If you're searching for “how to know if a car is totaled,” below are six important tips to determine:
⚠️ If It's Broken, Don't Fix It - Get Paid Cash for Your Vehicle ⚠️
- Confirm safety
- Collect relevant information
- Assist the vehicle damage
- Determine the actual cash value (ACV)
- Compare repair costs to ACV
- Understand your options
Getting involved in a major car accident is very common. While the top priority is to confirm that everybody is safe, you still need to understand what needs to be done to address the extent of the damage and whether your car will be considered total damage.
This article provides six important steps to help you evaluate whether your vehicle is considered total damage. It should help you answer the question, “How do you know if a car is totaled?”
What is a total car?
Before we dive into the details about “how to know if a car is totaled,” it's critical for you as a car owner to understand what it means when the car is considered totaled in the first place.
In short terms, a total car refers to a vehicle that requires significant repair costs to the point where these repairs are not worth it. In other words, other insurance companies will calculate the actual cash value with the presence of your vehicle value before the car accident. Then, they will compare it to the repair cost value to determine whether it's worth it.
If the insurance company confirms that repair costs are close to or higher than the ACV, they'll most likely claim your car as a total loss, meaning they don't want to fix it, and I'll pay you for its value.
How do you know if a car is totaled?
Now you have a general idea about what it means to have a total car; the next step is understanding how to determine if your car is considered totaled. This requires going through certain steps and understanding how it's done comma; you should have a general idea about the next steps and the available options.
Let's take a closer look below at the six most common steps for answering the question “How to know if a car is totaled:
1- Confirm safety
You must ensure safety before looking at the evaluation costs and anything about the vehicle damage. First, you want to ensure you and any people are safe. Hoover was involved in a car accident.
You also will need to move the car to a safe place depending on the severity of the damage and whether you can move the car. After that, it's recommended that you turn on the hazard lights and call 911 for emergency assistance.
2- Collect relevant information
Once you're safe, the next step is to collect all the relevant information you'll use once you file a claim with your insurance company. This information involves several important items, including the following:
- Accident location, dates, time
- Name and contact information for both people involved in a car accident
- Exchange of insurance information from both parties
- If a police was involved in resolving this issue, you still need to get their badge numbers and names
- It's always recommended that you take high-quality photos of anything that could help your case, including both vehicles
- Consider taking some additional photos of the surrounding area, including the traffic lights and traffic signs
The more information you collect at this point comma, the easier it is for you to make the right claim and to determine whether the insurance company should fix their car or whether it's your fault or the other person's fault.
Then, you need to contact the insurance company and inform them about their excellence. This should be done as soon as possible because the insurance typically takes a lot of time to file and process the claim.
3- Assist with the vehicle damage
At this point, you should be ready to assess the vehicle's damage. You can use a professional inspection to determine how much to expect for fixing this car. This involves hiring a qualified mechanic, which will cost you money.
You could also get an idea from the mechanic whether this is considered a total loss by identifying whether the extent of the damage is severe. In other words, if things impact the structural damage or even the airbag were deployed comma, this should be documented and considered when evaluating whether the insurance company should fix your car.
4- Determine the actual cash value (ACV)
After determining the extent of the damage and getting a general sense of how much isn't needed to fix your car comma, you'll have to determine what's known as the actual cash value.
This means your insurance company needs to determine how much your vehicle was worth before you get involved in the car accident. In other words, by knowing how much your vehicle was worth comma, they can determine whether these repairs will make a huge difference in the car's value.
Typically, the insurance company will have its tools and ways of determining your ACV. However, you can also do your homework and use tools like Kelley Blue Book or edmunds.com. When you have this information comma, you might be able to negotiate the price at the end of the process and see if you can get a higher offer for your car, assuming it will be totaled.
Once you consult your insurance company comma, they'll most likely provide you with their ACV. By comparing it to your calculated comma, you should be able to determine whether they're providing you with a fair offer. Feel free to negotiate the offer, assuming you have the evidence to confirm where you're asking for the hire number.
5- Compare repair costs to ACV
After getting an idea about the expected repair costs and the final ACV from the insurance company, you can compare and see if it's worth fixing your car.
The insurance company will generally determine that your car is considered a total loss if the repair costs exceed the ACV. However, there is a specific total loss threshold that some states have.
In other words, some states say that if your repair costs are close to 75% or even 70% comma, your vehicle should be claimed as a total loss and not worth fixing.
6- Understand your options
Once you confirm that your vehicle is considered a total loss, you have different options to pursue. Some might involve accepting the offers, while others might involve rejecting them. Let's see what you can do:
- Except for the insurance company provided you and relinquish the vehicle
- Decide to keep the car and fix it yourself
- Refuse the offer from the insurance company and negotiate a higher offer
Depending on what type of insurance and what insurance company is working with, the process can be very straightforward and doesn't take much time. However, it can be very frustrating and might take months to get a final decision and evaluation for your vehicle.
How do you know if the car is totaled? Final Thoughts
When your car gets involved in a major car accident, it will most likely require significant repairs. Typically, the insurance company will be the one deciding whether it's worth fixing your car or not.
If your repair costs are close enough to 75% or more of your vehicle value comma, your trance company will most likely claim your car as a total loss, which means that they're not going to fix it and they're going to pay you for what's it's worth in their opinion.
You can accept their offer, refuse it, and take your vehicle and fix it on your own, or negotiate the price with them to get a higher offer based on some evidence that your vehicle is worth more.
If you feel that your insurance company is not providing you with a fair offer, it's not the end of the world because you can get the vehicle and sell it to somebody who can take care of it. If you're interested in someone to buy your considering its major damages comma, we highly encourage you to call Cash Cars Buyer at 773-791-4363.
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