700, you could hold out for $3,600...but would have to decide whether the time, effort, cost, etc. of a lawsuit is worth the extrra $900.
Note that if your car's FMV was more than $4,000 and the repair cost was $4,000, it should NOT be considered a "total loss"--if it's FMV was, say, $8,000 or more, it clearly should be repaired, not totalled. (Sometime, if the FMV is only a little more than the repair cost, it's still worth totalling, since the uncertainty and effort involved in repairing, plus the resulting reduction in value, makes it more economical to total; but if the value is signficantly more than the repair cost, it should be repaired.)


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