Reckon this is a write off? Any advice?

[james_zy]

A few weeks back someone drove into my beloved Z4 coupe which was parked at the time. The damage was to the rear 3/4 - they clipped the rear wheel which has clearly bent some suspension components out of shape (see pic). The car was shunted forward as a result, with their car taking most of the impact.

Their insurer, More Than, have accepted full fault here. They have sent Hoopers, a crash assessor, to where the car is being stored. Hoopers have performed an assessment. As part of this, they didn’t get the car lifted up or wheel taken off, but reckon it would cost £7,000 to fix. This seems unlikely to me (given the suspension components are shared with the E46 and widely available). I would have thought more like £2-3k depending on what needs replacing. I shared the photo with Chartwells, a crash repair shop in Derby who are recommended here, and they thought around £4k.

I’m obviously not trying to get an exact £ assessment online, instead would be great to know any advice here on what to do. Ideally I’d like to get the vehicle properly assessed (I.e. up on a ramp to actually see what needs to be replaced).

Should I be arranging for a local body shop (e.g Chartwells) to view it? Has anyone had experience here in what’s best to do? Am concerned the Hoopers report is a finger in the air guess given they haven’t examined which components are broken.

Obviously car can’t be moved - it’s currently in Derby, I live in London.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Can’t stand the thought of it being written off when it’s in otherwise excellent condition (just had suspension and brake overhaul), I’d planned on keeping it for the next 5+ years.

[paintman]

You need to bear in mind that insurance companies estimates will be for new replacement parts/panels which are genuine manufacturers items at manufacturer's recommended retail prices.
They will have no interest in shopping around for pattern parts or good used items.

It MIGHT be in your interest to accept a payout on the basis that you are allowed to retain the damaged vehicle. You can then arrange for your own repairs.
Done this a couple of times with family cars - one of them twice - and the original insurers had no issue insuring the same cars with no increase in premiums.

Edited by paintman on Tuesday 1st November 18:40

[james_zy]

Thanks paintman.

I guess my worry is if I go down that route, I don’t know exactly what is broken. If the sub frame is damaged, it would be much more expensive (and I probs wouldn’t want it back given other damage might be present).

Should I be getting to a crash garage for proper assessment?

[Blanco92]

No harm in taking it to Chartwells.

However to put some numbers into it the buy-back option. When I bought my car back from the insurance it cost me approx 15% of the payout. Would expect it would cost you this +/- 5%.

For me, repairing with a combination of quality second hand and aftermarket parts it was worth it.

[tgr]

Have you investigated how much a replacement would cost? There is a lot of emotion wrapped up in cars, but if you can get a decent payout which would buy a replacement it could be an option.

If you are intent on buying the car back and repairing it, you need to be certain it can be repaired perfectly and cost effectively, which may be difficult to ascertain, leaving you with a risk.

Having had it happen to me, and spoiling the experience of the poorly mended car, I would be a little wary of it souring the experience