That was my thought too. He hit a parked truck at around 65 mph, the frame is gonna be pranged. I'd be surprised if it wasn't.

 

An almost identical situation happened to my brother-in-law. He had my dad's old truck (in like-new condition) parked on his property (a farm) beside the road while doing some work. Another driver claimed to have dropped his phone on the floor and was fishing for it when he rear-ended my BIL's/dad's truck. The insurance company totaled it out; my BIL bought it back from the insurance company for the salvage value and had the auto-body program at the local high school do the repairs. The BIL knows the auto-body instructor and knew he would make sure everything was done right. The truck looked and drove great when everything was finished.

Rob

 

Do you see the top of the bed side and how it curves against the still-straight topper? I'm guessing the frame is gonna be bent just like that, mostly because the bed is bolted to the frame at at least 3 points along the the same line.

 

That's just the outer bed wall. Look at the bed floor inboard of the tire. It's not curved/buckled in the same way. Remember, the frame rail is a good foot, maybe 16", inboard of the bed wall.

 

I am going to have to agree and say the frame is probably bent downward behind the axle a little bit. Possibly something that can be tweaked back in with a large tree and a come-along after the bed is taken off. There is not much strength in the frame. You will realize this if you ever have moved one of these around the yard with the bed off of it.

 

That's my point. Your guessing.

 

The sheetmetal is far more forgiving than the frame of any vehicle.

 

[QUOTE=WhatsAChevy?;17291476]
This is all fine and good for your insurance policy. When your vehicle is damaged and you are at fault, you better be insured or prepared to take the loss. When the accident is not your fault, the other party takes the liability and either they pay out of pocket, or the liability portion of their insurance pays. It does not matter what you arranged with your insurer because the other company has to write the check. Possible exceptions may occur if the same insurance company wrote the policies on both parties. A current appraisal is always a wise idea.

 

If you believe that I don't protect my investments as well as my toys...then shame on you..you honestly believe I'm that ignorant ?

 

Sorry to say but that's definitely totaled. Insurance companies will usually go by a threshold percentage: if the damage amount meets or exceeds a certain percentage of the vehicle's full value, they consider it a total loss. So even if the damage amount isn't more than the truck is worth, they'll still total it. I just checked and Wyoming's law says 75%. Body repair is extremely expensive too. I hit a deer with my car last fall. It needed a fender, hood, radiator support, headlight assembly, and front bumper. Total cost was $8,600. And it didn't even look that bad.

 

I guess I don't understand the ins and outs of insurance, but I get that since it wasn't his fault, the other guy's insurance pays. But they will just say it's totaled, right? And then cut a check for the (depreciated) value of the truck. What am I missing?

 

That's the way it works. And you could have thousands of dollars in a new engine, transmission, paint job, etc. But in the insurance's eyes it's still a old truck that is not worth anything. It's the price you pay for having something you can work on yourself, low personal property taxes every year, no car payments. I like being different and not having a car payment.

But a person like that also can go buy another parts truck and fix it up themselves and get it back to where it was. Doesn't seem fair that you end up doing all the work, but that is the way it is.

 

It is my understanding that the insurance company is required to "make you whole again" (in legal-ease speak).

Meaning, they have to reimburse for the "current value" of the truck which includes any parts/modifications you do. So save receipts - but if you do the work yourself you can't add your labor costs to the value of the truck.

So if you just had the engine rebuilt (for example) the insurance company must include that cost when they ascertain the value of the truck. The difficulty is not proving the cost of the engine rebuild (you have a receipt) it's determining the value of the rest of the truck - the depreciated value of the truck (with all it imperfections, and wear, etc.). So the insurance company starts with lowest "Kelley Blue Book" value then adds in the value of the new engine. But is the Kelley Blue Book number correct?

So that is where an appraisal would come in useful.
So you have a piece of paper from a "professional auto appraisal company" that says my truck (as it was on date xx) is worth $10K. Then I put a new engine it, ect., etc.

 

So, it sounds to me that what happens in a situation like this, is the burden of proof is on the owner to try and document (after the fact) exactly why their truck is worth more than the garden variety truck of similar mileage and accessories right? There's yer problem. This needs to be done beforehand I'm thinkin'.

 

Just got off the phone with Caitlyn at Hagerty. When they insure a vehicle it is insured no matter who causes the accident. In other words, if a drunk runs into it they'll pay to get it fixed up to the limit for which it is ensured. And you tell them what you want that limit to be, although they do require a few pictures to show them what you have since they don't send an appraiser. However, if you want to have your vehicle appraised they recommend Auto Appraisal Group.

So, I explained what I'm doing with Dad's truck and said let's assume it'll appraise for $25K when I'm done. (Rick/Fonzie recently had his appraised for about that if I remember correctly.) She asked a few questions and said for that the insurance premiums will be $629/year, with $500 deductable.

However, since I plan to take the truck to a car show this fall, I asked how to get it covered when it isn't complete. They have another policy called Limited Trailer and Paddock Collision that they suggest that would cover it while on the trailer going or coming back, and if I can leave it on the trailer while there even during the show. And that's only $151/year.