Car totaled by other guys ins. says we must deal with the salvage

[Irefuse2bTakenAdvantageOf]

Jurisdiction

Arizona

This is what they want. They totaled the car. They appraised the car, we said ok to speed things up BUT they want us to accept the value of the car MINUS what they appraise the salvage value to be. From there I can do whatever I want with the car according to them.

No I do not misunderstand. This is what they are demanding. This has been going on since August and we still have a wrecked car in our yard. They say they do NOT take possession of 3rd party vehicles. I told them they don't make the rules

I spoke with the dept of ins and they say it's not legal

Is this legal? How can they force me to do this?

If it turns out it is illegal do I have a bad faith claim?

 

[army judge]

I spoke with the dept of ins and they say it's not legal

There you have it, the answer you seek.

However, murder, child molestation, rape, sexual battery, armed robbery, and an array of other heinous crimes are illegal, too.

But, a law means nothing to millions of people as they are one man or one woman crime waves!

Is this legal? How can they force me to do this?

The Department of insurance answered these queries as you told us above.

If it turns out it is illegal do I have a bad faith claim?

I suggest you retain an attorney to represent your interests in this matter.

With a good lawyer most accident victims walk away with TWO or THREE times MORE money than "pro se" litigants (that would be you, OP).

 

[adjusterjack]

If it turns out it is illegal do I have a bad faith claim?

No.

The other driver's insurance company is not your insurance company and they can make you whatever offer pleases them. If you don't like the offer you can sue the other driver for the full value of your car and get a judgment against him that his insurance will have to pay whether they take the car or not.

I spoke with the dept of ins and they say it's not legal

I suggest you call that person back and ask for the statute number that he/she is referring to. I've been in the insurance business in AZ for over 30 years and never heard of it.

Is this legal? How can they force me to do this?

Force you? No. You can decline the offer and use your collision coverage (if you have it) and your company is contractually obligated to pay you the full value of your car less your deductible.

 

[Irefuse2bTakenAdvantageOf]

No.

The other driver's insurance company is not your insurance company and they can make you whatever offer pleases them. If you don't like the offer you can sue the other driver for the full value of your car and get a judgment against him that his insurance will have to pay whether they take the car or not.



I suggest you call that person back and ask for the statute number that he/she is referring to. I've been in the insurance business in AZ for over 30 years and never heard of it.



Force you? No. You can decline the offer and use your collision coverage (if you have it) and your company is contractually obligated to pay you the full value of your car less your deductible.

The cars value was only 3k. Not worth carrying collision on.

 

[Irefuse2bTakenAdvantageOf]

That's what they told me on the phone and told me I should file a complaint. I have not yet done so but intend to. Since have been in the biz 30 years have you ever heard of this?

 

[Tax Counsel]

I'll repeat here what I posted on the other forum where you asked this same question.

First, the other driver's insurer has no direct responsibility to you. Its contract is with its insured (the other driver) and that is the person to whom it is obligated. In general, that liability is to pay out what its insured must pay as a result of his/her negligence, up to the limits specified in the policy. In short, if you sued the other driver and got a judgment against him/her as a result of his/her negligence the insurer's obligation to the insured is to pay you that judgment so that the insured doesn't have to pay it out of his/her pocket.

Second, if you sue the other driver what you are entitled to get is the lesser of (1) cost to repair the car back to the condition it was just before the accident or (2) the value of the car just before the accident. So if the value of the car right before the accident was $3,000 then $3,000 is what you ought to end up with in the end. This means that if you are holding the wrecked car and that wreck is worth $250, what you'd be entitled to get from other driver is $2,750 since that amount plus the $250 you'd get selling the wreck totals $3,000, the value of the car just before the wreck. The insurer is not obligated to take the wreck off your hands for you, though if it does then it would owe you the full $3,000 because now you don't have the wreck to sell any more. Either way, you end up with $3,000 in your pocket at the end.

If you don't think the insurer is offering you enough, your remedy is to sue the other driver, not the insurance company, and hope that you get a judgment for more than what the insurer has offered you.

 

[adjusterjack]

That's what they told me on the phone and told me I should file a complaint. I have not yet done so but intend to.

You'll probably be wasting your time if there is no verifiable statutory prohibition against that insurance company's action.

Since have been in the biz 30 years have you ever heard of this?

No. But I'm not omnipotent.

Let's talk dollars. What did that company offer:

Gross amount -
Salvage deduction -
Net amount -

If the salvage deduction is unreasonable (not just to you) you might have cause for a complaint. Give me the figures and I will let you know if it's within industry standards.

 

[Zigner]

I think your problem is that you have the vehicle. If you would not have had it towed to your house (vs a salvage yard), then they would be dealing with this.

 

[zddoodah]

I spoke with the dept of ins and they say it's not legal

Is this legal?

What was the title of the person at the DOI who told you "it's not legal"?

To answer the question, the other driver's insurer is not obligated to take possession of your wrecked car.

How can they force me to do this?

It (not "they") can't. If you don't like what the insurer is offering, you are free to reject it. Since you didn't have collision coverage, your recourse is to sue the other driver for the damage. If you sue, you'd likely get a judgment for the FMV less salvage value.

If it turns out it is illegal do I have a bad faith claim?

No. There is no such thing as third-party bad faith (at least not in this context).