State Farm Claims and Hail Damage

[Todah Tear]

Has anyone on the forum filed a claim with State Farm Insurance for hail damage recently? The reason that I am asking is that some of my friends who have Progressive had their hail damage assessed. Progressive "totaled" the cars because it would be too expensive for them to repair the damage, but told my friends that they could still drive them. Everything will still be covered by insurance except cosmetic damage. The insurance company also gave them checks for the current value of their cars (One person paid off their car loan.) They said that this was different from the past when insurance companies used to make a person buy back their car if they wanted to drive it after it had been totaled.

I wonder if State Farm is doing that. I would hate to have them total my car then tell me that I had to buy it back if I still wanted to drive it.

Todah

[Mary C]

in GA it is the Law that once a vehicle has been totaled by the Insurance company it gets a salvage title and then if refurbished and repaired the new owner must get an inspection by the state Special inspectors who then can issue a regular title. Once a vehicle is "totaled" no insurance company can insure it. The vin number is tagged as salvage also. I have never heard of your situations you refer too. I would be interested if that were so in GA.

Mary C.

[Fenlason]

If an insurance company pays off a claim for something that is totaled, they own it. Often once can buy it for what is deemed the salvage value. I have seen cases when the insurance company doesn't want to deal with the totaled item. {I am sure that depends on what it is, and it's value}

A camper we bought had been almost new, when it was damaged by hail. It had cosmetic damage all over.. or enough all over, that it was considered totaled. The owner purchased it back, and then traded it in for a bigger one. [ The place he traded it in to, knew the story and situation.]We got it for what we thought was a great price. It did have a salvage title.. which in our case just meant we could not take out a loan to purchase it. It is registered and insured ok, although I doubt I could get a claim for more hail damage.

[PKCSPT]

In 2007 I had a new car that was mildly hail damaged, insured through State Farm. I chose not to fix it since it was cosmetic and not too severe. I received a check minus the deductible. I imagine further hail damage would not have been covered. Not the same as totaled just one my State Farm experiences.

[eamarquardt]

About 4 years ago my van was damaged beyond cost effective repair. I paid State Farm the salvage value, ordered parts off the internet, fixed it, and it was fully insured once again. I had to have it inspected by the Highway Patrol but that was more to ensure that no stolen parts were used to repair it than to ensure that it was properly repaired. Go figure. Two years later it was again damaged beyond cost effective repair and I got more for it the second time than I did the first time it was "totaled" as the prices of used cars had gone up!!!!!! The second time it wasn't worth fixing so State Farm hauled it away and wrote me a check for the full appraised value. The fact that it had been totaled once before and it had a "salvage title" did not affect what they paid me for it the second time around.

Cheers,

Gus

[Todah Tear]

Thanks for your responses. I really need to know how they are handling this recent hail damage because my car i fully functional AND "paid for". The damage is just cosmetic It would be a shame to have it totaled and then have to pay money to be able to drive it.

Todah

[Todah Tear]

Found out today that SF will assess the hail damage repair costs. If the damage is more than what the car is worth, the car will be totaled. The policy holder will be paid the repair cost minus the value of the car, and the policy holder's deductible. The car owner can still drive the car, but it will NOT be covered for collision at all...unless the all repairs are made. The car owner does not have to buy back the vehicle when it is totaled.

Todah

[jstrubberg]

By taking the value of the car out of the payment to you, that's in effect what they have done. They sold you the car for salvage value.

Beats the check swapping you used to have to do in such a situation.

[Todah Tear]

"If the damage is more than what the car is worth..." The amount that is deducted is the value of the car in the current condition. If they paid the car owner the full amount AND still allowed them keep/drive the car, the owner to accept the check (for the full amount) then turn around and sell the car. Believe me, I am no fan of insurance companies, I am not saying is the best way to handle the car or the fairest way. ...but I see it as a good thing that the owner does not have to come "out of pocket" for funds to salvage the car.

Todah