atlbaby

I have only had my 8 for about a year and it has been all smiles, i absolutly love the car and that is with only a few mods....However monday i had a woman try and make a turn in to a quicky mart as i approched running about 55 mph and neadless to say see didn't make it and neither did my beloved car....So my question is this has anyone had a total loss and how did you come out... i called today and on my 04 the payoff is 21,520.. My insurance is having to cove because ofcourse she doesn't have insurance, they told me that i would be given fair market value...the resale of rx8's in the atlanta are is poor....Please help..

vapourit

21k for an 04 is not half bad at all.

mysql101

if you paid for GAP insurance, you will not need to worry. GAP will foot the diff between what you owe and what you get from the insurance company. It cost me $100 from the bank that financed my car...

dillsrotary

how many miles did you have on the car??

sorry about the circumstances.

Razz1

See if you can get the MODS removed.

RoyalPain

Fight the insurance company and get the value of the car. If they are going to pay you less than what is owed on the balance fight them or get a lawyer to go after them.

But you can challenge them with what they are going to give you.

I had a car that was stolen and they were going to give me less than what it was worth and we went to the insurance office and fought their offer and we ended up getting more than what i paid for it.

Stand your ground and fight them for at least the value you owe on it. Don't settle for anything less.

HolyCross05

So what happens to the lady that hit you since she doesn't have insurance?

atlbaby

Thanks everyone for the input!!! I really want to be able to get me another 8 after the settlement, i just don't want to be left upside down... The lady recieved three tickets and waked away from the seen, since neither of our cars where drivable....The insurance adjusted told me that they will do a fair market review and it will be settled based on that.. I look on autotrader(thats the market) and grand touring rx8 are all over the place there re some as low as 18k and some as high as 25k with about the same mileage...

atlbaby

well she recieved three tickets and went on her way! I was contacted today by the county solicator general and she has a court date, they advised me to be there since she doesn't have insurance...

atlbaby

I think pretty low for an o4 it had 36 and some change....This is a low production number and was one of the first sold i was the second owner....

dillsrotary

^^^def Be There

Clavius

There are several sites to get your "market value" for your car. I had to do this when I got in my accident, my truck which was totaled retailed for my area for 3.5k and I ended up getting 4.2k (not sure how they figured that out but I didnt ask questions! lol). Look around and make sure you state your looking for the retail of the car not resale of it. That and list all your options, when I did the search for my truck forgetting to put down I had a stereo knocked down my price by $300.

BtW you hurt at all man? You said 55mph and yeah..close to the same speed I was at when a woman hit my truck it was in April and my back still hurts.

Good luck with the insurance company though and definatly go to that woman's court date!!

1stgen8

iTrader: (1)

I have been dealing with stuff like this for over 10 years. One thing to remember is most insurance policies are not designed to payoff an auto loan. Most ppl think so but they are dead wrong. Your company will only give you what the car is worth. I see tons of honda guys who spend about 20k on a 92 hatch and think they are entitled to 20k when they wreck it......usually during a street race. If you owe 21k and the car is only worth 18k...you will probably get 18k. Most lawyers will not challenge the amount offered by an insurance company unless it is very unreasonable. You could get a lawyer to handle any bodily injury or suit you want to file againt the uninsured party. I usually advise ppl to hold on to receipts for mods or factory add-ons as you can always present them during the settlement phase of the claim. If you were seriously hurt make sure your company explains the statute of limitations for bodily injury claims.


Good luck

atlbaby

Yeah i have the nagging back pain the bruises and lumps on my head are gone... What do we have 4 or 5 air bags and none of mine deployed???????
I wish i could post up some pics, the drivetrain tunnle that runs under the center console is buckled out and touching the gas pedel....HTe entire motor was pushed over to left fender adn my strut tower bar looks like a banana!!!

lesper4

iTrader: (3)

21k for an 04 seems good with basic milage, i woudl take it and get a new 8 or a used 8.

1stgen8

iTrader: (1)

That is a good question. I have seen train wrecks and no bags deployed. As far as the airbags not deploying you will have to contact Mazda...most insurance companies will not do that part. Mazda may want to send out a representative from their headquarters to inspect the vehicle. I would try to be present for the inspection cause if there is a defect with your vehicle you may also have a case against Mazda. I have just seen a claim where a seat belt broke during an accident and the passenger flew out of the car....not in an 8.

Clavius

Erm.. how come I'm hearing more and more about airbags not deploying durring accidents when they should be?... or is this just me ><!

Altbaby, look into a lawyer if you havent already, not to sue but to rather CYA if you know what I mean. My chiropractor told me bluntly "Even after your done with me you'll still feel the pain for well over a year" for my injury atleast. As someone said you might want to contact your Mazda Dealership and tell them you where in a Major Accident and your car is a lost AND the airbags didnt deploy at all!! Oh and take tons of pictures at every angle, I must of taken over 30 photo's of my totaled trucks front.

ken-x8

My first post here...been lurking for a couple of weeks, thinking of joining. I signed up now so I could pass on some experience. I've been through this twice - car totaled by someone without insurance.

On the insurance amount. The idea is that they should pay you enough so you can replace the car. So...

1. Reputable insurance companies will pay on the retail value of the car. Check on the Kelly site, and maybe call a couple of dealers to see what they're selling for. The adjuster may be hard to budge, but knowledge never hurts.

2. When they pay off, they should add the sales tax to the settlement. They won't volunteer that info, but if you ask they'll add it.

Another thing to consider is that if you have uninsured motorist's coverage, check on the terms of that vs collision. There could be a difference in the deductable, or uninsured might even cover the deductable on your collision. Worth asking your claims agent. There could be a delay with uninsured coverage, though, if the other driver does not admit not having insurance.

Good luck.

1stgen8

iTrader: (1)

He may have to contact Mazda directly on the airbags. Most dealerships dont give a @#%! and will probably blow him off. Call Mazda directly and take good notes ie...names, dates and what was discussed. It will come in handy if you have to retain a lawyer. Not trying to suggest you jump on the lawsuit wagon but make sure you CYA. Hopefully the lady has already admitted fault to your ins company....that always makes things easier.

atlbaby

She has admitted fault... i have alstate and ever since i got them involved they have been very helpful...i am filing under my uninsured motorist, i have retained a lawyer to help recover anything alstate doesn't cover like lost wages and pain and suffering and my deductables....

Senna

$100 that's all? One time payment?

Senna

Not so sure...didn't hyogen just get a 2006 Touring for 24K?

DOMINION

What he said.

atl8

iTrader: (1)

I don't know much about the resale of RX-8's in Atlanta, but I did just total my '04 about 7-8 weeks ago. State Farm used the NADA value as a basis for payoff, afer which I haggled some extra out of them over the CD changer and appearance package stuff that was on the car. Mine had a few more miles than yours (37500) and they gave me 24,750 for it. That and I was allowed to go to the wrecking yard and pull off everything I could from the car, which netted me about another $1500 at least.

msrecant

Bad news: The insurance company doesn't care about what you owe on the car unless you purchase gap insurance.

Good news: The insurance should pay the current "retail" price (not private purchase or trade-in price) for a comparable RX-8. Used '04 GT MTs typically price out between $22,000 and $25,000, so you should be whole. Hopefully you still have the receipts for the mods which you can pass on to the insurance adjustor.