(First off, if anybody don’t wanna read an off topic rant by me about the insurance “scam” please just save your time and hit the “delete” button now.)
Joyce: Alabama must have some weird laws because this is the first claim I have ever submitted in this state. In FL, they (the insurance company) has the car owner to go to three garages, get estimates, then, unless that garage has some bad reports through the BBB etc, they are the ones who do get the job. I even told the insurance company that I could actually fix te car myself, using that very method of going to the junkyard near me that I know had several PT cruisers, and even three in the same silver color etc, and fix it myself. Bottom line was that YES, I could do that IF I had the cash in hand to pay off the car in total which I do not, so it becomes a mute point. And, like I said, even if I fixed it perfectly (I have a friend who does paint and body and even has a frame straightener if need be) who said he’d help me, in order to re-title it, I’d have to get one of the three state inspectors to check it out and re-issue a “totalled tag” or whatever they call it and even then, my insurance guy, who is an independent agent (not Progressive, which is the underwriter on the policy and the ones I feel ripped me off) told me that for whatever reason, very seldom do those inspectors re-issue titles. Probably has something to do with the politics of the insurance lobby or something like that. Bottom line is, even though I could get a loan to do it myself, If the guy did NOT re-issue a title, I’d get a ticket every time I turned around because #1, I couldn’t gets tags because #2 I couldn’t get it insured, which is required to get the tags and it I would end up owing a cpl thousand bucks for a cpl thousand pounds of “scrap iron” worth a cpl HUNDRED bucks, then I’d still have to find another car and owe for that loan as well. Sad huh??? We have called soooo many ppl the past cpl days about this, including the state insurance auditor’s office (I think that is his title) in Montgomery and we cannot seem to win for losing. The insurance company’s ALWAYS win. I know because I used to sell life insurance in another lifetime and they base their actuary tables for example, not on what MIGHT happen, but what HAS happened in past yrs, so the game is rigged against us “consumers” from the get go. I do intend to burn the ears of my state senator and congressman because in this case, it’s the state, not the insurance company that made these goofy rules, although I’m sure they had help in the legislature via the insurance lobbyist money to make these laws. You know how politics work. Makes me sick when I see all the TV ads by insurance companies talking about how great they are and then when you file a claim they run and hide. get this. I asked the Progressive guy yesterday point blank “This is a no fault claim, and my first and only claim with you guys ever, yet after this is said and done, you will either increase our rates of refuse to insure us again right ??” His one word answer was YES!!!!!! So, if anybody here has Progressive as their underwriter, this is what you have to look forward too, after paying them THOUSANDS in premiums in the ten YEARS we have had them should you need to file a claim, then you’ll see what they do to your rates/policy after the claim. Course this is NOT just Progressive. This happens with all companies at times. At this point, we’re just thankful our son wasn’t injured or killed by the deer as we can always find another car and chalk it up to experience gained the hard way. Sorry for the BOOK here, but I am just venting some of my frustrations with the whole mess. That’s the kindest word I can think of to call it LOL.. Chuck From: Joyce M Westphal Sent: Tuesday, November 11, 2014 5:33 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [VFB] OFF TOPIC. My Baby got crashed into by a deer Chuck, may I suggest that you find another body shop and try to get a bid for them to fix it with second hand parts. I did that with my VW and drove it for 7 more years and the cost was very minimal. I talked with my insurance company (State Farm) and they were very willing to do this rather than total the car. The cost was about 1/3 what the new parts and labor would have cost and the labor was minimal by comparison. Don't know if this will help. Joyce On Tue, Nov 11, 2014 at 3:31 PM, Chuck Alexander <[email protected]> wrote: I see. Sounds painful LOL.. I got bad news today as to the reality of how the insurance industry works in America. Our car's damage was really (besides the AC condenser and radiator rupturing) was no more that a "fender bender". Frame was NOT bent, no windshields busted out, even the air bags didn't have to be replaced and/or rest etc. But the insurance is "totalling" the car, and they are going to pay us a check that amounts to $400 LESS than what it will take to pay off what we owe on the car. It's got us both hot under the collar to say the least. Mad as hell is more like it. But, the insurance industry here has some of the biggest lobbyists in Washington as well as in the state governments, and so they are all in cahoots and one hand feeds the other in their world. I riced all the parts that the car would have had to replaced, added the $65-95 per hour labor together and it should have been at the extremely high end, no more than $2000-2200. They (the garage/body shop) wanted the insurance company to pay them $4400+. And in the state of Alabama, the insurance adjustors here work for the state apparently (This is all new to us as it’s the first claim like this we have EVER claimed in our lives. But anyway, once the adjuster signs off as the car being "totalled", That's it, even if I could fix it myself I'd have to pay off the lien, then try and find out which salvage yard they are going to sell it to, go there and "buy" the car from them, and that might be $1000-3000. Then, I'd have to file (and pay enormous fees) for a "scrapyard repaired" new title on the car in order to get a title, tags and insurance. We have paid this company (Progressive Insurance Company) EVERY month for over ten YEARS, and they GLADLY take our premium money, but file a claim and then it’s like they think you are robbing them. I told the insurance guy (or asked him) "why the heck didn't you guys get a cpl more estimates, as you know that's was highway robbery and he said that was their only "authorized garage" that they deal with in the area. I said "well if that's the case, you guys should shop around (like I'm going to do when I get another car) and find a place that would repair them cheaper than that because that price is a rip off and that it would save both them and their customers (policy holders) money" But that’s how it works here. The big guys get the gold mine and the little guys get the shaft LOL. Chuck -----Original Message----- From: Reuven Segal Sent: Tuesday, November 11, 2014 1:46 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [VFB] OFF TOPIC. My Baby got crashed into by a deer 6ft+ Pure muscle. More often than not, people are injured when the roo goes through the windscreen and struggles to escape and kicks and scratches the occupants. The way they fight is that they stand on their tails and kick forward. I have seen on the news one guy who tried to feed a small one and ended up with dozens of stitches from a single kick. Lets see one of your deers do that! On 7/11/2014 1:33 PM, Chuck Alexander wrote: Reuven: That's normally how the big buck deer do it here. If my son had been going full speed that tin can of a car would have been history. A Kaangaroo might get hot by the car though, then turn around and kick the car as well LOL..How big do those things get (weight) anyway?? Chuck -----Original Message----- From: Reuven Segal Sent: Thursday, November 06, 2014 6:49 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [VFB] OFF TOPIC. My Baby got crashed into by a deer A deer is nothing compared to totalling a car with a kangaroo. They are solid muscle, and will hop away after totalling a car. On 7/11/2014 6:23 AM, Chuck Alexander wrote: Same here: I had a brother in law killed like that, and my Daddy had a deer total his truck one morning on his way to work. Those things hit just right, and they can do MAJOR damage for sure, Chuck -----Original Message----- From: Allan Fish Sent: Thursday, November 06, 2014 1:09 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [VFB] OFF TOPIC. My Baby got crashed into by a deer Thankfully, my son was shaken up, but not injured. Thank God. We had a similar incident here in the county a few years ago that was fatal. The buck's hind legs came through the windshield on the driver's side. One hoof went through the young man's chest and through his heart. I'm really glad your son had the alertness to slow down. af -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "VFB Mail" group. 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