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1991 Firebird Crisis

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hionspeed:
I know I should lurk before I type, but I don't have much time. My beautiful girl (1991 Firebird) was in a car accident and her rear fender was damaged. She is my baby. The insurance called it a "total loss" and offered me $2,000 for her as I had her on full coverage because I LOVE this car! I DO NOT want the money except to use it to fix my car! But it doesn't work that way.

THE STATE OF FLORIDA mandates that once a car is evaluated by the insurance companies as a total loss that it can no longer be insured and must be destroyed. In another word, I get a check--not my car fixed.

I am a 37 year old woman. I love my car as much as I love my kids. Has anyone heard of any such nonsense? Is this true?

PLEASE CAN SOMEONE HELP ME OR OFFER ADVICE? I have to call the insurance company tomorrow and I'm besides myself!

Angela in Florida

Eagle 1:
Tell the insurance company that you dont want it totalled.  Get some quotes by some local body shops and present them to the insurance company.   The downside is that you may have to foot the diffence.

hionspeed:
Thank you for writing. I told the insurance company I did not want my car totaled. Also, they told me it wouldn't do me any good to get a quote from elsewhere because it was in the "system" as uninsurable. This is just awful! Had I known they were going to do this to me, I would have NEVER brought my car in for an estimate!

Hitman:
Don't you just love insurance companies.... they get you one way or another.  That is why with my Insurance company I have a stated value that is well above any bluebook value..... so that way, they can't write the car off as totalled.

evilways:
You can get a personal appraisal of the car and present it to the insurance company. A car's value must be diminished by 75% of the blue book or appraisal value here to be considered totaled. Your insurance may go up or you may consider going to another company. Just don't sign or accept anything until you get what you want. The insurance co. will try their best to make you feel like the offer won't be as good later or won't be there at all. Not true. You can also inquire about placing "diminished value"claim on the vehicle, basically it will show that the car has lost more value through the accident than the co stated, thus giving you a higher payout. This works especailly well with sporty and collectable cars. Again, the personal appraisal is the way to go . It may cost a little to start, but it's worth it to keep your car and get it fixed or get a higher payout if they won't budge off totalling it. Good luck and don't be afraid to be tough with the insurance people. You can also at no cost to you get other repair estimates that may be less than the % needed to total the car.

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