Previous Hail Damage

[edwards1983]

I bought a new hail damaged vehicle at a discount from a dealership. I don't believe I ever signed anything stating it did. The autocheck/carfax both come up clean. The vehicle needed a new hood,side fender, and the top of the truck. I replaced everything but the top of the truck with OEM items off craigslist. Six months and haven't had an issue.

I just finished a trip to Minnesota and was hailed on in almost the exact same spots. However, the back fender has a few dings along with the front door.

Driving back home today and I need to file a claim. Does my insurance company know I had previous hail damage on the car if carfax/autocheck came back clean? The reason I worry, it that I have no way of proving I replaced the items, other than trying to get a hold of the two people I bought the items from on craigslist.

What a mess, any help would be appreciated.

 

[USF3983]

If the previous damage didn't have a claim filed for it and it's not on the Carfax, then I can't imagine they would know. There might be other visual ways to determine if the damage is old perhaps.

Sometimes companies require the insured to have an inspection done on the car to be insured to make sure they aren't repairing damage that happened prior to them insuring the vehicle.

 

[Accelerated]

I bought a new hail damaged vehicle at a discount from a dealership. I don't believe I ever signed anything stating it did. The autocheck/carfax both come up clean. The vehicle needed a new hood,side fender, and the top of the truck. I replaced everything but the top of the truck with OEM items off craigslist. Six months and haven't had an issue.

I just finished a trip to Minnesota and was hailed on in almost the exact same spots. However, the back fender has a few dings along with the front door.

Driving back home today and I need to file a claim. Does my insurance company know I had previous hail damage on the car if carfax/autocheck came back clean? The reason I worry, it that I have no way of proving I replaced the items, other than trying to get a hold of the two people I bought the items from on craigslist.

What a mess, any help would be appreciated.

There is a good chance that the insurance carrier will be aware of the prior hail damage. If you cannot prove that the damage "in the exact same spots" (what are the odds of that?) was repaired, I could see it being difficult to convince the adjuster once they discover the damage previously existed.

If you ever have a question about "red flags" or suspicions being raised on an insurance claim, simply put yourself in the shoes of the person who will be writing the check and ask yourself these questions:
Would you white a check to cover the damage without additional investigation if the shoe were on the other foot?

If not, why?

What would you like to see to ease your suspicions and address the inconsistencies?

Once you address these simple issues, it makes pursuing a claim much easier for all parties. Insurance adjusters and carriers are quite reasonable, and if the claim is legitimate, you should have no problems.

 

[sarajones]

If the previous damage didn't have a claim filed for it and it's not on the Carfax, then I can't imagine they would know. There might be other visual ways to determine if the damage is old perhaps.

 

[benwrigh]

Be honest about it. You are committing insurance fraud if you conceal it. If they do find out, you could get in big trouble. Its not worth it...

 

[TKobis]

Seriously, it's never worth risking being accused of insurance fraud. The car dealer knows they sold you a car with hail damage and if that gets back to the insurance company in any way after you file a claim, you will be in a BAD situation.

So unless you go to the trouble of getting proof of all the parts you replaced, it's not worth the risk to file a claim. It doesn't matter whether you are telling the truth and the damage happened later... which sounds very far fetched by the way. Not saying you're a lair, just that it sounds far fetched and will sound that way to an insurance company.