Buying and living with a CAT S write off
Discussion
Anyone got experience of buying and living with a car that has been recorded as CAT S?
A car that has been professionally repaired has caught my eye.
If I buy it, I intend to keep it for a decade.
What ownership issues am I likely to experience?
Resale is not a Major concern for me. Insurance?
Am I mad for considering it?
A car that has been professionally repaired has caught my eye.
If I buy it, I intend to keep it for a decade.
What ownership issues am I likely to experience?
Resale is not a Major concern for me. Insurance?
Am I mad for considering it?
Short answer - I'd agree with the above post that resale is the biggest challenge if your confident in the repair.
Slightly expanded answer, especially if you plan on keeping it a decade, would be that even a repair that initially looks, and even maybe is, good, can cause issues down the line.
Not a Cat S, but about 8 years ago I had an accident in a black 2010 Astra. Driving on the motorway, back from Perth (Scotland), a deer ran out whilst I was doing c.70mph and hit the car. Hit the driver's side headlight and got dragged down the side of the car smashing in the driver's door. Luckily my wife and baby were ok (the deer not so much), and the car was repaired under insurance. Looked immaculate when I got it back and you'd have never known. Reputable body shop used.
Fast forward 5 years and the sill below the driver's door had rust problems, and the paint on the front bumper that had been replaced was basically gone (must have been really thin), leaving the exposed plastic.
Summary - just how confident are you in the repair.
Slightly expanded answer, especially if you plan on keeping it a decade, would be that even a repair that initially looks, and even maybe is, good, can cause issues down the line.
Not a Cat S, but about 8 years ago I had an accident in a black 2010 Astra. Driving on the motorway, back from Perth (Scotland), a deer ran out whilst I was doing c.70mph and hit the car. Hit the driver's side headlight and got dragged down the side of the car smashing in the driver's door. Luckily my wife and baby were ok (the deer not so much), and the car was repaired under insurance. Looked immaculate when I got it back and you'd have never known. Reputable body shop used.
Fast forward 5 years and the sill below the driver's door had rust problems, and the paint on the front bumper that had been replaced was basically gone (must have been really thin), leaving the exposed plastic.
Summary - just how confident are you in the repair.
As mentioned above, it depends on the extent of the repair and the quality of the repair.
Personally, my view would be dependant on how much cheaper the Cat S was than a non-Cat S vehicle, as we can all have the best intentions of keeping a car for 10 years and then all of a sudden our circumstances change and we need to sell it...
It would also depend on the age of it as an 'older' car can be written off with very little damage due to the cost of the replacement new parts and labour.
A couple of years ago my nephews Fiesta was hit on a roundabout, just a dent on the door, nothing structural, because of the age of the car - 12 years - although just 2 owners - him and his grandad, it was written off and he got the full pay out value, he also bought it back off them for £50, added a replacement 2nd hand door for £50 and carried on driving it for 2 more years... only slight issue was the insurance company valued the written off car as £0 if he had to make another claim on it...
Personally, my view would be dependant on how much cheaper the Cat S was than a non-Cat S vehicle, as we can all have the best intentions of keeping a car for 10 years and then all of a sudden our circumstances change and we need to sell it...
It would also depend on the age of it as an 'older' car can be written off with very little damage due to the cost of the replacement new parts and labour.
A couple of years ago my nephews Fiesta was hit on a roundabout, just a dent on the door, nothing structural, because of the age of the car - 12 years - although just 2 owners - him and his grandad, it was written off and he got the full pay out value, he also bought it back off them for £50, added a replacement 2nd hand door for £50 and carried on driving it for 2 more years... only slight issue was the insurance company valued the written off car as £0 if he had to make another claim on it...
I guess the other point here is are you looking at a car/spec that's particularly difficult to find undamaged? Is the price of the car reflective of the category status?
If I'm looking at a relatively low value vehicle that I'm going to run in to the ground then, following what the others have said above, I wouldn't care so much for category status if everything looked good and the repair was done to a good quality.
