[Mk23]

So long story short is I've had 2 accidents where 2 people in 2 separate incidents hit me at no fault of my own. I have a 335i Coupe and I now have claims out on every panel except the two door panels, the two front quarter panels, the left side piece the runs along the top side of the window and finally the roof. This is basically 60-70% of the car that insurance has to repaint. I was wondering if anyone has ever fought to get their car repainted instead of them painting just the pieces with claims and then blending it. I have a dark color and am into detailing my car (to the point of it being unhealthy at times...), so I am positive that I will see the color difference (paint shop said you might notice as well).

So my question is this: Has anyone ever gotten insurance to pay for a full repaint? And does anyone think I will have any luck trying to get insurance to repaint my car? Can I get some paint shops to testify to them that blending on this color will be noticeable?

It's like a $3000-$4000 paint job and even me just covering 30-40% of the cost difference will be expensive. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[ddk632]

Can't you get insurance to just cut you a check (or checks) for all of the claims, and then take it to a shop yourself with the money (plus add extra if needed) and paint the whole car as you want?

Fighting with the insurance company to combine claims might seem like a fruitless endeavor; I can't help with that but I'm pretty sure you can just ask them for checks and handle the actual work on your own terms.

Edit: I see your point is not to have to pay extra out of pocket:
Think of it this way : If you cover 30% of let's say $4500k, it's $1500 that will help the value not go down as much. One thing that is obvious is mismatched paint and your resale value will take a bigger hit than whatever the cost to cover a proper paint job on your part.

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by ddk632

Can't you get insurance to just cut you a check (or checks) for all of the claims, and then take it to a shop yourself with the money (plus add extra if needed) and paint the whole car as you want?

Fighting with the insurance company to combine claims might seem like a fruitless endeavor; I can't help with that but I'm pretty sure you can just ask them for checks and handle the actual work on your own terms.

Edit: I see your point is not to have to pay extra out of pocket:
Think of it this way : If you cover 30% of let's say $4500k, it's $1500 that will help the value not go down as much. One thing that is obvious is mismatched paint and your resale value will take a bigger hit than whatever the cost to cover a proper paint job on your part.

The thing I don't want is to have to cover the difference in cost out of pocket. I was trying to see if anyone has successfully fought to get their car repainted from an insurance company after an accident. Maybe I could argue what you were saying? That it is going to take a huge hit to resale and I want that to be lessened by it being repainted completely? Think this would work?

[KingOfJericho]

Fight them for it. Also fight them for diminished value if it's not your insurance paying for it. If you hit a tree then you have a tough fight but if someone hit you, I don't see any reason why you wouldn't fight them for both the entire paintjob and the dimished value. Also, speak to your body shop about it and have them file for an amendment to the original quote to cover the rest.

[ddk632]

I got that you don't want to pay out of pocket.

The only complication I see here is that, assuming you were hit by others, and it was their fault, and these were separate instances, then your insurance isn't the one paying these claims; therefore, who are you fighting with for this, exactly?

Unless these were uninsured motorists both times and your insurance is covering both claims, I don't see how you can combine them.

I'd call YOUR insurance and ask what are the options to combine the claims and use some of your own collision insurance (if you have it) to cover the difference. Of course if you have a high deductible that may not be any better than taking the checks and paying out of pocket for the difference.

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by KingOfJericho

Fight them for it. Also fight them for diminished value if it's not your insurance paying for it. If you hit a tree then you have a tough fight but if someone hit you, I don't see any reason why you wouldn't fight them for both the entire paintjob and the dimished value. Also, speak to your body shop about it and have them file for an amendment to the original quote to cover the rest.

When you say fight for diminished value, are you saying that they would write me a check on top of getting the car repainted? If so, how would they come up with a number?

Originally Posted by ddk632

I got that you don't want to pay out of pocket.

The only complication I see here is that, assuming you were hit by others, and it was their fault, and these were separate instances, then your insurance isn't the one paying these claims; therefore, who are you fighting with for this, exactly?

Unless these were uninsured motorists both times and your insurance is covering both claims, I don't see how you can combine them.

I'd call YOUR insurance and ask what are the options to combine the claims and use some of your own collision insurance (if you have it) to cover the difference. Of course if you have a high deductible that may not be any better than taking the checks and paying out of pocket for the difference.

Sorry if I didn't clarify. I meant that I would be fighting the other party's insurance. My deductable is $500 so I'm not sure I want to pay for that...

I think I will do what you suggest and call my insurance and ask what my options are. Hopefully I can argue that I shouldn't have to pay a thing and still get the car repainted.

