[blonge1]

I have a 2009 BMW M3 coupe in LeMans blue metallic over speed cloth. The car was rear ended about June 2017, and I am trying to get a diminished value claim on it after having the car fixed. The insurance is offering $450 DV, but I feel this is a bit low given how much accident history affects the value of these cars. This accident happened a week and one day after I purchased the car, and the car had 88k miles at the time. The car has never been in an accident prior to this. The total amount of the repair was 2400ish, and included the rear bumper cover replacement, rear crash bar replacement, trunk lid repair, and rear quarter repair. I'd like to get some opinions on what you all think this diminished value amount should be. Thanks.

[Susan]

A bit low? Most lose 15% of trade-in value for a scratch repair.

[Goose81]

Originally Posted by Susan

A bit low? Most lose 15% of trade-in value for a scratch repair.

Absolutely, he should receive about 5x that amount.

[tdott]

You probably should have acted sooner, If you got a carmax appraisal or another you could have more quantitative proof of how much the value went down since you purchased it weeks before the accident.

Now it will be harder to build your case for the claim.

You could try getting an appraisal and compare it to what cars with no accidents are selling for.

[Al Soobie Guy]

There is literally no way to prove diminished value, any claims even if you back up by research are hearsay. Until the car is sold there is no real estimate and even then judge will agree that other factors are present when selling including negotiation skills and your need to sell.

You can pay a 3rd party inspector 300$ to estimate DV and still it wont guarantee jack. Only thing that will hold up in court yet still wont guarantee you will get paid.

Counter offer them 800 and settle for 600 and be happy you got anything.

Dont cash the check until you decide to settle. If you cash 450 then take them to court case will get dismissed as cashing the funds counts as accepting their offer.

[Car#36]

DV, becomes relative if you're selling/trading it in. Example, you go to trade, dealer offers you $x minus amount they determine the accident/repair diminished the value.
The fact insurance co. is offering something, is just to close this off there responsibility. Obviously, the longer you keep the car, the less it(accident)will diminish the value as a percentage. You can try for more, as noted above, but likely they won't do much more. If you're keeping the car, the insurance company only needs to fix it, extra money is a bonus.
Accidents, even if not your fault, cost you at some point on value.

[jtdr35gtr]

Good luck with any diminished value claim. My GTR was whacked hard and after fighting tooth and nail I got only 2k when in reality it probably reduced value closer to 8-10k simply due to the accident stigma for a purchaser.

[JClopes]

How do you even factor DV when depreciation is ~$2,000/year and milage is a variable?

[ftapache]

Good luck with your DV claim. Depending on which state you live in, insurance is not required to pay for DV. They are only required to return your car back to pre-accident condition.