How do you get your Lienholder to sign off on an auto insurance check so you can cash it?

Question

I got in a minor accident and was issued a check from my insurance co. My family is really short on cash right now and we were thinking the best thing to do is leave the damage on the vehicle and spend the money on food. Is this possible? I understand I need my lienholder (which is my bank) to sign off on it too ... How would someone get them to do that?

Answer 1

That would be insurance fraud - the lender won't go for it.

Answer 2

Can you just cash the check? Is the check in your name? If it is I don't see why you can't just cash it.

Answer 3

It is doubtful they they will do that. They want the vehiclke on good condition in case the need to repo the vehicle. They are going to make sure that you get it fixed.

Answer 4

You don't.  The reason the bank is named on the check is that the car is their loan collateral.  Now that it is damaged, it is worth less than it was before the accident.  If you want them to 'sign off', you will need a repair estimate, and THEN they will deposit the insurance check and issue a check to you AND the auto body repair place to insure that repairs are made.

In other words, you don't get to use the cash as you are asking.  You either fix the car, or give the money to the bank against your loan.

Answer 5

Get an estimate for the damages.... take that WITH YOU when you go to your leinholders office.

They should "trustingly" sign off on the check and assume you will get the damages fixed - because you have an estimate!!

Then you're free to spend it on what-so-ever you want to!

Answer 6

they will not sign off on it. They will require you to fix the vehicle.

Answer 7

The only way the check would even be made payable to the lienholder, is if the lienholder had to put an insurance policy on the vehicle.  Typically, lienholders don't do that unless they've gotten a notice of canellation, or no proof that the vehicle is insured.

Answer 8

As long as a lien exists on a vehicle, they require that any damage be repaired and put back to original condition.

They will pay a repair shop.

Answer 9

You have to ask the lender.

If there is enough equity in the car to cover the check amount, they might do it.  Example, if the ACV of the car is $15,000, and you still owe $5,000 on it, and the check is for $2,000, they will probably do it.

If you're upside down on the car, they definately won't.

Answer 10

I'm not sure that you can do that anymore.  I had to sign the back and send it my leinholder and they sent it to the repair place.  I never saw it again.  Now...it's possible that you could "forget" to sign the back and they would have to send it back to you again.  I would think you would have to let your insurance agent or company know that the repairs have NOT been done on the car or you may risk insurance fraud.