Paint scratches - what can I expect insurance to do?

[Vance357]

Your policy will repair or replace the damaged area. It is called blending in the paint business.

So that means 3/4 of one whole side for just one claim. How could you possibly "blend" paint to match the color and gloss changes that occur in 20 years? Sure, if it was a new vehicle you could blend it with OEM paint. Even if you use OEM paint in this circumstance, it would not match. That doesn't mean there was anything wrong with my paint, simply, the color and gloss changes over time. This is normal and not considered neglect.

 

[adjusterjack]

One entire side has been ruined in one incident. The scratches cannot be repaired. If they painted just one side, how could they possibly make it match the other?

Here's the answer from a retired claims adjuster. Your insurance company has NO, repeat NO, obligation to repaint your whole car. It will never happen.

My guess is that you'll be allowed about $1000 (maybe less) for the one side and a few hundred for the other. That's two separate claims. Then you can add your own cash if you want that $5000 to $6000 paint job. Or, you can go to Earl Scheib or MAACO and get the whole Jeep done for about $1500.

The windshield will be a third claim.

Good luck keeping preferred rates with three claims back to back to back on your policy.

By the way, if you don't believe us, go ahead and file your claims with your insurance company and see how it turns out.

After all, we are just strangers on the internet. We could all be wrong.

 

[Vance357]

Here's the answer from a retired claims adjuster. Your insurance company has NO, repeat NO, obligation to repaint your whole car. It will never happen.

Simple question. Do they or do they not have a legal obligation to put it back into pre loss condition?

If the paint doesn't match everything else, if I can tell something has been changed, then it is not in pre loss condition...

 

[fed up]

Answer...NO. They have an obligation to return your vehicle to 1999, not 2019. Since it is a Wrangler, be prepared for a level of disbelief over how the accident happened. Professor Burke does a great job in the Farmers commercial with the dogs and the cat on the car roof but Jeep Wrangler owners have a habit of driving offroad where scratches deeper than the clearcoat are more likely to occur. You may wind up with 2 At Fault collision claims. A wise adjuster once told me " Don't BS a Claims Adjuster" If they smaell a problem the claim can get turned over to SIU and then your troubles really start

 

[adjusterjack]

Do they or do they not have a legal obligation to put it back into pre loss condition?

Pre-Loss condition is a 20 year old Jeep with faded paint. If you want "betterment" you pay the difference.

As a matter of fact, your policy says that:

"Limit of Liability - C. If a repair or replacement results in better than like kind or quality, we will not pay for the amount of the betterment."

 

[fed up]

Hey Vance357, How did you make out with your Claim(S)? BTW, most bodyshops do not use OEM paint, they usually use something better like Dupont or House of Color. By adding or subtracting pigment you can match anything. If they have to use a spectrophotometer they will get an absolute breakdown of the make-up on the 99 Jeep as it sits, fade and all. That information is used to mix the paint before it is put in the paint gun

 

[VolAgent]

Hey Vance357, How did you make out with your Claim(S)? BTW, most bodyshops do not use OEM paint, they usually use something better like Dupont or House of Color. By adding or subtracting pigment you can match anything. If they have to use a spectrophotometer they will get an absolute breakdown of the make-up on the 99 Jeep as it sits, fade and all. That information is used to mix the paint before it is put in the paint gun

But I wanted a brandnew paint job on my 20 year old vehicle! That I think is worth more than it really is.

 

[BADTROUT]

But I wanted a brandnew paint job on my 20 year old vehicle! That I think is worth more than it really is.

Not with all them scratches and broke glass it aint.

 

[fed up]

A 99 Wrangler will sell for close to $6000 which is strange because they probably aren't worth that new. I've owned 4 Jeep products and I will NEVER own another. That aside, I get a kick out of people who ask for advice, suddenly become an expert, and won't listen or want to argue. The more thought I put into the OP, the more convinced I am that the vehicle was damaged off-road. When a customer tells me that they have paid for coverage for a long time and, by golly, they intend to get what they have been paying for I tend to not believe anything that has come out so far. I smoked a clutch doing an autocross and realized very quickly that stupidity has a cost. Even a brand new adjuster has heard enough stories to get the antennas up

 

[VolAgent]

A 99 Wrangler will sell for close to $6000 which is strange because they probably aren't worth that new. I've owned 4 Jeep products and I will NEVER own another. That aside, I get a kick out of people who ask for advice, suddenly become an expert, and won't listen or want to argue. The more thought I put into the OP, the more convinced I am that the vehicle was damaged off-road. When a customer tells me that they have paid for coverage for a long time and, by golly, they intend to get what they have been paying for I tend to not believe anything that has come out so far. I smoked a clutch doing an autocross and realized very quickly that stupidity has a cost. Even a brand new adjuster has heard enough stories to get the antennas up

Yeah, this was pretty funny. Came in asking for advice, but then suddenly was an expert and got very upset that people wouldn't agree with his interpretation. Beyond just wanting to be right, I never get this. So what if the forum agrees, you still need to get the claims adjuster to agree.