Side curtain airbags deployed...cost? Insurance?

[e60ral]

Typically an "Airbag Deployed" mark on a title decreases the value of a vehicle 50-60%'

So let's say that vehicle is worth $30K pre-crash it's now worth $12-15K post crash.

Also note that many insurance companies will total a vehicle out sight unseen if the airbags have deployed due to future liability.

I'm not saying it's necessarily right (in this situation) but that's the way it works. It's the Scarlet Letter for any vehicle. It had something bad enough to deploy the airbags - nobody wants to touch them.

Look at the exotic car salvage sites. They are full of vehicles selling at 50% or less of retail because the airbags deployed. It's a lot more serious than most people realize. And no, they are not cheap to replace in the least.

source?

 

[Jayhawk5G]

I don't think 4LO is the switch for the side airbags. I think it's vehicle speed, like KDSS and some of the other traction aids. Once you get below, say, 12 mph then the side airbags require a different algorithm to trip them. For example a higher yaw angle or even the rate the yaw is changing plus the acceleration.

I think now the 2014+ 4Runners can always have their side airbags deployed it's just harder to do at a lower speed.

My .02

You may be 100% correct, obviously something changed if they removed the button. However OP is a prime example of why removing the button and using a different method was such a good idea. If OP had known about the button and utilized it this wouldn't have happened (at least the airbag portion lol), of I he had a newer 4Runner it wouldn't have happened because he wouldn't have had to do anything.

Your guess would be better because it would even have the 4Lo qualifier.

 

[Watchdogg]

From my understanding it doesn't hit Carfax unless the driver has reported it to local Law Enforcement or Highway Patrol. Carfax get their information from police reports which are public records where as the insurance companies uses an internal database which is only shared between other insurance companies.

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The carfax report will have the exact amount of the damage right down to the penny. That wouldn't be on the police report.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

source?

Me, KBB and the free market.

I watch exotic car salvage sites very carefully because 1) I find it interesting to see the ****ed up shit people do and 2) I was (not anymore as I bought another toy) looking for a very specific exotic car.

I typically see airbag deployed vehicles going for half or less of what a comparable non-deployed vehicle goes for.

It's a fact of life. Just like theft recovery vehicles, flood vehicles, vandalized vehicles. The value diminishes greatly when any of that hits the CarFax.

Poke around and do some research (just a little) and you'll see what I mean.

Also my sister is an underwriter for high risk drivers insurance and I've heard of vehicles that a drunk runs into a wall or pole at 10 mph and the bags deploy and they total the vehicle out. Then cancel the policy.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Hey [MENTION=29011]Blitzkrieg[/MENTION],

Are you an actuary? I actually studied hard for that career many moons ago when I was majoring in statistics.
I took the easy route and switched to engineering

Sorry to get off topic.

Oh God no. I have worked in the insurance industry on the tech side most of my life and have known a few. Most boring people I have ever met.

Just a dedicated car/bike/toy nut who follows trends closely.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

My wife works in the insurance industry as well... I was looking at a used Tacoma with a salvage title a few weeks back and was told they wont even insure the truck.

So basically I get what you are saying, their underwriters wont even entertain the liability.

Yeah, things have changed a lot over the last, say 15 years.

Example: We had a hailstorm 2 years ago and I had Allstate come to check my roof.

They said the roof is fine but the skylight trim (cosmetic) is damaged. I said "Don't worry about it. We have hail all the time they are going to get hit again if it's cosmetic who cares?".

A year later I dumped them and went with another insurance company and guess what pops up? Yep, the fact that I had them come out just to check things. No claim, but I got dinged on my new policy for what they called a "potential" or some bullshit.

Anybody that thinks insurance companies don't know and exchange everything about a car/house/claim is naive.

 

[Engineer]

....................is there any such thing as a not for profit insurance company?

 

[STX4Runner]

Yeah, things have changed a lot over the last, say 15 years.

Example: We had a hailstorm 2 years ago and I had Allstate come to check my roof.

