How can i get my insurance co to pay more???

Question

m y car burned insurance co declared it totaled all state will not even pay blue book what can i do other than court or lawyers

Answer 1

As others have said, don't go by Blue Book. To get a realistic view of what your vehicle is worth, do a couple of things.

1.Go to NADA.com and check your vehicle's worth using a private party sale in average condition. Because, unless your vehicle had freshly shampooed carpets, like new tires, steam cleaned engine compartment, etc., your vehicle was not in "retail" condition. Also make sure you put in the correct mileage, options, and trim package.

2.Go to a few vehicle websites like CARS.com or AUTOTRADER.com and see how much people are asking for vehicles similar to your vehicle. But remember, just because it's the "asking" price, doesn't mean that's the bottom dollar that they'll take for the vehicle.

After you do this research, I think you'll probably see that your insurance company's no so bad after all. Hope this helps!

Answer 2

I am currently a total loss adjuster for USAA insurance and unfortunately the prior responses are correct insurance companies do not go by Blue Book or NADA.  Kelly Blue Book and NADA are simply resources that consumers can go by to determine a starting asking price from a private seller or a sticker price from a dealer.  Majority of Insurance companies settle total losses by Actual Cash Value.  What they do is they take the mileage, zip code where the vehicle is garaged, options, and condition to determine the Fair Market Value also known as Actual Cash Value.  They will compare your vehicle to comparable vehicle that sold in that area.  Of course if you ever in doubt contact the Department of Insurance from you state for assistance.

Answer 3

They never pay Blue Book as that is an inflated value. They will pay you what it costs to replace the vehicle.

Answer 4

Call a public adjuster. Sometimes you do better paying for a professional to represent you. Good luck.

ps- insurers don't use blue book evaluations. They are too inflated. To get a good idea what your car was really worth, call a bank and pretend you are looking for a loan on that model, year, with the features your car had. That will tell you whether the insurer is being fair to you- hope this helps.