Insurance value for highly customized '94 FZJ80

[summers]

Heya,

Yeah I think its likely true that $20K is high, but I plan to go after that anyway. For what its worth, I don't need another vehicle for now, that was more of a project/recreation vehicle than a daily.

Also, I have an attorney already. Not quite the same as retainer, but effectively the same. I use the firm regularly for my company. State Farm knows this, and further knows that I am fully prepared to litigate this matter. My demand is replacement value for a vehicle in the precise condition mine was in prior to the accident.

3 Months seems like a bit long to go, since winter is coming and I would prefer to have a replacement before the snows hit. I might be willing to take a little less if they are quick.

As far as understanding their buyback offer, I am certain they stated the title would be clean. I thought it odd as well. I trust them about as far as I can spit, however.

As far as keeping things, I am pulling my media server (ssd drives running gentoo linux ftr) and other electronics out as well as other easily retrieved items. Pisses me off as I just had it nice and was about to install a touch screen. It served nicely as a wifi hotspot using an old 3G android adp1 phone hacked to run a minimal gentoo router/firewall install.

Anyway, I will post to this thread as I learn more of the shenanigans being pulled.

 

[Kernal]

summers: could you start a thread detailing what you did to get a better cell signal in your truck, or was it more than that??

 

[summers]

summers: could you start a thread detailing what you did to get a better cell signal in your truck, or was it more than that??

I didn't even get to that point with this setup. However, I assume you are talking about a 3G data signal off the radio and not the wifi signal.

To get better 3G radio reception you would be better off with a dedicated PCI card and antenna versus messing with an android device like I did. The main reason I went with the adp1 was simply because I had it already setup for this purpose and installing it was cheesy.

As far as better wifi signal, there are tons of antenna available for fairly cheap to accomplish this. Just check amazon or newegg.

HTH,
summers

 

[summers]

as a side note, you can remove the current antenna and solder on another on, just insure that its attenuated appropriately for the radio signal range you are expecting. Another option, as it occurs to me, is to acquire a conventional signal booster from your provider. T-Mobile has offered a free one to me on a number of occasions for my home. I declined since my signal is sufficient, but I think I will accept it now as it may prove perfect for travel.

 

[summers]

I settled the claim a few weeks back and I think what I ended up receiving will be surprising to many of you.

I settled for $15,016.00 plus a sales tax waiver.
I let them keep the mangled truck, which I am glad I did since when they started it to put it on a truck the engine dumped all its oil.

Now, you may be wondering how I was able to extract such a favorable settlement from a large corporation like State Farm. Well, here is what I did in case someone needs this in the future.

Step 1. Refused their initial offer of $5250 and stated that they were waaaaaay off base given what had been done to the truck.

Step 2. Assembled all receipts that I had.

Step 3. Talked to my attorney just so that I could state to the adjuster that I had talked with my dude.

Step 4. This the the key step. I located for sale "comparables" to my vehicle by searching everywhere I could think of of. Luckily I found quite a few modified 80s as well as some stock LCs. Make PDF files of each vehicle to include in forthcoming packet.

Step 5. Write a nice "demand" letter and include details about the vehicle that explain its worth/value and the amount you are asking for. Make it verbose and professional. Attach the "comparables" as well and fax it to the claims adjuster.

Step 6. Wait a little, 3 days or so.

Step 7. Talk with the adjuster to make a deal.


I asked for $18,000 and took $15,000. I was happy with that. In all it took less than 60 days to complete the deal.

Key points are:
1. Be prepared to wait
2. Stick to your guns
3. Arm yourself with information

In the mean time since then, I have purchased a nice, stock '96 FZJ80 to begin building from scratch.

Cheers, and thanks for all the feedback and support.

 

[Frankencruiser]

Congratulations! That sounds like a good settlement.

 

[FJRanger]

Job well done.

 

[Ebag333]

Nicely done. $15k isn't that unreasonable given that I still see stock 80's popping up for $10k-$12k. It's a pleasant surprise that it was that painless.

Are you planning on getting a rider for your new truck to cover the mods?

 

[Walking Eagle]

Nicely done. $15k isn't that unreasonable given that I still see stock 80's popping up for $10k-$12k. It's a pleasant surprise that it was that painless.

Are you planning on getting a rider for your new truck to cover the mods?

Painless? Where people get screwed (and I wouldn't have paid 15K for that truck before the accident - so I think he came out ahead) - is they don't have an attourney on retainer and they don't have another vehicle they can drive for 60 days. 60 days of rental at $50 bucks a day plus the couple hundred dollars just to walk into an atourney's office isn't in the cards for most.

 

[BrotherRob]

Painless? Where people get screwed (and I wouldn't have paid 15K for that truck before the accident - so I think he came out ahead) - is they don't have an attourney on retainer and they don't have another vehicle they can drive for 60 days. 60 days of rental at $50 bucks a day plus the couple hundred dollars just to walk into an atourney's office isn't in the cards for most.

I think time is the enemy of most settlements. Most insurance companies put a big priority on settling quick. For most claimants, it's all about how quickly they see a check. They are happy with a quick settlement and never realize they're getting hosed.

It's pretty easy to get away without a lawyer if you take the time to understand your rights and stick to your guns.

 

[driver5155]

I settled the claim a few weeks back and I think what I ended up receiving will be surprising to many of you.

I settled for $15,016.00 plus a sales tax waiver.
I let them keep the mangled truck, which I am glad I did since when they started it to put it on a truck the engine dumped all its oil.

Now, you may be wondering how I was able to extract such a favorable settlement from a large corporation like State Farm. Well, here is what I did in case someone needs this in the future.

