Automotive

Car totalled - what will insurer pay

  • Last Updated:
  • Jul 29th, 2015 1:54 pm
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Sr. Member
Aug 25, 2005
717 posts
105 upvotes
Mississauga

Car totalled - what will insurer pay

I have a 2010 Corolla S with 70K. My wife was in a car accident and the car was totalled

What can I expect the insurer to pay -- I looked at what they are listed in autotrader and prices vary a lot between car dealerships of major manufacturers versus other non manufacturer dealerships
5 replies
Deal Expert
User avatar
Jul 22, 2006
22438 posts
3065 upvotes
They use service to make a car report and based on that give you a value...

Kijiji autotrader ads won't help much (they'll push for you to hire a appraiser)

Maintenance on a car is also iffy but anything done in past year send it over!!
Deal Addict
Jan 3, 2008
1580 posts
289 upvotes
My almost new car was totalled last year. It takes a while to get what you want. But go to autotrader and find similar to your car (model, year, kms) advertisements and start making a report. They will give you similar report so that you can compare both and counter their offer. That would be a good starting point.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Oct 16, 2007
1699 posts
999 upvotes
Do some reasearch on what similiar cars are worth. The inurance will pay the averageish amount. Unfortuantly for you, that means their payout will be for cars around 125k mileage (assuming 25k/yr). You should have a list of cars that as similiar in mileage to your and be ready to fight them. Who knows, they may offer you something you like. You'll just have to wait and see.

Also start looking for your next car. Once a decision has been made, you wont have much time with the rental (assuming you get a rental).
Deal Expert
Aug 2, 2001
18946 posts
10528 upvotes
The key thing is making sure they are accounting for all your options and accessories when providing comparable values. With a 2010 Corolla, unless you have a bunch of aftermarket stuff, the valuation should be pretty straight forward since there will be so many comparables.

If I recall, the insurer has the right to demand you return the rental once they tender an offer. Otherwise, you would just "think on it" for a month while you run through all your rental car coverage. They are usually far more accommodating, however just something to keep in mind as being RFD I am sure there are some that would promote you keeping the rental "while deciding" to milk more money.

Good luck! I hope your wife is doing OK because it sounds like a fairly big accident.

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