If looking at something higher value and/or difficult to maintain (something peculiar with limited spares) then I'd definitely be waiting for the right car, rather than settling for a Cat S.
If I'm looking at a relatively low value vehicle that I'm going to run in to the ground then, following what the others have said above, I wouldn't care so much for category status if everything looked good and the repair was done to a good quality.
If looking at something higher value and/or difficult to maintain (something peculiar with limited spares) then I'd definitely be waiting for the right car, rather than settling for a Cat S.
As per the above, there are two main things to consider -
Has it been professionally repaired? How do you know it has? Everyone says they've had the car professionally repaired, however the only way to save money by buying a salvage car and repairing it is by keeping the costs to a minimum - that could be not replacing / repairing unseeable items, repairing instead of replacing, fillering and blowing in instead of new panels, paintwork thats not done to manufacturers' warranty standard, using spurious second hand parts off scrap cars, using pattern fit parts instead of OEM parts.
Secondly, price. It needs to be notably cheaper. Not just a bit cheaper than another one down the road, but probably 20% cheaper than the lowest priced ones you can find on autotrader.
Has it been professionally repaired? How do you know it has? Everyone says they've had the car professionally repaired, however the only way to save money by buying a salvage car and repairing it is by keeping the costs to a minimum - that could be not replacing / repairing unseeable items, repairing instead of replacing, fillering and blowing in instead of new panels, paintwork thats not done to manufacturers' warranty standard, using spurious second hand parts off scrap cars, using pattern fit parts instead of OEM parts.
Secondly, price. It needs to be notably cheaper. Not just a bit cheaper than another one down the road, but probably 20% cheaper than the lowest priced ones you can find on autotrader.
ZX10R NIN said:
If the person you're buying it off was the original owner then that's a bonus because it means they wanted to keep the car, also if the current owner has had it a while it's normally a good sign.
Agreed. Far too many people doing it as a side line. Buying a salvage car, cheap repair, drive it a couple of months, rinse and repeat.Length of current ownership is a good way to filter that. Also, confirm what they're saying. People will lie like weasels about stuff like that.
Buyers should be aware that, in the event of a claim, insurers will reduce the payout for cars on the insurance register.
It is imperative to inform the insurers of the status when you insure the car. Some insurers will refuse to insure previously-recorded vehicles
That said, there's nothing wrong with a competently-repaired car. Some cars were Cat D merely due to stolen parts, paint damage, etc, and this drives down the value of the car. Whether it drives it down enough to outweigh the downsides depends on the car and your situation
It is imperative to inform the insurers of the status when you insure the car. Some insurers will refuse to insure previously-recorded vehicles
That said, there's nothing wrong with a competently-repaired car. Some cars were Cat D merely due to stolen parts, paint damage, etc, and this drives down the value of the car. Whether it drives it down enough to outweigh the downsides depends on the car and your situation
bolide said:
Buyers should be aware that, in the event of a claim, insurers will reduce the payout for cars on the insurance register.
It is imperative to inform the insurers of the status when you insure the car. Some insurers will refuse to insure previously-recorded vehicles
That said, there's nothing wrong with a competently-repaired car. Some cars were Cat D merely due to stolen parts, paint damage, etc, and this drives down the value of the car. Whether it drives it down enough to outweigh the downsides depends on the car and your situation
If they have an issue with it then they should have a question about it to answer. It is imperative to inform the insurers of the status when you insure the car. Some insurers will refuse to insure previously-recorded vehicles
That said, there's nothing wrong with a competently-repaired car. Some cars were Cat D merely due to stolen parts, paint damage, etc, and this drives down the value of the car. Whether it drives it down enough to outweigh the downsides depends on the car and your situation
Otherwise aside from the valuation of the car (which should be reflected in the price being paid for it hopefully) there won’t be an issue. I bought a CAT D CLK55 AMG because it had Keyless Entry & Kleeman Cams, I kept it for a few years until I found a last of the line 55 so I sold it.
