Oh my goodness! *CRUNCH*

[Setsunaela]

i'd offer to shop for you but i'm very very bad at sticking to grocery lists, especially in Weggies, as my grandmother has dubbed it.

[CaroPhoenix]

I went grocery shopping today with Child Rum. Stuck sorta close to home (I went to a local Harris Teeter - had to return a red box movie).

The back end really needs an alignment besides the bumper/trailer hitch getting fixed. Otherwise it was driveable.

I will admit to being nervous driving since the accident. I made sure I went exactly the speed limit and had enough room in front of me in case I needed to break suddenly. However, it seemed to me all the tail-gaters were out in force today.

And I've also learned something else today: If I threaten to take something that needs to be put together (like Child Rum's new lamp or her toy chest) to my parent's house to have DaddyRum put it together, Mr. Rum actually gets it done!

[CaroPhoenix]

Mid-sorta-update-thingee-post

Took the Mazda to the auto body shop. Then Child Rum & I got to go to the local Enterprise shop and get a rental car. I got a Dodge Charger to tootle around in!

Child Rum is a little overwhelmed. She keeps talking about Mommy's "old car" and I need to go back to the "car doctor" to get the "old car". She's okay though. I explained I'm only borrowing the car and I'll give it back as soon as my car is fixed.

Hopefully by tomorrow, she won't care that it's not really Mommy's car.

[CaroPhoenix]

Yet another update - Now with a side of WTF?

Got a call from the gentleman who was working on my car at the auto body shop.

What he told me is just not good.

Turns out, when they took off the back bumper (after getting it on the fixing rack), they realized my car had more damage than what you could see. (I consider that the WTF?)

The undercarriage and the floor underneath are crumpled. The back left passenger door doesn't close properly.

The gentleman told me i was lucky that I had no problems with driving it.

It's now been put into the "massive crash damage" part of their shop.

Hopefully it won't stay there long.

[protege]

The undercarriage and the floor underneath are crumpled. The back left passenger door doesn't close properly.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news...but straightening a bent frame is a bitch. It can be done, but it's usually expensive. As such, frame damage is usually treated as a "write-off" by insurance companies.

[CaroPhoenix]

protege - the other driver's insurance company is the one paying for it.

Is there a possibility that they'll refuse to pay or try to have my insurance company declare it a "write-off"?

I have no clue. I haven't heard back from the Auto Body Shop today (I was told to expect a call). I think I'll call in the morning.

I hate having to deal with damaged cars.

I'm not happy. And Child Rum is still upset that she has to ride around in the "Doctor's Car" as she refers to the rental.

[CaroPhoenix]

They're keeping my car for 5 or 6 weeks!

My poor car.

It has over $6K in damages.

Basically they're going to be taking the entire trunk area off the car to rework/fix/replace everything.

They estimate that they do 5 business days for every $1k in damages.

I just feel sick to mys stomach. So far, no word from State Farm concerning the repair costs and I can keep the rental car until my car is fixed.

But still ...

All the numbers and repairs make me incredibly nervous.

[protege]

protege - the other driver's insurance company is the one paying for it.

Is there a possibility that they'll refuse to pay or try to have my insurance company declare it a "write-off"?

Some companies will simply total out the car, rather than paying for the repairs. I mean, how old is the car? Is it in good shape?

For example, when my Ford got smashed up, it was written off. Keep in mind that it was about 8 years old, and wasn't worth anything. IIRC, the car was worth only about $400 or so. Not worth fixing when you consider that the engine had blown up. That alone would have cost well over a grand...just in parts! Body damage was estimated around two grand. Again, not worth fixing. Insurance company cut me a check for what they thought the car was worth. Still bugs me that I'd gone over the car and had some work done. I took out the rust in the doors, pounded the dents out of the hood, etc. Ended up getting just under two grand for the wreck; the car was towed to a scrapyard and cut up.

Then there was my '91 Tercel. That got hit about 2 days after New Year's 2000. Most of the damage was confined to the left rear corner. All they did was cut out the damage, weld in some new metal, paint it and fit a new bumper and light. Up until that point, I'd kept that car spotless. This time, the insurance company didn't total it--they paid the $2k bill for repairs...which was about half of what I paid for the car! Of course, the body shop did an awesome job--it looked like new! Sadly, I sold it about 6 months later

I should mention that when the Tercel got hit, State Farm (which wasn't my insurance company) wanted to get it taken care of quickly. Most of the delays associated with this sort of thing, are usually because someone has to pay for it, and that figuring out who is supposed to is what takes time.

Rum, I sort of know what your daughter means. I *hate* rental cars! Something about having to drive someone else's car, I guess. Oh, and there's usually various things wrong with said car

[CaroPhoenix]

Well, I did a little research on the Kelly Blue Book value of the car. The repairs are around exactly 1/2 of what the car is worth. (The estimate is around $6,200 actually and the car is worth roughly $13,000 - $13,500).

They'll also be taking off the entire trunk, refitting stuff, fixing other things, replacing complete sections. Most of the delay now, I believe is getting parts to fix the car.

Child Rum might now like the rental car, but I love it and since I'm the adult and driving, I should be the one who gets a say!


ETA:

This is what I found at the Kelly Blue Book website, plugging in the condition/whatever of the car before the accident:

If we were to trade it in, would be anywhere between $7,725 - $9,025 from a dealer.
Private Party value (If I were to sell it to someone off the street) would be between $11,665 to $10,365.
Suggest Retail Value for it, in Excellent condition is $13,335

So I have no clue why they're allowing the car to be fixed.

[CaroPhoenix]

Brand New Update!

I got my Mazda Tribute back from the Auto Body Shop.

My Mazda is all nice and shiny and Child Rum is thrilled to be back in Mommy's car.

I, on the other hand, am not happy.

I was spoiled by the Dodge Charget I got to drive for a month.

My Mazda drives ... well, it drives like a truck.