Aviva are over valuing my car..?!

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kam09

MB Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 1, 2013
Messages
1,117
Car
E350cdi coupe sport obs black
Guys opinions/advice needed please.. basically in a nutshell, I had an accident back in November and the third party have accepted liability.. my car (2011 e350 coupe 77k miles) was taken to mb inchape accident centre and they have come back with an eye watering figure of approx £9500 BUT the car is worth approx £11,000 on glasses guide for a private sale.. However aviva are valuing the car at £14.5k which is baffling me.. their engineer wants to strip back everything to look for further damage.. accident happened at low speed and their is more cosmetic damage than structural damage eg smashed front left lights but front left axel damage as steering out.. I want rid of the car and would prefer a write off rather than repair and then start afresh as the car will not be the same again especially after strip down! Where do I stand with aviva? TIA
 
To add aviva stated earlier that they won’t issue a write off if the repair costs are below £10k as they value the car at £14.5k not the £11k I would roughly get in a private sale..


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Sorry to hear about the damage to your car.

Presumably Aviva would agree to pay you £9.5k and allow you to keep the car (either as write-off, or not)?

You might even get £10k from them in settlement on the premise that the stripping back might reveal further damage, and that they will need to cover the cost of renting a similar car while yours is being repaired.

Would you get £1k or £1.5k for the damaged car if sold as spares or repair?

Keeping in mind that the £11k you mention is the highest amount you can hope to get for the car.

(There's a potential issue with VAT though - I believe that if the garage invoices Aviva directly they may be able to claim back the VAT)
 
Sorry to hear about the damage to your car.

Presumably Aviva would agree to pay you £9.5k and allow you to keep the car (either as write-off, or not)?

You might even get £10k from them in settlement on the premise that the stripping back might reveal further damage, and that they will need to cover the cost of renting a similar car while yours is being repaired.

Would you get £1k or £1.5k for the damaged car if sold as spares or repair?

Keeping in mind that the £11k you mention is the highest amount you can hope to get for the car.

(There's a potential issue with VAT though - I believe that if the garage invoices Aviva directly they may be able to claim back the VAT)

I’ve advised aviva I would prefer a write off as their valuation is incorrect according to glasses guide and what similar spec n mileage cars are going for on AT and eBay etc The damage is at most CAT D as it should be road worthy.. the figure of £9500 is only that high cos the repair garage is an MB main dealer owned accident centre.. surely they should be writing it off as their supposed value is not much more.. (they thought I had command but I don’t) can I argue the case in regards to agreeing to a write off?


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I’ve advised aviva I would prefer a write off as their valuation is incorrect according to glasses guide and what similar spec n mileage cars are going for on AT and eBay etc The damage is at most CAT D as it should be road worthy.. the figure of £9500 is only that high cos the repair garage is an MB main dealer owned accident centre.. surely they should be writing it off as their supposed value is not much more.. (they thought I had command but I don’t) can I argue the case in regards to agreeing to a write off?


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So what would my options be? I’ve never had an accident before so have no idea of where I stand.. TIA


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I have no idea re valuations but would have thought Aviva would use one of their authorised repairers who I guess would be giving a lower cost to repair.

I would be interested in the outcome though.

Robin


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I have no idea re valuations but would have thought Aviva would use one of their authorised repairers who I guess would be giving a lower cost to repair.

I would be interested in the outcome though.

Robin


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As he is claiming off the other party's policy, he can have his car repaired at any garage he chooses. Aviva will send one of their engineers to the garage to agree the repair cost between them, but this process does not involve the car owner.

It is very different when you are claiming on your own policy - Aviva will still allow you to use your own garage but there will be a fee to pay for not using their approved repairers (as per the T&C in the policy).

It is also worth noting that he is entitled to compensation for any other expenses he reasonably incurs as result of the accident, in most cases this will mean a similar rental car (i.e. not the garage's courtesy car) for the period his car is off the road.

In any event Aviva will very keen to resolve this as soon as possible- thet are well aware that if he decides to contact an accident managemnt firm their costs will rocket - these firms specialise in extracting maximum compensation from insurers.
 
why not let MB repair the car? I appreciate the reservations about car not being the same but usually they do good job repairing. Given the repair price for cosmetic damage it sounds like they will attempt to restore car to high standard?

I had few accidents with in my life (not in e63 though) and every time car was repaired quite well. As long as you inspect it well when collecting car should be fine.

You can have a decent hire car in the mean time you can enjoy.
 
I thought Cat D was only if the car was repaired after being written off, but I could easily be wrong. If it's not a Cat D, then you could sell it on if you're not happy driving it after the repair, and should fetch market value.
 
AS suggested above, ask Aviva for a settlement figure and keep the car.
You could then sell the car to a breaker, the engine alone is worth £1.5,
or you could have the car repaired by a less expensive repairer and then use it while you source your next car.
With a good repair it must have a similar value to those you've researched.

