Total Loss Appraisals
Unsatisfied with your insurance company’s offer on your loss? There may be a difference between what your insurance company is willing to pay you, and the fair market value of your vehicle! You’re entitled to a fair settlement. Our Diminished Value claim experts can help!
You are ALWAYS entitled to your own independent appraisal when negotiating a settlement with your insurance company. Often, insurance companies use automated systems that don’t apply all the factors that a licensed appraiser will consider in determining your wrecked car’s value. If you’ve been offered a settlement you feel is unfair, call us right now at (877) 655-1661 or describe your settlement challenge in our no-obligation appraisal quote request — on the average, we get 90% of our clients $1,500 to $2,000 more than their initial settlement offer!
Click here to see our most recent client settlements!
Total Loss Appraisals Success Stories
I am so happy with the results of my Total Loss claim. Amica only wanted to give me $7,000 for my Toyota. I purchased the vehicle new and I serviced the vehicle at Toyota so I had really taken excellent care of my vehicle. I knew my vehicle was worth more money. Thanks for fighting for me and getting me the additional 50% more. I am driving a much nicer car because of you.
Kathy L.
Vancouver, Washington
Your modest fee is a small part of the tremendous service you provide…responsive customer support yielded a successful result on my DV claim which without your guidance would never have happened….
A true believer!!!
Alan Goldstein
Paramus, NJ
My experience with Autoloss.com was excellent! Monica Fisher is a pro and was very easy to work with. She was responsive to my thoughts and desires and achieved a final settlement higher than I was hoping to get. The end result was we got an increase of 25% over the final offer the insurance company made before invoking the “Appraisal Clause” of our policy. Great job Monica!!
Jody Tallal
Dallas, Texas
Fair Market Appraisals
A fair market value appraisal is an opinion of your vehicle’s worth based on the appraiser’s training, experience, and current market trends. 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. Get a free price quote for an auto appraisal.
Appraisals for Insurance Purposes
With a current, detailed, value appraisal on your vehicle you have a excellent chance of getting what your vehicle is really worth if anything ever happened to it. In general, appraisals are only good for 2-3 years due to vehicles becoming more rare, upgrades, and market trends. If you are restoring a vehicle it is wise to have a preliminary value appraisal completed during the process in the event of an accident or act of nature. Then, when the restoration is complete we will update the value for a nominal fee. We keep all our appraisals and digital pictures on file so we can update the appraisal in a timely manner. Get a free price quote for an auto appraisal.
Lawsuits allege popular valuation method lowballs the insured
According to documents submitted in the discovery process for the case Buratovich vs. Farmers Insurance Exchange and Farmers Insurance Co. of Arizona and CCC Information Services Inc, Farmers’ chose to use CCC Information Services’ valuations solely because they resulted in the lowest payout for Total Loss claims.
Several other recent cases in state courts have brought scrutiny on the method insurance companies use to find the actual cash value of vehicles that have been totaled.
The Farmers’ documents show Farmers chose to use CCC after a trial program which culled values from the National Automotive Dealership guide, local newspapers, and local dealerships increased their collision Total Loss costs by 31.8 percent.
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, NADA guide, local newspapers and classifieds.
Consumer Advocate Paul F. Davis has filed a RICO complaint claiming: “CCC Valuescope (formerly known as CCC Information Services Group Inc – CCCG) can by no means be deemed a fair and market value of automobiles as CCC Valuescope works exclusively for insurers and therefore has an economic interest to supply valuations that are intentionally below the actual fair market value of what insured vehicles are truly worth.”
Part of CCC’s method involves sending Field Inventory Representatives to car dealerships nationwide and obtaining not the asking price, but the lowest possible price that the dealer would “take” for the vehicle. Consumers whose settlements are based on a valuation method based on the “take” price could find a sizable gap between what they receive for a totaled vehicle and what they need to replace it.
One of our customers tells how we helped recover more from insurance when
“. . . the value on my car was given by an unfair company named CCC.”
The courts are still deciding whether CCC’s method is a fair way to value vehicles. It is still uncertain if auto insurance companies have any liability for using CCC’s database to payout less in total collision settlements.
If you do suffer a total loss on your vehicle, you stand a better chance of recovering its value if you personally research the value of similar vehicles in your area and then closely compare that valuation with the one from your insurance company. If they are different you have a right to confront your agent with your research. Get a free price quote for an auto appraisal.