It had taken a hit down the drivers side which meant a new wing/door & rear quarter the guy had bought it back from the insurance company & then had it repaired, he also had photos of the repairs being done (the panel gaps were spot on, as well as reciepts from Mercedes for the panels) which made it a no brainer for me.
He'd kept it three years after having it repaired, I also bought my SL55 AMG as a CAT S because I wanted to facelift one (SL63 front & rear end) that was an epic car that I bought back three times.
I got great money for both but they were both modified & appealed to a certain market, also owning them for a good few years & having binders of receipts as well of photos helped them sell pretty quickly but they're the exception rather than the rule.
The current owners of both are happy, I'd still buy the SL55 back as that engine (703.1 at the crank) is epic.
It had taken a hit down the drivers side which meant a new wing/door & rear quarter the guy had bought it back from the insurance company & then had it repaired, he also had photos of the repairs being done (the panel gaps were spot on, as well as reciepts from Mercedes for the panels) which made it a no brainer for me.
He'd kept it three years after having it repaired, I also bought my SL55 AMG as a CAT S because I wanted to facelift one (SL63 front & rear end) that was an epic car that I bought back three times.
I got great money for both but they were both modified & appealed to a certain market, also owning them for a good few years & having binders of receipts as well of photos helped them sell pretty quickly but they're the exception rather than the rule.
The current owners of both are happy, I'd still buy the SL55 back as that engine (703.1 at the crank) is epic.
If you can find the details of what's been damaged, and it's been repaired appropriately, then I'd not hesitate to buy a Cat.S if you weren't fussed about re-sale value.
Write-off categories are based on the repair cost vs original value, so some cars can end up as a Cat.S even just for simple damage like a front wing/bonnet etc if they're lowish value.
Write-off categories are based on the repair cost vs original value, so some cars can end up as a Cat.S even just for simple damage like a front wing/bonnet etc if they're lowish value.
Krikkit said:
If you can find the details of what's been damaged, and it's been repaired appropriately, then I'd not hesitate to buy a Cat.S if you weren't fussed about re-sale value.
Write-off categories are based on the repair cost vs original value, so some cars can end up as a Cat.S even just for simple damage like a front wing/bonnet etc if they're lowish value.
The latter part is true for Cat C/D but, in general/theory is not true for N/S - the claim cost of two identical cars categorised N and S could be the same. The type of damage done is what determines N/S. Write-off categories are based on the repair cost vs original value, so some cars can end up as a Cat.S even just for simple damage like a front wing/bonnet etc if they're lowish value.
I’m aware this won’t be 100% reliable/only as good as the insurer/assessor etc.
georgeyboy12345 said:
Lots of sage advice here as to be expected, but has anyone ever taken the plunge and bought and kept a Cat S car long term?
To be honest i think the checking of the cars state of repair and the price are key.As a long term keeper i cant see any difference between that and a non Cat car.
I now have all the details of the accident, the damage, the repairs and all the work done.
The car is around 25% cheaper than equivalent full price non damaged (but have yet to negotiate so intend to get further if possible).
I’ll be taking a damn good look as it’s still a fairly substantial cost (to me at least perhaps not go you,)
And will get it throughly checked. If anything smells, will abort.
The car is around 25% cheaper than equivalent full price non damaged (but have yet to negotiate so intend to get further if possible).
I’ll be taking a damn good look as it’s still a fairly substantial cost (to me at least perhaps not go you,)
And will get it throughly checked. If anything smells, will abort.
TTmonkey said:
I’ll be taking a damn good look as it’s still a fairly substantial cost (to me at least perhaps not go you,)
This last comment of yours would set alarm bells ringing if that was me. If I was putting a substantial amount of my money in to a vehicle then I'd like to know that I can, if necessary, sell the car relatively easily to recoup cash in case I needed it for other things. Obviously if it's just your choice of words and you'd still have cash or investments elsewhere that you could liquidate then the above is irrelevant.
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