Insurance settlement - repair costs (funded by the settlement) + later sale revenue, might well mean your in profit.
 
11.5k would write off your car.
Inflate the price to 14.5k your car is now in that repair percentage margin they work to.

I'll let them repair it and very closely inspect it before accepting it back.
Don't accept it if you find anything wrong no matter how Small.
Only accept when your 100 percent.
Then sell it on.
If it's repaired it will not have a insurance marker against it.


IRRC body shop are not at the higher labour rates as Dealers.
 
I have no idea re valuations but would have thought Aviva would use one of their authorised repairers who I guess would be giving a lower cost to repair.

I would be interested in the outcome though.

Robin


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Aviva had it taken to my nearest body shop which is authorised by them which happens to be inchape accident repair centre who are owned by the mb inchape group hence the sky high repair bill..


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AS suggested above, ask Aviva for a settlement figure and keep the car.
You could then sell the car to a breaker, the engine alone is worth £1.5,
or you could have the car repaired by a less expensive repairer and then use it while you source your next car.
With a good repair it must have a similar value to those you've researched.

Insurance settlement - repair costs (funded by the settlement) + later sale revenue, might well mean your in profit.

Yes I’m going to ask for a settlement instead of them stripping back the car and then proceeding.. after it’s repaired it won’t be worth the 11k glasses guide never mind aviva valuation of £14.5k


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As he is claiming off the other party's policy, he can have his car repaired at any garage he chooses. Aviva will send one of their engineers to the garage to agree the repair cost between them, but this process does not involve the car owner.

It is very different when you are claiming on your own policy - Aviva will still allow you to use your own garage but there will be a fee to pay for not using their approved repairers (as per the T&C in the policy).

It is also worth noting that he is entitled to compensation for any other expenses he reasonably incurs as result of the accident, in most cases this will mean a similar rental car (i.e. not the garage's courtesy car) for the period his car is off the road.

In any event Aviva will very keen to resolve this as soon as possible- thet are well aware that if he decides to contact an accident managemnt firm their costs will rocket - these firms specialise in extracting maximum compensation from insurers.

That’s the thing, I’ve had a 17 plate GLE 350d courtesy car provided by enterprise since mid November! Imagine the bill aviva will be handing over to third party!


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As he is claiming off the other party's policy, he can have his car repaired at any garage he chooses. Aviva will send one of their engineers to the garage to agree the repair cost between them, but this process does not involve the car owner.

It is very different when you are claiming on your own policy - Aviva will still allow you to use your own garage but there will be a fee to pay for not using their approved repairers (as per the T&C in the policy).

It is also worth noting that he is entitled to compensation for any other expenses he reasonably incurs as result of the accident, in most cases this will mean a similar rental car (i.e. not the garage's courtesy car) for the period his car is off the road.

In any event Aviva will very keen to resolve this as soon as possible- thet are well aware that if he decides to contact an accident managemnt firm their costs will rocket - these firms specialise in extracting maximum compensation from insurers.

I regret not using an accident management firm as it has dragged on for so long and still without an outcome! I will ring aviva today and ask for a settlement ..


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That’s the thing, I’ve had a 17 plate GLE 350d courtesy car provided by enterprise since mid November! Imagine the bill aviva will be handing over to third party!

Is Aviva your own insurer, or the other party's insurer (or both)?

Normally you should be claiming off the other party's insurance policy, and talking directly to the other party's insurer.

Your own insurer should be notified but not involved.

(Unless you are using your own insurer's services as accident management agent working on your behalf?)
 
Is Aviva your own insurer, or the other party's insurer (or both)?

Normally you should be claiming off the other party's insurance policy, and talking directly to the other party's insurer.

Your own insurer should be notified but not involved.

(Unless you are using your own insurer's services as accident management agent working on your behalf?)
Aviva is my insurance, third party is with privilege insurance. Aviva arranged the courtesy car as it was non fault accident at my end so therefore they will be billing tp privilege.. I didn't know I could talk to the third party insurance co.? I just left it in avivas hands..
 
Is Aviva your own insurer, or the other party's insurer (or both)?

Normally you should be claiming off the other party's insurance policy, and talking directly to the other party's insurer.

Your own insurer should be notified but not involved.

(Unless you are using your own insurer's services as accident management agent working on your behalf?)
Is it worth ringing privilege third party and advising them off current situation as they have no idea what is going on? They will just be handed over a bill at the end of the process .. could I possibly arrange something with them?
 
Is it worth ringing privilege third party and advising them off current situation as they have no idea what is going on? They will just be handed over a bill at the end of the process .. could I possibly arrange something with them?
If the other party accepted full liability then you can deal with Privilege directly, BUT at this stage given that you already got Aviva involved you should clear this with Aviva first, i.e. let them know that you intend to call-up Privilege directly and try and settle with them (and make a note of this call).
 
I wonder if they would pay out £14.5k if the car was stolen and unrecovered this weekend?
 

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