In most car accident claims one or more vehicles suffer collision damage, which can vary in extent from repairing scratches and scrapes to major damage to structural panels.
Before agreeing car repair costs with a repairing garage an engineer is normally appointed to inspect the damage and assess the cost of repair, which is then negotiated with the repairer.
As part of the assessment the engineer will compare the cost of repair to the pre accident value – in other words, the value of the car in its condition before the collision.
If the pre accident value is within a percentage, normally 20 – 30 percent of the repair cost, the vehicle will be declared beyond economic repair, and treated as a total loss.
The owner has the option either to hand the damaged vehicle over to the insurer, or to keep the damaged vehicle, known as salvage, in which case the insurer only pays for the net pre accident value, excluding the value of salvage assessed by the inspecting engineer.
If you have a non fault claim and your vehicle is damaged you should always appoint an experienced intermediary such as Vamco to handle the claim. We will ensure you get the maximum valuation for your car if it is damaged in motor accident claim.