Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Acorned to Death

Ruff, that's the logical route... I'm not scrapping a perfectly good car, that is reliable, has low mileage, gets great gas mileage, has plenty of zip to it.. to me its just the principal of I'm not getting what I am paying the Insurance company for..

Will try out the dry ice thing Heym suggested along with Bristoe's "Paintles Dent Repair" guys...

you really don't even notice the dents on it until your standing right next to the car, and then you have to really look for it, due to the color seems to hide then

I've just experienced that Bum's Rush to the door by insurance companies before, on claims... and I know they are not singling me out.. as they do it to everyone...even have had friends who were adjusters in their career and they admitted around the water cooler or the coffee room they have conversations around, how much they were able to jip a customer down in claim pay outs..

They get $6K of my money a year.. for autos, * (we have 5 insured), home owners, and my wife's jewelry etc..and we don't end up making a lot of claims with them.. that's $48K, I've paid them over 8 years as a customer.. and now they are trying to short Sheet me on fixing dents on the hood, roof and truck lid .. on a 12 year old car...

there is no customer service here at all...heck, I could get that level of service for less money out of Tijuana...

there are other body shop alternatives, that can do the same job, for less than the estimate they are basing this off of.., they know it, but they won't tell the customer....

they are out to aggressively protect their interests, then I'll be out to protect mine, instead of just going away mad and accept their offer.. plus there is no time limit that I have to accept their offer by...

Technically you do. Most states it's 2 years iirc. At some point they say hey we made you an offer either decline or take it. Would suck to have to make them pay via court. I am sure it would get spendy

chinkapin oak seems to be the candy tree here

Gonna still hunt into Area 50 at daylight tommorow morning, see what trees are dropping acorns and the deer are hitting, then go sit on the big valley about 150 200 m NE of hill 665 for 2 or 3 hrs.

Since it's a low mileage for year model vehicle you might want to push that point to the claims adjuster for more money.

I got $1200 more than insurance was originally going to pay once for a totaled out low mileage for year model vehicle claim by doing that.

Can’t you just pay a guide?

Maybe get Rio7 to drive you around shoot one offa tit

USAA used to be really good until about 25 years ago. Originally they started with their only clientele being military officers, a pretty low risk group. Eventually they opened it up to all military and started expanding into things other than insurance. They got greedy and moved out of their core chartered business. Now they've expanded to where they're pretty much open to anyone that can spell military and they've gone downhill. They're just another insurance company now that tries to sell you on a bunch of sketchy financial products to pad their bottom line and shaft you on claims as you've seen.

I have them for my auto insurance but haven't had to fight them on a claim yet. I got rid of Farm Bureau about five years ago after they shafted me on a claim, and ten years before that I fired State Farm after they cheated my wife (then girlfriend) on a claim.

It seems to be the business plan of all insurance companies nowadays to try and screw their clientele. I guess they figure you don't have anywhere else to go since they all do it. The whole industry has gotten greedy and rich off of dealing in bad faith. State insurance regulators today seem to be in their pocket and don't look out for the public as they're tasked to do. I don't trust any of them.

Wouldn't you come out ahead letting them total it cashing their check and buying it back over having them pay to fix it?

IN the long run, yeah... .but I've had to cross this bridge years ago, several different times...

Learned by people who were friends and in the business.. NEVER take the first offer they give you...

There in MN, back in 1980, my wife totalled a VW Camper, that was 3 years old...Thye insurance company offered her $3500 for it..We turned it down... opened a claim with the state insurance commission, then checked all 5 VW dealerships in the metro Twin Cities, they were selling them for $7500 to $8,000.. showed the adjuster the quotes from all 5 VW dealers...and the open claim with the State Insurance Commission.. He wrote me a Check for $7750.00 and couldn't get out of our house fast enough..

I've got other sources to consult here.. several other body shops etc, and talk to the insurance commission.. its 100% driveable, so I'm not in any rush.. which they will be tho to close the file....find out what they are gong to offer, consult a body shop to get it done for that amount, work out something where it isn't given a Salvage title.. its just a dented hood, roof and trunk lid...

its a popular color, so I am sure I can get a hood and trunk lid out of the bone yard the same color, and then just have the roof repaired.. if they won't work with you, force them to....that or they submit me a better offer...

John,

good luck with it, seems you've been through the run around before, as have I. Twice.

Got rear ended on the fwy in SoCal, even though I have pulled onto the shoulder when I saw the guy coming up, His vehicle body didn't hit my quarter panel, the flat be sticking out did. I had a Subaru wagon that was likely 10 years or so old, but had a motor in it I switched from another one with only 50K miles on it, a new clutch kit when the motor was swapped, new tires and brakes, etc. They wanted to give me a pittance and total it, I fought them and got another grand or so and took the car back. Had a friend repair it and drove it for a lot of years.

The second one was an '84 Subaru wagon, again with new stuff and low mileage. It was in 2000 or so. We lived at about 7k' in the mtns of AZ at the time. Some dude up for skiing pulled out of the gas station at the Safeway and drove right into my car as I was trying to put it back in gear and get away, having just parked and undone my seatbelt. They wanted to give me something like $1200 for it, and total the car. I had to tell them I had more than that in new parts in the last year or so, counting tires, brakes, etc. I had every receipt for it all, including documentation of the oil changes I did every 3K miles. I asked them to tell me where I could find a well maintained 4wd vehicle in the mtns of AZ for $1200, and told them if they thought they could do it, seeing as how it was their client that hit me, then find it for me and we'd make a swap. I got more money out of them eventually and kept the vehicle, drove it another 3 or 4 years hunting all over AZ with it.

I understand Ed's point, from a business standpoint but wish for folks like us that try to take care of their vehicles they had some sort of replacement clause. Every time I take my 2001 Tacoma out on a trip I worry some little "fender bender" will cause the insurance folks to total it for Blue Book value. Where am I going to find a hunting truck like that for what they'll give me?

Again, good luck with it all.

Thanks Geno... yeah its the down side of guys like us who drive older vehicles...and live without car payments etc...

I understand Ed's position and its the position of the company... however I'm not in the company's shoes, I am in the consumers shoes.. if company's were honest and fair like they try to sell ya on, when you purchase a policy, then that is one thing.. however they have a track record of not being that way.. so I have the responsibility to take care of my interests, or just STFU as I have nothing to complain about when I don't make an effort.. no difference that those who complain about candidates running for office, but never get off the couch and get out and vote...

Have a good day tomorrow my friend!

cheers and best regards...