Wow...We've got good coverage and hopefully won't have to use it...waiting on response from other person's insurance but mine is pressing forward and adjuster is coming to assess damage tomorrow.

Man, that is bad. Surprised it’s only $7,200. Figure painting it right in a booth is going to run at least $4,000 alone. Is the axle bent? Have you had any other shops take a look and write up an estimate? If you haven’t, I would. And who gave you that estimate? Progressive rep? Or a Progressive authorized body shop? That seems way low for what they’re going to have to do. No way that’s with OEM parts. I’d definitely ask your dealer for a trade in value and use that in negotiating a settlement. I’d also find a 4R exactly like yours and throw a few hundred deposit on it with your dealer before the 2019s are gone. You’re going to have to get a check for diminished value for this - the Carfax accident report is going to sound awful. And the pictures aren’t going to put anyone’s mind at ease. Sucks!

I STRONGLY encourage you to speak to a competent attorney immediately, if you haven't done so already.

Insurance companies are in business to make a profit (nothing wrong with that) but sometimes that comes at the expense of paying what is right.

I personally would pursue this through competent legal representation. Most of these attorneys will not charge you anything unless they collect for you, which collect they will, and waaay more than you could alone... They will usually take about 33.3%.

Plus, you may have injuries you don't even know you have... A month from now your neck or back may start bothering you and once you settle, that's is... One bite at the apple, so to speak.

Insist on OEM parts and compensation for anything you spent money on aftermarket that was damaged as a result of some other driver's negligence.

Stop making public statements and speak to an attorney immediately.

Hope all turns out well.

^^^THIS. Do this right away...

Engage a competent lawyer immediately... as in, today. Stop making statements to the insurance people... it's their job to pay as little as possible...

You've already indicated you've sustained injuries...

The attorney will handle ALL the PITA paperwork and make sure you are made whole... including your injuries and your 4Runner...

I'm repetitive for a reason... don't fool around with this... Get a good lawyer today.

This!!!



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Probably last post here. I put it in 4 Wheel drive this morning and could tell something is bent...it wobbled pretty bad and binds up horribly making turns. And yes, I tested it out prior to buying and it was perfect.

Went through almost the same with my wife's Rav4. She got rear ended with over 14k in damages, and they didn't total it. We ended up trading it into the dealer that was fixing it, while they were fixing it, and got a new Rav4 from them. We both work demanding jobs, so we really didn't have time to lawyer up and mess with all that.

It's becoming very clear that I will not get a total loss declared. My concern is that the adjuster and body shop both only addressed the visible damage. I'm concerned that there is driveline damage especially within 4WD.

What can I do? Should I take it to my dealer to have them assess the driveline damage?

Both times these folks have said 'oh we'll just do a supplemental repair'...well what if there is several $Thousands worth of damage there? wouldn't they want to know up front in case it crosses the TLF?

Maybe they ought to fire Flo and take away her price gun and instead of wasting money on their silly commercials ...

Lawyer up!!



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I went through a similar situation about two years ago with my Runner. First off, don't settle on the shop that is going to do your work. I reached out to the guys insurance company to get a list of their "recommended repair shops." I then did a ton of research and found one that had great reviews and were willing to answer my questions. I also demanded all OEM parts. I sent my vehicle back once because my side mirror was scratched. They replaced it, no questions asked. Don't settle on anything, make sure everything looks and feels the same before saying you are ok with repairs. All in my repairs totaled just under $13k and I had a loaner for 6 weeks.

Now for the diminished value claim: After the repairs were all done, I took the vehicle to Carmax to get appraised. I then took it to two other local dealerships to get a trade in value. I then went "shopping" for the exact model 4runner I had with all the same options and roughly same mileage. Key here is to go across the country. I then took the three highest values of cars being sold and compared that to the average of the three trade in values I got from the dealerships. I then figured out the difference between those values and tacked on an extra $2k for wiggle room in negotiations with the insurance company. I contacted them, sent over all my research. They balked at first because I was asking for $7k in diminished value and they were offering $1500. They tried to tell me an SR5 was similar enough to my trail. I firmly said no. Reiterated my $7k demand. The adjuster said they'd have to get supervisor approval but they stressed they didn't think I could get it (it's their job to pay out as little as possible). After a week of back and forth and them only coming up to $3500 I finally said, either you can pay me $6k or any further negotiations can be directed to my lawyer. Needless to say they caved and I got my $6k. I think the important thing here was that I was organized, had multiple sources of information, and stuck to my guns.

Ultimately I kept my truck, immediately paid down the balance with the diminished value funds and moved on with my life. I've had zero issues since but I know the shop who did the work is top notch. Had I not been ok with the shop's work I would've swapped out with the diminished value funds and moved on. Just thought my experience might help you out.


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This is an awesome outcome, it seems!

Thanks! I just was put onto a top notch body shop from a friend from High School that teaches body shop at the high school where I'm from. Came highly recommended and I'm confident it will be fixed right. I may have to push with insurance as they are stipulating re-conditioned wheels but I won't accept that so hopefully I can work that out.

From there, I'll focus on diminished value but I want to make sure I have the research lined up before pursuing that. All in all, I think I'll end up Ok.

Car accident + not your fault + significant damage + injuries = lawyer.

WTF is so hard about that? They may take a part of the settlement but they will - almost without exception - still get you more money than you would get without a lawyer.

Yes, it is hard to justify "what???? They're getting 30% for a few phone calls and a letter or two", but you've got to get over that and look at the $21k settlement with a lawyer (so $14k to you) is better than the $10k you might get without a lawyer.

Further, the first thing a lawyer will tell you is to stop posting - but that doesn't mean that you can't come back with "here's my new ride"