My wifes car was $20,000 used back in 2019. Now after basically 10 years it gets hit. The insurance declares it totalled. So the car can’t be legally driven. The insurance will only pay us $9000. But now we’re trying to buy a replacement and for the same model year they are asking 16000!
WTF! What’s insurance for? Its just a tax. I much rather save to pay for my own car and have some sort of insurance that really actually covers the other driver.
Farmer this and state farm that and whatever General lizard, all are total bullshit regardless if you caused the accident or if you’re are the victim.
They should call it “pay slightly less than full price if you fucked up your car”
You can appeal a total loss settlement. They’re supposed to take into account the cost to replace the car at local rates, so unless that 16k model you’re looking at is in dramatically better condition or has way way less mileage on it, they need to justify that.
If you can afford to, you should go for liability only coverage. We recently bought a new car and have comprehensive on it. But for years we just had a single old Toyota as our only vehicle. And we didn’t keep comprehensive on it. Instead we purchased the highest liability policy the insurance company sells. A car that cheap is a small part of our financial world; we can afford to replace it. But the potential damage a vehicle can cause? It’s very easy to cause a million in damages with any vehicle. Long term care and medical bills add up quick.
I recommended just sticking to liability if you can otherwise afford to replace a vehicle. It’s a lot easier to figure out what you’re buying when you’re buying liability coverage as well. If I cause an expensive accident, the company will be liable for it. They can’t easily weasel their way out of paying a fake amount. If I have a $1 million liability policy, and I lose a judgment for $1 million, there’s not much the insurance company can do but pay for it. In fact, their lawyers will be fighting the case for me, as they’re the ones who will ultimately have to pay if it fails. From an insurance purchase point of view, liability insurance is a pretty good deal. It’s easy to know what you’re purchasing, and it’s hard for the company to weasel their way out of payment on the back end.
Wanted to say thank you for this. After reading your comment I added looking into this on my To-Do list. After looking more into the insurance I was carrying around since paying off my car I was able to save $400 a year by dropping the comprehensive. KBB value was only $6k for my vehicle.
One thing to keep in mind is that the used car market is fucked right now because of the tariffs. You’re going to pay a premium for any used car from a dealership for the next long while.
My advice? Get a gray title on the car and sell it to someone who will fix it up. I hit a deer with my old 99 contour, and the insurance adjuster totaled it because my back seat was messy (I wouldn’t have believed it if he hadn’t said it to my face; the whole story is a trip). They gave us $2400 for it, we kept the car, and sold it to a family friend for $1200 because it just needed new headlight assemblies. We only paid $1200 for it in the first place, but my step dad knew the dealer and got it for what he paid.
I bought a 98 Contour for $275 about 15 years ago (tweaker really needed pills) and immediately drove it 900 miles one way. Once I was at my destination I heard coolant boiling in the head. Drove it another year until the tensioner broke on my way home from work. Kept driving cuz I had funds for my next vehicle already saved. Engine no longer had compression by the time I was about a mile from home. RIP little shitbox. Best $275 ever. Scrap yard gave me $200.
That thing was a Ford fluke. I drove mine 20k miles after I got it without charging the oil, and it never complained. The fucker actually got more fuel efficient the longer I drove it. Ended up somewhere like 32 city.
I miss it
One you got rid of that pesky oil viscosity, it got more efficient. Same thing is going on in modern cars.