Vermont total loss claims

What a Vermont settlement has to include

For both liability and physical damage total-loss claims, a cash settlement must cover the purchase of a comparable vehicle including all applicable taxes, registration fees and other fees incident to transfer of ownership. A 1982 Insurance Division bulletin reads 'applicable taxes' on a first-party claim as purchase and use tax the insured actually loses because of the loss, not tax in every case.

Authority: Vt. Ins. Reg. I-79-2 (rev. eff. July 1, 2018) § 8(B); Vt. Ins. Div. Bulletin 58 (Apr. 7, 1982)

How the insurer has to value your vehicle

The cash value may be no less than the average of the NADA used car guide retail value and the retail value of a comparable vehicle from a third-party valuation vendor that gives primary consideration to vehicles available in the local market (a 75-mile radius of where the car was garaged) within 90 days of the loss. No later than the date of its settlement offer, the insurer must give the claimant a detailed copy of its total-loss calculation, a copy of any valuation report that is not publicly available, and written notice that the claimant may dispute the settlement with the Insurance Division's Consumer Services Section.

Authority: Vt. Ins. Reg. I-79-2 (rev. eff. July 1, 2018) § 8(B)(2)

The appraisal clause in Vermont

Our research did not find a Vermont statute or regulation on auto policy appraisal clauses, so the wording of your own policy controls: whether it has one, the deadlines, and who pays.

Keeping a totaled vehicle: Vermont title rules

An insurance company that declares a motor vehicle a total loss must apply for a salvage certificate of title within 15 days. As currently in effect, this does not apply to vehicles more than 15 years old or to vehicles that need no certificate of title.

Authority: 23 V.S.A. § 2091(a)

If you and the insurer cannot agree

• Dispute the valuation in writing with evidence. How to challenge comparables and condition deductions.
• If your policy has an appraisal clause, you can invoke it. The appraisal clause, step by step.
• File a complaint with the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation, Insurance Division.
• Small claims court: Vermont small claims court, for claims up to $10,000.