My new car was hit while sitting in front of my house, question about potential damage to unibody and whether or not it would be considered a total loss
I noticed my neighbors had tried to call me on
Sunday morning. They usually only call when
something is up so I looked outside and thought
that my car had been stolen as it wasn’t where I
had parked it the day before. Upon going outside
to investigate I saw a trail of broken car pieces and
saw that it had been badly hit from behind and
pushed forward about 2-3 car lengths. The key
who hit it left a note but fled the scene. The police
were called and have since gotten me all of her
information. The car was undriveable due to a
damaged rear quarter panel digging into the tire. I
did not attempt to start the car.
Initially I wasn’t concerned as I have depreciation
coverage meaning that if the vehicle is a write off
(total loss) I will be reimbursed the amount that I
paid for it in August of 2018. But when my adjuster
called me she said because it’s a 2018 they will
likely repair it (this was before she was aware of
the extent of damages, she was just basing her
opinion on the year of the vehicle).
I’m worried that if they repair it i will lose out in
resale value (this isn’t a factor with our insurance
company here - Canada) and also that the vehicle
may have sustained some structural damage to
the unibody making it less safe to drive, especially
if not properly repaired.
As you can see from the attached photo the
damage is extensive to the back end. I actually
had two 50lb bags of baking soda in the trunk (I
have a small homebased Bath products company)
and at least one of those bags exploded on impact
as you can see the baking soda in the ground -
that was a funny conversation with the police
hahah.
I did not see her vehicle but it must have sustained
major damage as well. There was fluid all over the
ground so I’m assuming the was her radiator.
I appreciate any insight as I’m stressed about this
and would prefer it be a total loss. I want to try to
arm myself with any knowledge that I can in order
to keep the insurance company from taking
advantage of me.
Thank you in advance for your insights, I really
appreciate it. :)
