Damage Assessment Hit by Drunk Driver (1 Viewer)

[dcarmstrong3]

I bought my first 100 LC 2001 in December 17 and have appreciated all of the advice on the forum. Unfortunately, I got hit by a drunk driver in a 4Runner the other night and think my LC is going to be totaled. Everyone was fine but I was going 45 mph and he came through a intersection at 20 or so mph and hit my back tire. I thought I was going to roll but the heavy stable beast just took it and spun. The good news is I drove away. The bad news is I think the insurance company will total it. The LC been in NC its whole life and I just two weeks ago had Toyota do the timing belt, wp, belts, etc and put new tires on it a month ago plus all the other little things I've done myself heater T's etc. I've attached some pics. Crazy thing is driving it you wouldn't know it got hit but I'm pretty sure there has to be some damage I can't see. Any thoughts on what to look for? I'm waiting on the adjuster so any advice on getting my money back out of it would be appreciated. The adjuster said on the phone they will total it without seeing it and asked if I wanted to keep it. Trying to figure out the next move and thought ya'll would have some good advice. View media item 69394View media item 69393View media item 69392View media item 69391View media item 69390

 

[vman07]

Not seeing pics...

 

[cruiserdan]

If you are not at fault and the other driver was insured, that carrier could be on the hook to make you whole. Your job would then be to establish what the truck was worth before he trashed it.

 

[geanes]

Hey, if the frame is ok and there isn't any or very little damage to the suspension, I'd say hit his insurance company for some upgrades! Like, a new ToughDog suspension and a nice steel rear bumper. In all seriousness, glad you're ok and hope everything works out for you. If they try and total it, remember to put in the cost of the TB/WP job. That should add another $1-$2k to the total possibly.

 

[UltraFJ40]

Personally, I would make sure the drive train and suspension were good to go then use the money for upgrades as mentioned by @geanes .

Leave the dents, it's truck after all. Son hit my '05 with a baseball yesterday but luckily it caught the metal just below the window. He said that he was sorry but I told him to get the ball and let's keep throwing.

I too am happy that there were no injuries. Count your blessings my friend.

 

[tacoduck]

Whats the value on it? $10k? My guess is they would total it. That said, it looks to need 2-3k in work. Perfect truck to buy back and have as a 3rd vehicle.

 

[BillZ260]

Glad you all are ok.

Another vote for checking the frame and drive train. If all is well, get what you can out of the insurance co and use that money for trail upgrades. Those dents will go along way towards reducing anxiety when you dent something else out there.

 

[toyotaspeed90]

Whats the value on it? $10k? My guess is they would total it. That said, it looks to need 2-3k in work. Perfect truck to buy back and have as a 3rd vehicle.

What insurance do you carry... because that math doesn't add up.

"Totalled" isn't about quantity of damage to a vehicle or whether it's driveable or not. Totalled simply refers to a "total loss" - that insurance deems it too expensive to fix in comparison to the value of the vehicle.

Not all insurance companies use the same calculation, but it's generally in the 80-110% of value.

So if the vehicle is worth $10,000 it would have to have at least $8,000 in damage to be considered a "total loss" (or up to $11,000, depending on the insurance company).

 

[dcarmstrong3]

Thanks for thoughts. My insurance is Farm Bureau but the other DD owner's was All State. The All State adjuster just said they were going to "Total" the vehicle and asked me to send them 50 pictures from every possible angle to establish value. Then he asked if I wanted to keep it.

I haven't sent them a single picture but my big question was how can you total it without seeing it and then ask me to send pics that can only be used to devalue the vehicle. Personally, I thought it was crazy and my thought is they were going to try to value the LC much cheaper than it should be. There is not a question of fault as the police report was pretty clear and the police were right there when it happened.

My other option is to go through my own insurance and let them go back to All State which is probably what I will do. I had a guy look it up today at a Toyota collision place and he said according to their computer model the threshold for totalled is approximately $5k in damages.

 

[IamtheBruce]

my big question was how can you total it without seeing it and then ask me to send pics that can only be used to devalue the vehicle.

My 2000 LX got backed into a few months back. Didn't damage the radiator, just some trim, the bumper, and headlight mounting tabs. It was almost written off when the body shop figured out how hard it is to source some trim pieces for these vehicles. Nothing wrong with having them total it but you getting to keep it, so long as the moving parts work correctly. You get your truck and some cash to spend on it. It may lose resale value, but it was going to anyway as these rigs get older and older.

 

[4Beast]

What insurance do you carry... because that math doesn't add up.

"Totalled" isn't about quantity of damage to a vehicle or whether it's driveable or not. Totalled simply refers to a "total loss" - that insurance deems it too expensive to fix in comparison to the value of the vehicle.

Not all insurance companies use the same calculation, but it's generally in the 80-110% of value.

So if the vehicle is worth $10,000 it would have to have at least $8,000 in damage to be considered a "total loss" (or up to $11,000, depending on the insurance company).

The insurance companies don't hang out on IH8Mud, so to them a Land Cruiser of that year is probably worth $4,000. They don't want to risk a few unseen repairs driving the cost beyond that, so they total it. It takes a fair amount of evidence to the contrary to establish the true vehicle value, but that's also why people have advised the OP to buy it back.