Car advice

[blacklashez]

Hi I have just been in an accident ( not my fault ) and my insurance company have assesed the damages and saying it?s a write off , as it?s costing ?4,000 to fix it! Now they have offered to pay me ?5,300 for my Vauxhall Astra ( I bought it brnad new ) or if I want to retain the car will pay me ?3,000 and give me the car but then I have to fix it . I?m really torn as what I should do ?? Anyone here have any good advice ? Thanks

[Dom Johnston]

First of all, check on things like Autotrader for similar vehicles to see how much they are going for, then if they are going for more than the insurance is offering, go back and ask for more. Also, double check on your policy on the vehicle value that it was insured for. They will always offer less to get things sorted out quickly. This is usually much lower than the market value.

Once you have an offer which you're happy with and can purchase a like for like car with, take the money. If you buy the car back you either A - have to pay for expensive repairs or B - try and sell if for spares or repair/parts. If you do repair it, you will struggle to insure it at a reasonable cost as it has been classed as an insurance write off, then you'll also struggle to sell it or trade it in down the line.

[sjw]

I had a similar experience last year . A white van hit my car while it was parked outside my house .Insurers were useless after weeks they decided my car was a write off so I cancelled the claim and had it repaired for a fraction of the cost they had estimated. Changed insurers with no problem.