They said the roof is fine but the skylight trim (cosmetic) is damaged. I said "Don't worry about it. We have hail all the time they are going to get hit again if it's cosmetic who cares?".

A year later I dumped them and went with another insurance company and guess what pops up? Yep, the fact that I had them come out just to check things. No claim, but I got dinged on my new policy for what they called a "potential" or some bullshit.

Anybody that thinks insurance companies don't know and exchange everything about a car/house/claim is naive.

Same thing happened to us. We had a huge hailstorm this spring. At our house it was really weird though. We had baseball size hail, but only for about 30 seconds to one minute, and not a lot of hailstones in that time. Even though our cars were outside I only got a few really small dings and my wife's car is the same way. Called home insurance to check the roof and they tell us just having an adjuster out to look opens a "claim." Even if they find no damage.

 

[Ray Dunakin]

...I've heard of vehicles that a drunk runs into a wall or pole at 10 mph and the bags deploy and they total the vehicle out.

So basically all these excess airbags have turned our vehicles into very, very expensive disposables. But a plastic grocery bag that costs .0001 cent is evil.

Thank you, government regulation!

 

[Blitzkrieg]

So basically all these excess airbags have turned our vehicles into very, very expensive disposables. But a plastic grocery bag that costs .0001 cent is evil.

Thank you, government regulation!

Well, it's a double edged sword.

If they deploy it's a huge expense to fix.

But... Would I rather be driving my Dad's 60' Chevy Bel-Air with a metal dashboard and no seat belts and a steering column that can impale me in a front collision? Not so much.

I just drive my truck like I do my motorcycle or new toy: I watch everybody really carefully and assume the other person on the road next to me is a distracted idiot who is texting.

Intersections, left turns. Ya gotta stay sharp out there.

 

[e60ral]

I can see pricing for exotics being finicky, but i can't see a $30k vehicle losing half of its value because of airbags. 50% might be right for a $5k used camry or something, but if $15k repaired 4Runners exist point me to them so I can save some money

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I can see pricing for exotics being finicky, but i can't see a $30k vehicle losing half of its value because of airbags. 50% might be right for a $5k used camry or something, but if $15k repaired 4Runners exist point me to them so I can save some money

I get that you think I am full of shit. ;-)

Peruse this and take your pick. Airbags, flood, theft recovery, vandalism. You name it.

You want cheap. Here you go. Cash only. And there are dozens of sites that auction these off. I watch them carefully and I am telling you airbags deployed is a bad thing in the secondary market.

https://erepairables.com/salvage-cars-auction?model[]=4runner&make[]=toyota&vtype[]=suv

 

[crankycodger]

I get that you think I am full of shit. ;-)

Peruse this and take your pick. Airbags, flood, theft recovery, vandalism. You name it.

You want cheap. Here you go. Cash only. And there are dozens of sites that auction these off. I watch them carefully and I am telling you airbags deployed is a bad thing in the secondary market.

https://erepairables.com/salvage-cars-auction?model[]=4runner&make[]=toyota&vtype[]=suv

Pretty amazing!

 

[e60ral]

those all have salvage titles and aren't repaired (and there are also probably reserve prices)


if you look at vehicles with multiple bids or buy it now you see stuff like a 2014, unrepaired, with a salvage title is $13,950 so a repaired vehicle with a clean title should have a market value much higher than $15,000, I'm just not seeing how spending that much money out of pocket for repairs makes sense.

 

[decker1]

Thanks for the reply, and sorry about the delay.
I was in 2WD. I only really use 4WD to rescue myself or get up a soft hill.
I am looking into a kill switch for disabling these airbags. Expensive buggers.

I'm curious, what drive mode were you in when the bags deployed? 2wd, 4hi or 4lo? I asked the dealer specifically about the lack of an RSCA button on the 14+ model years. Their final answer after searching for awhile was that Toyota "probably worked it into the 4wd system, such that the roll sensor disengages in 4lo". If this is true or not I never verified. If your bags went off independent of a side impact and not during a rollover you may consider taking this up with Toyota. However, considering you have a side-impact from the same trip may understandably complicate things.

