Total Loss - occurs when your car is no longer financially or structurally reasonable to repair.
Actual Cash Value - means the cost to you to replace your vehicle with a comparable vehicle.
Comparable Vehicle - means a vehicle that is the same make and model, same or newer year, similar body style, similar options and mileage as your vehicle and in as good or better overall condition as established by current data. To achieve comparability, any deductions or additions for options, mileage or condition can only be made if they are itemized, appropriate, and substantiated in dollar amount. An insurer must consider information supplied by you when determining deductions or additions.
You have to first determine if what other comparable vehicles in your area are selling for. My truck was stolen and totalled.
The independent appraiser hired by my insurer was comparing my truck to beaten up worktrucks with 300,000 miles. I contacted the insurer directly. The offer was so ridiculously low, they took the appraiser off my case and dealt with me directly. I ended up getting 3 times what the "independent adjuster" wanted me to settle for.
Insurers cannot base your vehicle’s Actual Cash Value upon vehicles of non-similar type and condition, and must take your research into consideration.
Can the insurance company total my car even if you disagree?
Usually they can, depending on your State's insurance laws. The company can total a vehicle whenever the company determines that your car is no longer financially or structurally reasonable to repair. The definitions for a destroyed or wrecked vehicle are found in your State's insurance regulations.
Many State's insurance regulations allow for use of an average of a vehicle's Red Book
valuation and its valuation in the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Official Used Car Guide
(the "Bluebook"), the other leading valuation book, published by
the ("NADA").
Although I could have hired an independent appraiser when negotiating the settlement, I did the same thing the appraiser hired by the insurer should have been doing. Checking the values of comparable vehicles. Of course, we are talking about a $3,000 pickup truck. If I was discussing a $40,000 sports sedan, I would most definelty hire an independent appraiser.
A professional appraiser will give you an opinion of the vehicle's worth based on their training, experience, and comparable selling cars in the area. Many insurance companies request an independent fair market value appraisal if there is a difference in opinion regarding your vehicle's worth, and if you assert the insurance policy's appraisal clause.
Insurance companies use a variety of methods to arrive at the value of a totaled vehicle. All utilize some method of sampling the values of similar vehicles. The sources of these valuations range from the price of similar models at local dealerships, prices in the Kelly Blue book, Red book, NADA guide, local newspapers and classifieds. If your car is totalled, to summarize:
Take digital pictures while the car is still unblemished.
Keep reciepts of all maintenece, modifications and upgrades.
Personally research the value of similar vehicles in your area.
Find out what valuation your adjuster used (Red book, classifieds, etc.)
Confront the adjuster with your research.
If you cannot agree on a price, hire an independent adjuster.
File a lawsuit or request arbitration if the insurer can't be reasonable
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