# Car scrappage-do the insurance company have the final say?



## altrib (7 Mar 2006)

my car was wrote off in an accident, it is currently being sorted out by the insurance company of the person who caused the accident. the car is worth about 14,500 euro so im trying to get the full amount out of the insurance company. will i get the full amount(i sent them prices of similar cars to mine from other garages) plus when i recieve the money for my car, can i get my car scrapped for more money or does the insuance company own my car ??


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## chippengael (8 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*

Interestingly enough I'm in the middle of this trauma myself. What a learning curve. 

The wife rear-ended an Audi on the M50 2 weeks ago in our Pug 206. The damage didn't look bad but was priced at €4.8k to fix. The insurance assessor visited the car and agreed it was a write off. 

Now Mr. Insurance Assessor calls me and tells me the pre-crash book value of the car is about €4.9k, but as the 206 is very popular, he thinks the actual value is €5.2k. He offers me the €5.2k, which he says includes €1.2k scrap value. I point out that there's a similar car (same engine size, same year, more miles) on sale on in Wexford for €5.9k, so after some haggling, we agree on €5.5k pre-crash value. 

Meanwhile, the garageman tells me he can get me more than €1.2k in scrap. He guarantees me €1.5k. I tell the insurance assessor to pay me the €5.5k minus the €1.2k scrap, and I'll scrap it myself. Assessor guy gets very irate at this and tries to talk me out of it. He refuses to stick to the agreed figures. Conversation ends badly with me telling him I'm keeping my car which I am perfectly entitled to do. 

Insurance company eventually pays me the non-scrap value of the car (€4250 - they took €50 for whatever reason). I am going with the garageman on the scrap, getting a few extra quid for it and am probaly going to buy my next car from him, so he's keeping me sweet on the deal. 

The bottom line - when the insurance assessor calls you, haggle with him on the pre-scrap value of the car and you can get a few hundred euro more. He's bound to offer a low scrap value, but you garage might do better. Talk to the garage guy before accepting the insurance assessor's initial figures. You own your car, not the insurance company. You are not obliged to sign it over to them.

In this way I managed to improve the total figure by about 10%.


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## asdfg (9 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*

Don't forget you can also claim back any unused portion of the road tax on scrapping the vehicle provided it is actually scrapped. could be worth a few hundred.


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## altrib (9 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*

Thanks alot thats brill advice. 

I actually got a call from his insurance company offering me 11,500k for the car and 800euro for the scrappage. I send them in print outs from local garages showing the true value for the car(vw golf '02) so il get a better offer soon i hope. Il defo shop around for better scrappage deals(any places you recommend) 
My ordeal sounds very much like yourself, my crash happened in coolock lane beside astro park, a four car pile up though. Now my car looks ok, at most new front and rear bumpers but the a vw garage valued the repair at 9.7k (the dearest value the receptionest ever heard, i dont do things in halfs . The body underneath is in a shambles. 
I reackon some haggling with the insurance company is in store.
Thanks again.

Al


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## CCOVICH (9 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*

This Key Post may be of interest.


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## carina (14 Mar 2006)

*Re: bump on someone else's car - insurance Q*

My boyfriend was involved in an accident last week, someone hit him while he (and all the cars in front of him) was stopped. The quote he got is for over €5000, does anyone know if he has the choice as to whether his car is written off or repaired? He loves the car but thinks its only valued at €9000 so is worried that the ins co might write it off.


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## chippengael (14 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*

My understanding is that the insurance company's general rule is that if the cost of repair is > 50% of the pre-crash value, it's a write off. Sounds like your car is on the margin.


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## bond-007 (14 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*



			
				asdfg said:
			
		

> Don't forget you can also claim back any unused portion of the road tax on scrapping the vehicle provided it is actually scrapped. could be worth a few hundred.


Only if there is more than 3 full months left on the tax, It's a very long and slow process.


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## chippengael (14 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*



			
				bond-007 said:
			
		

> Only if there is more than 3 full months left on the tax, It's a very long a slow process.


 
Can you tell me how to do this? Is there a form for this? I looked online but couldn't find one...Thanks!


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## bond-007 (15 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*

There are 2 forms needed. They both must be obtained from the local motor tax office. They must then be completed and signed by a Garda that inspects the wreck to certify that it is scrapped and that it is incapable of being used again. Once this is done return the paperwork to the tax office with the tax disc and allow 6 weeks for the refund less a €10 admin fee.


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## Seagull (15 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*



			
				chippengael said:
			
		

> My understanding is that the insurance company's general rule is that if the cost of repair is > 50% of the pre-crash value, it's a write off. Sounds like your car is on the margin.


I recently managed to get my car repaired rather than scrapped, and the repairs were closer to 90% of the value the insurance company gave.


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## chippengael (15 Mar 2006)

*Re: car scrappage*



			
				bond-007 said:
			
		

> There are 2 forms needed. They both must be obtained from the local motor tax office. They must then be completed and signed by a Garda that inspects the wreck to certify that it is scrapped and that it is incapable of being used again. Once this is done return the paperwork to the tax office with the tax disc and allow 6 weeks for the refund less a €10 admin fee.


 
Interesting!

If I go through with this it means the car really will have to be scrapped! I bet the garage are planning to repair it and re-sell it. I'm going to casually inform them that the gards are coming to inspect it so I can get my tax back and see how they react! I bet they'll just give me the money I am due (about €150)...! It's all smoke and mirrors.


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## chippengael (16 Mar 2006)

I just called the garage and told them I was getting my road tax refunded - they offered me €100 not to do it! Looks like I will be seeing my old crashed car on the roads again - hope I don't crash into it in my new car!


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## Megan (22 Mar 2006)

It's cases like this that leaves us with dangerous cars put back on the road. I think if a car is deemed to be scrapped it should be scraped. You should send the car registration book back to the tax office and notify them that the car is scrapped. It might stop those cowboy garages making money on the back of someones else loss.
Have you not heard of people buying a second hand car only to find out later they have got two cars ie: the back of one car and the front of another.


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## chippengael (28 Mar 2006)

I take your point. 

In my case the car was lightly damaged and yet the insurance assessor and garage repair man both agreed on a repair figure of about €4.8k. The market value of the car is about €5.5k.

The car was scrapped for €1.5k. 

This means that they are going to repair the car and sell it for say €5.5k. In order to make a profit of €1k, and subtracting the scrap value, they'll repair it for 3k. Probably less. So why did they quote me €4.8k to fix it? Because they'll make more money fixing it for resale it than fixing it for me. 

The new owner will probably never know it was in a crash. 

I'll keep an eye out for it on the roads.


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