Step 1. Refused their initial offer of $5250 and stated that they were waaaaaay off base given what had been done to the truck.

Step 2. Assembled all receipts that I had.

Step 3. Talked to my attorney just so that I could state to the adjuster that I had talked with my dude.

Step 4. This the the key step. I located for sale "comparables" to my vehicle by searching everywhere I could think of of. Luckily I found quite a few modified 80s as well as some stock LCs. Make PDF files of each vehicle to include in forthcoming packet.

Step 5. Write a nice "demand" letter and include details about the vehicle that explain its worth/value and the amount you are asking for. Make it verbose and professional. Attach the "comparables" as well and fax it to the claims adjuster.

Step 6. Wait a little, 3 days or so.

Step 7. Talk with the adjuster to make a deal.


I asked for $18,000 and took $15,000. I was happy with that. In all it took less than 60 days to complete the deal.

Key points are:
1. Be prepared to wait
2. Stick to your guns
3. Arm yourself with information

In the mean time since then, I have purchased a nice, stock '96 FZJ80 to begin building from scratch.

Cheers, and thanks for all the feedback and support.

Are you going to post pdf of your comparables?

 

[warpdriv]

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience.

 

[ColoCruiserJeff]

Well, I'm in a similar situation with my 80.

This thread has been very educational, and I plan to fight it out.

Rolled my 80 this weekend, and the ins co wants to lo-ball me big time....now the appraiser won't return my calls

LOVE IT!!

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Trapper50cal]

Well, I'm in a similar situation with my 80.

This thread has been very educational, and I plan to fight it out.

Rolled my 80 this weekend, and the ins co wants to lo-ball me big time....now the appraiser won't return my calls

LOVE IT!!

Thanks for the advice.

Seems to me that once an agent starts to refuse to return calls, it's time to go over his head or send them something with a Lawyer's letterhead.

 

[Ebag333]

Seems to me that once an agent starts to refuse to return calls, it's time to go over his head or send them something with a Lawyer's letterhead.

Depends on how long. Few days? No. Week plus? Absolutely.

I'd also try and get a manager/supervisor before going to a lawyer.

 

[Trapper50cal]

Depends on how long. Few days? No. Week plus? Absolutely.

I'd also try and get a manager/supervisor before going to a lawyer.

Agreed

 

[thegoodword]

An oncoming car slid on snow into my lane and mashed up the front bumper, head light, turn signal, radiator and drivers side front tire. Basically the entire front drivers side corner of my locked LX450 is smashed to the point of not being able to drive. The other driver was ticketed, acknowledged to me that it was his fault, and his insurance company (Geico) has already called me admitting liability. They want to know where the vehicle was towed to so they can start an appraisal. It was towed to the location of the tow company that my insurance company (USAA) dispatched. I essentially have open claims with both insurance companies but have not yet provided details to either since this just happened and I wanted to read Mud posts first. The tow yard is closed over the weekend, so none of us can do anything about it right now anyway. Their insurance company will provide an "intermediate level" rental car, while my insurance company will not. Geico is saying I have to work with them fully and not with my insurance company if I start the process with them. Since the other driver and his insurance company have admitted fault, I certainly would rather not have anything tarnish my insurance record even though USAA says it will not affect me. I have to think that even when it is not my fault, if I go through USAA for this issue then it will still have some unfavorable affect on my record. Both companies believe that this accident is a total loss. Even after reading this post, I still do not know whose insurance company to use and if I really need a lawyer or not. There has been some great advice here and arming myself with documentation of Locked versus Unlocked 80 prices will be a good place to start. I'll post pictures soon and if you all have advice, chime in loud and often. My stock, locked LX450 with everything working perfectly and the cleanest pink panties you can sniff is now wrecked in a tow yard. I am struggling with how to proceed.

 

[MikeB]

The driver who hit me in this accident had Geico insurance:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/collision-damage-can-this-be-fixed.770103/

I only made a claim with Geico. I didn't involve my own insurance with State Farm. Geico towed my truck to a body shop that they chose. I had damage to both front and back, so the repair estimate clearly indicated that it was totaled. My Geico adjuster was reasonable to deal with and I also tried to act reasonable with him. After some negotiation and adjustment for my aftermarket accessories, they offered $7500 with an option for me to buy it back for $200. I took the check for $7300 and my cruiser back. My impression was that the $200 buy-back option is standard at Geico. The whole settlement was concluded in a few weeks.

My story had a happy ending because I was lucky enough to have help from Tools R Us and inkpot. They used their amazing skills and body shop contacts to fix my cruiser so that it looks and drives the same as before the accident.

 

[thegoodword]

Geico took a bit of convincing that a large SUV rental car would be equivalent to a Landcruiser. After an hour on the phone and me telling them, "I would not be in this mess if your insured had not hit me," they gave me a Tahoe. Advice on this thread says to never let the other party's insurance take the vehicle to their lot. Geico wants me to release the vehicle to them but I told Geico that their appraiser should come and look at it at the tow yard's lot. If they total it, they will want me to release it to them so they can take it to their lot. I am not sure what to do about that. If I take the vehicle home, then I will have to pay the tow yard to get it out of their lot and tow it to my house. I like the idea of leverage against the insurer, but seem to have no choice if Geico says they have to have it at their lot or their body shop for some reason or another. As promised, here are some pictures of the carnage:

 

[MikeB]

What keeps it from being drivable, aside from the flat tire? That doesn't look too much worse than my front damage. I didn't have any mechanical problems from my front hit.