Dear Insurance Adjuster:
Regarding your estimation of the pre-collision fair market value of our client’s vehicle, I have serious concerns about the quality of your research, which I have detailed below.
First, what our client paid for the vehicle is irrelevant to the assessment of fair market value. I already informed you that the vehicle was priced at $70K, and that the dealership stated that they were losing money by accepting his offer. However, they were making room for new inventory and were therefore willing to accept it.
Second, you cannot use current list prices, 8 months after the collision, and call that the pre-collision fair market value. You very well know that the diminished value must be determined at the time of the loss. Our client could have sold the vehicle much earlier, at a higher price and at a profit, but was unable to because of the collision.
Third, you yourself said that what the vehicle was listed for is irrelevant in determining the fair market value, and that only actual sold prices would be considered. As such, you are contradicting yourself now by utilizing current list prices to estimate fair market value. The only appropriate data you can use is authentic sales data or actual research with dealers.
Regarding the so-called comparable vehicles that you have obtained, I have already provided you with evidence that the original MSRP of a 2017 Maserati MC was $150,570. And according to your own research, the MSRP of our client’s vehicle was $159,450. Combined with the upgraded infotainment system that has a backup camera and Apple CarPlay priced at $1874, a vehicle like his would be valued $10,754 more than an MC.
The 2017 GranTurismo MC private party sale that you found, is priced at $55K whilst having almost double the number of miles on the vehicle, which significantly affects the price. It also does not have the upgraded infotainment with backup camera and Apple CarPlay that our client’s vehicle has.
The supposed 2017 GranTurismo MC for sale by Porche Austin, priced at $43,365, is actually a Sport with none of the MC upgrades that our client’s vehicle has. As you pointed out, you can verify if it’s an MC based on the badging. Again, according to your own research, the original MSRP of such a car would be $132,825, which is $30K less than my vehicle.
Lastly, regarding the 2017 MC Centennial that you found for sale at $49,229, I easily found another MC Centennial priced at $56,990 for sale by Acton Auto Boutique. This one has 46,527 miles on it and is an older 2015 model year. This is simply to illustrate that you cannot cherry pick based on asking prices to suit your narrative.
I believe you, as an insurance adjuster, are very well versed in the rules for determining pre-collision fair market value. As such, you are knowingly engaging in misrepresentation that is in direct violation of the Texas Insurance Code Section 542 Subsection 003 UNFAIR CLAIM SETTLEMENT PRACTICES PROHIBITED. This leads me to believe that your actions are in bad faith. Therefore, I demand that this matter be escalated to a supervisor or manager immediately so we can reach a resolution quickly.
Sincerely,
The Staff at TOTALLOSSDISPUTE.COM
READ CUSTOMER REVIEWS OF THE ST. LUCIE APPRAISAL COMPANY
REQUEST AN AUTOMOBILE VALUATION APPRAISAL – $275.00 for most cars.
RV AND HEAVY EQUIPMENT OWNERS PLEASE CALL FOR RATES.
Before making your payment, please email the insurance company CCC or other work sheet to contact@stlucieappraisal.net
Don T (California)- Thank you for your services. I am happy with the total loss valuation appraisal and feel the valuation to be true. When I drive to Tesla supercharger stations, none of the other Tesla’s stand out or is as nice as mine, and I get that comment all the time from Tesla and non-Tesla owners. It was my perfect dream car and is irreplaceable. You just can’t put a price tag on something like that. So it’s very insulting when Geico and CCC tries to value my car at such a ridiculous amount. So thank you for your great work and I will definitely be leaving you great reviews. Franklin was very helpful and extremely knowledgeable. He took his time to explain the process and what I would be expecting before I even hired him. I felt very comfortable working with him and couldn’t be more happy with his services. If you had a car that you loved and cherished and is irreplaceable, and you want to make sure it gets appraised at the right value even though you can’t put a price tag on it…then Franklin and The St. Lucie Appraisal Company is your go to appraiser. Thanks Franklin!
Gino B (Washington)- I know firsthand that if you are reading this testimonial – you’ve had some car problems (stolen, damaged, accident, etc.) You are probably in the right spot.
When my truck was stolen and recovered (with a lot of damage), my Insurance company (USAA), who I thought would be there for me when the chips were down made me a really low-ball offer. After some simple internet searches – it seems USAA has a habit of letting down their insurance customers.
I was pulling my hair out battling it out with USAA’s lowball offer until I found Franklin’s St. Lucie Appraisal team. Franklin quickly assisted me in understanding my rights, my options and provided expert advice and engaged with all parties as my representative in the appraisal process resulting in an award letter almost 3X higher than USAA’s initial low-ball offer. 3 TIMES HIGHER!
USAA initial offer was about $5K – Franklin was able to negotiate with other appraisers and get me a fair Actual Cash Value of $15K through the process. The juice is definitely worth the squeeze folks.
He was consistently available, professional, friendly, and considerate and took the time to understand my claim and help ensure I take the steps that were right for me. Before you go anywhere else – drop his team a line – you will be glad you did.
This is an Open Education Resource focused on automobile total losses, the appraisal clause, collective knowledge and the sharing of scholarly content.
READ MORE ARTICLES…