[Devious21]

Originally Posted by Mk23

When you say fight for diminished value, are you saying that they would write me a check on top of getting the car repainted? If so, how would they come up with a number?



Sorry if I didn't clarify. I meant that I would be fighting the other party's insurance. My deductable is $500 so I'm not sure I want to pay for that...

I think I will do what you suggest and call my insurance and ask what my options are. Hopefully I can argue that I shouldn't have to pay a thing and still get the car repainted.

That was his point, though. You're dealing with multiple parties right?

Let's say you're covered by Farmers, and the two people who hit you were covered by Geico and Progressive. Who are you asking to pay to have the entire car repainted?

Both Geico and Progressive are fighting to pay the least possible amount needed to repair the damage THEY are responsible for. If Geico hit you first, then they'll say they did no where near enough damage to paint the whole car. If Progressive hit you second, they'll say the rest was pre-existing damage and there's no way they're responsible for it. That's what he means by "who are you fighting with...".

Best bet is to talk to your insurance company to see if there's anything they can do but the most likely thing to do would be to find a shop to can write nice healthy estimates and get the checks you can put towards a full respray.

[RR-NYC]

If you live in a no fault state, there is no "other" insurance company to deal with. Your insurance company will go after the other but it's of no consequence to to either way because of the law.

Since there are multiple claims on the car now, you can probably plead a case of diminished value and use part of that payment to cover the balance of the repaint.

Keep us posted

[Mk23]

Originally Posted by Devious21

That was his point, though. You're dealing with multiple parties right?

Let's say you're covered by Farmers, and the two people who hit you were covered by Geico and Progressive. Who are you asking to pay to have the entire car repainted?

Both Geico and Progressive are fighting to pay the least possible amount needed to repair the damage THEY are responsible for. If Geico hit you first, then they'll say they did no where near enough damage to paint the whole car. If Progressive hit you second, they'll say the rest was pre-existing damage and there's no way they're responsible for it. That's what he means by "who are you fighting with...".

Best bet is to talk to your insurance company to see if there's anything they can do but the most likely thing to do would be to find a shop to can write nice healthy estimates and get the checks you can put towards a full respray.

Here's the thing, the first guy that hit me did some paint damage, but no body damage. So they would at least be responsible for repainting the rear bumper. The second party that hit me hit the rear bumper and rear right quarter panel. So they would be responsible for replacing the rear bumper, and replacing and repainting the rear right quarter panel. There shouldn't be a problem when it comes time to assign what party for which damage. Also, both parties damage is in separate areas from each other so you can still see them individually.

hopefully things will work out, I'll be calling my insurance tomorrow to ask them what I can do.

Originally Posted by RR-NYC

If you live in a no fault state, there is no "other" insurance company to deal with. Your insurance company will go after the other but it's of no consequence to to either way because of the law.

Since there are multiple claims on the car now, you can probably plead a case of diminished value and use part of that payment to cover the balance of the repaint.

Keep us posted

Will do, thanks for the help.

[Devious21]

Originally Posted by Mk23

...

As someone else mentioned, you're in a "no fault" state. We don't have that here, so it's more complicated for us.

You deal exclusively with your insurance in FL, I believe. So really, all you'll need to do is discuss it with them and see what they'll allow.

Good luck.

[Fifty3bags]

Originally Posted by Mk23

So long story short is I've had 2 accidents where 2 people in 2 separate incidents hit me at no fault of my own. I have a 335i Coupe and I now have claims out on every panel except the two door panels, the two front quarter panels, the left side piece the runs along the top side of the window and finally the roof. This is basically 60-70% of the car that insurance has to repaint. I was wondering if anyone has ever fought to get their car repainted instead of them painting just the pieces with claims and then blending it. I have a dark color and am into detailing my car (to the point of it being unhealthy at times...), so I am positive that I will see the color difference (paint shop said you might notice as well).

Originally Posted by Mk23

Here's the thing, the first guy that hit me did some paint damage, but no body damage. So they would at least be responsible for repainting the rear bumper. The second party that hit me hit the rear bumper and rear right quarter panel. So they would be responsible for replacing the rear bumper, and replacing and repainting the rear right quarter panel. There shouldn't be a problem when it comes time to assign what party for which damage. Also, both parties damage is in separate areas from each other so you can still see them individually.

hopefully things will work out, I'll be calling my insurance tomorrow to ask them what I can do.

Will do, thanks for the help.

What exactly needs repainting? From these two posts it seems like you have MAYBE 25-30% that needs repainting, not the 60-70% you originally stated. If it's only the rear qp and bumper, the insurance will most likely only cover that. Blending that paint isn't terribly difficult any compentent shop can blend it.