2019 Sierra diminished value claim

Ryan M · September 1, 2019

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for any advise I may receive on this topic.

July 25th my new 2019 Sierra crew cab SLE was involved in a NOT at fault collision. I had only owned the truck for about two weeks and there was about 550 miles on the odometer. Somehow the frame didn't get tweaked. They put a whole new bed on the truck, new bumper, exhaust tailpipe etc. The total damage came to 18k The other drivers insurance company (Ohio Mutual) 100% refused to total the truck. I sent it to the body shop to be repaired and last Friday I picked it up. I'm going to be reaching out to the the other drivers insurance company on Tuesday to request diminished value.

My questions are: Has anyone else had to deal with a DV claim on such a new and low mileage vehicle and do you have any advice to offer? How much should I request? Should I just get my attorney involved right from the get go, or do I have a real chance to get to a desirable settlement offer without his involvement? As I mentioned, I'm going to start the process on Tuesday and I'd like to be as informed as possible when I make contact with them. Also, I'm located in Maine if that has any relavance.

Thanks again for advice anyone has on how to proceed with this...

Moend · September 1, 2019

That sucks. Recently I was involved in similar situation. But with mother nature (hail storm) . Truck is peppered and the insurance company refused to total it. Depends on the state

https://www.wikihow.com/Calculate-Diminished-Value

There is a link to help you getting started. Insurance companies are the devil.

bshort · September 1, 2019

I don't know of any insurance company that would total this truck with 18K in damages.

MacLaren · September 1, 2019

My bad, looked at it wrong, plus you say frame is okay.

Maybe hire an attorney for the DV claim?

Edited September 1, 2019 by MacLaren

Ryan M · September 1, 2019

How long will it take for this to appear on a vin search? Anyone know?

CbrownGT · September 1, 2019

I wrecked my ‘14 in 2016 (I was at fault) and they did a whole frame replacement...27k repair bill. They never once considered a total. I’m still driving it today, put 60,000 miles on it since.

TBHiker · September 1, 2019

Benefit of a full size truck. Body is bolt on to ladder frame. Frame damage is less likely to happen in most accidents.

I would monitor tire wear and make sure they aligned everything back to factory properly.

I would also want DV. You have a case since your new truck now has an accident on the history report. Less likely to get top dollar value if you wanted to trade it in.

Limelight · September 1, 2019

Hire a lawyer first and let them deal with it. They know all the laws and it’ll be easy.

Edited September 2, 2019 by Limelight

oldmann · September 2, 2019

Get over it. Not worth any less now. Sucks for sure, but dont sweat it.

Limelight · September 2, 2019

49 minutes ago, oldmann said:

Get over it. Not worth any less now. Sucks for sure, but dont sweat it.

Really? Horrible advice for sure.

spizike9 · September 2, 2019

3 hours ago, oldmann said:

Get over it. Not worth any less now. Sucks for sure, but dont sweat it.

Not sure if serious.

davester · September 2, 2019

3 hours ago, spizike9 said:

Not sure if serious.

Is either ignorant or not serious.

If the O.P. were to sell his truck tomorrow, it would sell for thousands less than if it had not been in that accident. That is what is meant by "diminished value", and you can rightfully claim that difference from an insurance company.

lrtexasman · September 2, 2019

The DV is a formula. Google so you will know approximate value when negotiating with insurance company miles and year will go in your favor but it won’t truly reflect the loss. Most importantly be sure all OEM parts and dealer do repair.

CbrownGT · September 2, 2019

13 hours ago, Limelight said:

Really? Horrible advice for sure.

Debatable. Not all accidents end up on carfax or vehicle history reports. For example my 27k in repairs including a full frame replacement (and all airbags deployed) isn’t on any history reports on my truck. If I were to trade it tomorrow a dealer wouldn’t even know, therefore I wouldn’t get any less.

Ryan M · September 2, 2019

31 minutes ago, CbrownGT said:

Debatable. Not all accidents end up on carfax or vehicle history reports. For example my 27k in repairs including a full frame replacement (and all airbags deployed) isn’t on any history reports on my truck. If I were to trade it tomorrow a dealer wouldn’t even know, therefore I wouldn’t get any less.

If 19k in damages somehow slips through the cracks and doesnt end up on a VIN search I'd be ecstatic.