Help - F-150 is a write off, insurance wants insured to pay $25k

[smilingnomad]

All,

I need some guidance on how to help a family member who was involved in an auto collision.

A family member was involved in a rear end collision in which they hit the vehicle in front of her at about 8 mph. Family member was in a '14 Subaru Forester valued at $15k sustained about $6.5k in damage and the vehicle they hit was a 2019 or 2020 Ford F-150, valued at $55k.

The insurance for the F-150 is claiming the frame is bent (what happened to built Ford tough?) and are trying to write off the entire value of the truck. Seems there are similar claims for these trucks, but all have been 30-40 mph collisions (see source here). In those collisions, the rear bumper bend in a similar way (under the truck). In most cases, the action taken is to replace the frame or weld on a new frame section (heck, Ford provides the new sections).

Problem is, family member has (and didn't realize) insurance which will only cover $30k of repair costs on the F-150, leaving them potentially on the hook for the other $25k. Family member works is a recent grand with a mountain of school debt. They're worried about being sued by the other insurance co to collect the balance.

Questions I need help with:

1. Anyone else heard of these minor collisions causing write offs on F-150s. If so, were you successful in getting frame replaced repaired vs. truck written off?
   
   
2. What can she do to push back on the insurance co and get them to take more reasonable action?
   
   
3. Wondering if I should hire an attorney for them, and if so what kind.

 

[adjusterjack]

First of all I would take your family member's 8mph impact story with a grain of salt.

Here's a video of a 10mph test crash. Frame damage unlikely, especially on a truck.

► Crash Test - example of front - into - rear 10mph low-speed crash - YouTube

Here's a video comparison of a 12mph collision and a 25mph collision. Frame damage guaranteed on the 25mph collision.

Mercedes C-Class Crash Test At 25mph vs 12mph - YouTube

Another video at 20mph.

Crash Testing 20 MPH - YouTube

Not that it matters much. She was still at fault for rear-ending the other vehicle.

As for your questions:

Anyone else heard of these minor collisions causing write offs on F-150s. If so, were you successful in getting frame replaced repaired vs. truck written off?

You're wasting your time asking that question. What happened with anybody else isn't going to mean anything to the truck owner's insurance company.

You're telling us what the truck owner's insurance wants to do. What is her insurance doing about the liability claim against her? Her insurance company has a contractual obligation to defend against damage claims where the amount of the repair cost is in dispute. Her claims department should be arranging its own inspection of the frame of the truck to verify the extent of the damage.

What can she do to push back on the insurance co and get them to take more reasonable action?

Nothing with the truck owner's insurance. It's her own insurance company she should be dealing with as to what the claims department is doing to protect her.

Wondering if I should hire an attorney for them, and if so what kind.

If she gets sued her insurance company will appoint an attorney for her. If she doesn't get sued it is likely to mean that her company settled and got a release from the other company.

It's up to you if you want to hire an attorney to monitor the claim progress but I think it's premature.

Even if there is an excess judgment against her she can file bankruptcy and it goes away.

 

[smilingnomad]

Thanks for sharing this Jack! I'll pass it along and let her sort it out.

First of all I would take your family member's 8mph impact story with a grain of salt.

Here's a video of a 10mph test crash. Frame damage unlikely, especially on a truck.

► Crash Test - example of front - into - rear 10mph low-speed crash - YouTube

Here's a video comparison of a 12mph collision and a 25mph collision. Frame damage guaranteed on the 25mph collision.

Mercedes C-Class Crash Test At 25mph vs 12mph - YouTube

Another video at 20mph.

Crash Testing 20 MPH - YouTube

Not that it matters much. She was still at fault for rear-ending the other vehicle.

As for your questions:



You're wasting your time asking that question. What happened with anybody else isn't going to mean anything to the truck owner's insurance company.

You're telling us what the truck owner's insurance wants to do. What is her insurance doing about the liability claim against her? Her insurance company has a contractual obligation to defend against damage claims where the amount of the repair cost is in dispute. Her claims department should be arranging its own inspection of the frame of the truck to verify the extent of the damage.



Nothing with the truck owner's insurance. It's her own insurance company she should be dealing with as to what the claims department is doing to protect her.



If she gets sued her insurance company will appoint an attorney for her. If she doesn't get sued it is likely to mean that her company settled and got a release from the other company.

It's up to you if you want to hire an attorney to monitor the claim progress but I think it's premature.

Even if there is an excess judgment against her she can file bankruptcy and it goes away.