If you have been in an auto accident, your insurance company will compare the cost of repairs to the value of your vehicle. If the cost of repair is close to or more than the value, your insurer will declare your vehicle a total loss (or...
This article was co-authored by Clinton M. Sandvick, JD, PhD. Clinton M. Sandvick worked as a civil litigator in California for over 7 years. He received his JD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 and his PhD in American History from the University of Oregon in 2013.
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If you have been in an auto accident, your insurance company will compare the cost of repairs to the value of your vehicle. If the cost of repair is close to or more than the value, your insurer will declare your vehicle a total loss (or "totaled") and compensate you for the value of your vehicle rather than the cost of repairs. The calculations used by auto insurers apply total loss status to a great number of vehicles each year. Whether you think the insurance company has undervalued your car, or you think it still has enough life left to save it, you can take steps to dispute a total loss and hopefully persuade the insurance adjuster to change his or her position.
Call your insurance company. If you can drive your vehicle home, remove it from the scene of the accident first. If your vehicle is inoperable, call your insurance company from the scene. When you call your insurance company to report the accident, a representative will ask you for information, including the year, make, model, and a description of the damage.
The representative will arrange to have your vehicle towed from the scene of the accident, but if your car is likely to be a total loss according to the calculations, your car may be towed directly to a salvage yard to save the insurance company the cost of having to tow the car a from a garage to a salvage yard after the claim is settled.
Wait for a decision. Once your insurance company inspects the car or performs more calculations, they will contact you with their decision. If they deem your car to be totaled, they will offer you a sum of money based on what they believe the car was worth prior to the collision. The insurer will typically ask that you a-sign title to the car to the insurance company when they pay the claim.[1]
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They can then sell the car to a salvage yard to offset their expenses.