[NVHoo]

Originally Posted by MarcoZandrini

I would definitely talk with GEICO. They should be the ones who work with the other insurance company, not you. I would quickly find the body shop in your area that does the best work. DEMAND that the work be performed by that body shop. You're in the driver's seat in this case; take advantage of that.

If Geico handles the repair it will make a claim for diminished value more difficult, if not legally possible. Because of policy waivers, you can not process a diminished value claim via Geico. It MUST go through the insured's policy. If Geico repairs the car, they will sign a liability release for you when the Geico gets paid for the repair and YOU ARE SCREWED. When diminished value is involved, your best approach is to deal with the insured's company directly.

[NVHoo]

Originally Posted by rich8566

So should I speak to my insurance company (GEICO) now about the diminished value claim process, before the repair? Also, should I have GEICO pursue the initial claim? When should I bring up the diminished value claim with the individual who caused the crash damage?

DO NOT have Geico repair the car. As I said in a prior post, if Geico repairs the car, they will sign a liability release for you as soon as the insured's company pays them which will release them from diminished value. I told my insurance company that I was involved in an accident that was not my fault and I wanted to use the insured's company to do the repair. Then say that you have some questions about the repair and you'd like to talk to a Geico adjuster for advice. Try to get to the adjuster's supervisor if you can. Then ask them if they have a process that they use for non-Geico customers that claim diminished value when a Geico customer is at fault. You can have that conversation any time prior to your repairs being completed. No rush. As I said before, do not mention diminished value to the insured's company until repairs are completed to your satisfaction. It's like telling telling your girlfriend that you plan on breaking up before you try to sleep with her one last time. You're not going to get much cooperation. I would get the car repaired at a BMW-certified body shop. Insurance companies are allowed to use aftermarket and/or used parts in repairs and a BMW-certified shop will know all the reasons why that is not a solution and fight the insurance company for you. Folks think they can insist that all parts be new and BMW but that is not true unless the car was almost new.

P.S. My judge said it was the best prepared case he had ever seen and I thoroughly embarrassed the insurance company's attorney.

[rich8566]

Originally Posted by NVHoo

DO NOT have Geico repair the car. As I said in a prior post, if Geico repairs the car, they will sign a liability release for you as soon as the insured's company pays them which will release them from diminished value. I told my insurance company that I was involved in an accident that was not my fault and I wanted to use the insured's company to do the repair. Then say that you have some questions about the repair and you'd like to talk to a Geico adjuster for advice. Try to get to the adjuster's supervisor if you can. Then ask them if they have a process that they use for non-Geico customers that claim diminished value when a Geico customer is at fault. You can have that conversation any time prior to your repairs being completed. No rush. As I said before, do not mention diminished value to the insured's company until repairs are completed to your satisfaction. It's like telling telling your girlfriend that you plan on breaking up before you try to sleep with her one last time. You're not going to get much cooperation. I would get the car repaired at a BMW-certified body shop. Insurance companies are allowed to use aftermarket and/or used parts in repairs and a BMW-certified shop will know all the reasons why that is not a solution and fight the insurance company for you. Folks think they can insist that all parts be new and BMW but that is not true unless the car was almost new.

P.S. My judge said it was the best prepared case he had ever seen and I thoroughly embarrassed the insurance company's attorney.

This sounds like great advice. As you might imagine, I don't have any experience with any of this. I'll need to be cautious with the entire process. The only time I ever went through this was with a somewhat ordinary older car. I let my current insurance company handle everything because they made it sound like the easiest way to do things. But again, in that case I was not aware of the concept of diminished value. Many thanks again.

[NVHoo]

Originally Posted by rich8566

This sounds like great advice. As you might imagine, I don't have any experience with any of this. I'll need to be cautious with the entire process. The only time I ever went through this was with a somewhat ordinary older car. I let my current insurance company handle everything because they made it sound like the easiest way to do things. But again, in that case I was not aware of the concept of diminished value. Many thanks again.

If diminished value is not a consideration, let your insurance handle everything. That's part of what you pay them for. Also, if the diminished value is less than about $2K, it is probably not worth the effort to go to court. If you want more advice, send me a private message with your email address.

[bimmerfile]

Originally Posted by NVHoo

If diminished value is not a consideration, let your insurance handle everything. That's part of what you pay them for. Also, if the diminished value is less than about $2K, it is probably not worth the effort to go to court. If you want more advice, send me a private message with your email address.

Based on the description of the damage to his vehicle, the diminished residual value will be in the 20%+ range regardless of when he sells or trades, so the only way he'd be looking at a DRV loss of only $2K is if he held the car for 10 years when an undamaged 2er sells for $10K.

[USA-RET]

It would be tough for me to accept even a $2K hit on value when it's not my fault. Put it this way, would anyone be happy paying $2K over sticker their cars?