 

[decker1]

Thanks for your reply.
I haven responded in a while but here is an update to the masses.
Insurance handled it no problem. My brother pretty much admitted fault to his insurance company (USAA) and cut a check for the damage. My insurance (Mercury) said it was one of the easiest claims they processed, since my brother and I are not feuding over this.

They had an inspection done to the vehicle (around 11k), cut a check, and the runner currently being worked on. No deductible.

Apparently those side curtain airbags are 1500 bucks EACH!
the headliner is 1200 or so.
Either way the problem seems to be going away.

As far as resale value, I suppose I will just cross that bridge when I come to it. I do not see myself selling this vehicle any time soon.

PS, Does anyone know if the carfax will be a problem should i decide to trade it in for a 6th gen ?

First, as I mentioned in another thread, DO NOT lie to your insurance company about the facts of the loss. Dishonesty can lead to two things: 1) your insurance company will deny the claim; and 2) you may be charged with insurance fraud.

Nearly every auto insurance policy I've read includes clauses about cooperating with the company's investigation and allows for claim denial of you impede the investigation (which includes dishonesty about the facts of the loss).

You need to check your policy -- get your agent's help if necessary, since he/she isn't part of claims -- to make sure you're covered. Also, it sounds like these two things are separate incidents (i.e. one happened and then later the other happened). Keep in mind this would be two separate claims, with two separate deductibles if they are covered. I do agree with a previous poster, your insurance will most likely cover the damage.

Your vehicle, being as new as it is, is going to be governed by state law concerning requirements for totaling it and/or titling requirements after it is fixed (for example, Wisconsin requires a vehicle 7 model years or newer to be totaled when the repair costs reach 70% of actual cash value/value just prior to the loss).

Salvage titles don't always cause you to lose insurance -- and if it is fixed and you keep it your company can't claim they can no longer insure it (since the company would be giving you "gold" for a court case against them). If they do, they are admitting that they didn't indemnify you (get you back to the point before the loss(es) occurred) and that they didn't properly return your vehicle to the condition it was in prior to the loss.

A diminished value claim can be possible, but you have one year from the date of the loss to prove it in most cases -- so you'll have to have it fixed and then sell it quickly, take a loss, get documentation of the 4R's value if there was no loss, and then take the insurance company to court. It's not an easy process and I've only seen it happen with expensive exotics and high-performance vehicles.

Like another member posted with their repair example, if you've set off an airbag or two and have damaged/creased a few body panels, you're well into the several thousand dollar range for proper repairs.

 

[c350z]

Thanks for your reply.
I haven responded in a while but here is an update to the masses.
Insurance handled it no problem. My brother pretty much admitted fault to his insurance company (USAA) and cut a check for the damage. My insurance (Mercury) said it was one of the easiest claims they processed, since my brother and I are not feuding over this.

They had an inspection done to the vehicle (around 11k), cut a check, and the runner currently being worked on. No deductible.

Apparently those side curtain airbags are 1500 bucks EACH!
the headliner is 1200 or so.
Either way the problem seems to be going away.

As far as resale value, I suppose I will just cross that bridge when I come to it. I do not see myself selling this vehicle any time soon.

PS, Does anyone know if the carfax will be a problem should i decide to trade it in for a 6th gen ?

wow $11k that's crazy, glad its working out for you

 

[Kashoggio]

Yes carfax will get a report where it will say "accident- airbag deployment. "


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[Watchdogg]

Yes carfax will be a problem for you if you trade it. The stealer will low ball you and then double the price they sell it for because most people don't check the carfax report when they buy used.

 

[Bumbo]

Can't believe you stuck your own brothers insurance with the bulk of the cost...

Let us know how much his insurance premiums go up after this claim... his premiums wont be cheap after an accident... he will pretty much be paying for your mistakes on the air bags over the next 3 years.